First Four Outdoors

This is our first First Fourmation episode. These episodes are to highlight the stories of our current and prior service members. Bret Williams became a brother to me through our time together training for the best warrior competitions. Through is dedication, resilience, work ethic and positive moral, he was able to place as the runner up for the all national guard best warrior competition and place 4th as part of a squad in the all Army Best Squad competition. Sit tight and I hope you enjoy this conversation as much as I did. Who knows many one of you can make it to the top just like he did.

It's that time of year again. Preparation list for chasing mountain bucks, new gear added and gear that stayed from last year. Its officially fall so it's time to sprinkle that pumpkin spice into every nook and cranny in your basic joy. Wildlife population updates battling disease and what is the next step forward?

This is the first of a new series of episodes coming your way. These are your quick, informative, or inspirational episodes designed for your commute to work, the gym, and favorite hunting spots. On this episode, Avery and Zack discuss the benefits of slowing down, taking in the moment and not getting caught up in chasing everything you see on social media. Be unique, be tactful and work hard, but grind like an architect and not a toddler with a grinding wheel. Enjoy.

Larry sits down with his sister Kaylynn Shaffer to finally record the experience of their first western mule deer hunt together. This had been a long-desired dream for the both of them, however, Kaylynn was the one to make that final push to make the journey a reality and stop the wait. In this episode, they talk about the experience itself, but Kaylynn also goes into detail the challenges she faced during the trip, and the complete mindset shift that occurred within her moving forward. Since that experience, she realized life holds so much potential and every day we waste it away by being self-conscious and caring about the opinions of others. She gets real and if you're in the need of some "Real Talk" wait for the end because it will come with a punch.

Avery and Zack get Tanner Burns on the phone to talk turkey hunting. If you've heard about Tanner, he is most known for his incredible attention to detail as a taxidermist and completing the U.S. Super Slam by age 30. That topic has been covered enough we decided to take it a different route to make it more relatable to every day hunters. Every day hunters are the hard workers, parents, and spouses. In this episode we dissect what it is like to manage a small business, kids and an undeniable addiction to getting in the woods to chase spring gobblers. Lastly we cover some things to look for when in pursuit of these amazing creatures and how to get the job done.

This week's episode Avery and Zack bring some questions and get each other's perspectives on how to approach different scenarios while turkey hunting. They also share some cool stories of previous kills and who their mentors were for getting started in this obsessive passion called spring gobbler hunting. 

Avery and Zack talk turkey hunting tactics for different parts of the season, terrain, and new kit. They talk about when they personally think you need to get aggressive and when to let the situation play out on its own. Turkey hunting pressure has gotten out of control and recent years and they explain that it's more import to pay attention to how people are killing birds in different terrain types rather than focus on what states those birds are being harvested. Gear is always a fun one and they share some new gear for this upcoming season as well as what their weapons of choice are. 

This episode is in a little different format. Wil Schoonover recently launched his training platform called Gone Rogue Strength and wants to dissect some of Avery's endurance running/lifting philosophies and insights. This is nearly a 2-hour long discussion, however, the surface was barely scratched for this topic of endurance training. It was a pleasure to get Wil on to be a guest host and we hope to have him on again to share his own personal story. 

Are you tired of buying mass produced, subpar sounding turkey calls? Fact of the matter is, it's nearly impossible to find the "perfect pitch" from store bought calls because everyone is unique and produces a different sound. Custom made turkey calls have always been the secret to producing the most realistic sounds for the best turkey hunting experience. In the episode, Zack breaks down the philosophy behind Liller custom calls, as well as, key notes to look for when creating your own quality hen voice. 

Avery, Larry and Zack discuss their top 5 pieces of gear they've acquired in recent years. Talking gear is fun and exciting and its always cool to get people's insights on kit they use and why. In this episode, we bring gear that can be low cost, some expensive, some marketed for hunting, and some you wouldn't expect. At the end of the day, hunting knowledge and tactics will make the ultimate difference. However good quality gear can take our minds off of unnecessary discomforts and bring us more focus on what actually matters, enjoying the hunt itself.