Brave Eagles Hunt with Antique Brownings!

Shooting Hoops for a Good Cause!

2012-02-28T08:59:00.000-05:00

Monday February 27, 2012- AP Report

The Harlem Ambassadors took there show on the road to a small South Georgia town with historic roots on Monday night. The Ambassadors are a traveling show basketball team made up of college graduates who share a love for basketball and children. Their opponent on this evening was none other than our very own Fitzgerald Pioneers All Stars. The Pioneer team was made up of fearless community leaders, businessmen, educators and even Fitzgerald's own Mayor, who have graciously given of their time and money for a chance to be on the court with basketball royalty. The game was played in the Fitzgerald High School gymnasium and was for the benefit of the Fitzgerald/Ben Hill County Boys and Girls Club.

The game began with a fast paced first quarter that quickly erased any hopes of the home team having a chance to pull off an upset victory. The Ambassadors took to the skies as they threw down dunks from high in the rafters and displayed bulls eye like accuracy from the three point line. The Pioneers did however manage to score a few points and played the role of good sports as the Ambassadors used the Pioneers as props to bring delight to the children that were present among the large crowd.

The second quarter was a little slower paced and defense went out the window. The Pioneers took the opportunity to showcase some fine basketball skills with Fitzgerald's Mayor leading the scoring and the pace. Half time came at the right time as our local heroes were in bad need of a rest.

The third quarter started with yet another onslaught of air walking dunking displays by the Ambassadors, and although the Pioneers had been given 30 points to start the quarter, it really didn't matter! The route was on.

The game enjoyed a slower pace in the 4th as the game turned into a show for the kids and the crowd. The Ambassadors were complete professionals and the Pioneers proved to be very willing to help with the show. All in all it was a very good game and the hometown boys did the best they could. The real winners of this game were the young men and women of the Boys and Girls Club. Thank you Ambassadors for helping us with this great cause!- AP

The Pioneers used this point guard tandem to begin the 2nd half. It was thought that the lights from the gym might reflect off of their domes and blind their opponent. It didn't work! (Pioneer Players Trey "Bounce Pass" Luckie and Hal "Swish" Wiley)

I was really glad to help with this cause. We had a great time and the Ambassadors are a class act! The sore knee that I am dealing with this morning is very worth it! I am looking for the person that took the picture of me being dunked on for my poster! Copies will be for sale on this site! :)

2012 Pinewood Derby Race- Oh What A Night!

2012-02-16T10:40:00.000-05:00

The "Under Armour" Car

The anticipation has been building for weeks. The young men that make up the First Baptist Church Royal Ambassadors (RA's) group have been looking forward to this night ever since the last race was run in 2011. The annual RA Racer Pinewood Derby is a big event for our kids and their families. It is our goal that every kid will enjoy this racing experience and show good sportsmanship. It is also a special time for son and father to work together preparing the cars by shaping, sanding and painting these little works of art.

We have a large group of boys this year and more that a few of them have VERY competitive fathers. Race shops have been opened all across Ben Hill County this year with the hopes of knocking off last years champ. "The Beast" car was last year's Car of the Year and hails from the Cook Racing Team. The Cook team proudly boast two Car of the Year trophies and the bulls eye has been placed squarely on their back. Plots were laid thick and the Internet pinewood derby sites have received a record number of hits over the past month with the FBC crew looking for ways to make their car lightning quick.

Reid and I were entering our second year of competition. Some of you may remember that our car was built for looks last year. We went with a Georgia Southern Eagle design that proved to be nice looking and won two design trophies, but we were terrible on the tract. Last years overall record....1 and 8. I was determined to try and improve on that record. Reid and I discussed several different design ideas and we actually built three different cars. (I like to spend time in the shop keeping busy and it's kind of fun making these things) He decided on the car that you see at the top of this post. He named it the "Under Armour Car". It is a low profile design that I copied off of one of the many pinewood web sites. The weight for the car is loaded into the rear with cylinder weights. The paint job is a black with gold and red over spray to give it a metallic look under the lights. It was a fun car to build and Reid was really a very good helper every step of the way including sanding, painting and keeping me company while I ran the power tools. I felt good about our design and all of the things we had done to the car. It was time to race!

The Lads- Grades 1-3

The Crusaders- Grades 4-6

After the official weigh in, the cars were judged for artwork and also for best aerodynamic design.

The boys waiting on the Races to begin!

Reid and his best friend Taylor

We set up the brackets for the two races. The Lads race in one heat, while the Crusaders race in another. We determine a winner in both classes by having a double elimination style tournament. We crown a first and second place winner in each heat. We then bring all the cars together to race in one big event. The winner of this double elimination event gets the opportunity to race against last year's Car of the Year. If victory is obtained, then the new Car of the Year is displayed in a glass case in the RA room until next years race. All the boys want their car in that box!

Reid drew a bye in the first round and had to watch several cars run before he got his first opportunity. He beat what I considered to be a fast car, so I knew we had a chance to be pretty good. You can see his first race here. The Under Armour car is in lane #2, which is the lane closest to the camera. We win this race with a late push on the straight away.

This race will give you a little better idea of just how fast Reid's car really was. The car he defeats in this race won several races. He wins this race by almost a full car length. We are again in lane #2.

So we made it to the finals in the Lads division. We were undefeated and going up against a car that we placed into the losers bracket just a few races earlier. The other car would have to beat us twice to claim the prize. This happens more than you think because some cars get faster the more that they race. But today was Reid's day. He blistered down the tract to claim victory and the Lad title was his! A perfect 4 for 4.

Now the big race was up next. We won our first two races with ease but drew a battle that Reid was not looking forward to in our third race. We were going up against a legend. A two time Car of the Year winner from Cook Racing was our next opponent and my little man was a bit nervous. He didn't say much to me as I placed his car on the track. He walked to the other end of the track with a look of dread on his face. The look was quickly replaced with one of relief as The Under Armour continued its winning ways. We went on the the final round. Again, we would have to be defeated twice. It didn't happen as we won the race going away. Reid earned the right to race "The Beast" and a chance to become the next Car of the Year!

I think he was sweating he was so nervous. I have to admit that I had some butterflies as well, but I knew that history was on our side. There has never been a repeat Car of the Year winner. This is probably due to the fact that the car hasn't been run in a year and that the other cars going against it are running at full warmed up speed. The boys are hushed as "The Beast" is pulled from its perch in the glass box. The legend is placed on the track in the lane next to the new comer. It's "The Beast" versus "The Under Armour" for all the marbles!

We smoked 'em! The Under Armour PROTECTED THIS HOUSE! Reid finished a perfect 9 for 9 in the 2012 FBC RA derby race! I was one proud Daddy and words cannot express how I felt when I put my son to bed last night and he hugged me and said "Thanks for building my car Daddy, you're the best!"

That was the only trophy I needed!!

Please do not take my "Man Card"!

2012-02-14T08:45:00.001-05:00

I know that I am putting myself out there by admitting this, and that my "Man" card could be in jeopardy, but I confess that I look forward to watching the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show every year. Now, do I think all of this parading around with with overly groomed snooty dogs on short leashes by plus sized handlers is a manly thing? Hell no! I think it is down right stupid, but I am a dog lover and I enjoy seeing a beautiful bird dog on the TV screen flowing across the carpet of Madison Square Garden. I also enjoy seeing just how many different breeds of dogs there are out there and learning exactly what they were bred to do. Granted most of them are living a pampered life and not doing those things, but its knowledge that I enjoy learning. So take my card if you must, but just hear me out on what I think the Westminster folks should do to give us a really well deserved "Best in Show"!

The judging in all of these dogs shows is based upon the breeds standards. Take the Beagle for example. The Beagle is supposed to be between 13" and 15" high, with a squared off head and the proper muscle tone with a good stance and proud gate (cough, BS, cough). Some judge can determine if this Beagle is better put together than this Beagle by using these standards. They pick the best Beagle out of them all and then put him up against the best Hounds that have also won their breed. Then another judge tells you the best hound out of them all by placing their hands on them for about 30 seconds and watching them run around the ring. This goes on for all seven classes of dogs including Sporting, Herding, Terrier, Toy, Hound, Non-working or Non-Sporting, and Working. Then the best from each group go up against each other and yet another judge tells you which one of those dogs is the "Best in Show"! What a load of crap! You can't tell me that this thing does not get political.

So how would I fix it? Easy. Let's start with the Toy Group. They're out! Gone! See ya! By! It's just a bunch of lap dogs that really serve no purpose but to be there for their owner to carry in their pocket book.

The Non- Working (or what I think they now call the Non-Sporting for political purposes) group can hang around I guess. Only because the Bulldog and the Dalmatian are in this group, although I believe the Dalmatian is wrongly classed. Guarding Budweiser on the back of a horse drawn carriage seems like work to me.

The Terrier group would be led to a large pile of dirt in the middle of the show room. Some type of small rodent would be deposited into one of the many tunnels made into the large pile of dirt. The first Terrier to come out of that pile with the rodent wins. As long as his hair isn't a mess and his teeth have remained clean.

The Herding Group would be introduced to a variety of livestock and be asked to live up to its name. If the Sheep dog goes after a goat, then he is out. Same for other breeds that do not herd the right animal. The dog with the most critters in the correct pen wins!

The Working group will have to demonstrate a desire to work for little pay and long hours. They will be required to give half of their earnings to help support the Non-Working group. The first dog that stands up and says that he will not sacrifice his earning for the sake of others wins!

The Hounds will be a little more fun! They will be lined up on both sides of the ring. One raccoon, one rabbit, one fox and one wolf will be let out of a cage in the middle of all of the hounds. First they must chase the proper prey. No wolf hounds chasing rabbits! No coon dogs chasing foxes and so on. Hopefully all of the Grey Hounds and what not will just run on out of the building chasing a lone rabbit named "Lucky" (betting is permitted) allowing the Beagles to do their job chasing the real rabbits. The fox hounds may not know how to act without a man on a horse in a funny looking outfit, so they will probably be done before they even start. The coon dog with the prettiest howl will be determined the winner, as long as he treed his coon in the building rafters. Who doesn't just love a pretty little Blue Tick?

Last but not least will be the Sporting group. Once again all Sportsmen will be lined on both sides of the ring. The Cockers have already peed on the floor and have been asked to please go and join the Toy group. A single tennis ball will be rolled across the green carpet. Any dog breaking to retrieve said tennis ball without proper permission from its Orvis endorsed handler will automatically be disqualified. The Sportsman will be placed through a number of live bird retrieving, flushing, and pointing trials. He with the most birds wins!

All of the winners will then be brought together for final judging. These great champions are all winners in my book, but only one of these fine companions can be crowned "Best in Show". That honor will always go to....

The Boykin Spaniel!

Why is that? Because Josey says so!!

Now that would be a dog show!! Can I keep my "Man" card now?

A Bad Case of the Wants!

2012-02-06T13:19:00.001-05:00

My very first vehicle was a 1972 Ford Bronco! It was a half cab model that my Dad paid $2,000 for in 1987. I have since owed and restored two more Broncos, which I posted about in an earlier blog post that you can review here. I won't rehash all of the details, but at the present time I do not have a Bronco under my garage. They are awfully fun vehicles to work on and play with, but they can also be very expensive. Here are some pictures of the Bronco's that I have owned.

1972 1/2 cab. Total project cost- $4,500 (est)

1976 Sport- Total project cost- $8,500 (est)

1976 Ranger- Total project cost- $15,500

As you can see, the project cost increased with each Bronco that I restored. The first one was restored in 1987, while the last one was restored in 2002. Today's prices are even higher. Good luck in finding a Bronco that doesn't need a lot of work, and if you do you can expect to pay a pretty penny to bring her home. Being a family man with a wife and two children, does not make it very practical to own such an expensive hobby right now!

I'm writing all of this to tell you that the Ford Bronco has a special place in my heart and will always be my dream vehicle. I have often joked that if I won the lottery or came into a bunch of money by some other means, that I would buy another Bronco and spare no expense making it exactly what I wanted it to be. Well, the other day I stumbled upon exactly what I would consider to be the perfect Bronco and the one Bronco that I would purchase if I had unlimited funds. Let me introduce you to the ICON Bronco!

Icon 4x4 is a company based out of California that specializes in the re-construction of classic 4x4 vehicles. They have made Jeeps, FJ's and are now trying their hand at the "iconic" Ford Bronco. What makes this thing so special? They have taken the body and styling of the classic Ford Bronco and put it on steroids! Everything has been redesigned and built to be way better than the original. It has a whole new suspension package and the hood is stuffed with Ford's 5.0 liter Mustang motor.

Even the interior got a face lift with modern A/C and features!

This is a vehicle that can be driven as a daily driver, but can also perform in any off-road condition. I can see myself in one of these!

So what does one of these little beauties cost? Depends on the color that you want and which features that you choose to include in the base package. They pre-sold the first 10 models in order to have money for research and development, so there is about a two year waiting list before you can actually sign the title. If you can stand the wait, then you can own this Bronco of your dreams for only....

$150,000.

Who says you can't put a price on your dreams!!

Start Your Engines...Pinewood Derby Style!

2012-01-30T14:17:00.000-05:00

There is just something about building a Pinewood Derby car that I really enjoy. It allows me to keep my over active mind on something while at the same time spending precious moments with my 8 year old son. I enjoy talking with him about car designs, names, and paint schemes. We cut out designs, sand them into shape and hopefully build a car that he is proud of when we are finished. Reid is in his second year of Royal Ambassadors (RA's) and this will be our second race in which are competing. We won two design trophies last year, with his Georgia Southern themed Eagle car, but were beaten handily on the tract by much faster cars.

This year we have decided to try and build for speed, without giving up the design phase that we also enjoy. Being the kind of person that I am with a motor that never stops, I currently have three different cars for him to choose from that are completed and ready to go. He has helped with each one and I kept his attention long enough during the sanding and painting stages that he didn't even ask to go play video games. Why would I build three different cars at one time? Why not??? I think it's a blast and after we race, Reid will have a stable full of cars to play with.

So how do you build a fast car that also looks good? I'm still not real sure, and my confidence is running fairly low on the "speed" issue due to our last year's performance. I mean I know all of the things that you are supposed to do in order to make your car fast, I'm just not sure if they are going to work for us. I have seen a lot of winning cars go down the track in the past few years and some have been tweaked to perfection, while others have been bone stock with just a little graphite on the tires. Some have been well designed with great paint jobs, while others are just short of ugly. I just want to help Reid build a car that he can be proud of whether he decides he wants a speed demon or a trailer queen. So he has some choices...

Built for speed with precise weighting and balance, or...

something a little more stylish!!!

So to get ready for the race that will take place in two weeks, I will be in the shop polishing axles, sanding wheels, moving weights into the correct position and answering the many questions that will come from my son. I will be giving a full report on the race in the coming weeks and I will let you know which car Reid decided to take to the competition. We really do have a great time with all of the boys at this race, and as one of the RA leaders I wish them all the best of luck, but deep down I'm the competitive sort and would love nothing more than for Reid to win the grand prize! He deserves it because he has worked hard on his car and has spent time in the shop with me, which means I have already won my grand prize! One I'll take every year!!

Let's get a sweep for the family!! Race on son!

Pie Safe Finished!

2012-01-17T07:57:00.001-05:00

We have gone from this......

....to this!

Ms. Kay's pie safe really turned out to be a nice looking piece. It has a great deal of character and those that have seen it up close keep telling me that it is really unique and very beautiful. Of course since I have been very up close and personal with this safe over the past month, I tend to see every flaw that it has instead of enjoying what it brings to the table. I'm sure there is a life lesson in there somewhere. Surely each of us could do a better job of seeing a person's real beauty instead of focusing on flaws in each other.

This piece of furniture has many flaws. The doors do not line up straight. The handles are not evenly spaced. It has scars of blue paint that will never be removed and holes that can not be repaired. However, in a lot of ways this pie safe is perfect. It sits very sturdy. It's shelves on the inside are strong and straight. It's doors do not squeak when they open and it wears the blue streaks of it's past with a sort of pride as if to say "this is where I have been, but I'm still here serving a meaningful purpose!"

Yep, I do believe this pie safe is indeed very beautiful. Inside and out!

Isn't that what really matters?

Yotes Beware!

2012-01-15T21:10:00.002-05:00

The final day of deer season for the 2011-2012 year found us with a bit of desperation hanging over us. My Dad and I have waited around and let many deer walk this season forgetting that we needed to put some meat in the freezer. We figured we could just walk on out to the club and take the first doe that came along on just about any afternoon. Well the deer were not cooperating with our plans. It is legal to feed deer in Georgia and our deer have gotten into the habit of coming to the feeder soon after it goes off. For the past two days no deer were coming to the feeder on our #1 doe stand. Tonight we found out why.

Pictured above is a very large coyote that my Dad took with his Thompson Center .308, shortly after this predator cruised right under the feeder looking for an easy meal. We have been hearing these coyotes all season and tonight one finally showed itself. It was not exactly what my Dad was after on his final deer hunt, but it did make for a pretty picture.

Reid and I were on the other side of the club taking care of a little business of our own while Dad was managing our predator population. We were lucky enough to take about a 140 pound doe with only 30 minutes of shooting light left in our season. The freezer will once again be full.

I am going on record as of right now that all coyotes have been forewarned. The game call is charging and my varmint rifle is sighted in and ready. I have been educating myself on the practice of calling in predators and I have nothing but time on my hands until turkey season. Its time to take down some of these deer and turkey killers and I plan on doing just that.

I look forward to blogging about some yote hunting success! Stay tuned!

I'm just a small time celebrity!

2012-01-12T07:58:00.000-05:00

I had someone tell me that they had seen my picture in a magazine recently. He was a customer of mine who has a place on the coast in North Florida. He picked up a copy of Rifle and Rod magazine while traveling through Bainbridge, GA. Rifle and Rod is a Southern Georgia/Northern Florida publication that covers anything from fishing on the coast to hunting in a pine thicket. We do not ever see this magazine here in Fitzgerald, so I didn't even know it existed.

I asked my customer if he was sure it was me because I could not figure out for the life of me why I would be in a magazine. He said it listed my name under a picture along with my three cousins. The story was about a goose hunt. I knew right then who to call.

My cousin Beau is a water fowling nut! If the story was about goose hunting then I knew he had been up to something. I called him to ask about the magazine and the picture. Turns out the author of the article was a friend of his and asked Beau if he would contribute some quotes about goose hunting in South Georgia and a couple of pictures. He was happy to do so and submitted a picture that he stole from my blog. The rest is history.

The Luckie boys! Leigh, Zach, Trey and Beau

You can actually check out the magazine by following this link. Click on the Winter edition on the bottom right of the page. You can then turn to page 10 to see the article. If you would like an autograph I will be glad to send you one free of charge.

Duckman, being a celebrity....it's how I roll.

Pie Safe part 3

2012-01-11T09:42:00.000-05:00

Ms. Kay's pie safe is starting to shape up. I have now finished sanding all of the cabinet and applied stain. It is waiting on a coat of finish to give it some protection and give it a little shine. This safe has not been very kind to me. You can see in some of the pictures that the blue paint decided it just wasn't going to let go of this wood. It didn't matter how much I sanded or pleaded with it. For that reason, I went with a darker shade of stain than I usually would. It did a pretty good job of masking some of the imperfections, but not all of them.

