00:00:08 Speaker 1: The Hunting Collective is presented by Element. I guess I grew up on an older row. Hey, everybody, welcome to another episode of The hunt Collective. I'm, of course, Benjamin Patrick O'Brien, and I'm joined by Philip. The engineers say, hello Philip, Hello, Ben, how are you? I don't know. Do you think episode numbers matter? Because I always struggle to remember them. I think it's I think it's fun to to list it off every week. It's kind of like it's kind of like writing a little tally on your prison wall. Just one every day. Pretty pretty soon it starts to look pretty impressive when they stack up. Yeah, we've been here a long time, A long long time, remember back in I remember those days. Um, we have a special guest here joining us. But Phil was a little bit uh, he was just a little bit for clemped by this, like he just didn't know what to do. Um, he didn't want this person to join us. I think it's because of our connection, and we'll learn why in a minute. But Phil, before we bring this gentleman onto you, are you upset here? You are you okay? No? I was figuring out your emotions. You're definitely stretching the truth a little bit. Here. You said, hey, is this this is this person joining us? So like should we wait for them? And I said, who were you talking about? I just I didn't read the calendar invite and I didn't know anyone else was coming. So I was a little taken aback. And then I thought about it and I was like, well, this this intro is is the kind of one on one time for us to catch up. And it said it's it's our special little moment every week. And we have someone else here today. Yeah. Uh, and that's Ford van Fawsen of the Van Fawsen's of the Trap Van Fawston's with the Eastern Shore of Maryland. Say hello, Ford, how do you all? How are you doing now? You're you're in catchum, you work for First Light, but you are of Maryland. You are of a Maryland stock. I am a proud Marylander. It's an important part of my identity. And then one around you can can tell me here you weren't wearing. You said you were gonna bring like Maryland boxers and different things like that, but you have you have not done that well. As you began the show. Just then I was thinking about running to get my old day and to put it on the squadcast screen here. Uh, maybe a flag in the background as much as much red, red, yellow and gold as I could get in here. Yeah. Well, we're gonna start a segment called Talk in Maryland and it's only when you come on that we're gonna do it. And I've done a little research as to, uh, famous people from Maryland? Do you have any do you know any famous people that you know that are from Maryland, like people that you're proud of the same handed from Maryland to um besides Ben O'Brien. Yeah, I wasn't on the list in Wikipedia, so fuck them. But I mean, you know, moving on, is there anybody? Is there anybody sports like the people you idolize that are from Maryland? You know? I got I mean historically we've got two right from around me, uh, Harriet Tubman slightly to the south and uh and Frederick Douglas also from Talbot County, Sam County as me. Those those are kind of two like personal heroes that come right to mind. Guy, I'm trying to think of like cal Ripken obviously kind of universal, although I don't even know if he's from Maryland. To be honest, he is. You're blowing my research. I only have like four people left on the list that I made. Three of them are three of the seven people on my list. Um, did you know that Cisco was We're getting to the bottom of the barrel here with Cisco, author of the Thong song, also from Maryland. Did you know that makes me proud? Yep. Nancy Pelosi also know that that's a more mind Yeah, polarizing figure exactly. She's been on a bunch right, yeah, yeah, Actually a real friend of the show, David Hasselhoff, who's been on. He was from Maryland. He's been on. Um, yeah, of course, Cafin Jr. Michael Phelps, filing know Michael Phelps, and then um, John Wilkes Booth. John Wilkes Booth also a polarizing figure. I think we can just call him a negative figure. Yeah, I would say not, you know whether conspiracy theories aside not great? Um. And then the close in and off with actor William H. Macy, who's who I think it's from Cumberland, Maryland, which is close to where I grew up. Hunting always proved that story. I'm not checking double checking any of these I believe in Wikipedia. But anyway, Maryland is really turns out some of the greatest Americans. Uh, Phil, would you agree based on this list? I mean based on Cisco and William H. Macy alone, I mean, I'm I'm sold Fargo. I mean, come on, man, he's in Fargo, right, don't we don't? We have Edgar Allen Poe too. Yeah, but I feel like people know that. You feel like people know that. Well, just the Ravens, right, That's why we have the football team. The Ravens is you know, quothe the Raven I think cloth to Raven. Yeah, and the mascot is Poe. Yeah. I mean then his his grave. I feel like he's right there by the stadium, a couple of blocks north of the stadium. Um. So yeah, all that stuff. Now, this is a part of the Is this entertaining to you? Feel that? You don't you're not from Maryland? I don't even know where you're from. I think like California or something Canada, Um, California or Canada whatever, some other country one of those two. Um, but is this entertaining to you as a regional as a regional segment, It is because I know absolutely nothing about Maryland aside from Edgar Allan Poe and cal Riken Jr. So, uh, you know, I'm learning a lot today. Honestly, I wouldn't blame you there. If it's it's sort of Maryland. I feel like it's a it's a very small place, but Marylanders such as Benning and myself are very proud of it, and uh like to talk about it a lot um though most people seem to associate it as something just outside Washington, d C. Yeah to it, there's a lot to it. Well, they call it America in miniature because as as we're you know, Florida and I grew up on different sides of the tracks. You grew up on the eastern Shore. I grew up in western Maryland, which is basically eastern West Virginia southern Pennsylvania, so we but but they call it American miniature because it has all this top topography that goes from mountains where I grew up all the way to beautiful beaches like the ones in my favorite town, Ocean City. Have you ever been to Ocean City? Or of course I've been a serious question. Why are you laugh at a serious question? It's just a place, man, it is a place. Did you ever have a Senior Week in high school? You know that was that was huge? But I did not actually partake. Unfortunately I did and I got, I got, I got kicked out of two different hotels. And I'll tell this story. My dad will like this story. I got a series of traffic tickets when I was like eighteen, Um, you know I was you know, I was driving fast and my dad, being the lovely man that he has, drove me down to Senior Week and I had a court date for those traffic ticks in the middle of Senior Week. He picked me up in the middle of the drunken debauchery that was Senior Week, drove me back an hour and a half to go to court, and then drove me back and dropped me off at Senior Week. Uh, in the middle of Ocean City. So I don't know why I told that story, But now you guys know a little more about me. And so that's my favorite town. Do you have a favorite town? And we were just talking about Chestertown? Would that qualify as your favorite town? Old Chester Town is definitely high on the list, man. I got I mean a lot of there's just a lot of great little towns on the eastern Shore. Um ended Maryland through Oute. But really, honestly, man, I haven't spent much time time in uh in your neck of the woods, to be honest. We did a middle school ski trip to Wisp, which is like the way out in sort of the little triangle of western Maryland, and I that could be the only time I've really been out there, to be honest. But it is, to your point, a whole different world. If Maryland was like a pan, I lived in the handle, and I feel like you lived on the you know, the end, the very end of the other side of it, on the other side of the surface there. And to your point, I think culturally quite different. You know, Western Maryland trends more West Virginia, northern Virginia, western p A, whereas would say the eastern Shore kind of trends more coastal Virginia, almost Carolina. I feel like different languages, different accents, different different accents, united though by Wooter certainly, of course. Of course, of course, now a couple of things we went through place favorite, my favorite thing, well, my favorite beer growing up was Yengling and Natty Bow natural Bohemian. Did you have was there like a different thing over there where you were from. Well, the only one I would add to that list is the ten ounce budweiser, right, the tenor, which is a Maryland tradition of to me at least completely obscure origins. But in Maryland, at least on the Eastern Shore, you can buy ten ounce budweisers. Um. I believe they figured that there's now a premium on just the fact that they're ten ounces, and they may not even be cheaper than twelve ounce budweisers. But that was certainly a thing you would alternate between tenors a national bohemian loggers, right, generally if you wanted to get real Maryland. And I also would say, like in my in my experience of bud light, it's not the ounces that you're drinking that matter. It's you know, really it's like one of two ounces, I ain't going to make you feel any better. You've got to it's like a half dozen tenors that's gonna get you there. So I don't know why we we are qualitly a certain ounce, I don't I don't know what the logic was that The excuse commonly growing up was that they stayed colder longer, which is I guess really not true. It's just that there's less beer to get warm. But this is true, all right. Well, before we get to our before we get to our regular program, Phil, I'm just I track how the show's going by Phil's face, and he's flipping a pen around clean back in his chair. He does not see the window because the FedEx just came and dropped the package off at my door. So I was trying to remember what it could be. I have no idea. It's exciting times. December is thrilling because the packages just show up and you don't know what you ordered. I I don't know. That's a good seging. We got some good stuff coming up, including THHC. Robes Uh and Sam Sohol of the public Land bus um. So before we do anything else, though, Old Bay, where are you saying? I was a sort of old Bay in a way that, like you know, I've never had a crab. I've never had a blue crab that didn't that wasn't smothered an old bay, have you. Well, I'm sure I've consumed quite a bit of Jo's spice crabs in my life. Jos being um for probably everyone else in the world besides Ben and I. Right now, sort of a rival traditional chestis peak seasoning that you would put on steamed blue crabs. But I honestly don't buy into sort of the hipster j os um purist mentality. I do love Old Bay, and I have never steamed crabs with anything else that I'm aware of. Yeah, I mean, do you feel like Old Bays kind of jumped the shark? Uh, it's gotten too popular. We need to dial it back, because what does jumped the shark mean? Just to stop you for a second, it just means too popular, too trendy. No, no, that's not that's not what it means. That's what it means. It's a reference to a Happy Days episode where the show ran so long that they ran out of ideas and the Fonds went water skiing and jumped over a shark, if you kind of and that's how you know that, Like, all right, they went too far. They don't know what they're doing anymore. It jumped the sharks, it went crazy. Well, let's call it me wrong. Yeah, reach a point at which far fetched events are included merely for the sake of novelty, indicative of a decline in quality that was pretty close. Now I wasn't. No, that was way wrong. Look, gonna cut this out, Phil, cut this up to make me look smart. Al right, Well, that ruins the whole base segment. Phil, thanks for that. You ruined everything. Hey, I'm pretty sure I I just taught you something about the late late season Happy Days trivia. So go would be the right term for something that's too trendy, that is, that's off trend. Yeah, I don't have anything to see see. Yeah, We'll go back to jump the shark that I can tell you what we got though, Well it's not helpful. Um, all right, Ford, are we Do you feel like there's anything else Maryland that we miss because this is probably our only chance to do this, I know, and it just it feels indulgent. I'd like to talk to you about Maryland all day long, but again, probably your listeners, probably more than of your listeners, have no interest in Maryland, have never been to Maryland. Uh, And so I guess I should. I will say no, I don't have anything else to put forward besides that it's an excellent state that I'm a proud, proud native of. Yeah. I mean, if people that listen to this don't think most of it is indulgent for me or Phil. Then they haven't been paying attention. We're not doing this for you. We're doing this for us, all right. Moving on, Phil, Do you have a you have a bag of popcorn there you can hold up. I do speaking of different states that this. I got a package, got a package from Nebraska last week. Ben, Yes, Um, I'll hold up this bag