http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/index/ en david@tecomate.com Copyright 2008 2008-11-18T16:32:01-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_4_montana_november_2008/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_4_montana_november_2008/#When:16:32:01Z Day 4 - Again, overcast, light winds and about 28 degrees. Back to the new area. Got around behind a bunch of deer out in the fields in hopes of having them pass by on the way back to cover. Worked great. Saw about a dozen whitetails but no shooters. I did, however, see a great mulie - at 30 yards. Incredible video of him. In hindsight, should have shot him! Went back in the afternoon after him, but he had crossed the river to other property. Saw another tall 5x6 mule deer on the way after him that really caught my attention. Went after him.  Day 4 - Again, overcast, light winds and about 28 degrees. Back to the new area. Got around behind a bunch of deer out in the fields in hopes of having them pass by on the way back to cover. Worked great. Saw about a dozen whitetails but no shooters. I did, however, see a great mulie - at 30 yards. Incredible video of him. In hindsight, should have shot him! Went back in the afternoon after him, but he had crossed the river to other property. Saw another tall 5x6 mule deer on the way after him that really caught my attention. Went after him. Ended in a long exciting chase and stalk. Finally caught up with him and put the Sako .270 Winchester Short Mag. to work on a 200-yard shot. A great old (very old) buck. It was all captured by The Bucks of Tecomate camera. Another incredible hunt in my adopted second home state of Montana and with my friend Bill Perkins! David's Blog 2008-11-18T16:32:01-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_3_montana_november_2008/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_3_montana_november_2008/#When:16:31:00Z Day 3 - Overcast and light winds. About 30 degrees. Went to a new area of the river in the morning and walked and rattled. Rattled in two bucks and saw about 10 whitetail bucks ... along with about 15 mule deer bucks. A couple of the mulies were very tempting. Great thing about Montana - can shoot whitetail or mulie. If I see a good mulie, he may usurp my whitetail plans. In relative terms, the mulies I’m seeing are bigger than the whitetails I’m seeing. Day 3 - Overcast and light winds. About 30 degrees. Went to a new area of the river in the morning and walked and rattled. Rattled in two bucks and saw about 10 whitetail bucks ... along with about 15 mule deer bucks. A couple of the mulies were very tempting. Great thing about Montana - can shoot whitetail or mulie. If I see a good mulie, he may usurp my whitetail plans. In relative terms, the mulies I'm seeing are bigger than the whitetails I'm seeing. Returned to the abandoned house again in the afternoon. Great sit - saw about 30 bucks. Chasing everywhere. Saw many mature bucks but no shooter. Best in the 140-class. A big mulie is starting to look good! David's Blog 2008-11-15T16:31:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_2_montana_november_2008/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_2_montana_november_2008/#When:16:29:00Z Day 2 - Wind let up. Only 15-12 mph. Very cold - 16 degrees and clear. Walked riverbottoms and rattled. On one session, rattled in 8 bucks, including 3 mature bucks to within 20 yards. Some of the best rattling video I’ve seen.  Day 2 - Wind let up. Only 15-12 mph. Very cold - 16 degrees and clear. Walked riverbottoms and rattled. On one session, rattled in 8 bucks, including 3 mature bucks to within 20 yards. Some of the best rattling video I've seen. Saw about 20 bucks in the morning. Still no shooters, though. I hunted the abandoned house again in the afternoon, but the temperature warmed to 55 degrees. Deer movement surpressed by heat. Saw about 10 bucks. No shooter. David's Blog 2008-11-14T16:29:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_1_montana/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/day_1_montana/#When:16:52:00Z Day 1 - Miles City, MT - Bill Perkins Outfitter. 50 mph winds and blizzard conditions. In morning, had to get in cover with deer to see anything. Afternoon, hunted fields. Saw about 30 bucks all day and walked 10 miles. Biggest was in mid-140s. Nothing we wanted to shoot. Day 1 - Miles City, MT - Bill Perkins Outfitter. 