There is good news however. This piece will have its back to a wall, therefore covering up most of the blue paint that soaked in, and it will not be under a spotlight like it is with the flash from my camera. I am also one of those people that probably look at a piece of furniture too closely. The average person will see this piece and not see the flaws that I do. The other good news is that Ms. Kay said that she doesn't need it to look brand new. She likes a bit of a distressed look. She should be pleased. Enjoy the pictures.

You can see some of the blue paint in the grain of the wood on this side. It's really not that bad in regular light.

This side was cleaner

Lot of blue paint, but will be against the wall

I presently have the doors taken off of the cabinet and have already stripped one of them. The good news is that all of the paint came off and I shouldn't have any "blue" problems. I am looking for new hinges and knobs to complete the look that the customer wants. I still have a lot of work to do, but I can see the finish line ahead.

Last Day Dove Hunt!

2012-01-07T18:26:00.001-05:00

Farm owner Kenny B. starts preparing the last day feast

The last day of dove season here in South Georgia came today, and with it came the feeling of sadness that I always feel when the season is over. I decided to take a little different approach with this blog post and not only show you the hunting from the last day, but also show you exactly how us good old folks here in South Georgia enjoy the gathering of good friends as we take advantage of the hunting privileges that we freely enjoy.

The grill was fired up at about 10:30 this morning and the meat was prepared for cooking. The menu included Boston butts, sausage, deer back strap, chicken, smoked ham and dove poppers.

Dove poppers are a local favorite. Dove breast, peppers and cream cheese wrapped in bacon.

The finished product after about 20 minutes on the grill. These babies didn't last long with this crowd.

Everyone gathered up at the barn around lunch time and told lies while they ate more than they should. In this crowd you can find farmers, bankers, salesmen, teachers, business owners and just about anything in between. Even the kids are invited. They keep themselves entertained before the hunt by playing video games, climbing on farm equipment or shooting their BB guns at tin cans.

The time finally comes for everyone to make their way to their way to the field. Dogs are loaded into pick ups, ATVs and golf carts. Stands are placed on peanut hay bails and everyone waits on our little grey winged guest to show. The fun begins with the first shot of the afternoon.

I put Reid on the camera in hopes of getting video of Josey on a retrieve. Here is our best effort.

After the hunt, we gathered back up at the barn and surveyed the day's damage. And yes, we did eat again! :) It was not the best shoot that I have been on, but we had a great time and killed enough to make a mess to eat. Included in our bounty was two Ring Necked Doves or Collared Doves. These are light grey doves that are larger than our traditional Morning Doves that we usually shoot. They are very pretty and have a black collar around their necks. They usually hang out around barns or in town. They are legal to shoot and do not even count toward your limit numbers.

The final picture of the season is a special one. I'm so glad that my son enjoys going to the field with me and I hope that he always will!

That's how we roll here in South Georgia! I'm ready for next year!!

Pie Safe Part 2

2011-12-30T14:20:00.000-05:00

I had the opportunity to spend a couple of hours on Ms. Kay's pie safe this week. This project is going to be a slow process. As you can see, the old white paint that was shown in the first pictures was doing a very good job of covering up this nice blue paint that was applied sometime before Caesar was in office. The picture above has the sides stripped down to the wood and the middle section is holding on to its color with all of its might. The stripper that I am using seems to have very little effect on this super paint, so I am going to wait for it to dry and try a new approach. I have had good luck with a rubber sanding wheel, so I will let you know how that turns out.

Happy New Year everyone and thanks for being a part of this blog with me!!

Christmas Grey Birds

2011-12-28T08:42:00.000-05:00

It sure is a busy time of year. Once all of the shopping is through and you have attended all of the numerous Christmas parties, Christmas Day arrives in a flurry of shredded wrapping paper and instructions for gadgets written in Chinese. I enjoy Christmas and the time I spend with family, but I have to admit that I needed a break after a long day of "Daddy, open this!!"

That much needed break came the day after Christmas in a peanut field with Josey the Wonder Dog and my Browning Maxis. The second dove season here in South Georgia is my favorite because of the abundance of birds and the cooler weather. Reid and I both wore a light jacket as we sat down next to a peanut hay bale and got ready for a good day of shooting. We didn't have to wait long as the birds started to make their way into the field across the branch where we were set up. I was shooting fairly well and Josey was retrieving like a champion. Reid and I left the field with our limit in short order. My Dad also obtained the limit so we had a good mess between us. As we gathered up after the shoot, several people gave me their birds as well. Tonight there will be grits, biscuits and close to 100 birds dropped into some 350 degree peanut oil as I cook for the hump day crowd.

I have often told you how much I enjoy wing shooting, but I also enjoy the crowd that gathers when you start serving up game birds. I love nothing more than good friends enjoying a good meal and reliving the hunt. Now that's a Christmas present like no other!!

Happy New Year!

Ms. Kay's Pie Safe

2011-12-19T08:39:00.000-05:00

I have worked with Ms. Kay for the past 13 years. She is currently our Head Teller and is charge of keeping me straight on a daily basis. I was very excited when she asked me if I would refinish a pie safe that was given to her by her Mother. It has been in her family for a number of years and is in dire need of a make over. I had a chance to get started on it this past weekend. These pictures will give you an idea of what I was up against.

Why does it always have to be blue?

I started by taking the doors and all of the hardware off of the safe. New hardware will have to be ordered. I removed all of the trim that was holding the screen in place on the doors and I will try and save the original screen if I can work around it or remove it without tearing it. It is in pretty good shape. I then stared removing paint and was able to complete the front of the safe as well as all of the inside. I think the wood is cedar and it is turning out very nice so far.

I'm looking forward to seeing how it is going to turn out. Hope you will follow along with me.

35-23 Good Guys!

2011-12-11T07:33:00.001-05:00

The Black Bears of Maine showed up at the prettiest little stadium in America this past Saturday to receive their whipping from the semi-final bound Georgia Southern Eagles! The Bears put up a good fight, but in the end they realized that we were playing football and not a hockey match. They had no chance! The score was actually closer than the game ever was. If we don't keep making mistakes and putting the football on the dirt, we win this one in a route!

I would like to thank the Duckman for being a good sport and taking his beating like a true gentleman. Despite the rumors that are circulating, we actually had no bet on the game and I am not making him shut his blog down for 6 months (although he may want to after I'm done reminding him of the loss over and over).

Georgia Southern is on to Fargo, North Dakota to take on the 2nd seeded team in the semi-finals! This will be our second trip to the semi's in the past two years. We have some unfinished business to take care of!!

March on Eagles!! GATA! One more time on our quest for #7!!!

It's the Brave Eagle -vs- The Duckman!

2011-12-04T13:37:00.001-05:00

-VS-

It truly amazes me that the world can be a very small place sometimes and how things can come full circle to meet in the most unlikely of places. As most of you who have been following my blog for some time may know, The Downeast Duck Hunter and I have developed a friendship through this little blogging nation of ours over the past year or so. I have enjoyed getting to know him and feel that I have a good friend in the great state of Maine. We are both planning trips to visit so that we can experience the hunting lifestyle that the other enjoys. This week though I am sad to announce that the Duckman and I will be on the opposite sides of the field!

Georgia Southern University defeated Old Dominion this past weekend to advance to the quarter final round of the FBS (formerly 1-AA) playoffs. The Eagles play real football where our Champion is determined on the field with an actual playoff, and the next opponent standing in the way of their 7th National title is none other than The University of Maine Black Bears. Take a wild guess who attended the University of Maine! You are correct if you guessed that it was none other than the Duckman himself! This is going to be a problem.

I'm sure that my friend from the North will be bringing all of the smack talk that he can muster and I have to admit that this game worries me. All games at this time of the year worry me. Maine defeated App State in Boone this past weekend, so I know that they have a good football team, but we do have a little history on our side. The two teams have met in the playoffs twice before with the good guys from Statesboro, Georgia winning both contest. I'm hoping that our defense will play well and the the Maine Black Bears will have trouble defending our triple option attack.

If we win the game we will advance to the semi-final round and send the Black Bears back to Maine. If we loose the game, I may have to shut down this blog to avoid the Duckman's wrath! It's a battle of epic proportions!!

Our good looking Southern Boy!

-VS-

This scraggly dude from Downeast Maine!

LET'S GET IT ON!!!!!

A Few Good Men and a Worthy Cause!

2011-12-01T07:34:00.001-05:00

Clay C, Nate W and Hal W hard at work!

I have always found that when the opportunity to do the right thing is presented to you, the reward for doing so is one that cannot really be measured. Christmas is certainly the time of year where such opportunities are present all around us. As Christians, we are celebrating the birth of our saviour this month, but we should also take the opportunity to let our neighbors know of God's love for us in every month of the year. How can you do that you might ask? Everyone has their own special way to reach out and minister to people, but my friends and I choose to help children at Christmas by letting them know that Jesus loves them and that with him as their saviour, there is always hope!

The Sportsman's Sunday School Class of First Baptist Church, Fitzgerald is a class made up of about 40 men who enjoy hunting, fishing, golfing, football and all other outdoor activities. We range in age from the low 20's to the high 60's. We meet each Sunday morning for a fellowship time and a weekly bible study. It is pretty much like your typical Sunday School class, but we pride ourselves in being a class that is very giving to those who may be in need. We have given countless hours as well as funds to people in our church family as well as those outside of our church family. We believe that if people see "outdoor"type men being "real" men for their church, they may just see God's love working in our lives.

Our biggest project is one that I would like to tell you about here. Several years ago we decided that we wanted to do something for the needy children in our community. We all agreed that a child waking up on Christmas morning without a Christmas present from Santa or their parents was a terrible thing. A child should feel joy at Christmas and learn that Christmas is a special time of year. We put ours heads together and came up with "Bicycles for Christmas". For the past 6 years, we have worked with our local school system councilors to target needy kids whom they felt would not receive a gift for Christmas. This system has worked well and we are even working along side our local "Toys for Tots" campaign to make sure that we are not giving bicycles to children who's parents have applied for help with them. The Sportsman's Sunday School Class has donated over 700 bicycles at a cost of about $31,500. I still find it hard to believe that we have been able to do that. We have some wonderful people in this community that have donated a great deal of time and money for this project. It is a lot of hard work shopping for bicycle deals and putting them all together, but so worth it to see those kid's faces light up when you present them with a brand new bike with a tag on the handle bars that says "Jesus loves you! Merry Christmas from The Sportsman's Sunday School Class First Baptist Church".

I'm sitting here thinking about all of the items that my children are getting for Christmas and how spoiled they really are. I love my children and I am glad that my wife and I have the means to spoil them a little bit, but the work that I do for our Sunday School class reminds me of how hard other people have it and I admit to feeling a little guilty. I wish I could buy every needy child a Christmas present but I know that this is not possible. But I can keep giving a little money throughout the year, shop for bicycle deals on Black Friday, turn a few wrenches on a cold Wednesday night, and help deliver some Christmas Joy to a few needy kids who deserve to be happy on my saviour's birthday.

I'm thinking that's what Jesus would do, so I'm good with that!

What's better than a MOJO? Two of course!

2011-11-27T20:24:00.001-05:00

Josey on the ready!

I love this time of year! I have mentioned several times that I plan my vacation time around the Thanksgiving Holidays. Hunting for a South Georgia boy does not get any better than this. All seasons are in. Duck, Doves, Quail, and Deer are ready for your pursuit. When the call came in on Friday that we had a bird (dove) shoot to go to, I was reminded once again why it does not pay to be sitting behind the desk on the week of Thanksgiving. I was glad that my last day of pay without work would be one spent in the dove field!! (I have to return to my desk and two thousand unanswered e-mails on Monday morning).

I told Reid that we would be hunting this afternoon and started to gather our stuff together. I put Josey the Wonder dog's e-collar on charge, found my 12 gauge shells for the Maxis, got out the proper clothing, and made sure that the batteries in my Mojo Dove decoys were fresh.

I have become a full fledged believer in the power of these little decoys and their spinning little white wings. I received my first as a Christmas present 2 years ago and received the second on an unbelievable deal from Cabela's. They were offering a shell belt with a designed carrying case for your Mojo Dove. The price was only $19.99. Here's the kicker. A decoy was included! A decoy alone cost over $30. I still believe it was a mistake on their part, but I consider it my gain. Thank you Bargain Cave!!

If there is anything that is better than one Mojo dove decoy, it's two Mojo dove decoys!! I'm not sure if I have become a better shot over the past two years, or if the Browning Maxis has anything to do with it, but I am sure that I shoot at and kill more doves when these decoys are in the field with me. I had them with me on opening day of this season and I had my bag limit in about half an hour and I had them with me on Friday as well.

My Dad, Reid and I pulled up to my friends farm right on time. We gathered around to socialize for a bit and I knew very quickly that we did not have enough guns to cover the field. Some of our regular crowd had made their way to our State playoff football game and would not be joining us. We would be hunting a peanut field with hay bails for cover (my favorite). The landowner gave us a quick rundown on which way the birds have been flying and Reid and I picked us a spot closer to the West end of the field. We got settled in and waited.

Josey was building with excitement and nearly caught the first bird before it hit the ground as I made my first shot of the day on a single passing over my left shoulder. I can not tell you how excited I am to have a bird dog that is performing above all of my expectations. She retrieved every bird today and had no hiccups along the way. She understands the game that we are playing and knows that she must stay close to me and keep watch on her surroundings. She is not a finished dog by any means and still breaks on every shot, but her e-collar training has her to the point that it does not even bother me anymore. A quick little tone on the collar has her turning back to the blind in no time flat.

The birds started coming at a steady pace and I was really making some very easy shots. I had placed my Mojos about 50 yards apart at 10:00 and 2:00 from my hay bail at about 30 yards out. Most of the birds were trying to light between them. I was lucky in the fact that no one was sitting in front of me and I could take advantage of shooting at low birds (not something I usually recommend). Everyone had a good shoot and there was a lot of birds that were never shot at, hopefully allowing us to have another chance at them in a couple of weeks. The end result was a limit of birds with not many shells shot, a tired bird dog, a happy son and a priceless memory. I was a good day!

I packed up my Mojo Doves and placed them in their case where they will wait for the next shoot. They have become as important to me as my shotgun for dove hunting success. So, If you want to make dove hunting a little easier and fill your bag limits, I would get yourself a couple of these secret weapons!

They really do work!!

Thanksgiving! A guest post!

2011-11-24T09:24:00.001-05:00

This was sent out by a good friend of mine Hal W. in an e-mail to his friends. I thought it was worth sharing on Thanksgiving Day! Thanks for a great reminder Hal!!

How do you kill a Monster Buck? Be Thankful and take a Good Luck Charm!

My story starts a little over a year ago around early to mid November 2010. I had been hunting pretty hard for about two weeks because rut was in full swing and everyone was seeing the bucks chasing doe every time they headed into the woods. Myself, I had seen some deer and even the occasional small buck, but nothing I really wanted to shoot. Prior to the season opening, I had spent the time and money to plant food plots, put up stands, put out trail cameras, and do all the things that hunters do to get ready for the season, and now that rut was here I expected some results. I was getting frustrated because I was putting forth such great effort and doing everything I thought was right. Then one day my son Drew said he wanted to go deer hunting with me. Well, that made my day because going hunting with my son was one thing that I had looked forward to doing ever since he was born. Some of my best memories as a child were of times I spent hunting with my Uncle J. So Drew and I headed out one afternoon to the hunting club. The hunt was pretty much uneventful (as most of my hunts had been) and we didn’t see anything. One thing that I did learn is when you take a six year old deer hunting you must take plenty to keep him occupied. We had snacks, drinks, toys, crayons, and coloring books. Heck, he even peed out the back of the stand. It was that or leave after hunting only thirty minutes, so he let it rip and I just hoped we were downwind from the deer. That first trip was definitely a memorable experience, and he and I both enjoyed it so he asked if he could go again. I told him yes, and in my mind I resigned to the fact that each time I took him the hunt was over before it started, but I wanted him with me and I thought somehow there was an outside chance something good might happen.

It was a Thursday night and I told him that I was going hunting in the morning if he wanted to go. He said he did want to go. I told him that I was only going to call him once to get up and he better be ready. Deep down I was hoping he would choose to go another time because this particular morning was supposed to be the best day to hunt because the GON magazine said it was and the weather had just turned cold again and everyone said this was the weekend. Five thirty Friday morning came and I called once, twice, and on the third time he sprung up and said, “Don’t leave me!” and started to get dressed. I had already packed the snacks, drinks, toys, crayons, coloring books, and Nintendo DS game to help keep him occupied in case he really did get up. We got dressed and we were off. It was amazing, it was almost six o’clock in the morning and he was wide open making plans on how we were going to kill a big ole buck. Asking question after question like, “How are we going to shoot a deer in the dark?”, “If I throw my pop tart out of the stand will the deer come eat it?”, “If he does can we shoot it?” I said no son, that’s what corn is for (hey… it’s legal now). Finally we parked the truck and got out, and it was cold, very cold. We walked to the stand in the pitch black dark. We both had our lights on our hats, but Drew wanted to carry a flashlight just in case his head light went out so he wouldn’t be left in the dark. We got to the stand and unpacked all our stuff. At first he was looking all around shining the flashlight out into the food plot looking for deer. I convinced him to settle down and eat a pop tart and play his game until the sun came up. Around fifteen minutes later the sun did come up, and it was the coolest sun rise I’ve ever seen because I watched it with my son. We took a break from all the other stuff we brought and I had the chance to explain how, why, and where the sun rises and sets. For a few brief minutes we watched the world wake up….then he looked at me and said….”Can I play my game now?” He started playing his game and about twenty minutes after day break a little basket rack eight point stepped out into the food plot. I quickly nudged Drew and took out his ear phones and instructed him to stand up and look at the deer. He immediately started asking questions. “Where did he come from?” “Does he know we are here?” “Are you going to shoot him?” “Can I scare him?” “Why don’t you shoot him?” “You said if we see one with horns we would shoot him! So shoot him!” I told him that he was too small and we wanted to wait on a bigger buck. Drew informed me that I told him we would shoot one with horns and that one had horns. For the next ten to fifteen minutes we watched and debated on whether or not we should shoot the deer and eventually the little eight point disappeared into the woods. Drew was a little aggravated with me because we were deer hunting for a deer with horns and we had one right in front of us and we didn’t do anything. The whole idea of what just happened didn’t make any sense to him. Finally, he went back to playing his game. Five minutes later, a big, wide, heavy eight point buck comes sprinting out into the food plot and puts on the breaks right where the basket eight had been feeding. This was a shooter buck and it was obvious that this deer was not going to hang around very long. I immediately punched (not nudged) Drew and said, “There he is son; hold your ears just like I told you.” I threw up my Browning .270, found the deer in the scope, waited for him to stop walking, and BOOM!! The deer spun around and took off into the woods. I know I hit him because there was an exit wound very visible as he made his way back across the food plot. I looked at Drew and said, “What did you think about that?” He said, “Daddy, you shot before I could hold my ears! What was that big red spot on his side? Where did he go? Did you miss him? Can we go shoot him again?” I explained that we had to wait a little while before we could go into the woods to recover him, and believe me, that was the longest wait ever. We did go to the site where I shot him and found some blood. I marked the spot where the deer was hit and we went to get the truck and made some phone calls telling some fellow hunters that Drew and I had a good one down. Around 45 minutes after the shot was fired we started looking and quickly found our Trophy. It was a good day that I will always remember not only because of the big buck, but because Drew and I harvested the big buck together! See the attached pictures.

