Episode #195 - Wes Delks Shoots a Giant and Crossbow Controversy

Published: 2023-11-12
Episode page
Duration: 92 min

In this episode

antler-growth

• Terry notes that Babe’s antler score actually declined between age five and six, unlike most bucks that add inches. 21:15
• Zach Hoffman from Shawnee, Kansas asks how to evaluate a buck’s rack to predict next year’s score, and the biggest single-year antler jump Don has seen. 19:11

apple-varieties

• Jay Gingerich will join next week’s episode to talk about marketing new apple varieties he developed with partners. 90:31

asio-feature

• Dale Miller from Ohio was this week’s ASIO feature hunter with a typical 10-point buck. 13:21

buck-mortality

• Clinton McCullough asks whether more deer die from hunting or natural causes like car accidents, and what the ratio might be. 24:41

chris-yates

• Terry wishes Chris Yates a belated birthday and notes he’s been busy opening more stores and dealerships in the Kansas City area. 87:12
• Chris Yates says the auto worker strike has likely ended the $5,000 truck trade-in deal due to inventory shortages. 87:36

consulting

• Don shared a photo of an Iowa consulting client whose buck stood and behaved exactly as Don had predicted before the shot. 34:22

crossbow

• Terry describes shooting a coyote at about 60 yards with his crossbow off a monopod while sharing a blind with Don. 84:26

crossbow-debate

• Terry recalls Don repeatedly telling him that hunting ethics come down to what’s in your heart, not the weapon in your hand. 85:12
• John Lawden asks why Illinois hunting quality declined over ten to fifteen years despite similar archery numbers and far fewer gun-killed deer. 49:50

faith

• Terry believes God placed a younger man in their lives at the right time to help steer major business and personal decisions. 12:24

family

• Don shares that his daughter is battling cancer and that podcast listeners regularly reach out to check on her. 89:26

harvest-news

• Wes Delks texted the group that he shot a giant target buck, accomplishing a tough-time-of-year feat. 9:40

harvest-photos

• Don urges hunters to take deer pictures with class, displaying the animal respectfully instead of as a bloody mess. 16:42
• Terry only shares hunter-submitted photos with Real World Whitetail if they are respectful and tasteful, regardless of the buck’s size. 17:19

hunting-regulations

• Ty Miller predicted his son will live to see legalized night hunting, reflecting concern that regulations keep making hunting easier. 76:27

illinois-dnr

• Don recounts that after Illinois’ pioneering biologists retired, they were replaced by Paul Shelton, a former Tennessee waterfowl biologist. 59:19

joe-rogan

• Terry announces Don was quoted on the Joe Rogan show around November 8th or 9th regarding a stance he took on another podcast. 18:29

poaching

• Don reports that road signs near his property were recently shot up with bullets, warning the local vandals that they’re under surveillance. 38:47
• Don says he found three deadheads last year, young three to four year old bucks that were poached at night by trespassers he suspects are the same vandals. 39:14

podcast-production

• The hosts announce they are testing a new podcast recording platform this episode and ask listeners for patience if problems occur. 1:00
• The hosts explain they are trying to improve video and audio quality for the benefit of listeners who tune in to the podcast. 1:25

property-management

• Don says owning property is a big advantage because it lets a hunter shape the land so bucks bed exactly where wanted. 30:50

rattling

• Don believes for every buck successfully rattled in, roughly ten others are spooked and educated instead. 6:39

rut

• Don calls the rut the ‘great equalizer,’ since it gives every deer hunter roughly an equal chance to shoot a giant buck. 8:21
• Mike Skinner once told Don that during the rut you can kill a good buck from any tree in the woods if you’re there on the right day. 8:45

rut-behavior

• Don theorizes that during lockdown, bucks chase does away from the rest of the herd to have them alone in remote areas. 5:13
• Don says other bucks often catch wind of an isolated doe before the lead buck gets her alone, resulting in three or four bucks together with one doe. 5:26