50 mph winds and blizzard conditions. In morning, had to get in cover with deer to see anything. Afternoon, hunted fields. Saw about 30 bucks all day and walked 10 miles. Biggest was in mid-140s. Nothing we wanted to shoot. David's Blog 2008-11-13T16:52:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/whats_next_the_hunts_begin/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/whats_next_the_hunts_begin/#When:14:02:01Z On November 13, 2008, I start an almost non-stop marathon of hunts until December 21. (Believe me, I am not complaining – I’ve been waiting for this all year!) I start off in Miles City, Montana, hunting the Powder River with my old friend, Bill Perkins. What a place! This is one of the most enjoyable hunts of the year. Beautiful scenery, great folks and lots of good whitetails make southeastern Montana a joy to hunt. Plus, every hunting style imaginable is an option there.  Last year, I hunted with Bill early in the season so I could also hunt antelope, a favorite. This year, I opted to hunt the rut in hopes of improving on the 160-class 14-pointer I shot there last October. That’s a tall order, though. The fact is 160-plus whitetails are pretty rare along the Powder River, but they are there and I’m going to try to find one. On November 13, 2008, I start an almost non-stop marathon of hunts until December 21. (Believe me, I am not complaining – I’ve been waiting for this all year!) I start off in Miles City, Montana, hunting the Powder River with my old friend, Bill Perkins. What a place! This is one of the most enjoyable hunts of the year. Beautiful scenery, great folks and lots of good whitetails make southeastern Montana a joy to hunt. Plus, every hunting style imaginable is an option there. Last year, I hunted with Bill early in the season so I could also hunt antelope, a favorite. This year, I opted to hunt the rut in hopes of improving on the 160-class 14-pointer I shot there last October. That’s a tall order, though. The fact is 160-plus whitetails are pretty rare along the Powder River, but they are there and I’m going to try to find one. You can bet I’ll have my rattling “horns”. (Yeah, I know they’re antlers.) One of my favorite cameramen, Mason Gertz, will be along again this year. His first hunt ever with me was on the Powder River last year. Since then, he’s been behind the camera on many of my hunts. Mason, a Bigfork, Montana, native, is kind of like family since I watched him grow up and served in the same church with his wonderful mother and dad, Stephanie and Larry, during my 10 years as a Bigfork resident. After Montana, I join up with Gary Schwarz, and we head straight to Illinois for a whitetail hunt with Illinois Extreme Whitetails. I am really looking forward to this hunt and spending time with our hosts, Carroll Berry, Bruce Steele and Robin Welch, all fellow Christians who share an appreciation for God’s creation and thankfulness for the privilege we have as stewards. This is going to be a BUSY few days because Gary and I will not only be hunting for The Bucks of Tecomate TV show, but , at the same time, we will also be hosting the third annual Versus Whitetail Challenge, which is sponsored by Tecomate! Hunting by day, hosting by night … guaranteed to be busy! Armed with our Knight Muzzleloaders, we will be hunting some of the best whitetail country in one of the best BIG BUCK states – Illinois. And anytime I hunt with Gary, I know it’s going to be exciting! Should be a wild time loaded with big buck stories. I’m betting Gary and I will come back from Illinois with a couple of the best shows of the year. After Illinois, I head to my El Cazador Ranch for Thanksgiving with my family, hunting, of course. This is well before the rut and mature bucks will still be very hard to find. We’ll concentrate most of our efforts on shooting does and maybe a few cull bucks. Then, in early December, we’ll start our hunts on El Cazador for The Bucks of Tecomate shows. Plus, we’ll be shooting a couple of shows there for World of Beretta as well. But, there’ll be time enough to catch you up on all that when I get back from Illinois. I’ve posted some early Stealth Cam photos of a few bucks from El Cazador. Promises to be another great year in South Texas! Stay tuned – lots more to come … David's Blog 2008-11-13T14:02:01-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/a_sampling_of_2008_stealth_cam_photos/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/a_sampling_of_2008_stealth_cam_photos/#When:15:21:00Z A sampling of Stealth