Ep 154 / Behind the Scenes: The Realities of Hunting and Filming

Casey Christman joins us to share his decade-long journey in the hunting and outdoor television world. He dives into his personal experiences on a TV show and sheds light on the ins and outs of creating engaging content for hunting enthusiasts on platforms like YouTube. We chat about the importance of authenticity in storytelling and how it resonates with viewers, which is key for any budding creator. Casey also shares some wild hunting tales that highlight the challenges of filming hunts—think big bucks and tricky conditions! So, whether you're a seasoned pro or just curious about the hunting lifestyle, this episode is packed with insights and a few laughs along the way.

Takeaways:

• Casey Christman shared his decade-long journey in hunting and television, highlighting the unique challenges and joys of being in the outdoor content creation space.
• He emphasized the importance of authenticity and passion when creating content, encouraging YouTube creators to stay true to themselves and their experiences.
• The episode discussed the significance of understanding state hunting laws, especially for travelers, as it can directly impact hunting strategies and opportunities.
• Casey noted that the behind-the-scenes work of filming and editing can be extremely time-consuming, often requiring over 30 hours of footage to create a single engaging episode.
• He pointed out that the hunting community should be more supportive and less critical of each other's methods, whether using a crossbow or a rifle, to foster a more inclusive environment.
• The conversation also included insights on how to balance family life with hunting commitments, demonstrating the importance of communication and planning in maintaining healthy relationships.

Episode Transcript

(00:02):
Welcome to the WhitetailAdvantage Podcast with.
Your host, Brett Bovin.
Thank you for tuning in andenjoy the show.
Squatch.

(00:22):
I figured you and I could dothe intro together.
Oh, that's nice.
I'm looking forward to it.
Yeah, I know, right?
I surprise you with it.
Cool, cool.
What is up guys?
This is Brett Bovin and you got.
The good old Squatch here.
And welcome to the Electron Campfire.
Welcome to the show.
First, we are not politicallycorrect as you all know.

(00:44):
And squash.
Do I just say this because itis the start of a certain month.
Just get this out of the way.
And I'm not sure I know whatmonth it is, but I got an idea.
But I mean you want to say.
Go ahead.
I'm not going to stick up withthis Pride Month.
Sorry.
Nah, sorry, not sorry.

(01:04):
There shouldn't be a month.
I mean there shouldn't be amonth for this, man.
No, no, the good book saysthat too.
So I'm just going to say this.
I don't give two shits ifyou're gay, straight, bi, lesbian,
trans, whatever.
I have my personal beliefs on it.
I'm going to just say that.
However, I don't like thisbeing crammed down my throat, forcing

(01:26):
me to have to like and dealwith this.
Now I have my kids going,getting ready to go into school and
everything that's dealing withall that.
So they're definitely.
I mean I'm already an as it iswait till my kids go to school and
they have to deal with me there.
However, they have a wholemonth to celebrate dudes, other dudes.
It's just mind boggling to me.

(01:48):
And we need a month for moreMother's Day, Father's Day and yeah,
just do this.
I mean Veterans Month.
That's what they need them almost.
I mean, exactly.
To have a whole monthdedicated to who you like to have
sex with.
There's no month for us ofWhite Straight Men Month.

(02:11):
Well, I'm gonna put it like.
I'm gonna put it like this.
And it's the most best way Ican explain it to everybody out there
and our viewers.
God doesn't hate people whoare homosexual.
I don't hate people who are homosexual.
But God wants you to repentfrom your sins.
So think about that.
That's all I'm gonna say.

(02:32):
Perfect.
We do a live show every Sundayand Tuesday at 8pm on our live YouTube
channel.
Every show is something different.
We're fun, spontaneous.
We took a couple.
We took last week off becauseof Memorial Day weekend.
So I hope everyone Had a greatMemorial Day weekend.
I do also like to say in everyshow, thank you to all the men and

(02:54):
women in the military.
Thank you for your service.
Also thank you to the policeofficers, the firefighters, the nurses,
doctors, corrections officers,booking clerks, construction workers,
everyone in public service.
We thank you for your service.
Everybody out there bustingtheir willy every day.
Exactly.
You help make this world run.

(03:15):
Today is Sunday, June 1st, aswe mentioned.
Tonight is episode 154.
Holy, dude.
They're at 154.
Yep.
They're getting up there.
We're getting up there, man.
We're going to talk about.
This is what we should do forour tuna episode.
And then we're not going to doanything about it.
It's just another episode, really.
Yeah.