of popcorn. You can kind of explain what's happening here. There's a picture. It's a beautiful bag of pop I've never had my picture on a bag of popcorn. Luke and Lisa let the adventure begin, and there's a picture of I would assume that's Luke and Lisa. I have to say. It's a safe bed all right. And there and they're they're nuzzling each other. They're like nosing each other there on that on it is it? What's it say below that the ingredients? What's the message below? Oh, that's just the company that made the popcorn. Okay, so nothing else of value. Shout out to Coldy Ridge Popcorn and gifts out a link in Nebraska. Head over there for all of your personalized popcorn needs. Yeah, I mean it is if is this the point where we reached the shark? Now? No point we've lost it now that is so. That is a photo of the two people nuzzling there with their noses. That is Luke and Lisa Reeve. Luke and Lisa Reeves. Now we've we've had a lot of we've been talking recently. A lot of listeners of the show, Uh, find different ways to engage in th HC. But I think Luke and Lisa found a real way to engage at th HC by getting engaged. And it would have been how long ago was this, Phil, You have a better memory, and I don't remember, like was it was it it was pre pandemic for sure. For sure. I don't remember last last if it was twenty nineteen or early twenty but yeah, between twelve and twenty months ago. Um. Luke Reeves, a listener of the program, wrote me a Instagram DM and said, Hey man, I'm about to try to propose to my lady friend. What should I do? And then I immediately gave him some elaborate advice, some of the best he said later he never said this publicly, but to me, probably there's the best advice he's ever received. And then he went and used that advice to proposed to his lady friend Lisa, and Um, judging by the popcorn, she said, yes right Phil. They got married. Uh this last week, a couple of weeks ago, on novembery one. Congratulations everybody, you have to clap for that. I mean, come on th HC wedding. We had a last week we had a TC pie and now we have a TC wedding. Um. They came on the show about six eight months ago, prior to the pandemic, and we talked about everything. But you have what showed up to the office was a package of of gifts. Was there a note or anything like that in there? Phil? Uh? Well, they sent us a wedding what what's this called? The little pamphlet the program wedding program h And they also sent some personalized beer coozies. Beautiful man, let the adventure begin. They sent a lot. I talked to kids. I don't have kids. I talked to Luke on Instagram, and I'm supposed to pass one of these on Dispenser New Heart because Luke knows that he likes to drink a lot of beer. So for my meeting. That's right, every morning in the hot tub. An email to Luke sent me an email I'll read it to you philis and I don't don't try not to cry. Well, we actually did it. We finally tied the knot. It seems like four hundred years ago when I was first sliding into Ben's d MS to ask for some advice on proposing to a woman who was so far out of my league that my league plays our games during the halftime of her league games. Damn it if that advice didn't work. Low And here we are sitting in our first home together, listening to episode one three as man and wife no longer living in sin. Once again, gentlemen, I have to thank you. I've been forming this strange kind of friendship where I can send Phil Cat memes, comment on Ben's stories, and note I've actually had conversation with both of you. I've also formed the same kind of friendship with the man, the myth, the legend, the American dream, Eric Hall. I've sent a fairly large package thank you gift to the Mediator Office. Hopefully you can share them with everyone else. Thanks again, Luke and Lisa. Late he said, love always in forever, Luke crazy, unbelievable for it as as a as a newcomer. What I mean, does this feel strange to you? Just feel appropriate? Yeah? A lot of questions, A lot of questions come to mind. Principally how often do you get requests for marital advice on a you know what I would call a hunting themed podcast. It seems like there was no connection to hunting in his question, just sort of how do I propose to my girlfriend? Then? No, I will collaborate on that. I Well, I started off by saying, wait until early November when things are happening, you know, get yourself rattled bag and a grunt too. Now I think we you know what, what we're displaying here is that we've we've built something uh here that goes well beyond hunting, right Phil? Uh? Yeah? I mean Ben Ben talks, He says words into a microphone. People think that they're worthwhile. I still don't understand it, but yeah, i'd say, yeah, people, people are engaged with the show beyond hunting. Mhm. Beautiful. Um, we had to admit that. Now that's gonna be hard to live up to. But well, Luke and Lisa, congratulations. Um, you know, I said earlier, don't have kids, but do what you gotta do, you know, do what you wanna do in that regard. Um, I'm just I'm just happy for you. I'm feeling real warm, just like last week. I'm feeling warm this week thanks to the th HC listeners. The th HC cult members as we call them. Uh four doesn't know about that either, so he's like, what's gonna say. It sounds so complimentary when you call them the cult. Yeah, no, it's the cult. They like it. I had a I had an email from a guy from Marshall Caldwell by his name, and he's been listening to back episodes and he we mentioned earlier this year that we would make th HC robes for for folks who like, I'm a robe guy, Ford, Are you a robe guy? You know I used to be a big robe guy. I've kind of moved out of it in the last couple of years, and in fact, my better half has actually taken my robe as taking it. Yeah, that that implies there is a problem, like something that something happened. Well, no, I suppose then maybe I used the wrong verb there, but she now wears the robe. Let me put it. Oh, I thought I thought there was like an inciting incident where she had to just know there wasn't like a battle at which point to the grocery store. Yeah, No, it wasn't. It wasn't really a conflict um you know in the way for example, like are the taxidermy allocations I've told you about in the living room are yeah, yeah, that's that's that's ubiquitous us. That's a that's a conflict, I would say with with sort of a line that moves back and forth. Not unlike World War One. I've been there, my wife I was putting together I'm actually putting together a th HC studio in my in my house and the smile like what was my office? And I have I put a double pedestal mount blacktail and my wife walks behind, goes, she goes really because it's right when you walk in the doors, the first thing you see she's really really yeah, it's beautiful, not to her, not to her. So I'm using up a lot of a lot of my cred right there just for that double pedestal mount. But I think that would be strong. I would struggle on that front. The double pedestal I think we really all taxidermy in our home is is known as dead stuff quote unquote, and you can fall into any category, be that euro I suppose shoulder they don't have any or hides all fall into that category. Those sheds do not because they don't come from a dead animal. I we have established that sheds are kind of like boogie and hipster anyway, sometimes exactly as our European mounts. Um yea wait, well way off track ye where we ever want to track? Um T robes Marshall Marshall is once and other folks have asked for us to have like a Black Friday thing and th HC robes. I think, if if this post has still go on next Black Friday, I promise that we will make THC robes and we'll have emblazoned on their the logo and you'll it'll be um. I like him to be, you know, as big as fluffy as possible, and I like that road to be just ropebust, And I think I think I would go kind of like an Eddy theme from National lamp Hearent's Christmas Vacation there. Oh nice, Yeah, I'm with you. I'm with you. Full Clark addition, so to speak, well, speaking of what there's no transition I can make to what we want to talk to Ford about. There's nothing I can do speaking of things that you talk to people about. Um, Common Wild is something that's happening at First Light and the many other companies, and we want to talk to Ford about that one. Like I would just say, this comp needs that we work with or that we have relationships with here to always do things the promotions things that they do, and they often don't align with the show here, and so we don't talk about them. But this one happens to be pretty damn cool and in aligns with a lot of things we talk about in terms of coming together around this uh this here hunting pursuit and fishing and other things outdoor pursuits in general. So for did you want to take a break from the silliness and tell people about Common Wild? Yeah, well, I'm glad it does. I think it rifts off a lot of what y'all talk about on on this here podcast. But sort of the idea came about a couple of years ago, you know, in in sort of these divided, rancorous times. One thing that seems to come through as as bipartisan, and something we can largely agree on is the great outdoors, right, And we saw that with the Great American Outdoors Act, the ACE act um, you know, with as as different voices as Jane Fonda and Donald Trump Jr. Uh putting together criticism on puble mind, which ultimately seems to have somehow moved the needle there. Uh. And so I think we came to the conclusion that really conservation is true, is truly bipartisan at this time, and we don't have to tell ourselves it is particularly and wouldn't it kind of be nice if we could get a number of companies in our space, and hopefully from all corners of the outdoor industry, not just fishing in hunting, involved in kind of making a statement about how conservation, how the great outdoors brings us together and when just about nothing else seems to. And that's kind of where this Common Wild Initiative idea was born, in this sort of optimistic but hopefully true vision of conservation as a great uniter. Yeah, and that's why we see, you know, we talked about our polarized times here and and how hard it is to kind of get people to come together around something, no matter what it is. UM. And the example you brought up about the Great American Outdoors Act, not only was it socially and culturally binding in some ways, I mean it was politically behind him because because that act itself was and is something that was bipartisan and nature. And so when we think about those things, you know, any any effort we can make to foster that connection, and really the realization that we aren't as far apart as as we might think we are is a good thing. Um. And And oftentimes, as you know, when I bring up Patagonia or other companies that are seen as you know, green or um progressive, there's a lot of people that want to clap back about their anti predator hunting stance or whatever that might be. There are plenty of if we're being honest, thanks to disagree over UM, we tend to focus those a lot, which is fine. Um, We got to find a way to grind those out. But this is a chance common Wow, that to me is a chance to focus on what we do agree on. Yeah, and and that's sort of a specific story that comes to mind in that regard. You know, a couple of years ago, uh, Ivan Schinard, founder of Patagonia, was a featured storyteller at the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers Rendezvous. I think it was if it serves me, right, um. And there was some foot push back from b h A members to your point along, Um, you know, well b h A doesn't agree on Patagonia, stands on predator hunting or whatever, you know, a myriad of things, for sure. But I thought b h's response to those folks was measured and effective, and it was something to the lines of, yes, we certainly don't agree on a hundred of a hundred things. Maybe we only agree on seventy two and a half things out of a hundred with Patagonia, but one of those is the protection of wildlife and wild places. And so why would we not work with a powerful ally so to speak, that that shares that common and I would argue sort of all encompassing goal, right. I mean, let's basically put another way, let's put aside our differences on those six or ten issues in the interest of you know, basically protecting um our access Americans access to the natural world, right um. And that that did that had a that made an impression on the team at first life for sure, and I think that helped to inform kind of the vision for this m because, you know, put another way, I think we can argue about who snowmobiling where, who's hunting there, who's trail running, bird watching or whatever. Um, when they're in the parking lot paving over the woods we were talking about. UM, I think you know, it's sort of wait, let's stand back here and look at how much we have in common. We all need the woods, we all have a passion for doing something in the woods. So let's protect them first and iron out sort of the details later. Yeah, that's exactly right. And part of the thing that we've always talked about on this show about the hunting community itself. If it's not accepting of differing ideas, if it's a monolith in the way that it sees the world, it's never gonna grow. It's never gonna find social