Cam photos so far from my El Cazador Ranch this year. Overall, the year looks pretty good, despite a very dry spring and early summer. A sampling of Stealth Cam photos so far from my El Cazador Ranch this year. Overall, the year looks pretty good, despite a very dry spring and early summer. PIC0167 is an ancient old buck, appears 9.5 to 10.5 years old, probably in the 160s. Buck PIC0292 appears to be a mid 160's 10-pointer with a forked G2 and at least 5 extra points around his brow tines - looks to score in the low 180s but I don't think he's old enough to shoot - maybe 5.5 years old. I may go after buck PIC0050. I saw this buck 2 years ago when he was a 4.5-year-old, making him 6.5 now and a shooter candidate. Glad to see he's still around. Still got some velvet hanging. He's a typical 12-pointer with at least 10 scorable stickers - looks to score in the 180s. PIC0012 is a 160-class 8-pointer. I included him just because I like him ... a lot! Buck PIC0157 and 159 is a monster 4.5-year-old I know from last year, when he was the biggest 3.5 I've had on the ranch. My foreman, George, found both sheds, which grossed 169! These photos were taken late August 2008 with a month of antler growing time left. He a basic 10-pointer with a forked right G2. I think he'll gross well in the 180s and make the B&C record book. But, he's safe this year - too young. PIC0039 - Two old dudes. The one on the left is probably a mid-160s buck. The other one looks to be a 150s. Both are at least 5.5 years old, maybe more. PIC0105 - This a wide buck, probably 24 inside. He'll score in the high 160s. Somewhere on my 3,000 acres, there should be at least 6-8 more 170-class bucks carried over from last year, plus some new ones added this year. More to come! David's Blog 2008-11-11T15:21:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/sharing_duties_with_jeff_foxworthy/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/sharing_duties_with_jeff_foxworthy/#When:21:42:00Z Sharing Duties with Jeff A lot of folks ask me what it’s like hosting The Bucks of Tecomate with Jeff Foxworthy. Well, if I were to think about sharing the stage with THE Jeff Foxworthy who is world famous comedian and talent, I would feel very intimidated and completely unworthy. But to Jeff’s great credit, that’s not the Jeff Foxworthy on The Bucks of Tecomate! The Jeff on the show is “Just Jeff,” all-round good guy, fellow hunter and game manager. Just like you and me, he is a person with a deep love of the outdoors and a passion for hunting, especially our greatest game animal, the whitetail deer.  Sharing Duties with Jeff A lot of folks ask me what it’s like hosting The Bucks of Tecomate with Jeff Foxworthy. Well, if I were to think about sharing the stage with THE Jeff Foxworthy who is world famous comedian and talent, I would feel very intimidated and completely unworthy. But to Jeff’s great credit, that’s not the Jeff Foxworthy on The Bucks of Tecomate! The Jeff on the show is “Just Jeff,” all-round good guy, fellow hunter and game manager. Just like you and me, he is a person with a deep love of the outdoors and a passion for hunting, especially our greatest game animal, the whitetail deer. Jeff is one of those rare individuals who is committed to giving back more to his chosen sport than he takes out. You see this in his commitment to wildlife management and land stewardship, and you see it in Jeff’s gracious sharing of his farm, time and talents with others, especially those less fortunate. Jeff is a true hunter, sportsman and steward. That’s who shares the hosting duties of The Bucks of Tecomate with me! David's Blog 2008-10-31T21:42:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/finland_land_of_sako_and_whitetails/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/finland_land_of_sako_and_whitetails/#When:20:22:00Z Tecomate’s Gary Schwarz and wife Marlee joined my wife, Debbie, and me on a recent trip to Finland, where we were hosted by a wonderful group of guys with Sako Arms and Chip Klass with Beretta, USA, the parent company of Sako. We went both to hunt and to visit the Sako/Tikka rifle plant … The Bucks of Tecomate cameras in tow. And, what a trip it was! What were we hunting? Moose … and, of all things, whitetails! Yes, whitetails. It may seem hard to believe, but there is an excellent population of whitetails in southern Finland. In fact, it’s the largest population outside of the Americas. Where did they come from? A handful of