Hunting Matters

Native Texan Mike Arnold is a research scientist and outdoor writer with more than 140 published articles, including feature pieces in such magazines as Sports Afield (two articles in Sep/Oct 2021 issue), Hunter’s Horn, Safari Magazine, and African Hunting Gazette. Mike's forthcoming TEDx talk launches on September 26, 2021. He’s currently at work on a book titled Bringing Back The Lions: International Hunters, Local Tribespeople, and the Miraculous Rescue of a Doomed African Ecosystem.

The hunter’s horn blew early for Mike. Taking his first whitetail near San Saba while hunting with his father at the age of five was a transformative experience. From that time forward, Mike has spent months each year pursuing game animals – from quail and rabbits behind his parents’ house, to kudu and leopard in Africa.

Mike combines his love of writing, science, and hunting to record his adventures. He often covers the role hunters and their organizations play in ecosystem restoration and conservation. He has produced a series of articles on key stakeholders highlighting how sport hunting leads to the conservation of habitats and wildlife. Mike’s upcoming TEDx talk and book both cover this topic as well. To learn more about Mike visit https://arnoldoutdoorwriter.com.

Bryan Koontz is founder and CEO of Guidefitter, an advocate for the pro guiding industry and marketing platform for 350+ brands in the outdoor industry. Bryan grew up on the east coast in rural Maryland and Pennsylvania in a family steeped in the hunting and fishing tradition, graduated from MIT with an engineering master's degree and has spent his career starting and building software and internet marketing companies.

After living in Austin, Texas for 20 years, Bryan recently moved to Bozeman, Montana when he established the headquarters for Guidefitter there, and enjoys hunting, fly fishing, photography, and spending time with his family and yellow lab, Pearl.

In this episode, we speak with Bryan Koontz, founder and CEO of Guidefitter, an advocate for the pro guiding industry and marketing platform for 350+ brands in the outdoor industry, including brands like Swarovski Optik, Leica, Zeiss, First Lite apparel, Mystery Ranch packs, Kenetrek boots, Polaris RANGER and Weatherby. Guidefitter is based in Bozeman, Montana.

Bryan talks briefly about how he came to start Guidefitter, the finer differences between Texas and Montana BBQ, the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on the outdoor industry, what it means to be a true "influencer," big tech's ongoing exclusionary position with respect to the hunting and fishing industry, and why pro purchase programs have historically been the "dirty little secret" in the outdoor industry and how they are now undergoing a major transformation.

Jim is the most recent past President and CEO of Outdoor Sportsman Group, the worldwide leader in outdoor lifestyle television, magazine and web-based programming.

Jim is also a writer and producer and the founder of Harvest Home Films of Denver, Colorado. Harvest Home Films is producing the film, The Harvest, which is in development. The Harvest is a Pro-God, Pro-Family, Pro-Outdoor Christian film set for release at the end or 2021 or 2022.

Jim is passionate about Christ and our role as believers in this lost world.

Hector Villarreal serves as CEO of LUCHO Holdings Inc., a privately-owned holding company with interests in Brazil, Italy and Nicaragua; formed in 2003 to manage the production and importation of the LUCHO branded products in menswear, women’s shoe and private cigar line.

Born in Monterey, Mexico Mr. Villarreal later moved and was raised in Los Angeles, California until moving back to Monterrey where he attended Monterrey Tec prep school and college. Mr. Villarreal moved to Houston in 1990 and joined KXLN Channel 45 Univision as a news anchor and later as the weather anchor until retiring in 2005. In 2006 he was a founding member of Venture Strategies, a boutique private equity firm, specializing in cutting edge technology projects in the energy sector; Mr. Villarreal headed the international development department.

Mr. Villarreal has received numerous recognitions and has served on the board of directors of Houston International Festival, American Cancer Society Gulf Coast Development board, Leukemia and lymphoma Society, Theater Under the Stars, Boys & Girls Harbor, and The Women’s Fund for Health. Currently Mr. Villarreal serves as board president of Helping a Hero; an organization that builds adaptive homes for wounded veterans, Hermann Park Conservancy advisory board member, Virtuosi of Houston board member, Fire Fighters Foundation of Houston board member and the Houston Area Women’s Center.

