For The Record 1003

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For The Record

By Ray Ward

Bill Walton

Shotgun 1990

Harrison County

Score 165+

Not only is Bill’s buck a non-typical his story is also not the typical run of the mill hunting tale.

As Bill and his friend started their day it was pouring down rain. They haul scrap metal for extra income and due to the rain decided not to hunt but to take a load of metal to Akron that morning. They returned from their trip about 12:30.

His brother in law (Butch) had seen deer sign behind his house and suggested to Bill to grab his gun and try there.

He entered the woods and found some super trails and rubs. The rain and sleet was still coming down as he sat and leaned against a tree. Lighting the last cigarette in his pack and saying to himself he would leave when he finished it, the rain quit.

The rain and cold had made Bill sleepy and soon our hunter had fallen fast asleep. Bill was in a dream and thought a dog was growling at him. As the cobwebs started to clear he realized it was not a dream and what he thought was a dog was a large buck pawing the ground and shaking its head just a few feet away. It startled Bill so bad he yelled to scare the buck away. He took two big leaps as Bill reached for his shotgun and as the barrel reached the target the buck stopped a mere 20 yards away. At the report of the shot the buck dropped, but as he tried to get back to his feet a second shot finished him off.

Until this point looking at the rack had not been an option. Now as Bill approached the downed monster of his dream, one side of the rack was hidden in the brush and snow. He questioned himself if he had blown the antler off with one of his shots. As he lifted the head it revealed the other half of the huge 18-point buck.

Now the nervousness hit and the shaking started. The lead on the pencil he used to fill out the tag must have broken at least a half a dozen times. When the task of gutting started he was shaking so bad he cut his hand. "Just calm down" he kept telling himself.

The deer was gutted and tagged; time to drag it out right? Wrong! Bill couldn’t even get the deer to budge. At this time Bill heard a voice and it turned out to be one of his friend’s nephews. The drag to where they could get it to the truck was only about 60 yards. Exhausted after the short drag they could hardly get it into the bed of the truck.

At the check station the buck drew quite a crowd. The buck was hung at Butch’s house and over the next four days dozens of people showed up to view the monster. When taken down to be butchered the buck weighed in at over 300 pounds field dressed.

The buck is now on display at Geno’s Carry Out store in Tippecanoe, Ohio.

Note: Bill said he snores when sleeping and this might be what caused the buck to become aggressive. We at OVO are trying to figure out how to get a patent on Bill’s snore

Ron Ault

Jefferson County Ohio

BBBC 204 1/8 non-typical

During the summer Ron had been watching four- or five good bucks on his property. Many food plots he had planted were giving the deer a smorgasbord of succulent food.

On October 11 a friend (Mike Garcia) went with Ron to their favorite stands to video his hunt. As dawn broke Ron was watching a groundhog feed on an apple when Mike, who was in a stand next to him, whispered "shooter buck." Thinking his friend was horsing around he turned to see a monster buck nearby in multiflora roses. The buck took Ron by surprise, he started to hyperventilate and shake so bad that he had to hold on to the tree till he calmed himself down.

The buck stayed in the multiflora roses for at least five minutes then turned and started to walk away. It was at this point Ron wished it were shotgun season instead of archery. As his hopes of shooting the buck sank, the buck turned around and walked right toward him, leading Ron on an emotional roller coaster ride. Again the hyperventilating and shaking started. Being the hunter he is, Ron told himself "it’s just another target and to pick a spot and aim."

The buck stopped to eat next to an old log and was quartering slightly toward Ron with a small tree between them. He took one step forward and Ron drew his PSE Nova bow to full draw and released an arrow tipped with a Lazer Exterminator broadhead. The deer hesitated then took off like a rocket.

Mike, who was still in the stand next to him, yelled, "Good hit."

Ron thought he had stuck the deer high. They climbed down from their stands and found a good blood trail but decided to wait an hour before tracking the buck. They headed back to Ron’s house and had a few "brewskies."

Ron’s wife asked, "What are you doing back already?" He told her he had hit one of the monster bucks he had been watching. She asked, "You got him?" Ron replied, "I hit him but I don’t know if I got him." They changed out of their camo and Scentlock suits and headed out to find the deer.

There was a good trail with a lot of blood but Ron tried not to get overconfident. He soon noticed air bubbles in the blood and he knew the buck was dead. After about 85 yards of following the blood trail Ron saw something white and ran to his buck. He dropped to his knees and said "Oh my God what a monster!" With tears in their eyes Ron and Mike celebrated and then started the long drag home.

In the excitement of having the monster buck in close range, the video they planned on taping never came to be. They were afraid to turn the camera on for fear of spooking the buck..

Scott Sosack

Archery 1996

Beaver County Pa.

Score 125 +

I ran into Scott at the Hookstown Fair this year and he proceeded to tell me of the many nice bucks he had taken near his home in Industry, Pa. Scott has been hunting since he was 12 years old and has taken 28 bucks in 28 years, all from Beaver County. Although most of Scott’s bucks are big, only one archery kill of 1996 makes the score for Pope and Young entry.

A friend had told him of a large buck in the area. Scott took off work at noon and headed into the woods. Finding a good spot he climbed a tree with his climbing stand and prepared for what he thought would be a long afternoon. At 2p.m. he noticed movement. Several does came through not more than 15 yards away and right on their tail was a nice buck. The buck’s only interest was his girlfriends and he had no clue as to what was about to happen to him. As he passed by Scott drew his Bear Whitetail Hunter bow and released an Easton Shaft tripped with a Muzzy broadhead for a double lung shot. The buck ran to the top of a hill within sight and toppled over.

There was no need for a long wait or to follow a blood trail. Scott got out of his tree and walked directly to his downed deer.

Scott’s deer grosses near 140 but after deductions nets out at 125. After the interview with Scott I said," Boy Scott that was a short hunt." Scott replied, "That’s how I like them, short and sweet."