(03:36):
You know who I miss, though?
What's that?
We haven't seen Justin in a while.
We haven't seen Michael in a while.
Yeah, maybe.
Maybe they're, you know, maybethey're watching some other podcasts
that's more fundamental or something.
I don't know.
It could be maybe a littlemore entertaining, a little more
structured.
I don't think they're gonnafind a more entertaining one, you

(03:58):
know.
That's a good point.
That's a good point.
Yeah.
Anyway.
Yeah, well, amazing guest fortonight, though.
I hear that.
Yeah.
Thank God Johnny and Davearen't here because they'd everything
up.
Dave would probably bedrooling because our friend shoots
Hoyt, so.
Dave's a white guy.
That is true.

(04:18):
Yeah, that is true.
Yeah.
And those two, I just want toscream at them like, whatever chance
I get you, Dave, Score.
And Johnny, let's get ustalking off the air and let's bring
him on.
All right.
Yeah, he probably fell asleep.
Better bring him on.
Probably did.
That was a boring, long intro,but at least we did it together.
Yeah, I like doing things together.

(04:40):
I like doing things with you, too.
You bringing that camper downto Indiana?
Yeah, we're gonna see.
Man, I just got.
I gotta get my trailer brake set.
Set up.
Like this thing is driving.
Either way, you're coming downthere and there's going to be something
rocking.
I'll drag it down there withthe wheels falling off us.
Either way, let's shut the upand bring our guest on.

(05:03):
Yeah, bring them on, Casey.
Oh, my gosh.
He's still here.
Wow.
Still here.
Still here.
How's it going, brother?
Good.
How are you guys?
Did you have a great Moral Day weekend?
Yes, but it was much moreexpensive than I'd originally planned.
My daughter, who's 9 wasbreaking in a new fishing rod that

(05:25):
she got and she caught a smallmouth that was over 20 something
inches and over like five anda half pounds.
So I got a little bit of ataxidermy bill coming for that because
we're going to put that one onthe wall for her.
So that was unplanned.
Oh, wow.
Still though, that's gonna bepretty sweet though.
Yeah.
Yep.

(05:45):
Oh, excuse me.
Well, Casey, for anyone thatdoesn't know you and give a little
background about yourself.
Sure.
I'm Casey Christman.
I'm the co host of theAmerican Archer.
I've been doing that since 2016.
And then I am the host of theMidwestern Way, which will be coming
out on Waypoint TV here,kicking off this summer.
So I've been filming hunts anddoing stuff for quite a few years

(06:07):
now.
What's that show about withWaypoint going to be all about or
like centered on.
So the Midwestern Way is goingto be primarily focused on myself,
my wife and our daughter injust our outdoor adventures.
It's going to be primarily bowhunting stuff.
My entire family, we love bow hunting.
It's all we do.
Even when gun seasons are open.

(06:28):
We're chasing stuff with ourarchery gear and so we're just gonna,
you know, be filmingeverything we do, whether it's preparation
four seasons and justbasically everything related to bow
hunting.
There'll probably be a littlebit of fishing stuff in there too.
We'll do some fly fishing forsalmon and steelhead.
We go bow fishing down in Florida.
We go shark fishing.
We do land based shark fishingdown in Florida every year a couple

(06:50):
times.
So they'll have a little bitof everything for sure.
But it's pretty much familyoriented shark hunting.
Shark shark fishing.
Yeah, that's.
I've been seeing that more andmore lately.
Is that, is that, is it.
Ah, words are hard, I swear.
Is it all what it's cracked upto be?
It is a blast.
So I mean, I've caughtfreakish numbers of salmon and steelhead

(07:12):
since I was young and I waslooking for something new to try
and I was actually watching acouple different YouTube guys Shark
fishing from shore.
And even though we live inMichigan, I was like, you know what,
why not?
I'm gonna pick gear up and tryit out.
I probably have more sharkfishing gear than anyone in the state
of Michigan.
Our first time out we caughtprobably close to seven foot bull

(07:35):
shark and then just kind ofgone from there.
It's.
It's a blast though.
Wow.
Yeah.
You don't get to do that typeof thing here in Michigan, that's
for sure.
Nope.
Jealous, Squatch, have youever done that before?
Because I know sure as Ihaven't on occasion.
A few times.
There was a trip I had madedown to Key West.
Fished out a cudjoe key downthere when I was about 21 with a

(07:59):
good friend of mine and stuff.
And we, we caught a little bitof everything out there.
It was great.
And I'll tell you, nothinglike fresh seafood, man, right out
of the ocean.
Okay, I got a question.
I gotta know.
This duck, would you considerthat seafood or not seafood?
No.
No.
Duck.