animals shipped over from Minnesota way back in 1937 by Finnish immigrants, who wanted to see the homeland enjoy these marvelous game animals. From less than 15 original deer, the whitetail has now become the second most important and popular game animal in Finland, second only to moose, with an annual harvest of about 25,000 whitetails! Tecomate’s Gary Schwarz and wife Marlee joined my wife, Debbie, and me on a recent trip to Finland, where we were hosted by a wonderful group of guys with Sako Arms and Chip Klass with Beretta, USA, the parent company of Sako. We went both to hunt and to visit the Sako/Tikka rifle plant … The Bucks of Tecomate cameras in tow. And, what a trip it was! What were we hunting? Moose … and, of all things, whitetails! Yes, whitetails. It may seem hard to believe, but there is an excellent population of whitetails in southern Finland. In fact, it’s the largest population outside of the Americas. Where did they come from? A handful of animals shipped over from Minnesota way back in 1937 by Finnish immigrants, who wanted to see the homeland enjoy these marvelous game animals. From less than 15 original deer, the whitetail has now become the second most important and popular game animal in Finland, second only to moose, with an annual harvest of about 25,000 whitetails! We only had about 2½ days to hunt, but our hosts were determined for us to get all we could out of our short time there. We split our time between hunting moose and whitetails. The primary way of hunting was drives, both using dogs and men to push the game. For whitetails, we also sat over food sources late in the afternoons. Actually, that’s not quite accurate – we started our “sits” for whitetails late in the afternoon … and continued them well into the night. You see, it is legal in Finland to hunt at night, as long as you don’t use artificial light. If you can see the animal, you can shoot him … any time day or night! Of course, night-hunting and cameras don’t go together very well, so we Tecomate folks didn’t pursue the night-hunting opportunities much past dark. But, after hunting those very nocturnal Finnish whitetails, I know why they stand-hunt them at night – that seems to be the only time they move on their own! If you want to kill one during the day, you had better plan on driving! The Tecomate group with Sako hosts and Finnish whitetails taken on a whitetail drive. Great experience!!!!! Reminded us all that hunting is about the Great Outdoors, friends and shared experiences. The Fins get the most from the hunt and the game and don't measure success by size alone! Good lesson and great trip. I won’t go into all the details of the hunt. I’ll save that for the TV show. Suffice to say – it was an incredible experience! Chip Klass, a delightful hunting companion, shot a great bull moose the first morning. One of our Sako hosts (Raimo) shot a whitetail buck the first afternoon (read night). On the second day, Gary shot his first moose ever, a young bull, and another of our hosts (Jari) shot a whitetail doe in the early moonlight. And on the final day, Gary scored again on a whitetail doe, as did another of our Sako hosts (Pentti), during exciting drives using “badger dogs,” which look like long (I do mean long) stretched-out beagles. I, on the other hand, failed to score. The only thing that I saw during the trip was the moose that Gary killed on the second day. I was on the uphill stand next to him and had a bird’s eye view of the whole event, which was captured by our cameraman, Mason Gertz. Chip Klass with Beretta took this bull moose in Finland on the first day of the Tecomate hunt. Finnish moose are not nearly as large as those in North America. This is considered a good one. In fact, ANY moose is considered a trophy there, where emphasis is placed on the hunting experience rather than the size of the animal. The Fins take their hunting very seriously, and every aspect of it is steeped in Old World tradition! The people, the countryside and the hunting traditions made this trip very special. By American standards, we would not consider most of the whitetails or moose in Finland “trophies” based on size, but because of the appreciation and value the Finns put on each and every animal, regardless of size or sex, all the animals seen and harvested on our trip were TROPHIES!!! Anybody who sees the show next fall will understand why this hunting experience was so special to Gary and me, as well as to our lovely