Fast forward a year to November 2011. Again, I’m in the woods as often as I can be and most of the time Drew is with me. He seems to really enjoy deer hunting and if he puts in to go I make sure I make the arrangement s for him to have all his items to keep him occupied and quiet. I have even purchased him a youth model .223 so maybe he can harvest his own first deer. He is not the greatest shot right now but he gets better every time we practice shooting at targets. One Sunday afternoon I asked Drew if he wanted to go hunting with me and he said that he did not. As soon as those words came out of his mouth my little girl Emmy says, “I want to go hunting with you, Daddy.” Now, Emmy is four years old, and I waited until Drew was six before I ever thought about taking him. But it’s very hard for daddy to say no to his little princess, especially when the only reason is “you’re just too young”. That answer was not going over very well with her or me to be quite honest. So, I agreed to take her down to a little area less than a quarter mile behind my house where I had put up a stand and planted a food plot. I figured that by going down there we could ride the Polaris and when she got ready to go we could go. Just like last year, I didn’t have much confidence in the success of the hunt. My plan was to get in the stand about a quarter to five so we wouldn’t have to sit there long. I packed up all the snacks, drinks, toys, and her Leapster game to help keep her quiet so maybe we could see something. As I was getting all her items together I quickly realized that this trip was not about hunting to her. It was more about what “Hunting Costume” she was going to wear. She changed a few times because she didn’t like the way her pants that I bought her looked. After mixing and matching the camo that I had bought her and some of Drew’s camo that he had when he was that size, she finally had her “Hunting Costume” ready. Oh, she was still not ready; her mama had to fix her hair. She had to get her pony tail fixed so she could wear her Browning hat with the pink trim. When her “Hunting Costume” and her hair were just right, we loaded up on the Polaris to take several pictures (because of course we have to get pictures on an occasion like this). We finally made the two minute drive to the stand. When we got there and started walking to the stand I realized that Emmy is having trouble walking in the brush. The brush wasn’t that tall but Emmy stands at a whopping three feet tall and she was having trouble keeping up. So, now I’m carrying a bag that is three times bigger than usual because of all of her stuff, my rifle, and my new hunting buddy. We made it to the stand and climbed on in, and, just like Drew one year ago, she starts asking questions. “Where are the deer?” “What is that black thing out there?” (Feeders are legal in 2011) “Are the deer in the woods?” “Kill that spider!” I start unpacking everything and she is walking around, sticking her head out of each window of the stand, and climbing in and out of my lap. After about thirty minutes, everything is going just as I expected, plenty of noise and no deer. We did have a cow from a neighboring land owner get through a hole in the fence feeding in the food plot. Emmy was quick to point out that that was a cow and not a deer and we shouldn’t shoot it. With the cow and everything else going on, the afternoon was still great because my little princess and I were deer hunting. For the next little while she played the Leapster, we watched some Taylor Swift and Justin Bieber YouTube videos on my Motorola X2 Android device, talked about numerous subjects, some having to do with deer hunting but mostly about other things. Then she climbed in my lap and lay across my chair and I held her as if she was a newborn about to take a nap. This was my favorite part of the entire hunt, I told her that I loved her and she said she loved me and for the next five minutes I stared out into the food plot and she stared up at the roof of the deer stand with the only sounds being the occasional squirrel and the wind gently blowing through the trees. At that point, the hunt was a total success to me, although I still wanted her to see a deer. But if we didn’t, I really didn’t care. Then those big South Georgia mosquitoes started flying and Emmy declared that it was time to go. Even though there was about fifteen more minutes of good light, I didn’t argue with her and I started packing up. The previous five minutes of silence was broken by the sound of talking, zippers zipping, jackets being put on, and feet climbing down the ladder. Finally we were on the ground and were ready to head back home. As we started to walk away from the stand I noticed that the cow had moved out of the food plot and closer to the woods. Then I looked closer and realized that the cow was actually still in the food plot and that what I saw was a deer. I quickly told Emmy to be still and not move a muscle. When I first saw the deer he had his head down so I didn’t know if it was a buck or a doe. Then he picked his head up, and everything changed! If you are a deer hunter, you know what I’m talking about. I went from a Daddy who was enjoying an afternoon in the woods with his daughter to a Daddy who was enjoying an afternoon in the woods with his daughter and was about to lay the smack down on the biggest buck he had ever laid his eyes on. I’m telling you the truth, my little princess did so good; she didn’t move a muscle and didn’t say a word. I think she was amazed that her Daddy’s behavior could change so fast. I can still see her face with her eyes wide open waiting for my next instructions to her. She sat quietly on the ground beside the stand while I got my binoculars out of my bag. I wanted to get a good look at the deer to make sure I was seeing what I thought I was seeing. When I got him in view I confirmed that this was indeed a shooter buck. I threw my binoculars down and picked up my gun and found the deer in the scope. Then, I realized that Emmy was standing right underneath my feet and I couldn’t shoot over her head so I put my gun down and picked her up and sat her about five feet behind me next to a tree and told her, “You’re doing great, just be still and don’t say anything”. I then turned back around hoping the buck was still there and he was. I picked up my Browning .270 and found him in the scope again. At this point the deer was in the brush at about 200 yards and walking toward the food plot. I watched him in the scope and debated with myself… should I shoot now or let him get closer? If I let him get closer he may pick up our scent and run off; there is a cow ready to meet him in the food plot (don’t know how that will work out); Emmy is bound to break her silence soon (she still hasn’t seen the deer, she’s too short); what to do, what to …. BOOM!! I decided to go ahead and shoot. The deer falls then gets up and makes his way into the woods. I don’t know if I hit him or missed him. I am beside myself and my little princess is just sitting by the tree eyes wide open and watching. Emmy asked, “Did you shoot a deer Daddy?” I said, “Baby, I shot at him and I hope I hit him; we will have to go see.” I told her how good she did and we packed everything back up and headed to the Polaris. We took our time getting back to the Polaris and once we loaded up we went to look and see if I hit the buck or just scared him really bad. After looking for a few minutes I found some blood with a good trail and I knew he was down somewhere close. By this time it was dark and the mosquitoes were out in full force so I threw my orange vest on the ground to mark the site of the shot and headed to the house. I dropped Emmy off at home with Jennifer and Drew and called my buddy Nate and told him to get ready we were about to track a deer. Nate and I met up about twenty minutes later and went back to the site of the blood trail and very quickly found the biggest buck that I have ever harvested. We loaded him up in the Polaris and soon were joined by Stan and Robert who were there to help, but the job had already been done. We all stood around admiring the buck. Then Nate pointed out that I shot the buck through the neck and asked if that was where I was aiming. I said, “Yeah...yeah, the neck, that is exactly where I was aiming”. Nate, Stan, and Robert all said that they didn’t believe me and we headed back to the house to show my new hunting buddy what she and I had harvested. See the attached pictures.

I wrote these two stories because I can’t get these two events out of my mind and am amazed that I have had such good experiences. A lot of people hunt for years and don’t kill one buck like these. I can’t explain it but I have been thinking about it a lot and I felt like I needed to put my thoughts in writing so I could share it with anyone who was interested and would take the time to read it. I’m certainly not an authority on how one should live or on deer hunting. I enjoy all types of hunting, and I’m particularly proud of the two bucks that I was fortunate enough to harvest in two consecutive years. I’m most proud of the way it all went down with Drew and Emmy. Drew and I have a deer on the wall and now Emmy and I will have a deer on the wall, and I think that is pretty cool. I don’t know why or how it happened, but I do know that all the time that I had spent working toward killing a big buck was beginning to feel like work! I was going hunting because I felt I had to, because I’ve put all this effort into it and I can’t stop now. Sometimes it wasn’t even fun, but the minute I stopped caring so much about the results and started enjoying everything around me it just happened. Was it just chance? Maybe. Was it that my efforts finally paid off? Could be. Was it the Lord telling me to stop focusing on myself and everything I’ve done and start being thankful for and enjoying what he has given me? I like to think so. So I’m going to keep planting my food plots, putting up stands, and going to the woods every chance I get but now with a little different attitude. Next time you are sitting in the deer stand, the duck blind, in the boat, or in the dove field, I encourage you to pay attention to your surroundings and think about all the things that God has put in front of you that you may have never thanked him for. As hunters and outdoorsmen, we get to see things in the world that a lot of people who do not share our passion for the outdoors don’t get to see. So going forward, why don’t we try to enjoy everything that God has created and blessed us with; like our wife and children, friends who care about us, every sunrise we get to see, every sunset we get to watch, the changing seasons, the small bucks that we let walk so they can grow another year, the fog that lifts off the water while we are sitting on the river bank waiting on the woodies to come in, the mallards that circle as they try to decide if they want to come down as the sun shines on that green head, the big bass that just rolled and told us where to make our next cast, the turkeys that like to hang out in my food plot and under the stand when it seems like they know it’s not their season, the donkey up on the hill that likes to let the world know where he is late in the evening right at dark, the train going by on the tracks that are three miles away but sounds like it’s just across the power line, the shot fired by my buddy on the other side of the club because he finally got was he has been hunting for!

Remember, be thankful and take a good luck charm hunting with you when you can!

Hal W. – November 2011

Kansas 2011

2011-11-22T10:07:00.001-05:00

I wish that I had better news from the great state of Kansas, but the truth of the matter is that we just did not see many birds. We were told before making the trip that bird numbers were down due to unusual weather in the part of the state that we were hunting which caused an early wheat harvest. This activity did not allow for a proper hatch and therefore the pheasant was dealt an uphill battle as nest were destroyed by way of the tractor. They may have had a chance to have a second nesting, but 13 inches of rain in two days washed those chances right down the creek. We knew what we were facing, but chose to face it anyway.

Our first morning started out at a crisp 21 degrees with sunny skies and wind in the forecast. Temps were supposed to reach into the high 40's by the end of the day. As we made our first push through a CRP grass field I allowed myself to think that this was going to be a pleasant day where only a light jacket would be needed, but I soon learned the errors of my ways for allowing myself to have such thoughts. In the movie Lonesome Dove, Gus and Call are moving their heard north when they encounter a sand storm. The scene shows a huge cloud of dust moving in their direction that can be seen from a mile away. That scene popped in my mind as we crested the rise in the field and looked to the west. A dark grey cloud hung low to the ground and was moving in our direction at a rapid pace. It swallowed our group of 28 hunters and left us reaching for warmer garments for our chilled faces and ears. That was the last that we would see of the sun that day and the temps never got out of the 30's. The wind eventually pushed the dark cloud to the east, but the strong breeze decided to stay with us all day making things very chilly. At the end of the day, our bird count stood at only 9.

Our second day started out a little better. At least the 30 mph winds were no longer with us and the sun was out in spurts. The temps were in the low 20's, but without gale force winds to deal with, hunting was fairly comfortable. We were still having trouble finding birds though. This was my 8th trip to Kansas and I can honestly say that this was the most unproductive trip that we have had. Our group, ranging in size, has killed as many as 250 in a three day hunt and as little as 108 in a two day hunt. None of us had ever seen anything like this. The hunting, or should I say killing, was still slow. We did manage to find one field that reminded us why we keep coming back. As the walkers topped the hill, birds started flushing one by one and the blockers were ready. We managed to take about 12 birds from this one grass patch and kept hopes and spirits high for the afternoon hunt.

At the end of the day and the end of our hunting time together, our group managed a two day total of 30 pheasant, 2 prairie chickens, and 3 quail. Not real good. But I will say that I had a great time spending time with my Dad and seeing the friends that I have made over the years on this trip. So here's to you Gary, Swilley, A.G., Chad, Shane, Mark, Cheerio, Bill, Josh, Drew, Alf, Mike, Chitty, Guy, Captain Henry, TJ, George, and many others! I'm already ready for next year!!

I just hope the birds will be back!

Challenge #4, sort of!!

2011-11-08T09:15:00.001-05:00

For those of you who have been reading my blog for some time, you may remember that the Downeast Duck Hunter issued me a set of challenges in order to spice up my blog and get me out of a writers funk that I was in. It was a simple dare that I took him up on that required some effort on my part, but I have to admit it was kind of fun. There were 5 challenges in all, and the first one had to be completed in order to receive the second and so on.

The first challenge was for me to film my son catching a largemouth bass. Challenge complete!

The second challenge was for me to show off my golfing skills. Challenge complete!

The third challenge was a little vauge and the Duckman was asked to be amazed. Challenge complete!

The next challenge got a little harder and I guess I will have to admit defeat. The Duckman asked me to do a South Georgia rap song. Now those two things just do not go very well together, so I decided that I would sing a song, but not rap a song. The only problem is finding the time to get my buddies over to film and play while I put my vocal pipes on display. We all have kids and it seems that time is scarce. It has been months since challenge #4 was issued by the Duckman, and he has been very patient, but I know when I have had enough and when I have been defeated. I will not be able to finish Challenge #4.

I will offer this however! I DID write the song and will share the lyrics with you here! It is set to the tune of "Simple Man" by Lynard Skinard.

You can listen to the music and get the basic idea of what I was trying to do here while you follow along!

"The Challenge"

-The Duckman told me in challenge one,
this will be easy, just video your son.
I want a largemouth, brought to his hand.
It was 4 pounds and Reid said,
Take that Duckman!!

-Take your time on Challenge two,
for this one's harder, and all on you.
Grab your golf clubs and make the shot.
Task completed Duckman,
Hey, is that all you got??

-Chorus-

Cause I'm a challenge kind of man.
Go on and dare me, then you'll understand,
that I'm a challenge kind of man.
I will do this for ya bud, cause I can!

-In challenge three, I bared my soul.
Something different, my words were gold.
I sat there patient, as I made my plea.
Was it good enough Duckman?
Yes sir bud, you Amazed me!

-Chorus-

-Next challenge issued, and man you laughed.
I wrote this song, because I don't rap.
If it's not worthy, well I tried,
all I want for you Duckman,
is to be satisfied!

-Chorus-

So there you go Duckman! That was my attempt at Challenge #4. Maybe one day I will find the time to get it on video, but for now, this will have to do!

Was Lost, Now Found!

2011-11-01T13:00:00.000-04:00

Back in August, my Dad and I got several pictures of this 7 point buck seen in the left of this shot. He was hanging around one of the feeders and was showing up regularly. All of a sudden, he was gone. We haven't seen him in almost two months. He is a nice looking 7 point and looks to have a fairly high rack. I wanted to get a better look at him from a tree stand, but his disappearing act made me think I may not have the chance. Well, he showed back up!

I pulled my card on my camera on Tuesday and there he was. This is a totally different stand location on the other side of the property that we hunt. Now this brings us to another kind of management issue. If you are lucky enough to hunt on your own property or have a lease that you know you can keep for a while, and you want to hunt for trophy bucks...What do you do with this guy?? He has a nice rack, but only 7 points. Is he going to get any bigger? Is this deer older than three years old? Do you want him passing on bad genes to the next generation if he is indeed a mature buck? This is definitely a buck that needs to be talked about among club members to get all perspectives on what others think before you pull the trigger. That is if you are on a Quality Deer Management kind of club. My first thought is to watch him grow this year and see what he brings to the table next year.

I'm curious to know what you would do with this buck. Would you take a wait and see approach? Would you take him out of your herd because of possible bad genetics? Would you be like the Downeast Duck Hunter and care less about the rack and fill your freezer? (not that there is anything wrong with that)

Let me know your thoughts on Quality Deer Management. I'm curious as to what different regions of our hunting country think.

Duckpower, Inc. Is Mr. President in Trouble?

2011-10-26T16:47:00.000-04:00

Mr. Duckman, President of Duckpower, Inc.

A spokesman from the corporate offices of Duckpower, Inc.has confirmed rumors of a possible impeachment. It seems that many employees and one founding member of the company havebecome increasingly disgruntled at the leadership being displayed by thecompany’s President, Mr. Duckman. Therehave long been accusations of abuse from the highest office, but loyalfollowers of the company, which have offices in Maine as well as in Georgia,have been encouraged to sweep those thoughts under the rug for the sake of thebusiness. The head of the Southerndivision was overheard saying that “the mental abuse and constant ridiculedisplayed by Mr. President towards his loyal employees are sure to bring an endto what some have said was a shaky union to begin with”.

It seems that the problems started with an unpaid corporatefishing sponsorship. Mr. President, whoapparently agreed to sponsor an employee’s bass tournament failed to fulfillhis sponsorship obligations because the sponsored team did not technically“win” the tournament. You can see theESPN article here where the employee is clearly heardthanking this supposed sponsorship. Oursources say that the bill was never paid and tensions started to run a littlehigh in the Southern Division.

There was also word that Mr. President was a little stingywith his allotment of last year’s Super bowl tickets that were given to him byhis twin brother. It seems that Mr.President harbors ill will towards his twin and would not allow any of hisemployees to support his brother’s team. All Green Bay Packer gear has long been outlawed at company functions.

The Northern Division of the company can be considered evenmore unstable. The relationship betweenMr. President and his co-founder Mr. Duckhammer and the one simply known as Diesel, is a difficult one toexplain to say the least. It has been reported that on manyoccasions, Mr. President has abused his power, using it to his distinctadvantage, in blatant attempts to elicit favors from his constituents. As proofof his debauchery, this ½ naked photo of Mr. President clearly depicts himstaring lovingly at the cameraman, poor Vice President Diesel, in a vainattempt to seduce him with his powerful animal magnetism in order to solidifyhis honorable status.

Photo courtesy of Duckpower, Inc. annual report

This was of course only the beginning of Mr. President’sdeviant behavior. This additional file photoseems to show an unwanted fondling of an employees’ shoulder. Sure it may seem innocent but trust me this couldbe a slippery slope that can only end in ruin.

The company spokesman would not confirm or deny that theboard was currently in session at time of print, and whether or not Mr.President was in attendance. It does notlook good for the sitting president of Duckpower, Inc., however, this reporterthinks that the company may just be better off in the long run. Just take a look at this recently surfacedvideo that was buried deep in the company vaults. You may recall that just recently Mr.President publicly called out a founding member of the company for lack ofshooting skills and that founding member was subjected to ridicule in the duckhunting blog industry. Parental guidanceis suggested due to language not fit for a company President.

You may watch the video here!

Wow! Niceshooting!! Now you tell me. Does this look like a man that should beleading others in a Duck Hunting company/blogging venture?? I think not.

Reporting for Hunting News Daily, I’m A Brave Eagle in the RabidOutdoors!

**For those of you reading this post and wondering just what in the world is going on, don't worry! I'm just having a little fun with the Duckman, who I consider a good friend, because he chose to have a little fun with me! Consider this revenge Mr. President! You the Man bud!!**

I choose to manage!

2011-10-24T08:59:00.000-04:00

2010 success!

My Dad and I have been fortunate enough to lease the same piece of property for the past 20 years. In fact, we have seen the property as a clear cut twice. Deer like you see in the picture above were once a very rare site on our club. Sure someone would kill a nice one every other year or so, but for the most part, we had members that shot any buck that walked, no matter what the size. As time has moved on and members as well, some changes have been made that have made all the difference in our hunting success. We started to manage our deer herd.

Our club once had 8 members. We are now where we want to be at 4, and all of us recognize the rewards that come with a good management program. Several years ago we starting talking to each other about the size deer that we wanted to shoot. We decided on an 8 point or better with an inside spread of at least 15 inches (outside his ears). By letting the smaller bucks go, we started to see bigger bucks in only the second year of our management program. If you have followed my blog for any time, then you have seen some of the deer that we have caught on camera or harvested including this very nice drop tine 11 point killed by my Dad 4 years ago.