acceptance, it's never gonna find culture acceptance, it's never gonna find the place I think it deserves within our nation and our and our national consciousness. So if we're not able to, if we kick everybody out that thinks that we should ban a or fifteens or we should stop shooting wolves, and we're never gonna have the kind of broad based support that we need to do what we do. So UM, folks out there that that really want to see an industry getting together saying hey, this is something we really you know, we're gonna do something to display this. Um. Support of of legislation is one thing, but this is another. Because commerce is commerce, companies have to girl, they've gotta make money, and this is something that is about a little bit more than that. Yeah, absolutely, yeah, I mean I think it's about it's largely you know, this is a fundraiser, to be clear. Practically, what we're doing is selling a series of limited uh release um swag essentially, and of the profits are going to conservation, so analogene, an enamel camp cup and a cap um. But really, I think, honestly, this is more about this message than it is even about fundraising for specific groups, which it will do in a big way and is already doing. I should say, um, but I almost think that that message of conservation as a unifier, especially in these divided times, is almost the most important element of this project. Absolutely absolutely, We'll tell people, give people the rundown of where they go what they can do and the what what what the end game is here to so we're clear absolutely Yeah. So obviously you know first light uh dot com you're gonna find links right away to the Common Wild project. Um. But generally speaking, common Wild dot org is going to have sort of the comprehensive rundown on the campaign and it'll have links to all the participating brands, from hunting rifles to women's mountain bike apparel that you can get that limit edition Common Wild, camp Cup, now Gene and hat at So immediately Florida, when the camp Cup and the now Gene showed up and the hat, my wife stole all of it, all of it test So he's drinking wine out of the camp cup last night. In fact, that's the best thing you could have told me about the use of the merchandise. Man. There isn't a Common Wild is not an n G. Oh, it's not a nonprofit. There's no kind of central is fund. It's more a way. I see the campaign as a way for brands to raise money kind of for the conservation partners they already work with. So you know, for example, weather be I believe is given all their funds uh, or all the profits from the project to the Mule Deer Foundation. Uh. NEMO is given all the profits from their Common Wild Gear to TRCP. So that kind of the agency on where those dollars are going, um is totally up to the brand basically. UM, So you know, kind of depending on who you're buying from, you'll kind of be able to learn more about where those dollars are going specifically. If that makes sense. It makes all sense. Yeah, UM, that's It's just it's an important thing and for people to think. UM. Our buddy Bryan Callahan always talks about trailhoad diplomacy. This is a more commerce commerce related way to get in that. And it's like I said, it's pretty cool thing. My wife immediately stole it and ran off and filled it with wine and hit in the closet and drank. I mean again, Luke and Lisa don't have kids. Uh that's what if that's what it makes you do, it really does. UM. All right, Well we're gonna get to Sam. Sohold, We're gonna get to uh everything from duck stamps to how he came up hunting as a kid, to why why social media scares both of us In another conversation with our good friend and public lan bus guy Sam soholl Enjoy Sam So, Hold, what's up, buddy? Not much, man, it's good to be back on the podcast. I know. It's good to see it. Man. You look good. You look like you've had a robust fall season. It's been good, you know, it's Uh. Typically I can tell how good the season was by how much weight I've lost in my face by the end of November. Face weight. We should do a contest, the face weight contest before and after for the audience here. Yeah, because it's drastic. Yeah. I always usually measured by like scraggliness of beard. Although I haven't haunted. I didn't hunt it all in November because of the COVID's. But usually if my beard has like one hair that's going north and one that's going west, I feel pretty good about it. That's a good year. Your face looks thin, face looks look after. It's a combo of things, you know. It's it's it's not eating all that much and getting up, you know, four o'clock every day for the last about thirty days, and sitting in a tree, um chasing white tails and then um also shaving my beard off into a mustache. Really, I saw that. I didn't like it. I got it. Yeah it. Mustaches are such a hit or miss thing. Yeah no, and it's not good at me. I just look exactly like my dad if I if I shave it, and nothing wrong with that. Jerry Solholt is a damn legend. He's one of the man and you've been doing a lot of hunt with him and your brother, right, Yeah, Yeah, it's been good. We got to do too a week long family trips this year, so um yeah, it was great and it was really fun to got my dad was able to shoot a deer on both trips, which is, you know, pretty rare. Really well, give give the you know, we last episode we did the listeners made me cry because we did like a holiday traditions thing and a lot of people wrote in about their dads and Mark Keny was on and we were talking about his dad, and I shed a few tears. I'm not I'm not scared of amant that ship and um, but your dad, I feel like needs his own show, if you agree, Yeah, I think so. And I've been trying to figure out so I've had this idea for a while and somebody's probably gonna steal it now that I'm gonna talk about it on a podcast, but it's patented, patted and protected. I p it's got IP protection trademarked. No, I want to do UM just a kind of a either weekly or every couple of weeks, like kind of a segment UM focusing on conservation, like and what's happening with different conservation groups and what they're up to UM. And I thought that he would be a good host of that show for YouTube, and so I'm kind of work working out the details on that with him to see if he would want to do that. But well, I'm all for that. We we had a we had a really emotional like father's son hunt origin story Thanksgiving time last week. So what what was your it was growing up? Like, what was your thing with Jerry and your brother? Like? What was it? What was it? Because you guys have extended that. I mean, you guys are, you know, hunting your asses off together during a pandemic, which is beautiful in and of itself, But I mean, how did all get going? Yeah? So, uh, my dad or our dad grew up in northern Wisconsin in a hunting family. So our grandpa hunted, you know, all the time, and um shot a lot of deer. And the legend has it that he was just a hell of a shot. Um. So they lived in northern west This isn't just a story, um, real quick. So they lived in northern Wisconsin and so it really thick woods, you know, so if you're going to shoot something like, you've got to be quick on the draw, you know, catch a glint of vantler or whatever it was pronounced tick woods, yeah, tick yeah, super super super thick. Well, then there was a stint where the whole family moved to Carrington, North Dakota, and my grandpa ran the farmers Union um uh plant or whatever right there in Carrington, and u um there was you know, it's wide open in North Dakota. So they were going to do a deer drive and there's a group of guys and I think it was nine or ten guys in the group and they were going to drive this field and shelter belts and stuff. And well they put my grandpa then because they had heard that he was a good shot, and they said, well a lot of us won't it shots at deer. So if you have opportunities at shooting box, like just keep shooting. You know. This was back in the fifties. And so my grandpa, being a guy that had lived his whole life shooting deer and then Northwoods, all of a sudden deer start running out the end of the shelter belt and he shot nine. Uh. And when he told the story, you know, he's like, oh, it's all easy shots. You know, it was like between nine hundred and fifty yards. I'm sure they're running, but it's in the wide open. So he shot nine and he's like, and you know, it came to find out that the guys weren't really all that happy that I filled all their tags because they didn't expect me to do that. But um, but yeah, when he lived in North Dakota, he shot a deer. Um that it was you know, it's probably scores in the one seventies, maybe low one eighties. Um. But more impressively, they waited it after it had hung, gutted and hung for three days, and it was three hundred and seventy five pounds. Oh yeah, so they figured it to be four fifteen pounds ish on the hoof. Come on, that's like three Texas Hill Country deer put together. We have a photo of it, um that he had shot two other bucks that morning, and there's a photo of that deer hanging with two other really nice dear from the big forklift of a tractor and it's just giant, just enormous. Well, when we share this podcast, how you have to send me that because I will see found deer hanging. Yeah. So then so, yeah, so he grew up hunting or you know, my dad grew up hunting Wisconsin, my dad and uncle. And then when we were kids, my dad was still archery hunting. And but when we were all born, obviously time is a little bit harder to come by, and archery hunting isn't really conducive to spending time with family. So uh, we were living in born in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and we had transitioned basically completely into bird hunting because upland and water fowling was away easier opportunity to have the whole family out together spending time. You know, whether it be in a blind or in a boat or whatever, everyone's right there and you can talk the whole time and share the experiences. And so um, from when I was really little, you know, way too young, probably five or six years old. I was walking pheasant fields and and then when I was ten or so, we started duck hunting and you know, started really dove into that, and that's all we did. And then, you know, as Josh and I got older, we both transitioned into big game stuff. And then our dad, Jerry, got back into it heavily, and we've been chasing deer with the bow since. Uh. Really, it's like again, he got back into it in about two thousand and ten. Yeah, there's no like, I feel like with Jerry, there might be like some hidden woodstock story or something that you got tucked away like this time, like a bar fight story or some kind of well I've got. Yeah, there's definitely those. Yeah. I feel like Jerry his legend may grow in this podcast. Yeah, I mean they're a quick bar fight story. He went to a wedding in Winnipeg and him and all the groomsmen went into a bar and h this was in the height of Vietnam. This was back in the seventies and six yeah, seventies. Anyway, going to go into the bar, and one of my dad's buddies asked the guy, Are you from Winnipeg And he said yeah, and he goes, are you from the States and he goes yeah, and the guy just clocked him and then the whole bar broke out in the fight and they had had to fight their way out just because they were from the States. So but there, Jerry, don't play. Jerry probably got in there. Whoops. Some Canadians. Oh yeah, I mean he was a college football player, you know, six three fifty pounds at the time. Yeah. Yeah, not to offend anybody from Canada, but no, I mean, you guys can't you. I mean, they are hockey. You can't say they can't fight because they that's one of the things that are actually good at it. Yeah, well they can fight and then they're still friends at the end of it. That's right, go on, we have Yeah. The Canadian contingent of th hc IS is a vocal and angry contingent, often because we slight them sometimes, but you know, we love you guys will be up there. Yeah, well that's good hopefully you know you guys can I suggest I always suggest things that you should do, you know, I think, hey, Sam, you should do this. You should do a show with the three. You guys hunting together? Boom we should Yeah, that really should a show of its own. The sohole boys call it that you get like you know you already have. You don't even need the vehicle. I was going to say, get a get a vehicle. We already got that, you got the vegans were set. What's the I'd like to see you do a publicly and e bike? Uh sure, yeah, maybe that's off Maybe that's that's probably a little bit off brand. Maybe I have an e bike. We actually uh yeah, I got a couple of them this year. But a lot of the places that we hunt you can't bike in. So it's it's been. It's been hard. Stays on the back of the van, yeah quite a bit. All right, Well, how's the van going? I need a van update. We probably talked about the van during quarantine castway back when we when we thought life eventually, the pandemic would end. You remember when we were like, oh, September will probably ever. Um, that's not the case. But you did spend all fall in the van. Last time I was in the van, I slept on the ground. Well I'm not the ground. I slept on the metal flooring of the van, which is pretty comfortable all in all. I think there was still