(08:19):
No.
No.
Okay, good.
I'm not the only one thatdoesn't think it's seafood.
There's people out there inthe world that would say, yeah, your
duck is seafood.
No, isn't.
No, no.
Okay.
I mean, you'd have to considerit lake food.
Because ducks are mostly inlakes when you're shooting them.
Yeah, they're in lakes and ponds.
And ponds in like hoa areas.

(08:39):
So let's take it a step.
Let's take it here.
We're gonna do an oxymoron.
So when you're fishing in apond and you get that grass on your
hook, do you call it seaweed?
Yeah, I don't.
It's called weeds.
It's just weeds.
But everybody's like, I gotseaweed on my hook and you're in
a pond.
It's like, really?
Yeah.
But that's just a saying though.

(09:00):
It's.
I got seaweed on my.
You don't call it lakes weed.
I'm pretty sure the weeds, Imean weeds.
Now aren't there people thathunt ducks?
Waterfowl in like Chesapeake Bay?
Yeah, there is some salt water ducks.
There is.
Yeah.
I don't know.
I, I, I would still considerthat seaweed.

(09:22):
Okay.
I don't know.
It's just.
That's the term for it.
Listen, you know, it's fine.
You can have names.
I got some weeds.
Okay.
I'm hooked on the weeds.
You know, hey, I'm hooked onthe weeds.
Then you reel it in.
You got a big old glob of crapon there.
Yeah, seaweed all over my hook.
You throw it off.
I realized when I'm out in thelake and I'm swimming, I'll scream

(09:45):
the same way as a shark isattacking me or I touch a.
I can see it.
I could see it too.
I could see it.
You probably look like RichardPrior in the Toy when he's running
on top of the water when thepiranhas are after him.
It's.
It's Brett.
Nothing.
Do you know we have a guestover here?

(10:06):
Yeah.
Will you lock at the.
Just come on.
Let's go.
Focus, please.
Come on.
It's not trivia night.
Let's go.
I know that's in a coupleweeks anyway, Casey, so you're here
in Michigan as well.
What have you done prepping sofar, if anything, for your hunting
season Coming up here inMichigan alone.

(10:26):
So I.
I run cameras probably 12months out of the year.
They take, like, where I'meither inventorying deer or just
wanting to see what survivedthe season.
Like in January, January, February.
I was using cameras to, youknow, see what bucks survived and
then figure out when they weredropping antlers so I could get out
there shed hunting for them.

(10:46):
March rolled around, and Istarted frost seeding my plots elite.
My perennial plots, anyway,Clover and chicory and stuff.
And then I kind of focused onturkeys for a while, which, obviously
the, you know, our season justended yesterday.
So then I was actually outtoday shifting a bunch of my cameras
and stuff around and somesummer spots where I know I've got

(11:08):
some good summer cover andthat I'm hoping that I'm gonna have
some bachelor groups show up.
So, yeah, that's pretty muchit for now.
I'll get my fall plots inprobably late July, beginning of
August, depending on what I'mputting in.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I was just out yesterdaytrying to plant some whitetail institute.
No plow tried that.
I wanted to see how that'sgoing to go this year.

(11:30):
And the deep parts of myproperty, I haven't put out cameras
yet.
Usually I put out the camerasaround fourth of July weekend.
In that ballpark, that'sgenerally when I start getting the
rings more around andactivated and stuff like that.
I usually run them from July,roughly the end of January, beginning

(11:51):
of end of January, beginningof February.
And then I turn them all offbecause at that point, I already
have an idea of what stuck around.
The antlers are falling offand then just kill everything.
And I.
I leave them out there.
That way I don't have to keepdragging them back in and out of
the house and stuff like that.
All right, I gotta go back outthere this next upcoming weekend.
And this is actually gonna bemy first year.

(12:12):
I'm curious if you done this,Casey and Squatch, on your opinion
on it.
Yeah.
Is when I was out thereyesterday, I was cutting down some
trees because I wanted somelight to hit the ground floor to
get Some of that good, goodsunlight on it.
But while I was out there, itwas fly galore.