Terrible picture, but you get the idea!

This is the first big buck that came out of our management program and the buck that got everyone on our club thinking bigger and better things. In the last 4 years the members of our club have taken more 10 point or better bucks than in the first 16 years that we held the lease. Management works! Especially if you can talk your neighbors into managing the same way, which we have.

I tell you all this to make myself feel better about not shooting this buck this past Saturday!

I had this bad boy just 100 yards from my stand for half an hour Saturday night. I studied him long and hard through my binoculars and even checked out his front shoulder with the cross-hairs of my scope. I admit that I even flicked off the safety. But I just couldn't bring myself to shoot this deer as I though about all of our management efforts. What you can't see in this picture is that he has small little kickers on his end beams making him a "want to be" 10 point. The more I looked at him, the more I realized that he was not a mature deer. Sure he is a stud 8 pointer, but I think I would have been mad at myself if I shot him based on the potential of what he could be next year or the year after.

Now I know what some of you might say! "Somebody else is just going to shoot him for you!" That may be the case, but at least I am giving him another chance to make it until next year. I'm hoping that he will just stay around our place. He has all he needs! Food, shelter and a bunch of does to service him. Beside, I know there is a bigger boy out there. One of our members has a definite shooter on his camera not far from this location shown above. Hopefully I can show you a picture of him in the same manner as the picture below!

Management works!!

New spot...New 8 point!

2011-10-18T14:26:00.000-04:00

I pulled the card out of my camera after I moved it to one of my favorite stand sites. This is in the middle of a clear cut and I got 45 pictures in just 2 1/2 days. I was glad to see that at least one buck is in the area. He looks like he is fairly tall, but I want to see some more shots of him before I make my mind up about how old he is. I have been seeing a larger set of tracks near this stand site, so I decided to do a little more scouting in the area with the camera. This is an excellent afternoon stand and you can see for a long way across this clear cut.

I think I know where I will sit this Saturday afternoon!

One down, one to go!

2011-10-17T07:47:00.000-04:00

I was able to find some time yesterday to put the final finish on the first of my two Columbus Day tables. Here is what we started with-

And here is how it finished up-

It really turned into a very nice piece and will look great in someones home. The clawed feet are hard to find and a table in this good of shape should move quickly. I wish I had room in my house for another one, but then again I wish I could keep all of them that I work on.

On another note...

The OBN is celebrating a birthday this week. They have been serving as a place for outdoor bloggers to meet for the past calender year. This has been a great resource for me as an outdoor blogger and they have done an excellent job in maintaining this site. Here's to many more years and many more blogs!

Happy Birthday!!

Have a great week!

20 Years!

2011-10-14T08:25:00.000-04:00

This is what yours truly looked like 20 years ago and baseball is what I lived for. Nothing was as important to me as that glove, ball, bat and playing field. A lot has changed in the last 20 years. I no longer look like this athletic ball player seen before you. Baseball is not my number one thing anymore. My teammates are no longer the central people in my life. But this weekend will give me an opportunity to relive some of those memories from 20 years ago. The FHS Class of 1991 will celebrate our 20 year high school reunion starting tonight. I will see folks that I haven't seen since the day we graduated. I'm looking very forward to it.

It's funny to me how you keep up with some people and some you don't. I was friends with just about everyone in my class, but as you get older you loose touch with classmates and you are constantly making new friends. I have been reminded of some great relationships that I had as I have been on the planning committee for this event. I have already had fun catching up with the other committee members and realizing just what a great class that we really had. We were a really close group and I think we are proving that by the number of classmates that are scheduled to attend. Other classes have been celebrating this fall (10 and 25 year), and we have double the number of classmates attending our event. I think that speaks well for the Class of 1991.

So tonight and tomorrow night I will try to be young again and enjoy celebrating friendships with a bunch of old folks who helped to shape me into the person I am today. I love my classmates and I am ready to be reminded of just how lucky we all really were to share our school years with each other!

Go Canes!

Not Your Grand Daddy's A-5!

2011-10-13T06:41:00.001-04:00

Look out boys! Daddy's home!!

Enjoy!

Scored on Columbus Day!!

2011-10-11T08:24:00.001-04:00

Thanks to Christopher Columbus, I had the day off on Monday. My wife decided to take the day off with me in order for us to spend some much needed time together. The kids were in school, so we decided to hop in the car and travel down the road to Thomasville, Georgia to check out some of their antique shops. As I have said before, you never know when the right deal will present itself and that deal can not be made unless you are there to make it. I didn't set my hopes very high because Thomasville in known to be a very "rich" town and I wasn't sure if any of their shops would have any un-finished items that would be in my price range. Remember that I am looking for something to be refinished and then resold!

We cruised through their downtown area looking at all of the various shops. Thomasville has the model for a downtown that all towns should follow. It really is quite an amazing place with all kinds of antique stores, variety shops, coffee shops, cafes, and even a high end sportsman's shop carrying fine guns. We decided to park at the end of the main street, which happened to be in front of the first antique shop. After touring that particular store we just walked up one side of the street and down the other. We had a good time just shopping along and I was also lucky enough to find a GREAT deal on the two center tables shown above.

This first little oak table is a pretty nice little piece. It is in very good shape and the legs have a lot of spindles. The top and bottom shelf have been painted, but that should not be a problem. At least the legs are bare and should not be a very big challenge. This will make a very nice bedside table or corner table for someones home or cabin.

This is the table that made the trip!! This is a fairly large oak center table that is in excellent shape. I got it for a steal!! It doesn't have a bad spot on it. If you click on the picture and enlarge it, you can see that it also has brass "ball and claw" feet. These are very hard to find and usually sell for a LOT of money. The table has some age on it and the wood and brass are tarnished with time. The wood looks almost black, but the next pictures will show exactly what a find that I got!

Is that Tiger Oak that I see????

I do believe it is!! Cha-ching!!

This this is going to be out of this world beautiful when I am finished with it. I am going to visit the local refinishing shop this morning to see if I can get some ideas for polishing the old brass on the clawed feet. I can't wait to see how this one will turn out. Stay tuned!

I now have 4 tables in my inventory that need to be finished and sold. If you are interested in any of these, just let me know. Here is a shot of one that I do have completed that is ready to go.

Overall it was a great Columbus day! I spent time with the wife, found some deals, worked in the shop and watched it rain all day. It is still raining this morning and we will take all that we can get!

Have a great week!

You should try the movies!

2011-10-04T05:58:00.000-04:00

I will be the first to admit that I get a small rush when I check my game camera. I guess it is the excitement of what the next picture could bring. Will it be that big buck that you haven't seen or a long bearded turkey or another animal all together? I have focused my game camera efforts on only one stand this season, so I have to admit that I have grown a little tired of seeing the same deer over and over. I know that this can change while deer move around a bit more in colder weather or during the rut, but I have found my scouting to fall into a little rut of its own. I decided to give it a fresh look.

I have never used the video feature on my camera before. I decided to give it a try this weekend in hopes of seeing something amazing. While the results were not quite amazing, they were certainly fun to watch. The camera shot 18 sixteen second videos in just over two days. Here are some of the highlights! Enjoy!

Yes, Mr. Eight point is still hanging around as you can see. I also got some videos of feeding does, coons, squirrels and of course turkeys. Some of you have said that Mr. Eight point is a shooter. Now that you have had the chance to see him move around a little, do you still feel that way? I think he is only a 2 1/2 to 3 year old deer and needs a little more time to turn into a wall hanger. He is still a little leggy and he doesn't have that drooping belly yet. He also seems to be very skiddish in his movements like a younger deer looking for his big brother to jump out from behind a tree. He is a nice deer, but if he gets to next year I think he could be a stud. Just look at the progress he made from last year. I'm pretty sure this is the same deer based on the general area that he is in and the fact that he has that nice curve on the end of his rack on the right side.

Mr. Eight Point in 2010

Mr. Eight Point in 2011

See what a difference a year makes!!

So go out and flip your camera to video mode if you want a little change of pace. It is pretty cool to see these deer move around a little bit and give you some different perspective.

Happy Hunting!

Burning Powder!

2011-10-03T08:12:00.000-04:00

It was a beautiful Sunday here in South Georgia, so we decided to go out and do a little shooting after church. We gathered up a few guns, mostly small calibers like .22's and .17's and hit the range. Reid took his Marlin youth modle .22 and a bag full of bullets. My Dad and I were content to let him shoot until he was tired.

We had a good time and I am happy to report that even though we had some windy conditions, the groups were very tight by the end of the afternoon. I even took the time to shoot my 30.06. I am thankful that it was dead on after only one shot. That thing packs a little more punch than a .22.

The following is a short video of Reid shooting his gun and getting a little advice from his Papa. He does pretty well and by the end of the day was showing very good form. He takes his time and I got a good laugh each time he would eject his spent shell. After the shell would leave the chamber, Reid would blow into the barrel. He told us that he didn't want that smoke inside his gun!

It was a good day!

Game 27 means just as much as game 162!

2011-09-30T08:05:00.002-04:00

Yeah Jason, We all feel the same way!

So today is a new day for us Braves fans. It had been two days now since the Braves finalized the 2nd largest September collapse in MLB history. We knew we could never catch the Phillies for the division crown, but we had a lead in the wild card race of 8 1/2 games over the Cardinals. We felt that we could match up well with the other division winners in a playoff series and then take our chances with the Phillies for a chance to go to the World Series. Then September started. We started playing some very bad baseball and our lead shrunk to scary levels. We were still up 3 with 5 to play however so all hope was not lost. Until we lost our last 5 games and were given permission to clean out the lockers. So what happened? Was our team that bad? Was our Manager and idiot? Are we cursed? I don't think so. I think we just had some bad luck.

Injuries to our top two pitchers did not help. JJ and Hanson went down and our starting rotation was reduced to just pretty good instead of stellar. Our $15 million dollar man named D. Lowe pitched like a $15 dollar man this year. That hurt. Our free agent 2nd baseman hit .180 for the first half of the year. (He was the team MVP in the second half often carrying the team on his back, but a few more hits in the first part of the season would have won us a few games) Our Mr. Everything prospect and All-star rookie from the previous year, Jason Heyward, forgot how to play the game and batted a mere .220 with 14 home runs. Our steady Eddie left fielder/3rd baseman, Martin Prado came back down to earth and had a bad year. Our Silver Slugger catcher, Brian McCann decided to forget how to hit in the last month. Chipper just keeps getting older even though he is still pretty effective at the plate when he can play. Our new Manager made some mistakes, but he is not the one who has to hit, catch and throw the ball. In short, we just did not play up to our potential. If all of the guys just play to the numbers on the back of their baseball card, then we are a 95-100 game winner and look good going into the playoffs. Just not meant to be this year I guess!

I could get lost in my misery but there is one thing that keeps me going. The Red Sox lost a bigger September lead than the Braves. They blew a 9 game lead in the wild card that allowed Tampa Bay into the playoffs on the last day of the season. My good friend The Downeast Duckhunter, who happens to be a Sox fan, was reduced to pulling for the Yankees on the last day. How bad is that????

So now the off season begins and the Braves have some work to do. We all know what needs to happen but it is going to be hard to accomplish. We have to move some unproductive players with higher salaries in order for us to get better. It should be fun to watch!

Go Braves......next year!

Spoiled Rotten!

2011-09-27T08:54:00.003-04:00

Isn't this where every good bird dog deserves a little rest??

Have a great day!

Joe's Table Complete!

2011-09-22T14:56:00.000-04:00

I finally found time to finish up my most challenging project to date. Joe brought me a table that was old as time and in terrible shape. You can see some of the first pictures here. I took this table completely apart and rebuilt it from the ground up. It is now very steady and can be used as an everyday piece of furniture that can be enjoyed for the next 100 years. Here are the pictures to tell the story.

The table has been sanded, rebuilt and is now ready for stain!

After staining. The old wood soaked up the stain as fast as I could put it on. Very little to clean off of the surface.

The finished Product!

It was definitely not an easy project, but I did enjoy the challenges that it presented. I hope Joe likes what he sees!

Good Morning Mr. 8 Point! Time for your close-up!

2011-09-22T12:10:00.001-04:00

This guys seems to like my little area of the hunting club. I have him on camera on an almost daily basis. He is not big enough for me to shoot just yet, but I hope he hangs around and draws in some bigger bucks that just might think he is out to steal one of their girls. We have several pictures of different bucks in this size range. If all of these guys can make it until next year, then watch out! We are going to be loaded with big bucks!!

One Happy Dog!

2011-09-17T14:45:00.000-04:00

The weather finially broke here in South Georgia this weekend and that meant that Josey could enjoy some time in the Dove field with me. She did really well for her first time out this year and I was very pleased with how well she did with her new "E" collar. You can tell in the following video that she was "one happy dog" to be out chasing birds again!! It is not the best video because I really didn't have the most time in the world. I mean I was out there to try and get my limit!

Could you see that little tail going 90 to nothing?? It was that way all morning!

Have a great weekend!!

Opening Day of Dove Season and I......

2011-09-04T11:46:00.000-04:00

....went Goose hunting! Georgia has an early season for Canadian geese. The Department of Wildlife shipped some of the geese into the state many years ago and they have thrived here in the South Georgia heat. They have even become a nuisance to golf courses and athletic fields across the state because they like to feed in the nice plush grass. To control numbers, they turned hunters loose on these birds from the north. Given the fact that we have been sitting around all summer without shooting anything, you find some pretty itchy trigger fingers waiting on this day to arrive.

My cousins invited me to come along on this trip. They sorted needed me to go because I knew the land owner and was able to obtain permission to hunt. We got there well before daylight and started laying out our blinds and setting up decoys. Some of the crew had gone ahead the day before and dug us some pits to place our layout blinds in. I found out fairly quickly that this goose hunting takes a lot of work and a lot of equipment. We were set up in the middle of a pasture on a hill that the geese had been spotted in the past two days. The birds were roosting in a pond about 1/2 mile away. As daylight broke we could hear the geese on the water starting their morning chatter. Excitement was building among the group as we were waiting on the 200 or more birds to leave the lake and head for our spot as they had done the day before. Even my cousin's award winning Lab was waiting with anticipation.

The birds got a little louder and we could tell that they were in the air. The boys did some soft calling and a group of six made their way towards our set up. We had placed the decoys in an arc to try and draw the birds to the middle of our set up, but this first group was lighting on the far right end. My cousin Zack was the only one able to shoot and he brought down two geese before the others could get away. We quickly gathered up dead birds and got back in our blinds. We heard the rest of the birds leaving the water and started calling again. Nothing was coming. They headed in the other direction.

The group was a little dejected as all of the proper scouting had been done and all the preparations had been made, but they do call this hunting, not killing. We sat there for a little while until Zack offered to go get the truck and see if he could find where the birds had gone. He was gone for about 15 minutes before he called and said "Get ready". He found them in a corn field about a mile away and got permission to walk through the field to try and ambush them. We could hear the geese as they took flight and then we saw them on the horizon. We started calling and a small group turned our way. Before you knew it, there were 7 more geese on the dirt and our hunt was over. It was a really good time and something that I can see myself doing again! I had a ball!!

The Luckie cousins with the day's bounty!!

Now before all of you think that I have gone crazy and traded in goose hunting for dove hunting, think again. Reid and I managed just fine that afternoon!

We didn't go to the field until late in the afternoon because of the heat, but the little Browning Gold did not disappoint as the limit was obtained in quick fashion!

The day came to a close with Georgia Southern pulling out an awesome win! It was a great opening day!! Hope yours was too!

Work is Paying Off!

2011-09-02T11:02:00.000-04:00

I retrieved the card from my camera this morning that I had set up in my "made over" stand location. The camera has been there since Saturday and it took about 100 pictures. I was pleased with what I saw and it will only get better as more deer find this new food source. I have several pictures of this nice little 9 point. He was the largest of the bucks that I got pictures of and a deer that we have not seen on any of our other cameras. I look forward to seeing what else this new stand sight may bring.

Have a great weekend!

A Boy and His Dogs!

2011-08-30T20:56:00.000-04:00

Chances are that if you come from a family that is rich in bird hunting traditions, then you have had your fair share of dealings with a good bird dog along the way. Bird dogs are part of the family and I would like to tell you that I have been fortunate enough to own some champion pure breeds during my time on this earth, but unfortunately I cannot. I have never had the pleasure of being Master to a field trial champion or a legend making retriever. I have always enjoyed watching a good dog and envy those how can train them to react to their every command, however I have never had the time or resources to put towards the proper schooling to have such a dog. This does not mean that I have not had some fine canine friends along the way though, and I would like to dedicate this post to the dogs who have blessed my life up until this point.

Our first real dog was a stray that came up in our yard. We tried to run the little Brittany Spaniel off, but she wouldn't leave. You could tell that she was hungry and very scared. I think I was about 6 years old at the time, so I'm sure that the first thing that I asked was "Can I keep her?" The typical parent answer soon followed..."No!" My parents decided that she could stay with us until we could find her owner. I fed her and played with her as we waited for someone to answer the ad that we ran in the local paper. I also decided that she needed a name as long as she was going to be staying with us. I decided to call her "Ginger" and she seemed to respond to that pretty well. It was only a couple of days before someone called to claim her. My parents told the man to come to the house well after my bed time (that was really sneaky Mama) because I had become attached to this little dog that my parents were not ready to take in. The plan did not work however as I came running down the stairs at the sound of the doorbell. I latched on to the little Brittany and cried my hardest. The man told my folks that he had to keep her couped up all of the time and I don't think he really wanted her anyway. I don't know if it was my crying or the fact that my Dad could tell that this was not a man fit for a bird dog, but he agreed to let the dog stay. I was so excited and almost forgot to ask the man a most important question as I ran to give my new dog yet another hug. "By the way, What is her name?" The man turned around as he was walking out the door and simply said "Ginger. Her name is Ginger." Now if that is not meant to be, then I don't know what is!! Ginger was the best dog that any kid could have. She followed my sister and me every step that we took in our neighborhood. She was well mannered and an overall good dog. She was happy being loved by a family that treated her well. We found out that her previous owner beat her when she barked and did not provide a good home for her. In fact, the ten years that Ginger was with us, I heard her bark exactly one time. She was not a hunting dog and really couldn't do any tricks to speak of, but she was the world to our family and we were sad to see her go. She grew to a very old age and when it became apparent that she could no longer enjoy life, we let her go in peace to chase my sister in heaven. Its funny how a stray dog can change your life, but Ginger did just that!

My Mama always wanted a Cocker Spaniel. She got her wish when "Mickey" was given to her. Mickey was a blond bottle of energy that quickly became my dog and loyal follower. I spent some time training him to fetch and do other tricks, but he was really best at just playing his role as family pet. He and I spent a lot of time together and when I left for college something happened to him. There are really no other words to describe what happened to him than to simply say that Mickey went crazy. Mickey would let you know that he needed to go outside by going to the front door and giving you a little bark. After you let him out you could just leave the door cracked a bit and he would let himself back in. When I left for school, Mickey started going to the door asking to be let out about every five minutes. It would drive you nuts! My Mama took him to the vet and he was even sent to the University of Georgia to be studied. He saw a dog "shrink" and my parents were told that Mickey had suffered a nervous breakdown because I was no longer home. Well, leaving school was not an option and a college apartment was not a place for a dog, so my parents decided to do what was best for Mickey and give him to a home that could spend much needed quality time with him. My parents have not had a dog since. Mickey was a great dog and I am glad that he was part of my life.