Kirk Evans is the President of U.S. LawShield, a national firearms legal defense program with over 700,000 members.

Kirk has practiced law in Texas for over twenty years and has concentrated most of his work on complex civil litigation and constitutional issues. He has represented gun owners, instructors, ranges and law enforcement. Kirk has authored several firearms legal publications, including “Texas Gun Law: Armed and Educated.”

Kirk is a graduate with honors from Texas A&M University and attended law school at the University of Houston where he graduated as editor of the Law Review. Kirk was recognized as a “Rising Star” in the legal profession by the Texas Monthly publication Super Lawyers.

Kirk frequently speaks on civil liability associated with gun ownership, including the FBI CAAA Active Shooter Seminar, the NRA Foundation Banquet and similar organizations. Kirk serves as a firearms media source, including appearances with Fox News, Yahoo Sports, and scores of national TV and radio interviews.

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Emily Taylor is an Independent Program Attorney for U.S. LawShield. Emily received her J.D. from Vanderbilt University School of Law in Nashville, Tennessee in 2012. Prior to law school, she earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in both Anthropology and Psychology from Vanderbilt University.

A native Texan, Emily returned from Tennessee to intern with the Harris County District Attorney’s office and, after graduation from law school, was sworn in as an Assistant District Attorney for Galveston County, Texas. As an Assistant District Attorney she took a broad range of felony and misdemeanor cases to trial in front of judges and juries, and was responsible for grand jury presentations, motions and hearings, and plea negotiations.

She provides an insider’s perspective into the Texas criminal justice system, particularly into cases involving gun owners and claims of self-defense.

Eric Miller is the Centerfire Rifle and Component Product Manager for Federal and Speer Ammunition. He was born in southern Minnesota, has lived in various locations across the country, and currently resides in Hugo, MN. Eric grew up hunting and fishing with his dad which ignited his passion for the outdoors and led to his career in the industry. For a couple of years, he lived in Africa before returning to the U.S. to work in the retail sector of the firearms industry. Eric has worked in the industry for the last 24 years.

The majority of Eric’s hunting experiences have occurred in the Midwest, Minnesota, Wisconsin and the Dakotas but he has also been fortunate to hunt out west for elk and deer as well as Newfoundland, Northwest Territory, Yukon, and Alaska. He has experienced several DIY moose hunts in Alaska which he counts among some of his most favorite and memorable hunts. He is currently training a new British Lab puppy for the upcoming bird season.

Jody Simpson began her participation with HSCF in 1980. She became a lifetime member in 2013 and at that timed joined the Gazelle’s Committee. She has donated to the Gazelle’s silent auction, been a Gazelle’s Luncheon Sponsor, and served as the Gazelle’s Luncheon Co-Chairman since 2017. Jody and the Simpson family have supported and hosted Gazelle’s Retreats for 2018 and 2019 in effort to promote the involvement of women in the outdoors and hunting. In addition to her work with HSCF, Jody is a Lifetime Member of the NRA.

Jody holds a Master’s in Education (M. Ed) and served the Harris County community for 29 years as a Director of a Special Needs School. Jody was named the American Association of University Women (AAUW) North Harris Outstanding Woman in Education for 2018-2019. Jody retired from public education in July 2020 but remains dedicated to educating youth. Jody supports outdoor and experiential education and advocates hunting for youth to develop their appreciation of the outdoors and foster their desire to conserve wildlife.

Jody and her husband, Michael, are parents to Megan and Jake and grandparents to Julia and Lilly. Jody has had the privilege of being introduced into the hunting world by her husband and his parents Mike and Becky Simpson at the age of 17. The Simpson family and the HSCF members have inspired her to travel and hunt around the world. Jody is always prepared to take on a new adventure.