(12:32):
Like flies were just everywhere.
It was just terrible.
So I'm going to take a couplebags, I think I bought like 20 of
them, I think and put them inthat area and I want to see how it
does and just let it soak up alot of those flies because I want
that to annoy my deer.
What are your thoughts on it?

(12:52):
Have you done it?
Is it something that you would do?
What are your thoughts about it?
Because it's something I'mgoing to try.
I want to see what it couldturn out to be.
So this year I haven't yet, Ihaven't in the past and I was watching
some ads for some of those flycatching bags or whatever and for
beetles and stuff too lastyear actually, and I'm planning on
actually trying it this year.

(13:13):
So we're kind of both in thesame boat that we're.
I'm gonna get them out thisyear and see how it goes.
Yeah, I just, even when I waslike, I just said I was out there
and I was just, just battingmy, everything around me, I'm just
like, imagine if I was a deer.
I wouldn't want to eat thisfood and just constantly be annoyed
by flies.
And, and especially becauseI've been going back and forth if

(13:35):
I want to do this or not ofputting in the, to call it, damn
it, watering hole.
Just like a little 100 foot,like little small thing.
And I wouldn't want thoseflies getting in there and disgusting
the water up and stuff like that.
However, I'm not going to putin clear water.
I'm going to put like dirt onthe bottom and then put a stick in

(13:55):
there.
So if anything that does fallin there, they can get out.
But I just don't want amillion flies in there and getting
it even more disgusting.
Yeah, I haven't, I haven'tever done anything like that.
My, my theory with that isit's, it's another object that carries
your scent.
Especially if you got a fiveor seven year old buck that you're

(14:16):
looking for in that area.
I mean cameras are enough.
It can ruin a buck's, youknow, habitat where he's, he's staying
or he might be using.
Not so much during the rutbecause they really don't give two
craps what's going on around them.
So you know, in a buck'sbedroom and stuff like that, in the
real thicket parts and stuff,I'll tend to Target a camera more

(14:39):
in that area, like theconcentrate on that buck that's coming
through.
But this time of the year, I,I don't like putting anything out
there.
Like, I leave my cameras outall year and they're on solar panels,
so I don't really have toworry about going back, changing
batteries.
I mean, once they're up,they're up.
The deer are used to them.
So putting a bag withsomething that's not that high off

(15:02):
the ground, I just feel wouldbe something not so much like your
two and a half, three and ahalf year old bucks, but your big
guys that are, you know, yourhomeboys that are staying there in
their bachelor groups orthey're just kind of like.
I'd be a little.
Not just my.
It might be just New York deertoo, because I, you know, deer appear
pretty skittish with stuffand, you know, they're very, very

(15:25):
sensitive to scent.
So I just try to, you know, aslittle as possible.
If I'm gonna bang in my, myfood plots.
That's like between now andJuly or I know I can get away with,
you know, disturbing somestuff or whatever.
But mineral, Mineral is important.
If you can get mineral out,you know, where you guys are, I think
you can use.
I don't know if you can or notwhere you are, but, you know, if

(15:47):
you can hang mineral, that's important.
We can't in Michigan, as faras Michigan either.
Okay, well, there goes that.
But I was gonna say it helpssome areas.
Some guys run it because theycan inventory, you know, to inventory
their bucks.
And, you know, but that'sjust, that's just my opinion.
You know, I, I'm always afraidof scaring that buck that, you know,
I.
I got a seven and a half yearold buck with a drop tie and that

(16:10):
I'm trying to, to kill this year.
And really the reason now isthe property just switched hands.
So I may only have like twoyears left.
So I got to kill these bucksin here that are in here.
I gotta, I gotta really do duediligence this year to get on that
buck.
Well, that I'm not in liketheir bedroom where I'm hunting.

(16:31):
This is like their conjunctionpoint, whatever you want to call
it.
I'm like right in the middleof bedding area all around in a transition
area between food, water, bed.
It's just a central little hubthat's perfect.
So I try not to get in thereas much as I can.
Right.
Did Casey just leave Battering.

(16:52):
Hey guys, can you still hear me?
We can hear you.
I don't know what justhappened here.
Hang on here, I'll kick you.
We can hear you though.
Well, my, my computer justscreen went dead for some reason
on this MacBook.
Hang on just one sec, okay?
But I, I'm always been, it's aflip of a coin for me on like what

(17:14):
day I feel about it when itcomes to scent.
My main though generally whatit falls on is I'd much rather have
my scent out there.
Not too much.
I'm not going to be out therelike every day for every second of
the day and stuff like that.
I want to be out there in likein some sort of a regular basis.
The deer get kind of used tothe scent.