carpet in it at that time. I think it had it might have had some sort of covering over the metal flooring of the van. Memories. Yeah, I was just thinking about that, um, you know, like whatever that'd be just over a year ago. That was the end of October that we were out in Montana chasing critters around in it when it was still blue and still you know, nothing had been done on the inside. And then the podcast that we did in March early in the pandemic. Ah, I'm trying to think that all we had done. We had ripped the guts out of it and we had got it wrapped. I think that was the only two things that we had done. And so now it's completely built out. Um you know, like the side doors open up into like a main whole compartment so you can do the gear throw, and then the back is when you open the back doors, you have a decked drawer system, and then on top of that as a cargo glide with a foam cut out for all the guns and bows, and then above that as a bed that has a divider so we can both sleep in there. Does the cargo guide lock. Yeah that's nice. Yeah, that's nice. Does this make your garage looks so much more? Just there's nothing in there. So when I look at my garage and like, hey, man, I wish I had a van to put all the ship. You know what you would you would think so, But I have found that it doesn't really matter. It's like you transition between seasons so much like the garde is always full of stuff. That's true. Yeah, especially if you're a big waterfowl guy. You gotta have there's no way to get around that ship. The garage is always full. We should do I might do a podcast one time just about garage, just go through the garage set up. Because a hunter, every hunter has to have the like a garage that's put together. Yeah. I would love to have like a forty by sixty building and finally have all of my stuff in one spot, a van van. Increasingly smaller vehicles, Yeah, it have to be like an eight stall garage, so I can keep buying like smaller a little. Eventually it's just a scooter public scooter. I'll just buy like a ten based storage unit and then each one could be a different season vehicle waterfowl upland white to that would actually be yeah, we can make nice. We could make some money off that, imbozement. I bet if we had like storage unit just for hunters, sharage unit complex just for hunters. Actually that's not it's a good business idea. You're a guy that starts businesses. Yes, yeah, I think that. You know Bozeman Hunting storage where we have like, yeah, this is your waterfowl one and this is so what you do. Just off the top of my head, you would have storage units that it is, this is patented and protected. Yeah, this is also But in the center of the complex you have a game cleaning facility and so people could pull in and drop their four wheeler the boat and then pull in and hoist the deer up or the elk up or the quarters or whatever, cut them all up and yep. In the back end of our facility, we have a bar where people come in, a little bragging board they get to put their pictures in. Yep. You just say, okay, a couple hundred bucks a month, you get to be a part of the hunt club. You get to use their game cleaning facilities. Um, we'll hire somebody just to be there. This is actually we're gonna cut this out of the show. Yeah, okay, how about sell the van and will raffle the bus and use it to pay for the hunting storage. Perfect, Yeah, and we'll just like this one. There's a waterfowl one, but like it's well, it's the exact same as the other one. They're like, no, it's it's no, it's not choose your an adventure. It's different dimensions. Though. I feel like this, but anyway, you you do you feel like that the van you can tell you what kind of van it was, but you feel like the van was obviously more fuel economic economic fuel wise than the bus. Do you feel like it had the same allure and the same comfort level? Like did you miss the old the old girl? Yeah? I mean so it's trade offs, right, So the van is nice because you can travel a lot quicker and you can take it anywhere. Um, you know, having a four wheel drive van with all that storage and everything built out, very purpose driven for hunting. It's an awesome rig. What I really miss about having the bus all the time is honestly, the space for there was always a place for everything in the bus. Uh, you know, and I could, I could pack for three months of traveling three different seasons, all the different weather types and hide you know, all of the other stuff that I wasn't using could be jammed under beds and back under stuff and packed in um until I swapped seasons and then I could just grab stuff out and then also being able to stand all the time. And if I didn't want to set up a tent like a cook in the in the bus or um. So there's just you know, it's just trade offs. But the bus didn't go anywhere other than you know, a campground or a trailhead or like the foothills of stuff. It wasn't wasn't built for back roads on the mountains. Yeah, yeah, like I was. You know, I always think of you know, a lot of guys sleep in the back of their trucks. A lot of guys I've been really and just joining enjoying a nice putting up a nice tent. I don't know, for I've just been sleeping in tents forever, So it just feels more common to me. I don't know that slide in the back of my truck with the top row on it would be so yeah, appealing to me. In in any way. So there's so many, so many different ways to do it. We talked about that on this show a couple of times. How are you truck camping? Because especially in the West, but as you as you know across the country, UM, having a place to easily blow your head is essential if you're hunting public land and you're moving around. Yeah, and and I and I found you know, um, I do like like back country hunting, uh and doing the you know, you throw a camp on your back and you're going in for whatever five to ten days. But at the same time, I feel like a lot of times I can hunt harder, even if I'm hiking extra every single day and I'm not spiking out, I can hunt harder if I know I have a warm, dry place to go sleep and be able to make good food and I'm gonna sleep better, I'm gonna eat better, and like the next morning, I can wake up and charge in another four or five miles and then charge back out instead of being completely wiped out. But that's just me personally, Like I mean, everybody has their own level of comfort on all that stuff. Yeah, And I think it's sickly for me too, because sometimes this year especially, I got to a point where I was telling some guys at work, like I got to a point where I wanted to be alone hunting. I don't know why. I didn't have any reason for it. I didn't. I think part of it was I took my dad out early in the season. I take another other people out. When you're hunting elk, you kind of have to have two people. You kill one, it's a hell of a lot easier to pack it out with another person along with you. And for me too, or in grizzly country all the time, it's also nice to have somebody that can shoot a bear off you if it's ripping your face. Yeah, those are nice things to have. Those are actually things that but you're hunting with a different person, then you have to say, like who's gonna shoot, who's gonna you know, who's gonna not, And then you end up I always end up deferring because I do want other people to kill things. But then eventually you're like, man, I'm I gotta I gotta fill some tags. I gotta get going now. I know I want to be by myself, make my own decisions, you know. So I was happy the hunt deer on my own hunt, pronging on my own, just to get to the point where it was like nothing else mattered but where I was and who I was with. But then other times, like that time we were that I slept in the van, there was like eight people on that hunt and we just we just basically hung out in the middle of a snowstorm, and that was still fun and of itself. Yeah, No, I think I think that's right. It's like just changes from time to time, like kind of how you feel about each hunt, what you want the experience to be. Yeah, I think that's just how it goes. Yeah, And you and I have been on some some whole kind of different adventures. Man, we have been. We've been kind of all over the world doing stuff that's right. Yeah, And so that those things like those memories, you know, you kind of I pick and choose. But but when I waffle, I didn't tend to waffle towards being with people more than being alone. Really, when I want to kill something, it's easier to be alone. Like you did, make our your own choices, you move on your own, your on your own timeline, and boom boom boom, you're done. Um, but when I really I really like having at least one other person there, if only to share the whole experience with. UM. Yeah, yeah, I'm with you. I'm with you. But ultimately, like when people are thinking about, you know, when I moved to Montana, the first thing I thought about is I gotta have a setup for each type of hunt, you know, because there's so many options in a place like Montana, and then most places where you can move around and hunt across the state, there's a lot of options, like in South Dakota where you're at a lot of things you can go and do um from you know, seasonally for sure, And so you gotta kind of have like if I'm running the gun on my own, I'm gonna have this, you know, I'm gonna have a you know, stone Glacier makes a great just you know, BIV that is your trek and pull and the covering and it's less than a pounds. What's it called? It escapes me. What it's called something you guys will look it up. I've mentioned it before. Look that up, Phil Jamie, Jamie looking up Jamie. Um, we don't have we're not We're not that. I've finished my beer by the way for folks that aren't for folks that are listening expecting us to have a point to the conversation. It's Friday. Uh, Sam's having a white claw. I'm finishing. I'm Adelo. You know, not think will make I think we'll make some good points. I mean, there's no way to know. We've got a lot to talk about, We've got stuff to cover, and yeah, let's get to that, because that's it feels meaningful. And I'm out of my beer, so maybe my wife will bring me another one. On a texture? Do you feel like, you know, where do you think we are in terms of conservation as a whole in the honey community. I mean, over the years that I've been in the hunting community, I've seen it. I don't know, I want to say it. It became a buzz word. It became something everybody was thinking about, and certainly for you and for you and for meat either and for what I do here at the hunt collect Like we build our ethos and the reasons we go outside, we bake in conservation. Right, So conservation went from something I was talked about after we talked about how big the buck was, into a part of what we did like a forward facing value set for our group. And now, UM, with everything, there's a counterculture that builds when when you're talking about conservation all the time, that there's people that are tired of hearing it or they just want to go hunt, right, And so I think that that's a natural evolution. Do you you feel that too? And what you do because I know with public and tease and with the Duck Stamp initiative that you're working on UM stamping forward, I mean you're you're directly in the business of of conservation and promoting and and understanding where it where, where it's living right now. Yeah, I mean I feel like, yeah, it's it's um. You know, it really ramped up there when it became a hashta you know, it became a cool thing to talk about and a cool thing to promote, and and like you said, like I think some of that has fallen off, mostly just because we all have very little UM time for that much attention on any one thing, and so there's you know, people are still talking about it. I think the I think the best thing that has come from all of this is that even if less people are talking about it today, people are still thinking about it when they're making decisions on you know, buying tags or supporting conservation groups or you know, helping out at some river cleanup or whatever it might be. I think, even if it's not like this, you know, war cry at the moment, I think it's still in the back of a lot of people's minds, and I still get a lot of messages and I'm sure you do too, about people really thanking us for how much promotion we do of how important conservation is, especially during the pandemic, because all of the conservation groups are really hurting because weren't able to have any banquets, all the events are canceled. You know, it's because it's such a shift immediately, it's really hard for people to make that transition to only donating online instead of being able to go and hang out with their buddies and spend five hundred bucks on raffle tickets and whatever it might be. Um. Yeah, so I think we're just in this weird transition period where nonprofits are learning how to raise money outside of the banquet scene, and people that want to be involved in conservation are trying to learn how they can still help without going to a banquet. So it's, uh, it's going to be interesting. So anybody listening, like, um, you're probably not going to a banquet this year, but it would. It goes a long way to go sign up for five different conservation groups. I mean, it'll be about bucks to do that, but it