wives. The incredible hospitality, the centuries old traditions and the beautiful countryside made this trip one we at Tecomate will ever forget. The real reason we went to Finland was to visit the Sako factory, where Sako and Tikka rifles are made. That opportunity was made possible by an invitation from Christopher Merritt, president of Beretta, USA. World-famous Beretta now owns Sako, and Tecomate is working with Sako on the development of a “Tecomate” rifle (maybe two) designed specifically for the whitetail market. After touring the plant, we knew for sure that Sako is the right place to build such a rifle. Gary and I were very impressed by the materials, manufacturing process and the pride and workmanship of the people, many of whom have worked there all their lives and all of whom take extraordinary pride in what they do and the products they turn out. Even today, in the world of manufacturing shortcuts, Sako still builds rifles THE RIGHT WAY! I’ve always wondered how Sako and Tikka could claim their rifles are guaranteed to shoot groups of one inch or less. Well, now I know – it begins with the best materials, manufacturing process and people and ends with EVERY rifle being tested for accuracy with at least three shots. If the rifle doesn’t group less than an inch, it is rejected and returns to the factory for re-working! Right there under the factory is a 100-meter underground shooting range, and before a rifle is “passed” and ready for packaging, it is shot for accuracy … every single one! Amazing! I saw it! Heck, I test-shot one .308 Winchester myself for accuracy. It shot a .41-inch group. That’s barely wider than the .30-caliber bullet diameter! Now I know why Sako and Tikka can make that accuracy claim! If you watch the show next year, we’ll show you the factory tour and you can see for yourself why Sako rifles are world renown. Well, for more, you’ll have to watch The Bucks of Tecomate next fall. With that, I’ll close by sharing our e-mail note to our hosts. I think in that note you can see the appreciation we all had for the great hospitality extended us by of gracious hosts and how impressed we were with Sako and Finland and its people. Raimo, Kari, Jari, Pentti, and Timo, all of us at Tecomate want to express our appreciation for the great time and hospitality you all showed us during our visit to Finland! We had a wonderful time in your beautiful country and really enjoyed our time with all of you. During the Sako factory tour, we were amazed by the pride and workmanship obvious in the manufacturing of your rifles. It is no wonder Sako has such a well-deserved reputation! Congratulations on making world-class rifles you can be proud to make and your customers can be proud to own. We know you are all very busy and really appreciate the time you took away from your schedule to show us around the factory and to share your great hunting tradition with us. We know that much time and effort went into the preparation for our hunts and express our sincere THANKS! It was a privilege to share in the age-old hunting traditions of Finland. The Fins’ deep love and appreciation for the chase and the game took us back to our own hunting roots, when hunting was just plain fun and sharing it with others made it even more enjoyable. Gary couldn’t have been more excited over a record-book whitetail buck than he was over his moose calf and whitetail doe. It was a privilege for all of us to participate in the great Finnish hunting tradition! Chip and I will follow up on the Tecomate rifle discussions and get our ideas back to you. We are very excited about the prospects of working with Sako on a specialized rifle made for the serious whitetail market. Once again, from Gary, Marlee, Debbie and me, thanks for your gracious hospitality! We look forward to seeing you all in Florida during the SHOT Show. Warm regards, David Morris David's Blog 2008-10-21T20:22:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/2008_tecomate_hunts/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/2008_tecomate_hunts/#When:21:44:00Z 2008 Tecomate Hunts This fall on The Bucks of Tecomate, we are airing the most incredible big buck season ever for a TV series – hunts that see an amazing 10 bucks over 170 being taken. As we go into this season, many are asking if we can duplicate such a season again. The answer is, “I doubt it!” It is unlikely that the giant buck success of last hunting season will be repeated, especially this year. Why? In a word, “rain” … or more specially, the lack thereof. You see, 2007, when the shows now airing were shot, was a great rain year in drought-prone South Texas, where Tecomate partner Gary Schwarz’s El Tecomate Ranch and my El Cazador Ranch, both proving grounds for the Tecomate Management Strategy, are located. 