Casey “LaVere” Butler is a success story. A few years back he decided to leave his 9-to-5 job at a steel mill to do something crazy: create a hunting and fishing YouTube channel. With no assurances he'd make anything of the idea, he took the leap and started Hushin. His friends Eric Chesser and Brian McElrea joined him and together in just a few short years they have created one of hunting's most unheralded media powerhouses. They have a dedicated audience that follows their every move as the crew creates semi-live content from the field. It's raw and unedited, something new to the space. 

There's more to Casey than just his branded content. He's a family man, raising four kids with his wife in the mountains of Idaho, and a guy who truly enjoys the experience of hunting. To say Casey comes off as a "regular guy" is no slight. It's easy to relate to his honest approach to capturing his hunts and Hushin's diverse fan base is evidence that his message resonates. 

 I met up with Casey and Ryan Callaghan from First Lite to chase free-range axis deer in Sonora, Texas. We had a kickass few days dodging chiggers, rattlesnakes and ticks tracking rutting bucks in 100-degree heat. Afterwards we sat down to discuss the dangers of hunting the Lone Star State, success and failure in bowhunting, winning the mental game, and covered some deep topics on life, death and what we can learn about both in hunting. Enjoy.

 

Connect with Ben and MeatEater

Ben on Instagram

MeatEater on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube

Shop MeatEater Merch

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.