goes a long way, it really does. And conservation is a concept where it really depends on the people. Like it is something that is so aligned with people's sensibilities and what they're willing to give to it, you know. I think hunting. Hunting itself is a participatory, you know activity, but you can participate in it without having any knowledge of the conservation that that rides along, you know, in your pocket while you go there. Now we'll talk about the duck stamp and some of other things that you're contributing to even if you don't have the knowledge that you're doing it. Um. But that's that's I think that's the more tangible side of conservation. The less tangible side is like how we we think about you know, the value system, right, and and the value system leads to wanting to pay into it, you know, the only reason I've ever been a life member of any organization is because I felt like, I know, you know, I know that b h A, my life membership of b h A really matters. It really matters them from a revenue standpoint and the things that they do that are good for me. Um. Really sorry, I gotta message that I needed to deal with. Never mind, never mind, I need to like shut down all my messaging systems. My slack is like blowing up. Um, what's that saying? My podcast is going down hill? Everything you're just talking about? How important like a lifetime membership to h SO. Yeah, like a lifetime cut this out, Philly, you motherfucker. Uh you know, for example, the lifetime membership to h A. I sit on the board there. I know what that revenue means to this that that organization. And I know when something like the Great American Outdoors that comes up, or or something like the farm bill for example, if you're if you're talking about pheasants forever. Um, there's so many, there's so many, so much legislation that requires us to act right and and conservation requires us to act. Hunting itself requires us to participate, and it's its own it's an own action. It doesn't require you to do anything other than go and fill your tag or not. Conservation is a parallel activity that we all have to take place, you know, to take part in along the way. So it really is on us. And that's a good feeling. I know when you and I are hanging out that we like we share that and we want to fight for that, and that's cool man. And um, you know, for us to be able to move along in our lives and in the industry and our hunting experiences knowing that, you know, I think it brings people together. So I hope I hope everybody can recognize that in a changing time. It's a good point you made there, you know. And uh, I forget who wrote the article, but I but I honestly really enjoyed it. It was Most people that get into hunting don't do so because they want to participate in conservation. There's a whole slew of other reasons that they want to hunt, whether it be to source their own food, or to spend time with family and friends, or just kind of get back to, you know, reset your soul in the woods. Um. But the majority of people don't go, I'm gonna start hunting because I want to donate to conservation and so like you said, it's a parallel activity that you need to have that you need to understand more about. And so people like us, we just need to continue to do a better job educating about how important just simple license sales are as well as everything else, whether you know, through the nonprofits and through the Pittman Robertson, through the LWCF and um you name it. There's all these different programs that still most people have no idea about that keep the world of hunting and fishing, you know, moving. So it's uh, yeah, I think I think it's just important for us to continue to do what we do best, and that's advocate for wild places, uh, an escape for people to go, and money to keep all of those places open. Yeah, I mean I think that we too also, and I would be guilty of this too. And I realized this when I was writing an article on Piven Robertson Peterson's hunting some of yours back in my mind and in the crew I hang out. I think even the people that listened to this podcast, because eleven point five million people don't listen to this podcast. Yeah, I mean, we will get there someday, obviously, Uh, we're close, We're not close. Um that we live in a bubble. I live in a bubble where I where everybody I talked to understands Pittman Robertson, Everybody I talked to understands the duck stamp. Everybody I talked to understands and is passionate about landa water conservation fund. And so in my own mind, I started, I start to build this community of hunters where it's the prevailing knowledge set is that of the people I hang out with. And that's just not true, you know. And I did a I I took a straw poll of two hundred people that I know that went that hunt, that are avid hunters when I was writing this article about Pittman Robertson, And I asked him the simple question, what is Pittman Robertson? And I also gave them the other you know, like what is here? The other names of it, like what is this? What does it mean to you? And a hundred and ninety seven of them didn't know what it was? Um, two of them knew what it was. One of them like talked through kind of that money went somewhere and didn't you know? And so in in this idea that and and can I blame them? No. When you buy a license and they give you a little book, the little regulations book, no matter where you are and what state you are is Pittman Robertson, duck stamp, LBCF on and on farm bill, on and on we go? Is that printed on the front and the first three pages of that not right in the top. It's typically like if there is something, it's always right at the back of the book. That's it's like, by the way, and so and so. No matter what we do, we may penetrate the same core group of people that really love this. But you know, I think the beauty of the things that you're doing is that, like by wearing a T shirt or by passing forward a duck stamp, there's incremental growth in the core group of people that we feel are important for the future of this thing, of people that really have the value system and aren't you is taking part in the participatory hunt, but are engaging in the value system that comes with it, which is which is I believe is a beautiful thing. It makes your life better. In my opinion, I completely agree. I was gonna say, I hope you like I disagree, Ben, that's absolutely absolutely not. Um have you seen have you have you had a lot of a lot of people through what you do through your Instagram that that do tell you, Hey man, I never really thought about it this way, but now you know, I've I've I'm telling everybody about this. Yeah. And and honestly, even people that I know who have been avid hunters in the past are starting to frame you know, whether it be the duck stamp for everything else that we're up to, They're starting to frame money generated for conservation in a different way in their mind. You know, I had a buddy who he is a guide at a water fowling outfitter, and he's like, hey, man, like I bought three stamps the other day, Like I bought a T shirt from me I'm getting stamp anyway, but I went and bought three when I went to buy the one to have in my wallet because I had never ever thought about the fact that that money just goes directly back to, you know, protecting wetland habitat and so um. It's been fun to get those types of messages from people who have been in it for a long time. They're like, oh, man, like it makes total sense just to you know, throw a little bit extra at it every year. Yeah, yeah, and and that that money because I know, duck stamp legislation in Congress is one of the one of the only taxes in the country where people like add to it, tax us more. The constituency is like, hey, listen, we'll pay more. I would like that. Yeah, yeah, I'd like it. Yeah. And imagine if you lived and always we wouldn't use the analogy lately around here, like if Honeing was a town, right, if you lived in a town and the hunting community was a town, it would be a lot of white dudes. But we'll get we'll say that for another day. But there would be a shared value system, like a communal value system that says like, hey, we really want that fire station to have a new house. Here's some money we really you know, like because we all get to use the public land system and even are all able to at the level we're able to cooperate with landowners hunt their lane as well, whether that's leasing or just a cooperative work exchange or whatever that might end up being. Um, we're able to have this shared value system. We treat each other better we treat the places where are better. Um, at least in theory, where's plenty of examples of people trash in places they shouldn't trash. But in theory, like our town is pretty damn like at least in the way we act a pretty damn close knit community that is willing to contribute to make the place better like at its And that's what conservation in terms of a value system does. Um. Yes, when we're at the bar we argue about compound bow versus crossbow, but but we're paying into the bar man. You know. You know. The thing that it's me at ease though, is that it doesn't matter what industry, like, whether it be hunting or biking or camping or you know, it doesn't matter. It's like or if you sell computer software. You know, it doesn't matter the industry. Every single group has that in fighting of some description. Now, on the hunting side of things, it's a little more important to squash that down because we are under a microscope most of the time, and so it's just we need to make sure that we're promoting hunting and outdoor recreation in a very positive light whenever possible. Yeah, isn't that that ends up being you know where conservation and social media and everything gets thrown into We've talked about on this show at nausea, but but I think I to me, it becomes like the ultimate duality for hunting. The way I put it, uh last episode when I was talking to Mark Kenyon was everybody should be able to do what they want, but nobody should be able to do what they want. Yeah, this is kind of This is kind of how feels at different top points in time when somebody's doing something that puts a bad light on everybody and is obviously disingenuous and all intentioned. Everybody wants and it's legal. Like we had up here in White Soulfur Springs east of Bozeman, which I'm sure you're familiar with, hunters got together and flock shot fifty elk. Right, so this happened, right, we talked about on the show like okay, but it was all but three of those hunters got actual citations like that this was a legal shoot quote unquote, But no other hunter other outside of those one hundred. I don't know how they got a hundred people together. I would love to interview one of the hundred people, like where did you meet each other? Had this us an online message board thing? Like nobody outside of those one hunters would agree with what they did, and I would want to outright band them from doing what they did. But at the same time, it's legal and it's just on ethical. So that brings me back to you know, a lot of hunters will say, like MIKEL. Wodell, like that guy, but he would say, like, you know, if you want to hunt, hunt, hunt the way you want to, you want to do it. While I agree with that, at the same time, you know, if there was hunters on his property shooting fifty deer, he probably would think differently. So sorry, it's not but I think that statement from Wadel is easier to make in two thousand and two. Yeah, you know, before Facebook and before Instagram and before Twitter and all that stuff, like before social media. Yeah, like, if it's legal, pursue it, do it the way you want. Like, the only people that are ever going to see a photo of you with a deer, however you killed it is some guy at a coffee shop or a cafe or your uncle or whatever. But in the world that we live in, it's you can't go anywhere and do something stupid because I'm he is going to find out. Yeah, I mean, we all know that there was a famous, semi famous hunting couple that Spirit of Bear. I mean I was in camp the days after they were there. And now they went and did that, and not only did they do it legally, but the idea that they promoted it in the way that they did lead to the outlawing of that practice the place where they were hunting, right, And so that's what we're talking about here, Like in general, that can happen. It will happen if you do what they you know, what they did, if you glorify things that we all know someone Yeah, it shouldn't be and we all know that the general population won't agree with in the name of I'll hunt the way I want, You're likely like there's you open up the chance for you to have a negative impact on on hunting and the people around you. You open up that chance and so then you open up with that chance, you also open up responsibility um at the same time. So you know, social media is is a weird place for many reasons. Did I tell you that I did you watch a social dilemma? I've been telling every every guest has to hear this from me. Now, what do you think about social dilemma? Ah, you know, a lot of it was stuff that I kind of figured, um, simply because of how much time I spend on social media, like promoting public land tease and conservation and everything that I'm doing you