I graduated from college and was living on my on. I thought I wanted and was ready for a bird dog to hunt with. I knew what I wanted and didn't take the time to do my homework like I should have. I found a breeder and went and picked up my brand new Brittany Spaniel that I named "Jackson". Jackson was given every opportunity to become a great bird dog except for one thing... an owner that knew what he was doing! I was working for East Georgia Turf Farms at the time and had run of the place chasing doves, snipe, ducks and quail. I took Jackson with me every time I went hunting and tried to introduce him to my hunting world. Let's just say that Jackson and I did not meet eye to eye. He was a very stubborn dog and did not take to my directions very well (of course I didn't know what I was doing). I stayed frustrated with him as well as myself and the match just was not working out. I expected this Brittany to have the same temperament as my Ginger and that was just not fair to Jackson. I had gotten into a relationship with a bird dog that I was not ready for and I knew it. I asked my vet if he could find a good home for Jackson and he told me that he would be happy to take him into his kennel. My vet was a bird hunter and later told me that Jackson turned into a pretty good hunter, although he was still rather hard headed. I vowed to not make the same mistake again. I would do my research and be ready the next time a hunting dog came into my life. It didn't take long.

My Uncle called me and asked me if I wanted a dog. His beautiful Yellow Lab had been used as a stud and my Uncle was offering me the pick of the litter. I couldn't pass it up. I love Labs and I could see many days in the field with a new pup before me. I read all the training books and was ready when I picked "Gunner" up from the breeder. He was beautiful and he and I took to each other very fast. I spent time with him everyday doing various training exercises. I was still living in Statesboro at the time and it was really just him and I. He was doing so well and I was starting to think that I had finally gotten the bird dog that I always wanted. Things can change so fast! I took a new job and moved back home to Fitzgerald. No more days on the farm. I started traveling for my job which meant less time with Gunner. Our training secessions became few and far between because of my new work schedule. He got lonely and started to escape the fenced back yard and wander, sometimes ending up miles from home. He had become unhappy and it was again my fault. Several times he ended up miles away on a farm that belonged to a friend of mine. How he got there, I'm not sure, but he kept going back. They loved him and would call when he showed up offering to let him stay as long as he wanted. I knew what I needed to do and offered to let him stay. They gave him the much needed attention that he deserved. Gunner made them a wonderful pet and made me realize that I did not need another dog. It would be 10 years before I was ready!

My current dog is none other than "Josey the Wonder Dog". Josey is a Boykin Spaniel and is a pure joy. I was ready this time! My kids needed a dog and I knew friends who had Boykins. I knew that they were very smart loving dogs that were small and good with kids. I also knew that they were very good hunters, but my past experience in bird dog training could speak for itself. I was in the market for a pet for my kids. I did however dust off some old training books so that I could work on teaching Josey good manners. We brought Josey home and we all fell in love. She really is the sweetest little dog and fell right into our household routine. She learned the ropes fairly quickly and even showed some promise when I tried to show her how terrible I was at bird dog training. I didn't care however because I had a good dog that was great with my kids and that was what I was expecting. It wasn't until I shot a squirrel in the yard one day while Josey was watching that I figured out that I might just have a bird dog after all. After the squirrel fell from the tree, Josey shot off after it and brought it to me. The rest is history and you can read about Josey's first dove hunt here. I will be the first to tell you that I am no dog trainer and I'm not sure why Josey chooses to be the dog that she is today in spite of me, but I will say that I have enjoyed having a bird dog, even when I wasn't trying to find one.

So as I get ready for another bird season, I am very excited to see what Josey will do. She seems to have taken to the limited training that we have been through with her new electronic color as we try and prepare for the season, but I really hope that her natural instincts will kick in and make me look good. If I had to tell someone who may be reading this wanting ideas about being a dog owner, my best piece of advice would be to learn from my mistakes. Be ready to be a dog owner and commit yourself fully to the life that you will be responsible for. The dogs deserve it and will reward you more than you know if you spend the time to treat them right. All I did was love Josey and care for her like she was part of the family. I now have a constant traveling companion, a snuggle partner, a kid watcher, a house protector and a dang fine hunting partner!

I have found my Ginger once more! It has finally come full circle!

Work Day at the Club!

2011-08-28T15:17:00.000-04:00

One of Dad's food plots ready for planting!

Even though the temperature was reaching for triple digits yesterday, my Dad and I decided to get some work done at the Hunting Club. With college football games and dove season starting next weekend, I was determined to get some things done while my schedule was clear. My plan was to trim up some limbs along our roads and improve an older stand sight. Daddy's job was to ride the tractor and do some mowing.

We left the house a little after lunch with plenty of water and the golf cart in tow. Once there, we secured our neighbors tractor and Daddy set off to mow roads to stands and grown up food plots. I started trimming limbs and bushes and when I was done I was proud of the fact that I could drive down the roads in my Jeep without enduring any more scratches. I also started making some improvements to an old stand site that needed some tweaking.

The stand sits in the corner of our property and looks down both property lines. It is a combination of hard wood bottom and large pines. Last year a rather large oak tree fell across one of the property lines, therefore making it impossible to plant a food plot or even see down this line any longer. I moved the stand up the other line to take advantage of being able to see farther up that particular fire break. Our newest club member, Steve has a tractor outfitted with a root rake. He was working on the property a few weeks ago and I asked him if he thought he could move that fallen tree for me. NO problem! The lane was open once again and clear to plant about a 100 yard food plot along the boarder line creek bottom. My only problem now was that I needed to move my stand back to the original tree to take advantage. I got to looking at the current set up and my mind got to formulating another plan all together. I asked Steve if he might be able to clear out some trash trees and bushes so that I could have a clear line of sight from my current stand location. Again, NO problem!

The new view from the stand location

I am really excited about what he was able to do. We got it cleaned up and got the ground turned and ready for planting. I put a feeder at the far end of the clearing and moved my camera to this location. We will see what we can get pictures of in the next few weeks. It was a hot day, but we didn't seem to mind because we were enjoying the work getting ready for deer season.

Hope you are enjoying your work too!!

The Boys are Back!

2011-08-26T10:47:00.002-04:00

It could be a good year!! Have a great weekend!!

The Eagles have got a good man!

2011-08-25T11:06:00.001-04:00

Sometimes people get it right! In my opinion, Georgia Southern University Athletics did just that! The Athletic Foundation for Georgia Southern has hired a new Executive Director and he just so happens to be an old classmate and good friend. David Beaubien took the reins at his new position about 6 months ago, and as an alumni I couldn't be happier with the hire. I know the kind of person that David is and what kind of attitude that he will bring to the foundation. David is one of those energetic people who always has a smile and thinks with a positive attitude. I look forward to the things that he will accomplish for Georgia Southern in the upcoming future.

I am also amazed as I look back on a relationship that has seen both of us grow over the last 20 years. I first met David at different fraternity parties and socials. We were in two different fraternities but got along very well. We both took business classes and would from time to time have the same class schedule. You could always tell that David had a knack for getting along with people and that his career would lead him into working directly with others. He became a banker after graduation in 1996 and our paths met again in 2001-2004 as we both attended Banking school at the University of Georgia. I would run into him at football games and I was always welcome at his bank's tailgating tent. David would also give jobs to GSU students who were from Fitzgerald just because I asked him to help them out. David was a good banker and had a good career until he decided to change career paths and work for the greatest university in the world.

David I just want to wish you good luck in your new job and let you know that I will try and help you in any way that I can. You know I bleed BLUE and I'm glad to know that the new head man does too!!

GATA!!! Luckie

Testing my limits! Joe's Table!

2011-08-22T12:48:00.000-04:00

The Master at work with his faithful dog keeping watch!

I'm not sure how long it took me to get Joe's table apart. Evidently, the previous owner was the type of person that liked hammering nails into corners of furniture for no apparent reason. I did finally get all of the pieces disassembled and labeled so that I could start sanding each piece one by one. When I say that there were a lot of nails, I mean there were a lot of nails, and that makes nail holes. Holes do not look good in a piece of refinished furniture. I completed sanding the top part of the table and got it put back together. I filled the holes with wood filler that can be used for staining, but I am not really sure that I am going to like the way it will look once the stain is applied. I got to looking into some refinishing videos on YouTube and found someone that was using colored wood putty instead. I think this may be the best route to follow, so today I purchased some wood putty with matching stain and tonight I will be digging out the wood filler that I applied this weekend. It will cost me some time on this project, but I want to try and make it as nice as I can. Here is a shot of the top once I got it put back together.

I see too many wood filled holes for my liking!!

If I can just get half of these nail holes to become invisible with a little putty and staining magic, then this table just might turn out OK.

Stay tuned!

This one will be a Tester!

2011-08-19T07:45:00.000-04:00

This one is going to be a real challenge! My friend Joe has two small barns and a house full of antique furniture. His Dad was in the antique collecting business many years ago and Joe has been fortunate enough to hang on to some very nice pieces. This piece however is not one of the nice ones. Joe dragged this table out of the barn in hopes that I can make something out of it. He plans to use it as a kitchen table in a rental house that he has at the Coast. It is a very old piece and in pretty ruff shape. The wood is full of nail holes (and nails) and the legs have been damaged because of some "make shift" bracing that was added who knows how many years ago. But there is some potential!

My plans are to completely tear this table apart, sand all of the finish, fill all the holes, glue and screw the pieces back together to make it more sturdy, and finally put on a stain finish. I'm going to have to get my Dad's help with this one on some of the repairs, but we will see how she turns out. Hope you will follow along with me as I post updates on the status of "Joe's Project"!

Have a great weekend! I know what I will be doing!

I'm a Wing Shooter!

2011-08-16T16:19:00.000-04:00

Growing up as a kid in South Georgia, I was exposed to a life in the outdoors by my Dad. My Father came from a hunting and fishing family, so it was only natural that he would pass on the family tradition to me. I hope to pass it on to my son and so on, ensuring that the Luckie family will always be a friend to the outdoors as well as have a genuine love for all that God's creation can offer while afield. Because I have come from such a family, I have had the opportunities to do all kinds of hunting and fishing. I consider myself lucky that I can say that I have hunted for deer, doves, ducks, turkeys, quail, snipe, pheasants, rabbits, squirrels, crows, coons, and rattle snakes just to name a few. I have also done my share of fishing whether it was on a lake, in a pond, on the river, or in the ocean. I have had a well rounded outdoor experience so far in this life. Some might say that it would be hard to pick a favorite activity out of all of these, but for me it is really simple. I'm a wing shooter!

I live for the feel of feathers in my hand that have been retrieved by a well mannered bird dog.
I love the simple sophistication of a double barrel or over/under shotgun.
I feel the upland hunting tradition as I stride across the fields of Kansas.
The beating of quail wings is the sound of music that makes my heart jump a beat.

I love the social hour with good friends before the dove shoot.
The smell of spent shells mixed with peanut hay brings back childhood memories.
A bird dog on point is a beautiful thing.
My son with his BB gun sitting by my side is priceless.

I love brier pants and a blaze orange upland vest!
The sound of Woodys flying through the swamp at day break gives me chills.
Watching a Lab's eyes and his muscles quiver as the Mallards are getting close is spine tingling.
I have never been tired at the end of a field when that last rooster flushes from under my feet.

I always think of my Grand Daddy when I put my Browning in its case.
I loose tract of time when I am quail hunting with my cousins.
Quail hunting is the only way to make it snow in South Georgia!
Being a Grandson, son, father and friend have a a special meaning when chasing wings!

Yep, I'm a wing shooter and although I have just tried to express my feelings about this passion of mine, I find that even these words do not truly communicate the feeling that I get when I am doing what I love best. I love bird hunting and I hope that I will continue to experience what I know and even chase some new wings in the near future.

I think I hear a Prairie Chicken or a Grouse calling my name, or maybe it was a woodcock or a sea duck.

Only time will tell!

Almost time!

2011-08-10T11:45:00.000-04:00

It will not be long now. Even though it is still hot as blazes here in the good ole' South, I can tell that fall is coming. How can that be you might ask? Well let's just say that my inner hunting clock is telling me so! As I was getting dressed for work this morning I noticed a sound echoing from my gun cabinet in my home office. I eased over to investigate what it might be and then I realized what it was. It was the sound of anticipation. All my pretty little Brownings were lined up neatly where they were left at the end of last season. They are patiently waiting on me to pull one of them out of the cabinet and place it in its case to journey on that first dove hunting trip of the season. Opening day is only a few short weeks away. Which little beauty will it be? It will definitely be a 20 gauge because of a shoulder that has not been battle tested this early in the season. Heavy fire power is also not needed on early season doves because a good deal of the birds that are shot are very young birds and easy to bring down. So which will it be? The tried and true A-5 that has been with me the longest? The sweet little over and under that has its own style and grace? Or the known dove punisher that is the Browning Gold Hunter? I'm going with the Gold!! Easy to shoot and confidence with this gun will allow me to leave the others behind on opening day.

As I was standing there tying my tie and viewing the contents of my gun cabinet, I allowed myself to start taking inventory of my dove hunting gear in my mind. Do I know where my dove stool is? Did I ever find my blind? Do my Mo Jo dove decoys need batteries? Do I have enough shells to start the season? Does my son have camo that still fits him? Will Josey "The Wonder Dog" do as well this year as last year once the weather cools off? Have I become familiar enough with her new electric collar? Etc, etc, etc. I realized that I am not quite ready for the season to start, but the good thing is that I have a month to get ready.

I finished tying my tie and told myself that I would take a real inventory this weekend. Getting ready for the hunt is almost as much fun as the hunt itself. I started to close the gun cabinet when I caught the Godfather of the cabinet glaring at me from the corner. The Browning Maxus was sitting in its perch with a look of disgust that I had not even considered taking him with me on opening day. I calmed him down a little by telling him it was just too hot for him in September and that Kansas would be here before you know it. I even tempted him with a possible trip to the Maine wilderness to shoot some sea ducks with the Duckman. That will keep him happy until December when the second dove season opens. Do I have any 12 gauge shells????

Can you be too Big of a Fan??

2011-07-29T13:31:00.001-04:00

Everyone knows that I am a huge fan of two teams. I love the Georgia Southern Eagles and The Atlanta Braves. My summers are spent pulling for the home team in Atlanta and when fall rolls around I'm pulling for the good old Southern boys in Blue! I would consider myself an average fan in the fact that I wear Georgia Southern or Braves hats and shirts, I have some memorabilia from each team, I attend games and follow both teams rather closely when they are in season. But I got to thinking about something today as I was hitting the re-fresh button on my computer for the 50th time over at mlbtraderumors.com. You see the baseball trade deadline is August 31st and I am trying to predict what the Braves will do in the trade market. In fact, I have wasted a good bit of time trying to follow something that I have absolutely no control over. The Braves front office couldn't care less who I want to see the Braves acquire via trade. Have I become one of those obsessed fans?

The same thing can happen to fans that follow their football teams with a passion. In Pro football, fans obsess over the draft. They try and predict where their team will pick and who they will pick and how that particular player will impact the team. They follow trade scenarios and can even tell you how much "cap" room their team has to bid on free agents.

In college football it is all about the recruiting. A rabid fan can tell you the stats of a high school Junior quarterback that his school has had an eye on since the kid was an 8th grader. He can also tell you how one recruit would be great for his school but terrible for his rival's school. He knows the personal bios of the entire coaching staff and has not paid his mortgage this month because he spent the money on season tickets. This guys gets nothing done for his employer on National Signing Day.

High school football fans have even started to become wild maniacs. Message boards full of fighting words are now the norm. The last time I checked, high school kids were still just kids. Are we really talking smack over kids playing a high school football game?

MLB Baseball started the "Fantasy" movement with a bunch of folks who liked baseball stats and wanted to play General Manager. Look how much that took off. You can now play Fantasy in almost every sport.

Fans are great for the game. Without fans, there would be no game but I do feel like it can be taken overboard. The guy who poisoned those trees over at Auburn because he was an Alabama fan is in my opinion an idiot! Who does stuff like that?? If Furman beats Georgia Southern this year, I'm sure that I will be a little upset, but I'm not going to hurt anyone over it. Give me a day or so and I have already forgotten about it and am looking forward to the next game on Saturday.

So what kind of fan are you? Are you just a fan who follows his team and pulls for them on gameday, or are you one of those rabid fans who obsess over all parts of your team's program?

I'll be looking for your answer as soon as I get back from checking on the Braves and their trade prospects!!

The Finished Product- Steady Eddie's Chest!

2011-07-26T20:23:00.000-04:00

The hardware came in today for the chest that I have been refinishing. I'll just let the pictures tell this story!

This is the time period hardware that I picked out. I polished them on a polishing blanket to give them a worn look that will go well with the piece.

First drawer complete!

One of the larger drawers

Just a refresher from where we started!

The finished product!

What a beautiful Antique!

I really had a good time working on this project and it was good for me to get back out in the shop and get my mind off of the banking world for a couple of hours each day. I hope that Mr. Ed is looking down from his fishing hole in the sky and smiling at the job that I finished for him! Somehow I know that he is very proud!

Thanks Mr. Ed for all the memories that you are still creating for me even though you are no longer here! It sure was fun!

Waiting on Finish!

2011-07-19T08:40:00.000-04:00

Beautiful Tiger Oak!!

Down to the bare wood now!

Nice color shades!

It is going to finish up nice!

Only thing left to do is give it a couple to three coats of finish and add the new hardware!

Thanks for following!

Making new again!

2011-07-13T08:59:00.000-04:00

How do you go from this.....

To this...

You use a lot of these...

It occurred to me that some of you may be wondering what steps I take when I am trying to revive an old piece of furniture like this one. It is really not that difficult, it just requires some patience and a strong desire to complete a job well done. I'm not much on the patience part, but I have a very strong need to finish what I start and finish it well.

The first step is to try and clean the furniture the best you can by wiping away all dust and dirt. I use a damp cloth or some form of wood cleaning agent. Now it is time to start stripping. I use a Citrus stripper because the fumes are not bad at all and it seems to work just as well as some of your other stronger fumed products. Some of those guys could make you fail a drug test at work if you are not careful. I try and start on what I think will be the easiest section to work with. This will tell me what I am up against as far as how easy the old finish will come off (or how hard in most cases).

I spread the stripper with a paint brush working with the grain. This particular piece was only finished with a stain, so the stripping agent was already starting to work as I was applying it to the surface. If you have a piece that has been painted, it may take a while for the stripper to really start eating at the paint. After I applied the first coat and saw that it was already working, I grabbed my plastic scrapper and stared scraping the old finish off. I then applied a light second coat and repeated the process. The remaining finish came off with a rub of a damp cloth.

After drying it is time to start sanding. No stripper will remove all of the old finish, so sanding is necessary to properly clean the surface and prepare the surface for a new coat of finish. I use different sanders to complete this task including a belt sander, a mouse sander and a dremmel tool. I start with a course paper to remove the rest of the old finish and work my way down to a fine paper to get the desired smoothness that I need. Once all is sanded I clean the surface with mineral spirits and allow to dry. It should look something like this...

It is now time for your final finish. Some people will stain wood or repaint. I like a natural oak color, so I apply polyurethane. One coat, let dry, lightly sand with steel wool, apply next coat. You should end up with something that looks like this...

Finished drawer ready for new hardware!

or like these...

All 4 drawers with 2 coats of finish!