rut-report

• Don spent an entire day in his tree stand without seeing a single deer, the first time that has happened in his life. 3:02
• Don’s cameras showed activity shutting off around 8am with no midday movement and no mature buck movement for several days during the lockdown phase. 3:28

stand-placement

• Larry Lehman asks what Don looks for when deciding where to hang a stand on a new hunting property. 26:41

stand-timing

• Jayden Stall asks whether arriving ninety minutes before daylight, rather than twenty, improves the odds of seeing deer after spooking one. 42:10

trail-cameras

• Don runs cell trail cameras across three states — Iowa, Illinois, and Ohio — to track deer movement. 3:11

wes-delks

• Don says he would not hesitate to climb into a tree stand hung by Wes Delks, a rare compliment he gives few people. 11:20

Deer activity

• unnamed buck (harvest) 11:53
• unnamed buck (harvest) 13:21
• male (history) 20:31
• Smokey (harvest) 21:25
• Babe (history) 22:02
• unnamed buck (trail-camera) 28:29
• unnamed buck (harvest) 34:22

Listener questions

Question: Zach Hoffman from Shawnee, Kansas asks how to evaluate a buck’s rack to predict next year’s score, and the biggest single-year antler jump Don has seen. 19:11 — asked by Zach Hoffman

• Answer: Don says there is no way to know how a buck’s rack will develop from one year to the next. 19:54
• Answer: Don’s biggest observed jump was a buck he calls Male, scoring roughly 160 at age two and 216 at age three based on shed evidence. 20:31

Question: Clinton McCullough asks whether more deer die from hunting or natural causes like car accidents, and what the ratio might be. 24:41 — asked by Clinton McCullough

• Answer: Don doesn’t know the exact ratio but believes hunting pressure, not natural causes, is the main reason few bucks reach maturity. 25:24

Question: Larry Lehman asks what Don looks for when deciding where to hang a stand on a new hunting property. 26:41 — asked by Larry Lehman

• Answer: Don’s first priority on a new property is determining whether and where mature bucks are bedding. 27:26
• Answer: Don wants his stand on the downwind edge of thick bedding cover, ideally where terrain funnels deer to that edge. 29:25

Question: Jayden Stall asks whether arriving ninety minutes before daylight, rather than twenty, improves the odds of seeing deer after spooking one. 42:10 — asked by Jayden Stall

• Answer: Don typically arrives at his stand only fifteen to twenty minutes before shooting light. 42:53
• Answer: Don doesn’t think arriving ninety minutes early is worth it, since a spooked deer rarely returns in time to be seen at daylight. 43:22

Question: John Lawden asks why Illinois hunting quality declined over ten to fifteen years despite similar archery numbers and far fewer gun-killed deer. 49:50 — asked by John Lawden

• Answer: Don explains Illinois’ pioneering biologists first allowed either-sex harvest and county-by-county management, building the nation’s best deer herd. 54:04
• Answer: Illinois’ deer harvest peaked at over 200,000 in 2005, after which regulatory changes drove herd size and buck quality down. 56:38
• Answer: Don concludes the crossbow wasn’t the sole cause but was the final blow after earlier regulation changes had already eroded herd quality. 64:10

Sponsors this episode

• Brenton USA

The hosts piloted a new recording platform for better audio and video, then Don described a rare all-day sit without seeing a deer and shared cell-camera data across Iowa, Illinois, and Ohio showing lockdown-phase activity dying off with no midday or mature-buck movement. He theorized bucks isolate does away from the herd, though rival bucks often intrude, and called the rut the ‘great equalizer,’ echoing advice Mike Skinner once gave him. Wes Delks texted news of a big buck kill, earning praise from Don. Ohio’s Dale Miller was the featured hunter. Don discussed vandals shooting up his property signs and poached deadheads, and traced Illinois’ declining herd quality back through biologist Paul Shelton’s regulation changes to a 2005 harvest peak. Listener questions covered predicting antler growth, hunting-versus-natural mortality, stand placement near bedding cover, and pre-dawn arrival timing. Don also mentioned his daughter’s cancer battle.

Unofficial fan project. AI-synthesized from public episodes; may contain errors.