know, photography and whatever. I mean, that's my job. And so yeah, I started to notice how easily you can manipulate, manipulate your own algorithm, that like of stuff that you see just by like in a single day, you can change the entire feed that you see on your page. And so it made sense to me as they went through, like how the sophisticated that is of like they are pushing things to you specifically. It's not like a blanket like oh this is a hunter. It's like this is a guy that at this tree stand on this day for this long and now we're going to show him more of that or whatever. Um. So yeah, like after watching it, it just really reaffirmed a lot of the stuff that I kind of already knew. Um, but it's still scary. I mean, it's a it's Um, it's amazing what they're able to do and Josh and I were talking about and he said the one line that stuck out to him was if you are getting something for free, you are the product. And if you're not paying for the product, you're the product. Right, And I feel like they're you know, and I felt like I felt like the folks presenting that. The criticism I have is like, the attention economies has been there, has been there since the printing press, probably been there before. That has the attention economy been amplified over the over the past two decades. Absolutely, it has been amplified and being commercialized. Absolutely, But that has been that's been how our our our society has moved forward. We innovate, we innovate into commercial enterprises and that, and we need people to know about those things. So we innovate in the attention economy, and those things smashed together, um, and so part of me was like, yes, you're right. Part of me was like, well, this has probably been happening since television was invented, and it's just another evolution of of that attention to conomy. Bill, Right, You know, people, people that are listening to this show. If you don't buy, if you're out there and you really love th HD and you get it for free and you don't buy all the advertisers products immediately and we go off the air. It's your fault. Let's just say, let's say that it's your fault. You know, if you don't have a work sharp and some element and all this other stuff in your in your cabinet right now and we go off the air, you're to blame put it putting it right on you there, but but in reality. But I was just saying that to say, like I watched that when I was in COVID Lockdown, and then we had a contest on the show last a couple of weeks where I got real nervous and um, I unfollowed everybody on Instagram except for white Claw. So now I only follow white Claw and that's your th HC page or just my personal page, my personal page. And it was a mistake. Yeah, I know, I got it. It was a little bit rash. And I found that that White claws social media is not that great. They don't they just kind of share pictures of white Claw cans. Yeah, so I don't know what I'm gonna do. Now, I'm gonna have to rebuild my my Instagram page from the ground up. But I got scared, I really did get scared. So overall, what did you think about the documentary though? And like what it means like more so, like you know, we always look at stuff through the lens of hunting, and so from that standpoint, like, how do you see it affecting our industry for the positive or negative? Yeah, I mean I think that, you know, just like anything else, just like an air fifteen, social media is how do you use it? Just like anything else, you know, it's it is not a it is still taking It is taking advantage of the things that most media has always taken advantage of. You know. It is the reason that news media is sensationalists and polarized is because what's going to capture your attention for the most the most time and what's gonna get you to act, you know, in the most aggressive way. So I do think it is an extension of a new world for us where we literally are acting. You know, when I unfollowed everybody from my Instagram page, I no longer had a view into your life other than if you actually talk to me, And I no longer had a view and a lot of other people's lives unless they actually texted me or we call they called me where I searched them out and so and and one of the things in that documentary that got me was, you know, the idea that swiping down to get more contents like a slot machine, you know, like those types of activities. And when you start to think about your own mind reacting in that way to the stimulus of social media, and I've seen this in people that I know, you start to become a little bit weakened to propaganda, a little bit weak into the more negative, um thought processes of that we've all seen. Um. And I was talking to somebody who's in in the fashion industry recently and they were saying I was telling them about a lot of the negative stuff that goes on social media within the hunting world, and they're like, oh, yeah, we got that too. And like you said earlier, it's not hunting specific. That there are trends and counter trends and culture and counterculture influencers and anti influencers. I think this is just the natural reaction to us feeling our way through social media. I mean to just do you know, so, I don't know, I guess I don't. I used to think I had a good hand alot, and I don't know that I have an end a lot of now, Like I want people to I want to be able to share myself with people in a way that's curated and that I choose to and I want to promote the ideas that I think are important. Um I I like this a lot better. I like what we're doing right now a whole lot better than I like social media. But it still has value, it's not meaningless. Um So, yeah, I'm not sure. Man. I have kids, and I hope that by the time they're old enough to want to use it, that I have a better perspective, quite honestly. Yeah, yeah, I think it's Uh, the next decade is going to be very interesting, just to see where it all goes and and kind of how information within our space gets shared. Um As some more of the stuff gets censored just because of the nature of it. Do you think we don't really have we don't really have leverage to fight against it, because even though it's the most natural thing that we have done for you know, since the beginning of time, it's still against the people who are creating these products. It's against a lot of their beliefs. So, uh, we're getting it for free, and so they you know, we don't really have a lot of fight other than doing the right thing, which is promoting it in the most positive way possible, and that will just continue to get shared. Yeah, I mean you in some ways that the restrictions are based on, you know, someone who is either ignorant to what we do or anti what we do. And so to the idea that if you showed yourself skin in the deer on Instagram, they may flag it and censor it or however they do that, and so that but that almost that kind of censorship denotes kind of the value systems that are perspectives of of people that don't do what we do. Um and and might be you know, if they are if you were just able to sit down and talk to him in in just like we're talking right now in person or via zoom and explain it all in long form. I've never met anybody that got it in that way that didn't immediately pick it up and start having some kind of interest or at least some respect for what it was. If you get it in short little snippets from people you know, or don't know, you can't. There's no choice but to have a work perspective of it, right, I mean, there's absolutely no choice if you only followed Joe Rogan and he was the only source of hunting knowledge that you had, which for a lot of people, that's true. I mean, we love Joe like he does what he does, but you would have a a my opic perspective on the approach, right like you know, and and you would have a my opic perspective with me too, and with you and anyone else. Um, you know, because I'm not talking about squirrel hunting all that much, you know, very rarely, although I do like to do it. And I never talked about traffic, you know. I know we had a lot of emailers asking about trapping, but we didn't do a whole thing with Sam. But yeah, I do think we're in a time where, um, we are being manipulated in so many different ways. And I said this couple episodes ago, but I do think it's it's true that we are in a position where a lot of people your age and my age are separated from their family unit in a way. I don't know that you're pretty close to your parents where you're at. Aren't you pretty close to your family? Yeah? Um, it's being more It's I say this way, it's more common for people our age to be separated from their family units, to move away from home, to go live in a big city, or go live in a place where the jobs and we're plentiful. And so you get separated from that family unit that grounds you and give you the right perspectives and you can respect the one who you are and how you came to be who you are. You get separated from that value system, plunge into a world where you're basically alone, at least in the person you know person to person perspective, and then everything is trying to addict you. And the thing about the social the social dilemma that I didn't agree with, it's like not not just social media is trying to addict you. Don't. Don't come at me like you have the monopoly on addicting people, to think, you know, everybody's trying to you know, sugar is addicting, fast food is addicting. So you know, commercial and from a commercial sense, all the wrong things are addicting unless you become addicted to like running marathons or you know, even that can be unhealthy. Even that can be unhealthy. Right, your knees ain't thank you for that. So I'm not sure where I was going with all that, but I do I do think that we're in a world where and if you can, the thing you most people have to overcome to be a productive person in society is shirking off or at least having a healthy relationship with the things that mean to addict us, you know. And that's food, and that's that's television, and that's social media. Because the more you spend eating, consuming any of those products, whether they're media or not, the more that you mean to those companies, you know. And that's why you you probably haven't heard much about this program. We've started calling ourselves a cult because I feel number one, cults get a bad name, you know what I'm saying, Like, so you get a bad name. But also cults there needs to be called of people that are free thinking and not trying to addict each other to a certain a certain way of approaching the world. So we're we're called we're a free thinking cult. I like it. One thing I would like to do before we wrap this up at some point is talk like flip this whole thing on its head and talk about some of the positive sides of of course we do on social media, and one of those being the Stamping Forward project again this year, and how we wait, we're gonna it to that. There's two things I want to talk about with you, and we got way off subject. First, we're gonna we're gonna end with Stamping Forward because I think I'll start by saying, I think stamp It Forwards the coolest thing anyone's done in the industry for about five years, uh maybe ten. Second, um, snacks, snacks. Yeah, we're not gonna get to the stad before until we get the snacks order of order of importance. Did you because you have if people don't know, Sam has pioneers, I mean really the Teddy Roosevelt of snacking in the tree stand, I feel, I mean, I appreciate that. That's a big title. Yeah, yeah, I mean that's you know I'm right about that is did you discover anything new this year for snacking or or do you feel oh yeah, no, uh, you know, it's it's tough. So the level of snacking that I do, when I do it right, like it takes time and thought and preparation, just like social media. Yeah, I have a lot more ideas for different snacks, and I meant to get there this year. I was going to do like several days of just elaborate snacks that involve you know, maybe one, maybe two, maybe three. YETI bottles that like you know, combined stuff. But um, this year, I did hot apple pie in one bottle and then ice cream in the other bottle, and I brought two screw in cupholders to the for the tree um and then ate it while I was about twenty up in a tree um. And it was amazing. The best part about that is I dropped a piece of ice cream on the ground while I was scooping it into my gullet, and I had two raccoons come up and eat the eat eat the ice cream at the base of my tree. Wild life, if you're bored in the tree stand, Yeah, I mean, like I suppose I could get that baited for baiting um. But no, I've got a lot of ideas. You know, like it started, let me let me stop you quickly. Did you eat? Did you go in to eat one piece of pie and then go in and get ice cream and put it in your mouth and chew it together. Yeah. Well, so I would do same spoon, which was actually a bottle opener I found in my truck because I forgot to grab a utensil, but pie, then ice cream on top of it. Then eat yeah, pie, ice cream on top, same spoon. Okay, I was pictured you had like somehow two bottles and you were like double dippers. I had no, I had two bottles right, Okay, Okay, it's on it's on the page. Just go take a lot. I'm trying to visualize at same soul. You'll see what that's going on. Okay, continue with