2008 Tecomate Hunts This fall on The Bucks of Tecomate, we are airing the most incredible big buck season ever for a TV series – hunts that see an amazing 10 bucks over 170 being taken. As we go into this season, many are asking if we can duplicate such a season again. The answer is, “I doubt it!” It is unlikely that the giant buck success of last hunting season will be repeated, especially this year. Why? In a word, “rain” … or more specially, the lack thereof. You see, 2007, when the shows now airing were shot, was a great rain year in drought-prone South Texas, where Tecomate partner Gary Schwarz’s El Tecomate Ranch and my El Cazador Ranch, both proving grounds for the Tecomate Management Strategy, are located. Because of the excellent antler year, The Bucks of Tecomate cameras were able to capture on video the harvest of seven record-class bucks on our ranches, including Gary Schwarz’s 232-point B&C non-typical, the largest free-ranging non-typical taken in Texas last year. But alas, drought returned this year. From August 2007 through June 2008, less than three inches of rain fell on our ranches and food plots. As a result, the necessary nutrition for peak early antler growth was just not there. In fact, in the 11 years I’ve owned my ranch, this year is only the second time I have experienced a near-failure of lablab plots in the critical spring/early summer antler-growing time. We can grow plots on little rain but not on NO rain! Happily, since July 1, we’ve had an incredible amount of rain, over 20 inches! But, you can’t make up the antler growth lost by the absence of good nutrition in the early antler growing period. As a result, we will not be able to duplicate last year’s seven record-class kills this fall on our two South Texas ranches. Knowing our part of South Texas will be down this year, we have tried to compensate by scheduling hunts in other great big buck regions this fall, such as Montana, Iowa, Illinois, Maryland, Nebraska and Kansas. Of course, we’ll be back in Texas again, too. And through our ranches maybe off their game a bit, I won’t bet against some giants showing up there even in a down drought year. One thing worth pointing out about last year’s unprecedented big buck season on The Bucks of Tecomate – it’s no accident that 9 of the 10 record-class bucks taken came from properties managed under Tecomate’s Intense Food Plot Management Strategy. And this year, most of our hunts will once again be on such properties, including hunts in Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Maryland and, of course, Texas. Because we will be hunting on Tecomate-managed properties, I cannot say for absolute certain that we WILL NOT duplicate last year’s big buck success; only that I doubt it. Even for us at Tecomate, what the program can produce shocks even us! Only God Above knows what the year will hold! One thing for sure, we’ll have fun finding out and we’ll share it all with you! David's Blog 2008-10-13T21:44:00-06:00 http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/my_next_hunt_october_6_2008/ http://www.tecomate.com/content/index.php/site/my_next_hunt_october_6_2008/#When:21:40:00Z My Next Hunt I bet you never thought you’d read this – my next hunt is in Finland … for whitetails and moose! At the invitation of Sako, our rifle sponsor, Gary Schwarz and I, along with our wives, are headed to Finland in October to tour the Sako plant and to work on a long-range whitetail rifle Tecomate is collaborating on with Sako.  My Next Hunt I bet you never thought you’d read this – my next hunt is in Finland … for whitetails and moose! At the invitation of Sako, our rifle sponsor, Gary Schwarz and I, along with our wives, are headed to Finland in October to tour the Sako plant and to work on a long-range whitetail rifle Tecomate is collaborating on with Sako. While there, we will hunt whitetails, which were stocked in Finland decades ago and have taken off, and moose. It should be a most interesting trip. And, yes, it will be filmed for The Bucks of Tecomate to be aired in 2009. I’ll let you know how it goes when I get back. David's Blog 2008-10-06T21:40:00-06:00