(17:35):
It's something that they'renot skittish about.
It's something where, oh,we've smelt this before.
And then all of a suddenOctober 1st comes around and they're
like, oh, what the.
That smell.
I don't know what it is.
And they're freaking the outand they all run away.
I'd much rather them kind ofbecause I could feel like you can
train cat cows like you cancattle in some capacity if they just

(17:57):
keep getting used to it.
The problem with a little bitof that theory, and I'm not picking
on you, is deer have thatnatural predator to that human scent
embedded in them through the generations.
You know what I mean?
It's, it's an alarm.

(18:19):
They know it's, they know itdoesn't belong there.
It'd be like somebody cominginto your living room and you don't
smoke and they light up afreaking, you know, cigarette in
your house and you're like,hey, what's that?
You know, and you're gonnaknow right away.
So like I said, you'll, you'llget away with it.
You, you can get away with itwith, you know, two and a half, maybe
three and a half year old buckthat hasn't been pressured.

(18:41):
You know, when you're, whenyou start targeting 5, 7, 11, you
know, these older, older bucksthat are walking around, dude, I
mean, and I spray down, I usestuff, I mean I, I love sennis acid
and their earth cover set.
I mean I, I don't believe thatit kills everything off.
But I will tell you this, andI have pictures and I have posted

(19:04):
them with the scent bottleright there and deer right underneath
me.
So something.
And it works, I mean whether,just kind of shields it a little
bit.
But yeah, anything, anythingthat you can do to shield and you're
never going to get rid of yourhuman scent.
I don't care because you still breathe.
You're putting your breath out there.

(19:26):
A deer's nose, the olfactorymolecules in their nose, the sensors
in their nose can pick up a set.
Like the pinhead wasn't there.
Wasn't there.
I was.
I feel like I was really youngwhen I read about this or heard about
this, but there was some typeof gum or teeth.

(19:47):
There's been all kinds ofimages that you would brush it to
help kill your odor from your mouth.
Was that ever a thing or am Ijust remembering something stupid?
It was a dude with long hair.
He used to chase sharksaround, and he had like a necklace
with shark teeth on it.
I don't even remember what thehell his name was.
But there's Casey.

(20:09):
There's Casey.
Looks like he's on his.
I had to get on my phone.
I don't know what the deal waswith the.
That's all right.
Oh, you're all right.
It wasn't working right.
Yeah.
We were ready to break out the puppet.
We got a puppet when somebodydisappears and we just let you talk
and we moved the lips around.
Yeah, I got the.
I got the mask over there.

(20:32):
It's pretty st.
Yes.
So you were right.
Yes.
There was a gum that they usedto use.
So growing up, there was nocover sense stuff.
There was nothing.
So being that we were aroundorchards here, my old man always
said, son, stomp on an apple,rub it all up and down your boot
laces, Put it on the bottom ofyour feet, eat an apple and throw

(20:52):
it down at the bottom of the tree.
We kill deer every year, so that's.
What my dad told me to do too.
Yep.
Casey, I want to ask.
Now we're going on.
Off the wall here.
You've been in the.
Because I've watched you nowwhen I was.
When I start watching you guyson TV some time frame in high school

(21:15):
and I watched you guys allthrough college basically type deal.
So you've been in this on TVfor a good 10 plus years, correct?
Yep.
Yep.
Well, I think it's going on.
It's going on 10 now.
It's going on 10 now.
Yep.
This would be the 10th year, I think.
Then what's it like?

(21:38):
Because everyone's in thehunting career in the.
In the hunting podcast andstuff that's like, that's their goal
is to get on TV and be huntingcelebrity, famous and status, stuff
like that.
You've been in that.
That area now.
Oh, nice.
Dealing.
Yeah.
Grab something here.

(21:58):
You're good.
This is the best thing abouthaving a live show.
Exactly.
You know, nothing is staged.
Nothing is all set up.
It's all just anything.
Anything can happen.
What?
You've been in this now for awhile now.
Set up.
You're good.
You're good.
Yeah.

(22:18):
All right.
That's not gonna roll.
I don't think.
We'll figure it out as it goes.
Let me ask you this for thestart off question, I guess, because
I'm probably a couple morequestions with it.
What's it like that peoplemight not see?
Like, everything's huge, glamorous.
You're going out to all theseplaces and going hunting.
Yeah, that seems awesome.