This project has been kind to me so far in the fact that it has not been too difficult. I only have one more side to strip, then the rest of the chest will get a new coat of finish applied. It is cleaning up well and should be a beautiful piece of furniture when I finish. I visited a local refinishing shop yesterday and the owner told me that this chest was probably made in the late 1870's to early 1920's. He ordered me some new hardware to match that period and I can't wait to see how it is going to look.

Get out there and bring something back to life. It is very rewarding! Stay tuned to see how it ends up!!

Steady Eddie's Chest

2011-07-11T08:41:00.000-04:00

Mr. Ed Cox was one of my favorite people. He passed away last year. He lived a long and happy life and was in generally good health and spirit right up until the time that he went home to be with his Lord. I wrote a little piece about Mr. Ed that you can read here. I am good friends with Mr. Ed's Grandson, Kyle. Kyle and his family have been taking on the task of cleaning out Mr. Ed's house and gathering up things that are dear to them. Kyle told me that they found this old chest of drawers out in Mr. Ed's storage barn, and that if I wanted to try and refinish it I could. I took the opportunity on a rainy Sunday afternoon to get started on what I think is going to be a beautiful piece. Check out Steady Eddie's Chest!

Doesn't look like much does it?

Rear view. The top piece and mirror are no where to be found.

You can tell that someone starting to work on the piece by the two drawers that are already stripped. I hope it was Mr. Ed. I kind of like knowing I am finishing what he started.

So this is what I was given. It is in really nice shape and all of the wood looks to be in good order. I removed the drawers and all of the hardware. I had to do a little repair on the floor of one of the drawers, but luckily Mr. Ed left me some finishing nails that I needed in the very same drawer that needed repairing. I was disappointed to find that someone had removed all of the locks from the drawers and filled in the keyholes with wood filler. I am going to try and find a small brass plate or badge to cover up these places, or I may even try and find new locks. I think it will dress the piece up a little and finish the drawers off nice.

So is this piece going to be worth the effort?? Take a look at the next two shots and you tell me!!

First two drawers with just a bit of cleaner. These were the two that were already stripped.

All four drawers stripped, sanded, and ready for hardware and finish!

I am having fun with this piece so far. It has been fairly easy to clean up as the old varnish is taking it easy on me and coming off nicely. I have pictures of the finished top, but I am going to save those for the next blog post so keep watching for updates as I bring "Steady Eddie's" chest back to life!

Blast From the Past!

2011-07-05T09:15:00.000-04:00

Look out world! Here comes three 18 year old small town South Georgia boys to do a little fishing. I bet you can't tell which three!! I'll give you a little hint. Me and my two buds Blake and Allen are in the front of the boat showing off what we thought were impressive "come hither ladies" bods. This picture was taken in June of 1991 in Panama City where the three of us were enjoying our Senior Trip after High School Graduation.

I found this picture and was reminded of our little fishing trip as I was going through some old high school stuff the other day. My classmates and I are in the middle of planning our 20 year high school reunion and I have had quite a few laughs remembering some of the good times that I shared with some great friends. Classmates are posting old pictures over on our class Facebook site and everyone seems to be getting into the spirit of the upcoming reunion. One of the girls posted a picture of a bunch of them on their Senior cruise, so I thought I would offer this picture of this little afternoon cruise aboard the SW Anderson fishing charter boat! It was part of a fleet for the Captain Anderson's restaurant. I think we were supposed to go out and catch the "catch of the day"! It didn't work.

The crew included myself, Allen, Blake and Lee. We left for Panama City for a week of play and spent most of our time playing volleyball on the beach, chasing other young co-eds, drinking beer, or going to the dog tracks. We kept seeing a plane fly over carrying one of those signs that said "Fishing Charters Available". We had nothing else to do, so we decided to give it a shot. Allen, Blake, and I should have stayed back on the beach with Lee, but you live and you learn.

We set sail with all of these people that you see in the picture with high hopes. The pictures shown in the lobby of the ticket office and the restaurant promised a boatload of fish ranging from big to bigger. None of us had ever been on a charter fishing boat before so we really didn't know what to expect. Most of our fishing had been confined to larger farm ponds, a small lake or the river. As we were sailing on our little journey, I noticed that the ocean provided a little more bumpy ride than the Ocmulgee River, and one of my partners had started to change colors. Blake was not coping very well with the seas and did not do so well at all when they came by with the chum bucket full of squid that would serve as our bait for the day. As they were dipping out a full scoop of squid and placing it on the rail next to where we would be fishing that afternoon, Blake decided that his stomach had seen enough. He was last seen laying on the floor of the boat sucking up air conditioning in the captain's quarters.

Allen and I got ready to fish as the large boat came to rest above some structure that had been placed on the ocean floor for fishing purposes. We were instructed to simply bait our hooks and drop our lines straight down to the bottom. This seemed kind of like boring fishing to us, but we did what we were told and dropped our bait just waiting for the massive grouper or flounder to take our line. Now remember that I mentioned that the seas were a little ruff. Now imagine 30 folks standing next to each other with lines in the water. This was not a good combination. We spent the better part of our day catching each other. Lines would get tangled at the drop of a hat and the only fish that were being caught were little fish not much bigger than the bait. The captain kept telling us to keep our lines straight in front of us. He was either very high or very stupid! This trip was turning into a bust!

Allen had just about had enough. This wasn't fishing. He kept telling me that he wanted to cast his bait out further than the other lines so that he wouldn't keep getting tangled up. The only problem with that is that we had been given strict orders from the captain not to throw our baits. Well the day was coming to a close and it was quite obvious that this particular boat would not make the picture wall back at the landing. Allen said the heck with it. He baited his hook, drew back, and let it fly. He was immediately reprimanded by the captain and told to bring his bait in. As he was reeling he set the hook and told me he had something. Of course I thought he was joking until I saw his line zip across the 30 other lines in the water leaving a tangled mess in it's wake. Fish on!!! Allen fought the mighty fish for a while as we were waiting to see what he had hung. Was it grouper, flounder, dolphin, a shark?? The possibilities were endless.

Allen had caught the biggest fish on the boat! We made it back to shore with our prize. I hope no one ordered the catch of the day that night at Captain Anderson's restaurant, for Allen caught a 15 pound Bonita fish.

Something tells me they don't taste quite like grouper!!

Glory days.......!

It's Wacky Wednesday!!!

2011-06-29T08:14:00.000-04:00

Yes, this is my son! Now you may be wondering what in the world is going on here or you may be saying that there is no way that this could be my son given the amount of hair on his head. I assure you that this is Mr. Reid himself! I can also assure you that this is the one day of the year that he gets to wear his hair like this!

Reid is attending The Challenger British Soccer Camp this week and today is Wacky Wednesday! All of the kids will show up for camp with weird hairdo's or wacky outfits. They really have a great time and the coaches make this camp a lot of fun. There are about 50 kids participating this week and Reid has enjoyed himself and learned some much needed soccer skills. If you have a camp like this in your area you should send your kid. It is a very well run camp and these coaches from across the pond can teach more soccer than anybody from South Georgia will ever know!

Have a great Wacky Wednesday!!!

Is it warm in here or is it just me????

2011-06-21T13:57:00.000-04:00

I don't really think you need me to say very much about this picture. South Georgia heat mixed with a black hard top Jeep will get you these results!! Please send me some cooler weather!!

Give Away Winners!

2011-06-20T08:41:00.000-04:00

No more giveaways for this blogger! My little giveaway project was not much of a success as only the "fab four" left me a comment. So in the words of the Duckman, "this is how I roll"! All of you are winners of the BEHWAB's giveaway. I will send each of you a bag of smoker wood just for being the loyal followers that you are.

So Ian, LB,and Rabid, I need you to send me your shipping address to treyluckie@yahoo.com. Tell me which kind of wood you would like and I'll get it out to you. Duckman, I already have your address and even though you volunteered to bow out of the contest I'm going to send you a bag too!

I look forward to seeing what you prepare and how the product works for you!

Thanks for playing!

It's Give Away Time!!

2011-06-16T09:16:00.000-04:00

The Downeast Duckhunter suggested that I might want to have a giveaway for the product that I endorsed in my last post. I got to thinking and figured it was about time that I shared the love and had a give away of my own. I called my buddy Mike Baxter and he has agreed to provide me with three bags of his wood smoking product. He is giving me one bag of Peach chips, one bag of Cherry chips and one bag of Pecan chips for your smoking needs. How do you enter?? Simple!!

You must be a follower of this blog. You can start following today if you want to, but you must have your picture or your name in the "Followers" section on the right. You must leave me a comment telling me how you intend to use the wood chips. Ian, this especially goes for you as I copy all of your recipes that you post! I will take all of the entries and place every one's name into a hat and draw the winner on Sunday afternoon. If you choose to leave a comment that also includes you making fun of the Duckman in some shape form or fashion, I will put your name in the hat twice!! (Rabid, you are only limited to 10 jabs, more or less).

If I get more than 20 comments, I will give away the three bags to three different winners. Less than 20 comments, and I will give all three bags to one winner. So go out and get people to stop by for a chance at a great prize!

Your comments may begin....NOW!!!

Smoke it if you got it! BBQ that is!

2011-06-14T14:53:00.000-04:00

It has often been said that if you can find something that you enjoy doing and make it your job, then you will always wake up wanting to go to work. I can appreciate someone that takes a hobby and turns it into a way to make a living. I would venture to guess that those people are extremely happy to go to work each day. Why wouldn't they be?? Imagine if you could hunt or fish everyday for a living, or play a favorite sport. Wouldn't you jump at that chance??

I have a friend that is trying and succeeding at doing just that very thing. His hobby has now become his life. Mike Baxter of Fitzgerald, GA has taken his love for turning raw meat into bone sucking good eats to the next level. Not only is Mike garnering quite a reputation as a BBQ Master in cooking competitions, he is also manufacturing his own wood chips to create an award winning smokey taste that all true BBQ lovers crave.

How did this happen? Pretty simple really. Mike likes to smoke his BBQ. He would often purchase wood chips in bags from the store, only to find that they were too small or too large for his cooking needs. Any true BBQ master will tell you that the smoke is where the flavor comes from and the size of your wood chips can be very important to get the best smoke possible in your alotted cooking time. Mike frequently found himself with hatchet in hand trimming his store bought wood chunks to fit his cooking needs. Being the entrepreneurial type, a light clicked on in Mike's head and Baxter's Original was born.

You can get an idea of the size of the wood chucks here!

Baxter's Originals is not a fancy wancy kind of company that will fill you with a lot of fluff! Mike still cuts all of his wood with his hatchet and bags the wood chips in small burlap bags with his logo spray painted on the side of the bag. Not a lot of frills, but you do get one heck of a product that is excellent for your grilling and smoking needs. All you do is soak a few pieces of his wood in water or your favorite juice for about 20 minutes and then add them to your heat. You are now smoking with Baxter's Original smoke!! What kind of wood you might ask?? Depends on the flavor you want! He has anything from Apple to Walnut! I even add these chips to my Holland grill surface and they smoke really well without burning up too quickly like a smaller wood chip might do. For those of you who have a Holland grill, you know that it is hard to get that smokey taste because the Holland is not much more than an outdoor oven, but with Baxter's wood chips I can get smoke pouring out of both stacks.

Mike has been in business for almost two years now, and though he has not been able to quite quit his day job just yet, he says that the business is continuing to grow and he has shipped product to all 50 states as well as Canada, Germany and the Neverlands. He says that they fill about 100 orders a week and that his best business comes from repeat customers. He is even sponsoring the St. Louis Style Cooking Team that has done quite well on the competition BBQ circuit in the Central Texas BBQ Association!

A winning combination! Baxter Smoke and grilled pig parts!

So how do you get your hands on some of this Baxter Smoke making wood? Just click on the link above or go to http://www.baxtersoriginal.com/ and take a look at his website. Pick out what products you want and hit the little order button. I promise you will not be dissapointed in his product. I can not however promise that you will automatically turn into a grilling master like Mr. Baxter shown below!

Editors Note: Mike did not pay me to write this review. I did this because I believe in his product and his determination to make his company work, although I would not turn down a T-shirt or a rib dinner if it was offered!

Smoke on Bax!!!

Who knew?? Blogging really pays!!

2011-06-08T10:34:00.000-04:00

It never fails! It is always the same thing no matter where I go. I can hear the question coming from a mile away. It goes something like this...

"Can I have your name?"

My name is Trey Luckie.

"Luckie huh? Are you really lucky??"

I have become immune to it by now. I just usually respond by saying that I am indeed a "lucky" person and that I seem to do OK. I really do consider myself a lucky person in the fact that I have been so blessed, but I know what they mean when they ask "Are you lucky?". They want to know if with a last name like "Luckie", do I have some sort of magical horse shoe or rabbits foot in my back pocket. The answer is YES!!!!

Let's look back over the past few months. When I started blogging I knew nothing of blogger give aways or contest. I saw the first blogger give away on my Mom's blog. Seemed like a bunch of women were giving away little items to get people to follow their blogs. It sounded like a pretty good idea to me. My Mom even won one of the little contest.

Along comes the Outdoor Blogger Network! The OBN starts having weekly gear review opportunities for its members. Simply agree to write a product review on your blog and you can enter yourself for a chance to receive some pretty cool products. I started doing just that. My first winner was a gun cleaning kit from Otis Technologies. It was kind of exciting to win this little game, so I branched out and started a pretty impressive little winning streak, much to the dismay of my good buddy The Downeast Duck Hunter and to the fine lady at Bullets and Biscuits! Here are my blogger winnings to date...

Otis Technologies Gun Cleaning kit- OBN Gear review

Top Shot Fan kit including a T-shirt, season one DVD, shot glass and phone cover- Scent Free Lip Gloss giveaway

Scavenger Hunt which included $50 Bass Pro Shop gift card, one pair of Magnum Boots, several packages of Jerky from the House of Jerky, and an outdoor cookbook. It also included a bonus prize from my friend at Bullets and Biscuits. A jar of the best grape jelly I have ever had!- Ben G Outdoors

Bait casting Reel- OBN Gear review (I have not received it yet)

Not a bad little run! I admit that I look forward to these little contest and the prizes that come along with them. I continue to register at the OBN for gear reviews and I am determined to win the giveaway that is currently happening over at Bullets and Biscuits just because she called me out!! Check it out as she is giving away some strawberry/banana spread!

Until the next contest!! GOOD LUCK!!!

Soaring on Paper Wings!

2011-05-19T13:39:00.001-04:00

Wednesday night marked the end of the year for our RA group at church. It has been a great year with some great kids. We will pick back up in a couple of months when school starts back and we are already planning on expanding our program to include more outdoor activities that encourage the boys to participate in different projects. We try to make it fun for them, but we also require them to do the work. One of the things that I think that we do well is reward the kids that put forth the effort. For example, this little glider that you see here was built by Reid and me. He got to build this because he completed his Missions folder for the year and also completed his requirements for his Athletic patch that is placed on his chart in the RA room. To complete the Athletic patch requirements, he had to do 200 push ups, sit ups and leg raises. The boys have all year to get this done. They can come in and do 10 or 20 a week of each one and eventually get to 200. Out of Reid's age group, we had 4 boys complete both their folder and receive their athletic patch. That meant that 4 boys got a chance to put together a glider and fly them on the last Wednesday of RA's.

These little gliders can be found in a kit by White Wings. The wings are cut out and glued together and then glued onto the body of the plane. This was our first attempt at building one of these planes and we really did not have any directions to go by, as our Sr. RA leader provided the materials but couldn't find copies of the instructions. I tried to build it strong with some extra glue as I figured some mighty big crash landings were in this little plane's foreseeable future. We flew it in the yard a few times and I told Reid not to expect too much. I could throw it about 30 or 40 feet, but it was definitely not gliding gracefully. I was curious as to what it would do once it was placed on a rubber band launcher. You can see the hook on the bottom of the plane where the band can be attached for launch. We loaded up the little plane and hoped for the best.

When we got to church the first thing Mr. Larry (Sr. RA leader) said to us was that we had our wings glued on backwards. Well there was no changing that now and I told him that my good buddy Hal would be arriving with the same problem. He brought his son's plane over to compare to Reid's to see how to put it together. We ended up with only 3 planes to fly and two of them had backwards wings. This was not looking good. It got worse for one kid!

The competition for "Plane of the Year" was simple. All planes would be measured for distance flown and time in flight. Records would be kept and the name of the winner would be displayed on the records board for the next year. Our fist contestant gave his plane to Mr. Larry to launch from the rubber band launcher. As Larry let the plane fly, the plane's tail wing caught on the launching stick and broke the plane in half. The kid had glued his tail wings to the bottom of the plane body instead of the top. The kid was crushed and Mr. Larry spent the next few minutes trying to complete a patch job (or a small miracle). He gave me the launcher and Hal took the measuring tape.

I took Reid's little plane in hand and gave the rubber band a mighty pull. The plane ducked and dived to respectable 67 feet. We hooked up the next plane and it flew pretty close to the same distance. I kept launching the little planes at different angles trying to get that one great flight. We got up to around 100ft, but we were only getting about 8 seconds of flight time. Mr. Larry returned with the patched up plane and saw the troubles we were having. He showed me a few little tweaks for the wings and I loaded up the next glider. Off she went and set sail. We got her out to 150 feet and had her in the air for about 18 seconds. The kids were going nuts. I took Reid's glider in hand and made the same little adjustments to the wings. When I shot it into the air I knew we were going to be tough to beat. It flew straight up into the air and started gliding down in a straight line path riding the wind as it went. The final tally of that one flight was 177 feet and an air time of 22 seconds. Reid won "The Plane of the Year"! His glider will be displayed all year in the RA room as a reminder of his accomplishment. Just imagine what we could have done if his wings were actually on the plane the correct way!!

I like stuff like this. This was a simple little project that Reid and I could share together and have some fun doing. I just ordered us a glider making kit so that we can continue to have some fun this summer. I found it at Amazon.com under White Wing Gliders. It was only $19.00 but I can guarantee you that we will get more than $19 worth of fun out of it.

RA's has been good for Reid this year. It has been good for me also. We have learned to tie knots, race Pinewood Derby cars and fly gliders, but we have also learned about being good missionaries for God and what it means to be graceful, thankful, good Christian young men. Mr. Larry has been teaching these boys for several years and I am glad that I was able to come back on board after a few years off. I found that I have missed seeing the boys each week and trying to make a difference in their Christian lives. I hope that they will take what we are trying to teach them each week and learn to soar higher than these paper airplanes. They all have so much potential to accomplish whatever God has laid out before them. I just hope that we have given them enough to see that if they keep Jesus in their life and put him first, anything is possible.

Even a record setting paper glider with backward wings!

Summertime means busy time!

2011-05-17T17:01:00.001-04:00

It is hard to believe, but school is about to be out for the summer. It seems like just yesterday that this picture was taken as we started our first day of Pre-K and First grade. Time really does fly by.

I was talking to my good friend Hal Wiley the other day and he made the comment about how busy our kids are these days. I have to agree with him as I look at the calendar and see just what my kids have scheduled for the next month. It is going to be a busy summer. Here's what I mean...

We will be missing the last day of school next week as we travel to Florida to board the Disney Dream boat and cruise with Mickey Mouse for a few days. We return home on Memorial Day. Mia will then have a busy week making the final preparations for her year ending dance recital on Saturday June 4th. The next week my little girl will attend "Arts" camp which is hosted by the local Fitzgerald Arts council. She will get to do all kinds of artsy stuff, which is right up her ally. The next week she will attend Cheer camp at our local high school and learn some new cheers that she will perform at a football game in the fall. She will also have children's church activities that will last all through the summer months, as well as a week of Vacation Bible School.