your other innovations. So the it started in two thousand and seventeen. The first bottle snack that I took with pizza rolls in a Yetie bottles Pizza Totinos. Yeah not a not a sponsor, but if you guys are looking for I would love for them to be one. But yeah, pizza rolls. And then the next year I did biscuits and gravy of course, um yeah, and then this year with the apple pie and ice cream. It's really if only like Yetie would make, if you could call him up and they would make like shapes from what you needed. Yeah, the problem is, um so I'm probably gonna get in trouble from Yetti's lawyers, but you really don't want to. They told me you don't want to put hot food, or at least the lawyer said that you don't want to put hot food in the bottles because if you forgot it, it could ferment and rot and cause like an explosive problem if you leave the food in the bottle. Yeah, it definitely does, because yeah, it creates like some pressure and then exploiting pizza. But you like you would have if they had like a ten inch pizza Yettie. Oh yeah, that would open up, yeah, and then go back down and then you would you could just you know, strap the pizza in so it didn't flip over. Yeah, that'd be great. Okay, mark that down. Brian Barsdale is one of the Eddy's main lawyer guys. Tell him to get on that. Yeah, Brian, if you're listening, get on it. But we need this, we need you know. I probably what I probably need to do is uh find you know, do like a week at the end of October where it's not like the full rut where I'm not like getting up as quite as early, and um where I have a slightly more time to like prepare the snacks because I've got a whole list of ideas put together for for this whole thing, so good good, Well yeah, hashtag is never go snackless. It's again, I mean you could be I I would be maybe I'm like the Gifford pin Show of of snacks, but you're definitely Teddy Roosevelt. Definitely. Um, all right, snap a forward? You know, is they like m hm, I answered this way? Is there any other conservation program like stamp it Forward? Not that I know of the answer is no, absolutely not. Everyone else is behind the curve. That's the answer that I'll give them your bath. There's hundreds of millions of dollars and really smart people coming up with you know that are getting paid to come up with a good ideas for conservation. Yet you are three doesn't hold a candle to stamp it forward. And so go ahead, just tell everybody what the update is on Stamping Forward and give them a quick run down case they don't know what we're talking about. Yeah, so stamp it Forward is a way to kind of turn one fundraiser into another. But The way it works is we ask people and companies to directly donate money to us um the you know whatever, if they want to write a check or PayPal or Venmo or whatever. But with every single dollar we receive, we buy Federal Duck stamps. And so you know this year, UM, last year we did just over a thousand stamps raised dollars, and this year where we had a couple of donations coming the last few days actually UM, and so we're at like and seventy stamps total, and so uh right up there, let's back off a second like that and let people know how amazing this is. People are just giving you money. You're not giving them anything in return, not nope. So the donation is just that it is a direct shot to conservation. UM. We don't keep the money we buy stamps with it, We're not, we don't. If people do a donation through the website, we are giving them a stamp it Forward sticker as like a commemoration for their donation. And so we eat the you know, we eat the cost on the shipping and the sticker UM as a way for them to feel or like just to give them something to commemorate their donation, but yeah, other than that, we're not giving anything in return for that initial donation. And then once we pool up, it's we typically run the initial launch for two or three weeks where we're trying to raise as much money as possible, and then we always do the initial upfront by So this year we bought we took money out of our conservation fund and we bought two hundred duck stamps up front, so five thousand dollars. And then since then we have raised basically another thirty five thousand dollars this year that has come in um to buy duck stamps. And then what we do on the back end is we give a federal duck stamp away with every single item we sell on our website. And what that does is five dollars from every item we sell goes back to Conservation anyway, So we just continue to roll that into the program and raise additional funds for the whole thing. So we're right in that forty dollar range this year for simple just for duck stamps. Yeah, and so you're thinking about like the idea of the duck stam itself, you are paying money just now, let's just get this one clear the duck stamp is a requirement hunt waterfowl. Um. So it's a requirement, but that money goes back into the resource and the habitat and wildlife refugees across the country in many different ways. So that's the that's the spirit of the of the duck stamp anyway. But most people are getting something when they give, right, they give twenty five bucks, they get a stamp, they get the privilege of hunting waterfowl. You know, whether it's a state or federal stamp, mostly federal stamp in this case. Yep. Um, So we have you have that set up. But in what what you've done is raise awareness and convince people just to give money, to give a stranger a duck stamp and hope, hope to educate them on this this idea that this happens in hunting. Just by the mechanism of doing it, you are are taking part in giving something back just by by duck hunting yourself. Yeah, and uh, for anybody that doesn't know. So if if you're foler, you have to purchase the stamp, but you don't have to be a water fowler to get a stamp. So anyone can buy one and of the purchase price go is by law has to be funneled into wetland purchase conservation easements, habitat improvement, And not only does that help migratory bird species, but it's good for soil erosion, flooding, water quality, air quality, um and helps seven species overall through conserving wetlands. So it's also a big part of the reason that we have a national Refuge system. And the stamp itself is on the refuges that require like a pass to get in. The duck stamp allows you to go visit the national wild It's a pass like how many people have paid to get into the thing and while in their pocket was a free pass, you know, and you think of likes of every duck stamp goes directly into something they called the Migratory Bird Conservation Fund, right, and that that going to help them purchase or lease spots where waterfowl live, wetlands, wildlife habits at and then that that stuff goes into the National Refuge system and then we get to access to those things and see what prime habitat is and and oftentimes hunt and and recreate in those areas. Man And this has been going on correctly. You you probably know more like the actual numbers here. This isn't it's a nineteen thirty four programmer's Franklin D. Roosevelt. It was originally called I should pull us up, Jamie, pull us up us all the top of my head so I might get some of it wrong. Migratory bird hunting stamp act translated to the duck stamp act Um President Roosevelt, you know, just like everything else during that time, it was a time of reformation and the habitat waterfowl species were being killed at market and their habitat was being destroyed across the country. And a big part of the reason that they did it was not solely to protect waterfowl. And although the market hunting, like the you know, that was a big chunk of it, it it was also um in the in North America, birds in general were being killed at mass to collect feathers for decorative hats and um and apparel basically, And so it was a way to protect yes, you know, migratory birds, but everything else at the same time. Yeah, And there's stamp collectors, and there's are there's people that compete each year to get there's uh, man, what's that million dollar duck is a documentary if you want to learn about how people compete to get their art on there. That's another cultural thing about the duck stamps. It's interesting, it's been. It's been really cool, you know, through this whole program, like have actually got to know some of the artists us. One artist, she was actually the Junior duck Stamp Junior duck Stamp winner a few years back, Rebecca Knight is her name, Amazing Artists. So she's been it's been cool. She's been sending message is about the program and promoting it. Got to have a you know, recorded message from the winner of last year's stamp. Um My wife's uh grad school roommate, her uncle's are the most winning ist duck stamp artists in history. The Houtman's there, they're in that documentary as well. Yeah, and so it's just been really cool too kind of have all these things happen from doing this program and raising money for for the program. Um, yeah, yeah, it's been. It's been cool. Yeah, I mean it's it's if you would, you know, if you would go to purchase your license to get a duck stamp, and I'll have you tell people you know where they can buy duct stamps and things like that, that you may be the foremost expert in where to buy duck stamps at this point. Um, you know this is I actually pulled up the field the gov site on this and get some real numbers. I wasn't wrong about some of those other numbers, I said, So I'm glad I have that I was right about that. So they say, since dred million dollars has gone into the fund to protect more than five point seven million acres of habitat, and how many people along the way hunters in our community purchased a stamp helped fund that land acquisition and protection without even knowing they were doing it. They put money towards one of the most successful conservation programs in our country without even though and they were doing it. That's a beautiful crime that they did not know that. I'm glad that they made those purchases. And I'm glad that all of the reasons they went hunting were sufficient enough to get them to put bucks down to to go and participate. But you know what you're talking about in the beginning of this show is exactly like this is this this thing that Sam's doing is like the promotion of the parallel knowledge track that you have to go on to justify this money that we are required to spend to go and take part in this in this uh pursuit. So it's it's a it's a wonderful circle. And you know, something like this ensure is that how many ever people even hear about it, kind of can complete that circle in their own minds and they know a little bit more. So I'm sure you I'm sure you've had lots of people reach out and tell you exactly that. I'm sure. Yeah, it's been it's been really cool. Um, just how many people that have learned about the program to sip in like beyond fired up about the fact that we're doing it. And what's been really fun this year is so we added last year, um, we didn't have it on the website a way to donate, and we added that to the website this year. And what we've seen people do is they'll go to our website and they know they're going to get a stamp with a shirt or a hoodie, year O hat or whatever that they order. Um, but they'll buy a donation and a shirt and so it's like they're like, oh, I'm gonna I'll double down, Like all I'll make a donation so the next guy can also get a stamp. And the more that that happens, the more we can keep giving out, the more money we raise, the more people get to pay it forward, keep on keeping on. Yeah, that's the pay forward. I mean there's other things now I'm reading this website that's you know, they have the Junior duck Stamp program um, in which youngsters get to go and try to design or draw a duck stamp themselves their state level competitions. Um, there's there's so many things. And I've actually talked to Suzanne Fellows over there, who runs the federal programs and as a big part of this, and at some point and have her on the show, we may have to crank that back up. But there's so many things. Obviously, with all these conservation programs, you know, we're able to tout kind of Pittman Robertson is a good example of, oh, we're touting what comes from these funds or where these funds go. But once they get into the government and get into those systems, there's a lot of things that happened and there's a lot of people whose jobs are to propagate and promote and make sure these things run smoothly. Um And and there's just another example of how all this marries up into something you know, bigger than all of us, um and something we ought to protect and fight to protect. So yep, absolutely, well, I think we're all glad. And look, I probably said this before about what you do, but um, I mean there's conservation groups, not to name any that there's they employed dozens of people, hundreds of people. They have they be wanting to have an impact like you've had just with you and your brother, and trying to do what you've done with public anteas and across the board. So I think it's a you know, a substantial impact on on our generation. You know, like you and I are same, pretty much the same age and knowing each other for a while. And I'm sure we'll be talking about this and hunting together, hopefully till we're old dudes. And looking back, I