About 16-17 years ago, I met the guest of this episode in a pit at Tim Ground's hunt club.  We had been chatting over the past few weeks about doing a podcast and oddly we picked the day right after Tim's untimely passing.  Ryan Graves is a duck hunter that loves duck hunting for what is beyond the shooting and calling.  I remember when I met him and saw his house, even when he was a very young guy, that his house was full of waterfowl prints and other pieces of waterfowl history.  He has a great reverence for the sport and we had a good time discussing things old and new...enjoy!

Join in on a "live" goose hunt recorded yesterday in southern Minnesota.  Recorded on location in an A frame, we talk about some of the basics of our hunt while me and my friend and guest Mike Bartelt talk about a recent mule deer hunt that we went on in Colorado.  We worked several flocks of geese, didn't shoot at some we should have, and have a couple of flocks come in and give us shooting opportunities.  

Today's episode is the first time that I haven't had a "remote" guest on and with the subject, it ends up being mainly just me talking despite having two guests on to help chime in as needed.  I discuss my thoughts on eight different blinds types and what I do and don't like about each style.  Since I have either owned or hunted out of each of them it can hopefully help in making a decision about your next blind.  Of special note, if you are looking for some good feedback on a hardside blind, we discuss this at length in this episode.  

I also touch on other things such as blind materials, boat blind angles, different hunting areas and how that affects blind choices, amongst other topics.  Feel free to drop a note on my @shootingtimepodcast page on Instagram or email me at [email protected] with questions.

While I was headed to Anoka, MN for Game Fair I made a pit stop to my friend Rick Stawki's house to sit down with him and Shawn Stahl to record a podcast.  We didn't do much for a script on this one and just let it flow and talk about the things we love...one of which was dogs.  Rick is a top-level hunting and field trial dog trainer.  It's amazing how much excitement there can be amongst a group of guys when you start talking about their dogs.  

It was fun to sit down with these two that were longtime friends, and I and Rick were longtime friends and be able to swap stories and ideas about hunting styles, boat food, opportunist duck hunters, Shawn's questionable shooting, and some good-natured ribbing among friends.  Enjoy!

The first episode to have a recording issue, but, luckily not all is lost.  In this episode, it's Phil, Bill Bartz, and Field Hudnall chatting about life and how other hunting forms overlap with waterfowl and why we like those other styles as well.

Subjects - Squirrel hunting and the strength of hunting culture in Kentucky, turkey hunting heart attacks and ground blinds, elk in Kentucky, rise of the Sandhill Crane, to mojo or not, a quick intro to how Field worked his way up in the waterfowl industry before we lost his audio.  

This was a fun episode to record because Doug understands so well how deeply duck hunting can affect a person's soul...that may sound a bit deep but he's one of the guys that when you start describing how you feel when a flock of ducks or geese lock up on you, you won't even need to finish because you'll see that he gets it completely.  

We chatted about his hunting history, how his photography comes from a place of respect for the sport, the Platte River as a very historic duck hunting area, technology in hunting, and a bunch of cool topics.  Take a listen and be sure to check Doug out on Instagram, Facebook, or his own photography website.  

In this first episode of the Shooting Time Podcast I sit down with my friend Bill Bartz and guest Ryan Askren.  Ryan is a PhD student at the University of Illinois and is currently focusing on behaviors and habits of urban geese.  His passion for waterfowl is evident in his photography, and indeed, that is what first focused my attention on him as the first guest of this show.  Someone who loves to take duck photos, waterfowl hunt, and is inquisitive about the behaviors of waterfowl is a guy I could talk all day with.  

We talk about how Ryan first got an interest in waterfowl and waterfowl hunting, some of our photographic backgrounds and why we enjoy chasing ducks other than with a gun (and as well as with a gun), and we spend a fair amount of time going over some possible explanations regarding some of the things that we see ducks or geese do.  

Thanks for listening and we'll see you next week!