Don't think we are leaving Reid out! He will attend baseball camp at a nearby local college for a week and then attend soccer camp the week after. He will also have children's church activities and a week of Vacation Bible School. This will get us through June!!! Who knows what the other two months will bring!!

I don't remember being that busy as a kid. I'm sure that I was, but it seems to me that I spent more time playing in the neighbor's back yard than I did attending an organized day camp or activity. Times are different now. When did we change and become parents and children who have to be constantly entertained? I'm sure that we all want the best for our kids but I'm scared that we are creating a society of young people that expect to be catered to and entertained at all times. I know my son is that way. He wants someone to play with him at ALL times. He will drive you nuts until you give in and entertain him. My daughter on the other hand is a little better in the fact that she will entertain herself. She can spend hours drawing or pretending with her dolls. She is able to make herself happy. I wish her brother would follow suit!

I want my kids to have a great summer! I want them to have great memories of their childhood! I want them to have things to do! But I also want them to be able to have fun without all the fluff. I want them to have fun spending the day playing ball in the yard or running through the sprinkler. I want them to have fun catching crickets and fishing in the back yard. I want them to have fun riding their bikes and catching fireflies. That's what summer is all about! Having fun!! No homework, no school, no worries!! It doesn't always have to be a camp or a planned activity everyday! Summer can be whatever you make it! I hope you make it fun!

It's going to be a busy summer! I'm ready!

Daddy, is singing in the choir cool????

2011-05-09T12:01:00.001-04:00

My baseball playing son asked me this on the same day that he participated in our church's children's musical. He sang all the songs and did all of the moves and even had a couple of lines that he had to recite. He did them all very well and we were so proud of him. As his father I can say that I was just as proud of him as I would have been if he had hit a home run in his last baseball game. I wish more fathers would feel the same way.

Reid is 8 years old and only one of 4 boys that participated in the musical yesterday. Two of the boys belong to our church pianist and the other is in our RA group. There are more than 4 boys in our church. We average 25 in RA's on Wednesday nights. Why did they not participate? Somewhere along the way they decided that music wasn't cool and that singing in the choir might make them a sissy. I know this because Reid has told me that some of his friends have told him that. His interest in music has seemed to diminish this year as he is feeling his first effects of peer pressure. Now I have no problem if a child decides that performing in front of a crowd is just not for them, but I do have an issue with a parent that tells their son that he will be a sissy for performing in a children's musical. Why not encourage your son to do whatever he likes?

I will be the first to tell you that I would rather Reid play sports than dress up and sing show tunes, but I will also say that I hope that Reid will always find room for music in his life. I know that as little boys get older they will generally make a decision about the path that they will follow. Society seems to steer them down one of only two paths. Sports or music and arts. Very seldom do they do both. I wish that would change.

I considered myself an athlete first. Ball practice and outdoor events came before singing, but I always made time for the talents that I was given. My church had a children's choir and was the place where I found my voice. I sang my first church solo at the age of 5. I continued to sing and have not stopped singing since. I even sang in high school often going from ball practice to choir practice and back to ball practice again. Was I a sissy?? Far from it. I was an athlete that happened to be able to sing and enjoyed doing both. Some would say that it takes a bigger man to perform with his voice than with his ball and glove. I also found out that the older I got, the less that sports really mattered. People are not impressed that I once went 5 for 5 in a state playoff game, but they sure do ask me to sing a lot!

So Reid, is singing in the choir cool? Your Dad thinks so. Matter of fact, I think that anything you enjoy doing is cool as long as you honor God and your family while doing it. If you want to sing, then sing loud! If you want to play ball, then play hard! If you want to do both, then do both!

I promise that it will be very cool!

Challenge #3- "Amaze Me!"

2011-05-03T14:12:00.000-04:00

The definition of amazing is as follows- causing great surprise or sudden wonder; astonish greatly; to bewilder or perplex.

The third leg of the Duckman's challenges was for me to "amaze" him with something. I have already filmed a video of my son catching a 4 pound bass and filmed a video of me chipping a golf ball into a bucket from 50 feet for challenges number 1 and 2, but this challenge is a bit different. You see there are a number of things in this life that I find amazing and I'm not sure that I can choose just one or even have the chance to film one of these events or take a picture. What I thought I would do is list a few of the things that astonish, surprise, perplex or bewilder me on a daily basis. My hope is that the Duckman will be "amazed" in my efforts to point out to all of you the wonderful things that astonish me in my little world and grant me a passing grade in Challenge #3!

I'm amazed that....

...Jesus Christ is my savior and that he forgives me for my many sins! He has a home for me in his kingdom!
...I am a father to two of the most beautiful children in this world. I'm not kidding! My wife and I made good looking kids!
...God has chosen to bless me! I have a great family, a great job, and great friends.
...most anything can be accomplished with a little hard work and a lot of great attitude!
...more people do not understand the previous statement!!!
...I have customers who trust me to help them with their financial needs.
...I have to opportunity to live and work in my hometown in which I grew up.
...this year marks my 20 year high school reunion.
...time flies by so fast!

I'm amazed that...

...my daughter can use her imagination and draw the prettiest pictures.
...my son still lets me kiss him goodnight.
..my dog seems to understand what I am telling her most of the time.
...I receive so much pleasure from doing yard work!
...a mighty oak tree starts from such small beginnings.
...sitting in a deer stand can be so peaceful.
...hearing a turkey gobble can boil my blood.
...every dove shoot makes me think of my Grand Daddy.
...cooking for the boys makes me so happy.

I'm amazed that...

...my hyper active son will sit down and watch the Braves with me.
...someone would cover a beautiful piece of furniture with paint (3 layers).
...I enjoy taking those layers of paint off to find what beauty lies underneath.
...people spend more time worrying about things and less time doing something about them.
...some people would rather focus on the negative than the positive.
...I remember so much about my childhood and how fond those memories are.
...I have the opportunity to work with good people.
...my son can tie more knots than I can.
...my Mama knows how to text!

I'm amazed that...

...my wife has such artistic talents.
...I was given a voice in which to sing with.
...I enjoy a good book.
...I get out of bed everyday with something to look forward to.

...I have been writing a blog for over a year.
...people actually read it.
...I have formed such a good friendship with someone I have never actually met!
...I really am a very lucky person!
...life is really so short.

I'm amazed that...

...my parents were able to pick themselves up and continue on with life after loosing a daughter and just how much I still miss my sister to this day!

So there you have it Duckman. I could go on and on but i think you get the point. I consider myself a blessed man and i know how lucky I am to have such wonderful things in my life. I hope you are amazed!

I know I am!!!

Golf is such a funny game!

2011-04-30T18:44:00.000-04:00

I joined three of my buddies today to play in a local Relay for Life golf tournament. We started out this morning with high hopes of bringing home the goods. We put together what we thought would be a good foursome and off we went. I would like to tell you that we won the tournament, but sadly I can not do that. We played pretty well, but there were some other teams that played a bit better. It was a fun day spent with good friends and I would gladly take my chances in the next tournament with the same three guys that I played with today. Now here's the funny part...

Since this was a charity tournament, prizes were given in the form of golf equipment instead of cash. They were nice prizes however! First place took home Taylor Made Drivers, second place took home Taylor Made Fairway woods, and third place took home Odyssee putters. There were also prizes for closest to the pin shots on all of the par 3's which included golf bags and Titleist wedges. But the big prize of the day and the one that had everyone talking was a chance to hit your ball closest to the pin on a Par 4 that sits on the edge of a lake some 278 yards from the tee. The hole is designed to play around the water, but a brave golfer with a little pop in his swing can try and carry the water and a sand trap and try to hit the green for an easy Eagle attempt. The prize for this shot was a brand new 2011 Taylor Made R-11 driver. (retail $400) This is an extremely nice prize for a charity golf tournament!!

I stepped on the tee and paid my $5 for my chance. I had been hitting my driver pretty good all day, so I was fairly confident that I could make it onto the green, but a previous shot had been measured in at 22 feet. It's hard enough to hit the green, much less get it closer than 22 feet. Remember, the pin is 278 yards away! I took my time and picked out a line of sight. I drew it back and let it rip! It looked good from the get go! I knew it was enough and headed in the right direction, but you can never tell what will happen when it hits.

Let me take a moment to back up and tell you how I played the par threes today. A par three is a shorter shot and you should be able to hit the green on a consistent basis. I usually do pretty well on par 3's because I am a pretty good iron player. Well today was not my day. I did not hit one single green in regulation on a par 3! For me, that is terrible! Back to the impossible shot...

As the ball was coming down towards the green I thought it was going to be coming in too hot for the green to hold it. This would mean that my shot would end up over the green. The golf God's must have felt bad for how they treated me on the Par 3's and actually made my ball check when it hit. The result... 7' 11" from the cup! Noone else came close. The prize of the tournament was mine!

I can't hit a Par 3 from less than 160 yards but I can pull that shot off!

Golf is such a funny game!

Downeast Challenge #2- The Chip Shot

2011-04-28T19:16:00.000-04:00

Challenge Number 2 from my friend in Downeast Maine involved a little something that I can really appreciate. This challenge was all about me and what I could do with a sand wedge. I got a little camera help from my son and we knocked this challenge out in just a few tries. Enjoy!

Now it's on to Challenge #3. Who knows what the Duckman has in store!

Hope it's fun!

Challenge #1 from Downeast!

2011-04-24T22:00:00.001-04:00

I started out as a simple conversation between two new friends. You know, simple things like how are the kids, how is school going, how is your baseball team, or how is the turkey season coming? Eventually The Downeast Duck Hunter and I started to talk about our blogs and he reminded me that I have not been posting very much lately. I explained to him that I really didn't have much going on that I thought was blog worthy. My turkey season has been in the tank so far and I didn't figure that my readers want to read about me reviving my once great golf game. Well the Duckman jumped at the chance to issue me a challenge in order to help bring me out of my writing funk. He says it comes in 5 parts. If I meet challenge one, then he will issue me challenge number 2, then #3 and so on. So here we go!!

Challenge #1- Video my son Reid catching a bass! No problem! I hope a 4 pounder will do! Listen to the words that my little man has for Mr. President!

So now we are on to Challenge number 2! Give us your best shot Duckman! This should be fun!

Camp Kaleo, An RA Trip in Pictures!

2011-04-16T20:15:00.000-04:00

The Royal Ambassadors from First Baptist Church in Fitzgerald made their way to Camp Kaleo this past weekend to test their skills against other RA's in the State of Georgia. We had a great time and I think I will just let the pictures tell the story!

This is Reid competing in the Wild Wood Run!

Reid and some of his teammates trying to get their fire going in order to boil the can of soapy water. It took them just over 12 minutes.

The boys are taking aim in the BB shoot competition. Reid scored the highest score out of this group!

A big part of the weekend is the knot tying competition. Here is Reid tying his knots in the team part of the event. Our group finished third!

Here Reid is working on the Double bowline knot! He got it correct!

The boys are now waiting to tie knots in the individual part of the competition.

This next video is Reid competing in the individual competition for tying the bowline knot. He finishes second by .9 second. Watch how close it is between him and the boy in the yellow shirt to the left of him in the shot. Keep in mind that the other boy is in the third grade. Reid is in the first.

The weekend was not only an opportunity to spend time with some great Dads and other RA leaders, but also a time for me to spend time with Reid on a real camping trip. He really enjoyed all of the competitions and just being in the woods. On the ride home from the church he said he was ready to go back to camp. I told him that we would go back next year. He said he wanted to go back today!

Bringing home the Gold!

Every other year, I'm the Man!

2011-04-14T13:26:00.000-04:00

You see this picture? This picture was taken after I killed my third gobbler of 2010. 2010 was a great year for me as a Turkey hunter!

This is another fine picture of a great Hunting experience that took place in 2008!

This 21 lb beauty fell to my calling charms in the Spring of 2006!

Do you see a pattern here? I can keep going if I need to. If things do not pick up here in 2011 very quickly, then I believe I am cursed with the "every other" or "even years only" curse. It has been that way for me with very few exceptions since 1998.

It's hard to figure. Our place has plenty of birds. They just do not seem to like me in years that end in an odd number. This year is not looking very good for me either and my hunting chances are getting fewer and fewer. I was out of town this past weekend golfing. This weekend I will be camping with my son and his RA group. Next weekend is Easter weekend and I have to attend an egg hunt with my wife and kids in the early morning. The following weekend I am scheduled to play in another golf tournament. I'm just about out of weekends!! I can only hope to get in a few "mid week" hunts between now and the end of the season. The problem with that game plan is that the birds are not talking very much right now and I do not want to use all my brownie points from work to go sit in silent woods!

This turkey hunting thing can drive you crazy but I guess I will just have to live with the fact that every other year...

I'm the man!

I do love the game!

2011-04-11T12:01:00.001-04:00

This past weekend marked the 12th year in a row that a group of golfers from Fitzgerald took to the road in search of a good time, a little competition, and a lot of great fellowship. The Wild Chicken Cup was once again contested in the great state of Alabama at the Dothan National Golf Club and Hotel. 44 golfers made the trip for this years tournament. Team Red came into the weekend riding a wave of momentum as they upset Team Black in 2010. Their confidence was reduced to fear in short order as Team Black jumped to an early lead after day one. After all was said and done, Team Black secured the victory and the Wild Chicken Cup was returned to its rightful home. (I'm on Team Black!)

This was only the second time that I have played golf in the past 6 months and only the 3rd time that I have played since last year's tournament. I as reflect back on what golf has meant to me in my life, I find that very surprising. Several of us talked about the fact that we do not play much anymore, especially after our Country Club shut the doors, but I have a love for the game that is not easy for me to describe and I find myself missing the game very much. I thought that I could just walk away from it, but the truth is I need it. It is a part of me. It is in my past and I hope that it will always be in my future, and thanks to a 7 year old boy that I met this past weekend, I'm going to make sure that golf will continue to be in my life as well as the life of my son Reid.

I never even asked the kid his name. He was a cute little dude with his khaki shorts, polo shirt and Masters hat. He looked like a golfer with his two toned golf shoes, golf glove and shinny bag and clubs. His father told me that he was seven years old and loved to play golf. I thought of my own son and how he likes to hit balls in the yard with his clubs, but then I watched this little guy take a few practice puts on the green and I knew that we were talking a different ball game. The word "prodigy" came to mind as I watched this kid hit a few practice balls. His Dad worked at the club and has been bringing him out to play since he was three years old. He went on to tell me that he has played in three different kids tournaments and has won all three of them. They are preparing to play in the "Future Masters" tournament this summer. I wish this kid all the luck in the world and I admire his Dad for bringing him to the golf course. By the way, this little 7 year old that can only hit the ball about 135 yards went out and shot a 79 from the ladies tees. That is impressive!

So why did this kid spark my fire for the game of golf again? It made me realize that I should be doing more to pass this great game on to my son! The game of golf can be played for a lifetime and nothing would please me more than my son taking up the game and being able to play it at a high level. With the reopening of our local golf course, I hope that I can take Reid to hit balls and try to play a little. Do I want a prodigy? I'm not hoping or wishing for that. I just want him to play the game and learn to love it one day just as I did.

I was not exposed to the game of golf at an early age. In fact I probably did not swing my first golf club until I was 12 years old. Baseball was my life as a young boy and stayed that way through high school, but if I had to do it over again I think I would choose golf. I'm a better golfer than I was a baseball player. One of my fraternity brothers tried out for and made the Georgia Southern Golf Team while we were in school. I could play with him and I was only two years removed from playing full time high school baseball. If I had focused on golf for all those years, who knows, I may have gotten a free education somewhere. I just want to provide Reid with the opportunity to make a choice. If he loves baseball, then we will play baseball. If he loves golf, we will play golf. If he wants to play both or none at all, then that will be fine too. I just want to expose him to as much as possible so that he can feel good about the decisions that he will one day have to make.

That little kid broke 80 for the first time this past Saturday. All you could see was his huge smile as he ran up to his Dad to tell him. I remember the first time I broke 80 and how excited I was to tell my Dad. I can only hope that Reid will be excited on the day that he breaks 80, but it will be up to him if he wants to play the game that his Dad still loves! It will be up to me to give him that chance!

Son, do you want to go hit some balls?

Some Changes!

2011-04-04T10:49:00.000-04:00

I started playing around with blogger last night upon a recommendation from a fellow writer in the blogging community. It seems that when I started this blog, I picked one of the very simple templates in which to begin my blogging adventure. I had no idea what I was doing, so I just picked a template, added some colors and off I went. After visiting several blogs over the past year, I have come to realize that I may need to freshen up a bit for you my now loyal followers! Here is what I have so far!

I'm not sure if I like this yet, and I'm sure there are more changes to come, but this is what I'm going with for right now. Let me know what you think or if you would like to see anymore changes made. Can you read the print? Are the colors OK for reading? It will ultimately come down to what I like, but I do value your input! If you see something that I might need to change, please leave SPECIFIC instructions on how to change it. So far all I know how to do is hit buttons and see what happens!!

Hope you enjoy and if I could ever get on a turkey I'd have a new post for you!

Have a great week!

If you are a Turkey Hunter, You Have Got to Hear This!!

2011-04-01T10:17:00.000-04:00

I have no idea who these guys are, but they may have recorded the best Turkey Hunting video ever. Turn up the volume as you listen to this. Talk about getting your blood boiling first thing in the morning! Hope they don't mind me posting this on a blog, but I got it forwarded to me in an e-mail and had to share! Enjoy!

I Sent Instructions!

2011-03-29T09:57:00.001-04:00

As I carefully prepared my care package for its trip up North to the land of Downeast Maine, it occurred to me that I may need to include some instructions to go along with the South Georgia treats that were found in the box. Oh, I'm sure the Downeast Duck Hunter could figure out how to wear the camo hat that was in the box, but the other treat would be foreign to him.

I may need to back up a bit and inform you that through this little blog I have had the opportunity to share my stories of South Georgia and experience some of your stories from all over this great country. I have also had the opportunity to meet some really great people and I consider myself "lucky" to have befriended The Downeast Duck Hunter who hails from the Great State of Maine. I'm interested in a life above the Mason Dixon line and he asks me all kinds of questions about how we do things in the South. We talk frequently and are trying to plan trips for each other to visit during hunting season to share what life is like in Georgia or Maine. I think of him as a friend, and what kind of friend would I be if I didn't poke a little fun at him every now and again??? It is with this that my present story begins.

In one of our many "question and answer" secessions the topic of local foods came up. Something along the lines of "Have you ever eaten this or eaten that?" I asked the DEDH if he had ever eaten boiled peanuts. I knew from experience that most people from the colder states have not tried this Southern delight. His response was "No, but my wife has tried them once when she was a little girl." That got my mind to rolling and I figured I could do something about that.

I am a semi-professional peanut boiler! In the fall of the year when the peanuts are being dug out of the ground and college football is in full swing, you can find me in the shop with a big pot of boiling salt water and fresh green peanuts. You bring the peanuts to a boil and let them cook until they are the right consistency. I then let them soak up some of the salt water and bag them up in gallon bags. I freeze several of the bags so that I can have peanuts all winter long. If you have never had a boiled peanut then just let me tell you that they are very addictive and you can easily eat your belly full in no time flat!

