Coach

Here's a couple more from different angles

Thanks everyone!

Hey guys, got this guy last Sunday on day 10 of a tough hunt. The rut was sporadic at best with some days having almost no bugles during daylight hours. I've been getting caught up at work so haven't done a full write-up, this guy came in screaming with about 10 cows at 7:15 am when it had been quiet all morning. I had to wait at full draw for what seemed like ever for his cows to clear out from between us, but managed to make a heart shot. He only went about 30-40 yards before tipping over. I'm super exited. He's my biggest bull to date, and broke my drought. It's been a few years since I've put anything bigger than an turkey or javi on the ground.

What a stud buck! Way to stick with it!

Wow! What an amazing buck - congrats, that is so awesome!

BTW, Chris down the road does awesome work with velvet bucks,

Dang Brian, that is one heck of a buck, and I know how hard you work for them. Great job finding him.

c'mon guys and gals. I know all of you have a story to tell.

Guess I'm old school, but Optics Planet used to be a great place to buy from. I have noticed that lately they sell everything under the sun so maybe it's true that they're acting more as an intermediary now.

This looks like a smoking deal. Same configuration as my Sunset (at least from what I can see from the outside). Even if the whole AC needs replacement. Some pix of the inside would be helpful. Good luck with the sale.

Very nice looking rifle. GLWS

Going back to 2000. My first coues, and my first deer.

Great looking buck! And 35 hours on the stand, that's a hard-earned trophy! Congrats.

Fantastic buck & great pic. Congrats!!!

Another thread got me thinking about old stories, and since this is the campfire, what better place? I'll start. I moved from Oklahoma to AZ when I was a freshman in HS back in the 80's. My dad worked in forestry and was working for the WMAT at the time. We went quail hunting in the fall and did a lot of ice fishing and just fishing in general. I had only hunted small game before moving here. A couple mornings in a tree stand for deer but hadn't even taken a shot. My first hunt in AZ was unplanned. A guy in one of my classes invited me to come along on a deer hunt. I didn't even have a gun, so I borrowed one from my dad. I don't remember all the circumstances but I found myself driving a ford escort to Alma NM, and following a hand-written map with scribbles and drawings in the middle of the night with a big ol' moon. Somehow I found their camp and settled in with a pop up tent and sleeping bag. We were just barely in AZ around Maple Peak. Being young and starting out I didn't have a backpack or even binoculars. So first morning we set out hiking, I had no idea where we were going. I had a pocket full of sunflower seeds and some water. We saw tons of deer but no bucks. Around lunchtime I spotted a white rump sticking out of a mahogony bush. I said "hey I've got a big buck here" and my buddy says "don't shoot until you see it's horns". I replied "it's nuts are hanging to it's knees! It's gotta be a buck!" and he replied again - "don't shoot it until you see it's horns". Right about then, it raises its head - it's a bighorn ram, and a big one. All I could think about then was a giant fine if I had shot it before identifying it. Again, young and just learning to hunt in the desert. Later that evening just as the sun was going down, we were hiking back to camp a little dehydrated and hungry. I looked across the canyon and right where it was a stark line between the shadowed part of the ridge and the brightly lit portion stood a big 4x4 muley. I was shaking with buck fever, and he was a good distance away. This was way before range finders and my borrowed gun was zeroed at 100 yards. I steadied on a tree limb, aimed way over his shoulder thinking he was 400 yards away and fired. Nothing. I didn't see where I hit so I just kept trying - and missing. Eventually, the buck just walked off and I was out of ammo. We went back to camp empty-handed. And so went my first ever Arizona hunt. Eventually I learned the ropes and started out small with javelina, an old pawn shop PSE bow and cheap binos. It was several seasons before I actually learned how to glass and hunt out west. Hope you enjoyed, and let's keep the old campfire stories going.