remember when YE looked at some point when we're not hiking so far away from the truck all the time. Yeah, hopefully, hopefully we're still hunting together at that Our kids will be like the packing deer out for us. Yeah, we're like, I remember white claw, Dad, what's white claws? I'm already six white claws in well good man. What can people do? You know, obviously we've talked about it, but give people the direct things they can do for stamp it for because again, I mean this is a you know, it's the holidays coming up here, so you know, yeah, so uh yeah, at this point in time, you know, like people can We're still accepting donations, um if people want, but it's you know, it's towards the end of the year, so I understand starting to wind down a little bit, but we've got big plans for one. But if people still want to donate, they can donate directly on the website, which is public land tease dot com, or PayPal which is public land teas at gmail dot com, or my venmo which is just at sam sohol um and I can. We have a whole page dedicated to the Stamp It Forward project on our website. People can learn more about that, which is public land Tease forward slash or dot com forward slash stamping Forward Um. And yeah, I mean if if if people really want to help, they can donate or just go to our website, pick up a shirt, hoodie, a hat, and you're gonna get a free duck stamp with every item, and then just give that to somebody or you know, you can certainly use it to go hunting, but you probably at this point in the season you might already have one. Give it to somebody, Explain what it means, Explain where that money goes, and educate somebody else on how important these programs are. Because the more people that are out there doing that, like, we can just continue to have this spread and grow this idea that what we're doing is it's all really beneficial to everyone. Yeah, and then you know, always in times, in divided times and times that we're supposed to not get along based on our color skin or where we live, or well who we voted for, a tiny little stamp with a duck on it can can help you out, can help you have a common find common ground with folks. Just a little bit of a conservation bridge, right, there's a real, a very needed bridge. And in a good beat, and I would just say this, we do one thing that we would have been cool with you maybe in the in the future saying to do because you know, you do a lot of you do all the stuff on your own, you're an entrepreneur. Um. There's a lot of people that right into our show and say, you know, I've got a journalism degree, or I've got a communications degree, or I'm super passionate about hunting and i want to start this, or that here's an idea that I have. Um, you know, don't you don't all have to message Sam for advice, but just watch what he does, um, because it's like what can one guy in a Venmo account and an idea pull off? It's you know, surprisingly, it's amazing how how well this all took off, and so just super thankful that everybody was willing to get on board with it. But yeah, I mean, I think best advice. Sure, it's been definitely sent me a message. I try to do my best to respond to absolutely everybody that reaches out to me, which I know for a fact he sends American flag emojis to everybody. Yeah it's just three rock on you know. Yeah. Um, but no, yeah, send me a message if you have ideas or questions or whatever. But if you if you really have an idea and you're really if you're passionate about something. You can send me a message and I'll give you this, you know, give you an answer of what I think, but it all comes out. And just try to do that idea. I mean you can't. You just have to go for it. Um, if you want to try to make something happen, that's the best advice I can give. And it's terrifying um to do that. And I know, but it's uh, either you'll fall flat on your face and then you can do the next thing, or to work out swimmingly. So that's just the good thing about the hunting community is it's big enough to support you and small enough to care. It's a nice blend of there's enough people that will come along, right, there's enough people that will come along to to make it worth your while. But it's not so big that you'll never get any traction, you know, you know, So that's it's a good place to be. So well, Sam, up, I'm gonna I need to get a refill amdelo and continue a happy hour, but I'm gonna let you go. What's your next You got any duck hunt's coming up here? Actually got a pheasant hunt coming up next week? Um, I get to go back to where I was born. I get to go back to Aberdeen, South Dakota. And uh, I'm doing a hunt with the Aberdeen Pheasant Coalition. And they do a pretty cool thing where they, um say, there's a farmer that is contemplating putting his land into walking hunting area. Well, the Aberdeen Pheasant Coalition has gone to companies within the community and asked for donations um to put into a pot. And then they'll go to those farmers and say, hey, if you put your land into walking, will sweeten the pot with an extra two or three or four bucks an acre. And it's just enough to push those people over the top, and it brings more hunters to the community and more money into the system. And last year was the first year they did it, and they opened up four thousand acres of public for pheasant hunting last year. So it's pretty cool program. So we're gonna go chase public land roosters around for a few days and and uh, that's the next trip. And then I think after that, the next big trip is going to be January, Arizona Couz Deer. Nothing wrong with that. I'm sorry I've had to cancel few trips because the old COVID's here. But I'm starting to think about Cus Deer is like, yep, something I might have to get into. Absolutely all right, dude, Well, thank you for everything, is always and check Sam out on that Sam so Holding, be inspired to do something cool, bastard. Thanks for having me on, man, I really appreciate it. Thanks as always. All right, brother, that's it. That's all another episode in the books. Thank you too, Forward of the Van Fawsen of the Maryland Van Fawsen's and thank you to Sam Sohold of the public Land Bus and of the stamp at Forward project. Make sure you go and follow him. As we were just talking about at Sam so Hold one of the best in the industry to do it. So you're gonna see a lot of cool ship over there. And thank you to Luke and Lisa Reeves for being a part of the program, part of the cult and getting married. Congratulation once again. As we get into the holiday season, I'm still feeling very warm about all the activities around the the th HC called Phil. Are you're feeling good over there, Bud, Yes, I I I I love this time of year. I uh, we've our houses all decked out, got tree, got presents under the tree, there's garland everywhere. Oh yeah, there's there. I got. I got several different candles just for this season. All right? Oh yeah, I won't ask Well, wait till our Christmas episode to talk about that. We don't want to. We don't want to blow that little suspense never heard of anybody. You mean, what candles does Phil have in his house? Wow, that's gonna be a great segment right into TC to me dot com? What Senate candles does Phil having his house? What do you think? Um? A lot, a lot, but a lot going on in the future here. I'm working on the best of twenty twenty right now. Um, I feel like that's a bit of an ironic term anyway, because what is the best of a shitty year? But man, we got a lot of really cool stuff that we did this year. A lot of fun was had, Barry Gilbert was hugged, a lot of warmth in our hearts this holiday season. Before we go, We're gonna give you guys a little back end, not so sharp moment, play the jingle Phil sharp not so sharp moment, so you don't have to Yeah, all right, this one comes from Eric Glaze and Eric Glaze says, He says. Tonight, as I finished tidying up the house and completing a few out of projects, I went out to the shop to retrieve a string trimmer and some parts that a friend had asked to borrow. I flipped on the lights and began gathering things up. This this seems like a night before Christmas. It seems like a poem that he's written for us was the night before. But we don't know what yet. Yeah, I just yeah, let me wait, wake me up when the dancing sugar plums come in. That's right. The small eight point buck that I had shot at the beginning of last week had been aging hanging neck down in the garage. Noticing that the neighbor's dog must have gotten loose and been gnawing on the neck, I had hoisted it higher towards the rafters. Earlier in the week. The head was perched upright in a five gallon bucket nearby, with the next side dangling inside the bucket. So you need a picture of this. Fill. He has cut the head off the deer, put it in a bucket, and its body hung from the rafters. Yeah, like it's like like, like a stocking by the chimney, with care, with care, I grabbed the trimmer from off the wall and noticed the antler's move. I shook my head and rubbed my eyes and stared nothing. I looked back down at the trimmer. Then the antlers and long sunken eyes turned seemingly to stare directly at me. I wasn't crazy, or was I? I watched as the antlers slowly rocked back and forth and heard the gentle scratching in the bucket. I watched for a minute or two until I realized that a cat must have snuck in for a little snack. Black tail, coarse hair, two course, Oh shit, oh shit. For the next half hour or so, I tried to coax a skunk out of the bucket and out of the shop that housed the pile of prime twelve day age, venison and a TV, tractors, tools, bikes, my bow, everything important to me. I threw rocks and tossed chunks of scrap wood toward a large metal garbage can in the shop, hoping to draw him into my spotlight and into the reach of my twelve gage. Several times he emerged in the bucket to check on the commotion, but he remained near his claim. Finally, I gave up, realized that he was unlikely to step into a clear path for me to shoot him without spooking him into spring. I slowly and quietly grabbed the items I had previously dropped and looked back to the house. I had one more little piece to grab, and I killed the lights, which was a stingy and ultimately foolish move. What happens next, Phil, It didn't go great, not a shock, because this is not so sure moments. It never goes great. The OsO familiar stank stung my nostrils, as a pang of defeat stung my pride. He raised his tail, and I chucked mine and retreated as I should have in the beginning, I had been sprayed. At this point is when I thought, rest in peace to Gretcho Barks, with the blackmouth curve that patrolled these parts the less great show. Barks is the best dog name ever in the history of dog names. Rest in peace, Gratcha Barks. Anyway, he said she would have never let this stand. She averaged about three to four skunkings a year right up until she had to be put down this fall. Needless to say, we had several quarts of peroxide and boxes of baking soda on hand, missing my dog and even missing our frequency skunking dates usually after midnight and well blow freezing. As I tried to explain why you don't mess with skunk damage control and assessment time tomorrow morning to see how my dear fared. Time to sleep off this not so sharp moment. Play that jingle, Phil sharp, not so sharp moment, so you don't have to ye, thank you, Eric Laze. But that was a that was a great one. It really was like towards the night before the skunking. Yeah, that was that was good. At first I thought if it was gonna be a ghost story. We're talking about those those antlers moving around. I was like, oh, moment, the animals coming back to life to seek revenge in tense moment. Yeah. No. A couple of months ago, our our cat came back at two in the morning, um covered, covered in the stank. Uh. I'm gonna guess meat Loaf because Kevin would never do that such a thing. Wow, you know my cat so well and you've never met them. You're right. It was meat Loaf who was incredibly long haired, which made the ordeal even more fun. But it's it's a lot of fun to make those like two am Walmart trips and to get by like some peroxide. Um anyway, condolences, Um, that's sounds like a sounds like a rough a rough night. Rest in Peach, Gretio barks. Gretio barks, just the best, rest in peace to that blackmouth current. Well, Eric, you are going to get yourself a work sharp field sharpener from our friends at work Sharp. Thank you for sponsoring this here program. Please support our sponsors and go do some commerce with them, Go follow them, go watch their content. It really helps this show out and keeps us going into the future. And there's a little video of yours truly over there sharpening knives on their YouTube page currently. So if you want to be you know, I know, I'm I'm much better in the audio medium, I know. But if you want to see me sharpened a knife in my garage, have at it. I'm sure it'll be exciting at some level. Eric, enjoy that field sharpener, man, and and uh watch out for zombie Deere. Rest in Peach, great show, Barks. All right, we will see you next week here on the Hunting Collective, say bye Phil, goodbye you know, because I can't go a week without doing run, drinking out wrong, I'm singing wrong, drinking in Heaven. M.

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