Born in the panhandle of Texas but raised in Houston, Derek Ham has also lived separate lives in Austin where he went to school and Los Angeles where he worked in the music industry. All the while a hunter, each place Derek has lived has given him perspective on life and the outdoors. His true passion is hunting and conservation and he likes to share that passion by giving back through several outdoor and hunting based charities he has been involved with over the years.

Considering himself an outdoorsman, it makes perfect sense that his most recent chosen career as a real estate agent specializing in ranch property allows Derek to be outdoors almost every day and meet people with the same love for land.

Though most of his hunting has taken place in the great state of Texas, Derek has also been fortunate enough to hunt internationally in Newfoundland, Spain, New Zealand and Greenland. Texas may be his first love to hunt but a close second is Alaska where he took the number 11 all-time Pope and Young moose with his recurve bow. A firm supporter of HSCF, Derek is the 2021 Chairperson for the HSCF ‘Clay Crushing For Youth’ Sporting Clays Tournament, benefiting HSCF’s youth hunting, fishing and outdoor education programs. The event is scheduled for October 23rd at the Greater Houston Sports Club.

Gary Roberson is a native of Medina County and grew up hunting on the family ranch between Devine and Yancey. Armed with a Model 94 Winchester, Roberson killed his first whitetail while hunting by himself at age seven and began calling critters when he was ten years old. After fifteen years in the banking industry, Roberson decided that he would rather chase four legged coyotes than two legged ones, so he and his wife Deb purchased Burnham Brothers Game Calls in 1991.

While Gary has hunted and outfitted for whitetail deer, elk, turkey, and mule deer, he considers chasing mountain lions with hounds and calling coyotes his favorite hunting opportunities. His calling expertise has been well documented in outdoor magazines such as Outdoor Life, Field & Stream, Predator Extreme, and numerous TV shows. In 1992, Roberson produced “Calling All Varmints”, a “how to” video on calling predators, and collaborated with Mossy Oak to produce “Eyes Front”, a series of five calling videos. In 2006, Gary and longtime friend, Brian Hawkins produced “Catastrophic”, the most popular predator calling video of all time.

Roberson worked with Savage Arms to develop the MODEL 10 PREDATOR HUNTER, Ruger in designing their line of predator rifles and with Nikon Sport Optics to produce the COYOTE SPECIAL riflescope, products specific for the predator calling game.

Roberson is host of the wildly successful TV show “Carnivore”, which is airing for its eleventh season on Pursuit Channel. Gary is also a staff writer for The Journal of the Texas Trophy Hunters and in 2020 with a little prompting from Miss Deb, wrote “Eyes Front…Sixty Years of Hunting the Hunters.”
Roberson is a Pro Staff member for Mossy Oak, Ruger, Trijicon, Hornady, and TRHP Outdoors and lives by the philosophy that “he who hunts the most, hunts the best”.

Willard Franklin III is the founder and CEO of the Four W’s Fishing Team. He, along with his family, are dedicated to promoting diversity in the outdoors through saltwater fishing, hunting and mentorship.
Willard started a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization called Four W’s Outdoors to help promote the outdoors to underserved youth, women, and more. Fishing is fun, but Willard has inspired and guided dozens of teens into marine and outdoor industry careers. Showcasing careers in the outdoors, to young people, is part of their mission as well. Four W’s mentors future game wardens and is currently working with the USFWS to help recruit and hire a more diverse USFWS Law Enforcement team.

Four W’s specializes in promoting safety, diversity, inclusion, conservation and careers in the outdoor industry. They are sponsoring 12 diverse youth for the 2021-2022 duck hunting season, with excursions planned at the Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge System. Four W’s promotes the outdoors to the next generation of Americans. Working with the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department and the U.S Fish & Wildlife Service (USFWS), Four W’s is an active participant in the R3 Program. R3 stands for recruitment, retention, and reactivation. R3 activities seek to create new participants or increase participation rates of current or lapsed outdoor recreationists.

Four W’s also promotes water safety for the National Safe Boating Council. Safety on the water is one of Four W’s main objectives. Four W’s is passionate about the outdoors and works to introducing hunting, shooting and fishing sports to more diverse Americans.