I went to the freezer and found no peanuts. Between me, my wife, and kids we had depleted our boiled peanut supply. My wife however will eat the boiled peanuts that you can buy in a can at the grocery store. They are not my favorite, but they are not too bad either. I went to the store and bought two cans to send to Maine. I got them all packaged up and remembered a time when I was in college when we gave some ~~Yankees~~ Northern fellows their first try of some boiled peanuts. They ate almost a whole bag, shell (or hull) and all before we could tell them that they were supposed to crack them open and just eat the meat from the inside. I decided to include instructions in my gift. They read something like this....Open can and drain. Put peanuts in a sauce pan and fill with water. Bring to boil and remove from heat. Drain again and enjoy while still warm. DO NOT EAT THE SHELL!

I received the following text from the Duckman.....Ha ha lol, next time I will read your letter before eating from a can!

I knew exactly what had happened. In the Duckman's excitement, he tossed my instructions aside and starting chomping on peanuts straight from the can in the parking lot of the local Post Office. After spitting out about 4 peanuts, shell and all, and decideing that this Southern boy was crazy to send something this God awful up North, he read the instructions. I think that he enjoyed them from that point and when I called him he was full of questions about the process of boiling peanuts. I had to sadly tell him that you could not take a roasted peanut and boil it to make it a boiled peanut. Maybe this fall I will ship him some South Georgia fresh from the field Green Peanuts and let him give it a whirl!

I'll make sure to include BIG instructions!!

It's time! Is your gear ready??

2011-03-24T09:25:00.000-04:00

It's the most wonderful time of the year! Saturday morning will bring in the Wild Turkey season for 2011. After a very successful 2010, I am hoping that 2011 will be a repeat. I was asked by someone what I did to prepare for opening morning. My approach is fairly simple. Since we have been hunting the same piece of land for the past 20 years, we can pretty much tell you where the birds will be. You just need to know your gear and be able to use it well!

My wife is sick of hearing turkey calls in the house. In order to become a good turkey caller with a mouth call you have to practice. She will put up with me for a week or so, but I have now been moved out of the house and practice in my Jeep as I travel to and from work. I want my mouth call to produce the tones I want on my command while I am out in the field. Practicing builds confidence that I can do just that. I also practice with my other calls and make sure that they are properly sanded or chalked and are ready for me when I need them.

A Turkey hunter loves all of his gadgets that he can fit in his vest. Most turkey hunting vest are made with more than enough pockets and I am guilty of trying to fill everyone with something. Most of the time I do not need half of what I carry with me, but it is there if I need it. Every year I bring out my turkey vest and remind myself what is in each pocket. I check to make sure that I have everything I need and have not robbed my vest for other hunting purposes. For example I found that I had taken my favorite face mask out of my turkey vest to be used during this past deer season. I also found that my bug repellent spray was in need of refilling. I also needed to replace some shells in my empty shell loops. Did I mention that 2010 was a good turkey hunting year!!!? After checking to see if everything is there where it should be, I start testing myself to make sure that I can recover an item quickly and that I know exactly where it is. There is no worse feeling in the turkey woods than not being able to put your hands on something that you need in a timely manner! So be prepared!!

Now some of you may be wondering exactly what I take to the turkey woods. I have tried all kinds of turkey hunting gadgets and over the years I have whittled it down to this. Here is a quick rundown.

-Browning NWTF turkey special with 3 1/2 magnum turkey loads.

-One folding Gobbler Lounger chair

-One small blind that can be rolled up and put in my vest

-Tactical Tat'r II Turkey vest

-Two Vaughn Slate calls with two different strikers and sanding rocks

-One Wet Willie box call

-4 different mouth calls

-One owl hooter

-One crow call

-Face mask and gloves

-Binoculars

-Thermacall as well as bug spray

-Small pair of pruning shears

-Extra ammo

-One fold up decoy (my Dad has the other one)

-Knife

-Turkey boots and full camo

and

A strong desire to Wack and Stack some South Georgia Thunder Chickens!!

Saturday morning can not get here fast enough for me. I know I'm ready. Are you???

It's Raining Folks in Fitzgerald!

2011-03-17T21:06:00.000-04:00

The engines have already been fired up! The planes are taking off two and three at a time. Crazy people are jumping out of a perfectly good airplane at a very rapid pace! Right over my house!!!

This marks the third year in a row that an area skydiving club had held an annual event at the Fitzgerald airport. They bring a large crowd and will have people jumping all weekend. The event got an early start today and at the present time I can still hear the planes as they buzz over my neighborhood. The airport is only about 2 miles from here and we will spend the weekend watching parachutes pop open and bring these crazy souls back down to earth.

We like to go watch! You can hear the plane as it approaches and it can easily be found in a pair of good binoculars. You can actually see the free fallers when they leave the plane. If you do not have binoculars, then you just watch the blue heavens and chutes will open like pop-corn across the sky in all sorts of colors. The kids think it is really neat. The group will be trying to set a record this weekend by linking up with other free fallers to see how many than can actually hook up while falling. They will be jumping out of at least two planes at one time to do this. It looks like pepper thrown on a blue plate when they start. They move close together to try and hook up and then spread back out to hit their chutes. There will be around 60 parachutes in the sky when that happens!

They offer tandem jumps for those adrenalin junkie type of people, and people will come from miles around to participate. So if you want to jump out of a plane this weekend, make your way to Fitzgerald. Make sure to wave at me on your way down!!

The Fishing Tournament We Almost Won in 20 Minutes!

2011-03-15T08:22:00.000-04:00

Our local High School Football Booster Club held its third annual Bass fishing tournament this past Saturday. This is a two man event in which you can fish anywhere you want and weigh in your three biggest fish. First prize to the winning team is $500 and a boat load of goodies. They also have prizes for the biggest fish caught for the day and different prizes for kids who fish in the tournament. There were 70 teams signed up to fish for the day and a large crowd gathered for the weigh in.

My partner for the day was none other than my 7 year old son Reid. Saturday morning was expecting temperatures in the high 30's so I made the decision to sleep in. My plan was to let the day warm up a bit and then hit a few neighborhood ponds in hopes of landing 3 fish that we could weigh in. My primary goal was for Reid to catch a fish so that he would be eligible for the kids big fish prize. He got up and got himself dressed as I did some work in the yard. He declared himself ready to go, so we loaded up the golf cart and took off.

Our first stop was his Papa's house. My parents live just down the road and have about a 4 acre pond. I know that there are some big fish in this pond because I have put several large fish in this pond over the past few years including 2 over 8 and one that was 9.5lbs. The biggest ever caught out of my childhood fishing hole was 12 pounds. We fished the pond pretty hard with not a lot of luck. I caught one small fish and threw him back. We decided to move on.

We headed down the street a little further to our second pond. This is a nice size pond with some cypress structure. We fished this pond with gusto to no avail. Not one bite. Time to move on!

Our third pond was a little pond that always produces fish. We have access to a little boat there so we loaded up our stuff and paddled out to where we always catch fish. You guessed it. Not one fish! I was stumped and Reid had lost patience. We decided to load up the gear and head for the house. We would grab some lunch and go watch the weigh in. At least we could have a good time watching teams bring in their fish.

As we were having lunch, my good friend Hal Wiley called me to see how we were doing. Hal was fishing with his son who is the same age as Reid. Hal had the same goal in mind that I did. He wanted his son to catch a fish for the kids division. I told him of our luck and he told me that the fish were biting at his little pond behind his house and to bring Reid. We decided to give it a try. Hal's house is only about two miles from the weigh in site so I figured we could stop in on the way.

We pulled up on the pond dam and got out a couple of poles. On my second cast I hung a 4.28lb bass. In 20 minutes I had caught a total of 6 more fish. They all looked liked twins as they were all in the three pound range. We had three fish that we could weigh in, but Reid had not caught one yet. I tried my best to coach him on where to throw his bait. He finally got a hit and landed a bass that weighed 3 pounds on the nose. It was the smallest bass out of the ones that we caught, but he caught it and therefore he had a fish that he could weigh in. We packed up and left! It took about 20 minutes!!

We were the first team to weigh our fish. We totaled a little over 10 lbs. I knew we would not finish near the top as a team, but Reid had a chance at the big fish prize for a kid. We actually finished in the top 15 for the day and Reid held on to the lead in his division for 68 more teams. The last team of the day weighed in a 4lb bass that was caught by a 4 year old little boy to edge him out. It was still a great day!

A local TV station interviewed Reid and will hopefully be up for the world to see on Youtube very soon. I will let you know when it will be available. I am glad to say that the interview did not go like this.....

Reid, tell us about your day:

Well, Team Diawa had a good day today. Our Stren line hung tuff as our Eagle Claw hooks found their mark attached to those Strike King Lures. We were able to land our fish with the help of The Big Dipper fishing net and keep them alive in our Yeti Cooler by using a Bubble Box aerator. If it wasn't for Gatorade and Lance crackers, I'm not sure we would have had the opportunity to brave the elements and fight off hunger and thirst. I'm just glad that Northface provided us with the proper gear to keep the wind from chilling our inner core and allowing us to use those Ugly Stick rods to our advantage. But I need to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors Browning Fishing and Duckpower, Inc. Without them none of this would be possible.

How do you feel about you leading the big fish category:

I'm just happy to be here thanks to our Jeep Wrangler who brought us to the weigh in on time on those Goodyear Tires, and for that Gerber booster seat in which I was lucky enough to sit. If it wasn't for that, then this big fish that was caught on a Dancin' eel using a Zebco 33 rod and reel combination wouldn't have been possible.

Thank you Reid:

You bet. Can I have a dollar so I can buy a Coke?

Luckily the interview was more about fishing with your kids and I got a chance to tell why I thought that was important. If you take your kids hunting and fishing, then you will not have to hunt and fish for your kids!!

Take a kid fishing! It makes winners out of all of us!

Interviewing the Duckman from Downeast!

2011-03-11T11:35:00.001-05:00

It started out innocent enough. I found the Duckman's blog through another site and signed up to read his word's of wisdom as he sent them out over the Internet/blogging waves. Besides, I found life in Maine to be an interesting subject to follow, especially an outdoorsman from Maine. We began leaving comments on each others blog and I eventually got up the nerve to poke a little fun at the Founding Father of Duckpower, Inc. I sent out this jewel of a blogging post, and with that a great friendship has developed! The Duckman from Downeast and I decided to conduct an interview with each other in efforts to let our readers know more about the other. It was my idea, but he beat me to the punch and posted his interview first. Being the good person that I am, I answered his questions and returned them to him the very same day. He held out on me and did not return my questions for a week. The Duckman will deny this, but I know he did it on purpose. You see we both won a gear review from the OBN for a gun cleaning kit. It came to both of us in the mail on a Friday afternoon. My review was up on Saturday. The Duckman was off fishing. I think he holds it against me for making him look like a slacker!

I have enjoyed getting to know the Downeast Duck Hunter and I am glad to include him in my circle of friends even though we have never had the opportunity to shake hands. I think that we will make the effort to make that happen as we have both given the other an open invitation to try out living in the North or South on any given weekend. So here we go! Readers, I present The Downeast Duck Hunter, President of Duckpower, Inc.-

1). How did you get into this whole blogging thing?

My blogging world began shortly after the Rabid Outdoorsman started The Maine Outdoorsman, rather than be a contributor to his site I chose to offer up some of the happenings in Downeast, Maine. My other hope was to network with quality outdoorsman from other places in the country in hopes that maybe we could exchange hunts.

Over time I’ve met some decent people on the Internet pipeline, I don’t aspire to have six hundred followers nor do I have the energy to communicate with a lot of people. My intent is to find those who are like me, honest hard working diligent Americans who have a passion for the outdoors. If the dialogue works, then all is cool. So far, I’ve been able to network with a few writers. Two of whom, I’m friends on Facebook while the others are usually commenters on the blog.

2). Tell us about being a history teacher. Did you choose to teach that subject or was it a subject that was assigned to you?

I teach every social studies class imaginable. The class list for me includes (not every year): U.S. History, World History, Civics/Government, Geography, Economics, Sociology, Current Events/Debates, and some outdoor leadership instruction. Our school is small and I am the history department. I used to be a junior high social studies teacher, but moved up after two years. Most recently, I earned my masters in administration. My hope is to teach for 20 years, be a principal for 5, retire at 47 and do the lobstering/guiding gig until I can no longer walk.

I didn’t always enjoy history, but as I’ve gotten older it becomes far more interesting. Part of my problem was how history was taught, I try to make it relevant and enjoyable. I can’t dazzle them all, but I’d say I’m cranking out little citizens.

3). Give us your best recipe for Sea Ducks.

Take some eider breasts, tenderize them by severe pounding, soak them in a brine of baking soda & salt for at least one full day, then throw them in a pot with vegetables, seasonings, cream of mushroom soup, and ten small chunks of hickory wood. When all is well cooked, eat the pieces of wood. It should be slightly tastier and more chewable than the eider.

Actually, I give the sea ducks to local families that either could use the meat or have an acquired taste for salt water fare. The elderly residents who take the ducks sometimes offer to pay for my shells, but I figure them taking the ducks saves me from eating so many. On occasion, I do slice up the eider breasts into thin strips, grab some marinade, and turn it into beef jerky. It’s not bad. The only other way I dare do eider is stewed slowly with vegetables and dumplings.

4). If you could come to Georgia for a visit, what outdoor activity would you want to participate in?

If I were to grace the fine Georgians with my presence, I’d love to do some bass fishing and try my hand at a turkey. The dove hunting seems interesting as so does the rattle snake pursuit, but I may need to play spectator with the rattlers. Honestly, I hate snakes but for some crazy reason I’m thinking I’d look good in snake chaps.

6). If the “Hump Day Crowd” were to get together in Maine for a Northern mid week celebration and you were the host, what is on the menu?

That depends, most everybody who comes to Maine usually looks for a lobster and they are not hard for me to get. Maybe some seafood, good steaks on the grill, and some of my wife’s fine cooking. I can’t tell you what it is, but it’s usually good. Besides, I’m not much of a cook unless we are either at camp or in the woods. Then I impress all and anybody.

8). Why are you a fan of Brave Eagles Hunt with Antique Brownings, and please feel free to tell everyone why you feel it is the single best outdoor blog on the Internet?

Your blog is somewhat super cool simply because it’s the reflection of life from a man who loves his family, life, and god. There exists no question that we are elbow to elbow in terms of raising children, share an immense passion for being outdoors, and have built a great dialogue in terms of friendship. Even though I’m not into wood working or cooking, I believe there exists a genuineness about your blog that many others lack. I’ve always believed that a few good connections is better than a bunch of lousy ones and when I see that, I stop following. And besides, it’s good because I post on it.

9). I find it interesting that you are a registered Maine Guide. Your good friend and fellow blogger, The Maine Outdoorsman, is also a Registered Maine Guide. Who guides who when you are in the field together?

My good friend Steve, the Maine Outdoorsman, is an adept student of a variety of subjects within the realm of the Maine wilderness. He has an immense passion for the outdoors and has in fact become highly successful within the scope of hunting turkey, fresh water duck, and northern pike. I’d say he is gaining a greater ability in predator, trophy whitetail, and small game. In addition, he’s well trained in hiking, mountain climbing, and traveling. But I must say, when it comes to mechanical applications if it doesn’t have a kill switch and a pull cord- he’s screwed. I’ve got the edge on him especially with sea ducks & bass fishing, and my top four deer are bigger than all of his combined. When we are on the ocean, I call the shots and know that he trusts me 100%.

All jokes aside, we compliment each other well. He continually jaws me about being over prepared but will never complain when he’s sucking down that perfect cup of coffee, enjoying a dry experience under a tarp during a down pour, or watching me drum up a meal to remember. It’s hard to compare us simply because we have different talents and styles, maybe that’s why we make a good team. However, I’m far cooler and don’t lie nearly as much, even though I have to stretch the truth sometimes.

I once told the Duckman that the only ice fishing we do here in Georgia is when we fish for another cold beer in the bottom of our cooler!

Thanks Mr. President for being a supporter of my amateur writing and for teaching me about life Downeast! I hope to make the trip one day, as soon as it warms up! For now, you know that you have a friend "Down South" and I am glad to know that I have a brother "Up North" from "Downeast"!

PS. Keep the ducks off of my menu. I'll have the lobster!

Pinewood Derby Time!

2011-03-09T22:03:00.000-05:00

There are special times in the life of a father and son that should be looked forward to. For example, the first time you take your son fishing, or the first time you take your son hunting, or the first time you play catch with your son in the yard. All of these things have been very special to me as a father and I am so glad that I have been able to experience them with my son. With that in mind, I have to say that I have been waiting for this day for a long time. Reid is in the 1st grade this year and is in the RA program at our church. RA's is a great program for boys in the 1st through the 6th grades where they learn a lot about missions, God, and being better young men. It also means Pinewood Derby Racing and this year Reid and I are gunning for the prize!!

We give the boys an opportunity to choose between a pre-cut car design or a squared off block of wood in which to design their own car. Reid and I chose the block so that we would be eligible for the "best design" trophy. A pre-cut car does not qualify for that award. The boys are all judged on design, artwork and the ability to go fast down the track. The 1st - 3rd graders (Lads) race against each other in a double elimination tournament, while the 4th - 6th graders (Crusaders) race against each other in their own bracket. A winner is named in both divisions and then we bring all the boys together to determine the "Car of the Year". The car that wins that race is displayed in the RA room in a special case for the next year. All of the boys want that honor!

Reid and I took his square block of wood and tried to decide what we wanted to do with this soon to be work of art. We started by trying to come up with a theme for his car. We talked about an Atlanta Braves car and a Lightning McQueen car and a hunting car and a golf cart car, but I was pleased to hear him say that he wanted a Go Eagles (Georgia Southern) car. My mind went to work on how we could make his car unique. It would be very simple to cut out a car and give it a Georgia Southern paint job, but I wanted to do something a little different. Besides, if my mad skills can not produce a fast car at least I could make one that looks really cool. I spent some time on the Internet looking at different designs and decided that I would try and incorporate the Georgia Southern Eagle logo into our car design. I'll let the pictures take care of the rest of the story.

After a quick trip to Mr. Bill's to use his saw, we came back to my shop to do some sanding and shaping. Reid helped me or watched me in every step. He is full of questions and I was happy to give him answers!

This is the design that I came up with. The Eagle head is the academic logo of the school. The rear of the car is an Eagle wing.

The next step is adding weight to the car so that it will travel faster. You want to be as close to 5 oz without going over that you can. I cut out a section on the back and put 1/4 oz weights in the hole. I covered it with wood filler and sanded back into shape.

The painting process begins!

What car would be complete without racing stripes?

Some detailed painting by Mom adds feathers and we are ready to race!

The big day finally came on Wednesday. All of the boys lined their cars up for the official weigh in and the races started promptly at 6:00pm. It became apparent fairly quickly that Reid and I were not built for speed with our car design. Reid lost his first two races in the double elimination tournament in his age division. He showed good sportsmanship and did not act very upset at his loss, but I was sure hoping that we could pull out at least one race in the overall competition. We did just that as we one our next race! He was so excited and jumped up and down. We were promptly eliminated from the tournament on our next race, but one win was all we needed to keep a smile on his face!

The boys are lining them up for competition!

The RA Crew!

This next picture is what it is all about! Reid may not have won many races, but he took home the trophy for best design! He was so proud and I was so happy for him! He had a big time and I could tell that he was proud as all his friends told him that he had the coolest car that they had ever seen!!

Winner, winner, chicken dinner!

I can't wait until next year!!