(22:39):
Let's say.
Let's do this.
What's it like?
Is there pros?
Is there cons at all?
What's.
What's the atmosphere of itall around it that people might not
see?
You know, the.
Obviously I look forward tochasing whitetails probably more
than anything.
Yeah.
Most of the year.
But it does get to be a dragwhen just with the sheer amount of

(23:01):
travel and stuff.
Like, it.
Like there's been years.
There's one year I think I was on.
I went on 13 hunts one year,and it.
It gets long.
It's a.
It's a ton of driving and isnot enjoyable by the end of the season,
for sure.
But the problem is it's.
It really does become prettymuch another job because you end

(23:23):
up having to travel and youhave to produce footage there.
And so for.
If somebody doesn't get a deeror somebody doesn't get the buck
that they're specificallylooking for throughout a season,
that's okay because, you know,they might have an opportunity down
the road the following year.
Well, the problem for me is ifI'm not producing footage, we have
nothing for people to watch.

(23:44):
You know what I mean?
That becomes very difficult.
It is great because I couldsee lots of.
Know incredible places andmeet lots of awesome people, you
know, on my travels and stuff.
Like, I made friends, like inmy first year filming for the show
that I'm still friends withnow that I talk to, you know, frequently.
And I get to meet people allover the country and do do stuff

(24:07):
with them, you know, randomlythroughout the year, pick things
up that I throw into myarsenal that make me a better hunter.
And so there.
There really are a lot of prosand cons to it.
It does.
It does become like a job forpeople that just love to hunt.
To hunt that.
You know, that's how I'vealways been.
But I can, I guarantee you bythe end of a season, it definitely

(24:29):
gets long and it definitelystarts to get taxing for sure.
Does it eventually get a pointwhere you're, you're still going
to love the chase, the thrillof hunting whitetails, but is there
a point throughout your 10years have been doing this or throughout
any specific season whereyou're going to places and you're
just like, I gotta go outhunting or just like, I just tired

(24:52):
of it all type deal where it'sjust, yeah, I kind of stay home and
watch a football game or something.
Yeah, the, especially the.
I, I really start to windstuff down pretty much the end of
November, right afterThanksgiving, I'll start slowing
down a bit.
And by that point there's beenso much travel, it might be like
I might be gone for five toseven days from home, swing back

(25:16):
through, do laundry and stuff,and then be gone, you know, a day
or two later for another sevenplus days.
And I'm having to drive, youknow, eight plus hours each direction,
you know, trying to make it happen.
And it definitely gets long.
And it.
There's been a couple seasonsin particular that did not go my
way at all that I was prettylike, if you asked me at the end

(25:40):
of November, I was like, I'm done.
Like, I'm not, I'm not doingthis anymore.
This is not enjoyable.
Right.
Because I'm sure you're,you're out there in these places
and age, hunting things goeswhere you shoot a deer and you mess
it up, you don't get the shot off.
And that is mentally drainingin and of itself.
Yeah.
So I'm sure you go into theseplaces and it's gotta be really taxing

(26:02):
on you mentally where it'sjust like, man, this nope gun.
So I can see that point of it.
Yep, it does for sure.
Hey, Brett, can I cut in for a second?
I got a question for him.
Sure.
Yes, me, whatever.
I just wanted to know, whilewe're on this subject, what, what
does a typical day for youlook like during hunting season?
I mean, what, what, what goes on?

(26:24):
Oh, so it depends onconditions and what deer we're specifically
after and a bunch of other things.
But I'm just, I'll just.
If it's early season, youknow, usually just.
We primarily focus on hunts inthe evening, so we're not bumping
deer off food sources whenwe're going in.
But you know, a typical daywhen we, like when we're out of state

(26:46):
during prime time or even herein Michigan, you Know, it's getting
up a couple hours beforelight, trying to eat something small
real quick and then takingshowers, heading to the woods, getting
all the gear out there,depending on where we're at.
Last year I had one place inparticular that we had to make a
move.
We, I don't think we huntedthe same set twice.

(27:09):
And it, it, it's difficultwhen we're having to take in a camera
set and camera arms and seteverything up, every single location
that we're at.
You know, for me, I know thereare some people that love their tree
stand, snacks and drinks andstuff for the middle of the day.

(27:31):
I am not one of those people.
I don't, I don't.
I might take one bottle ofwater with me or I might take like
one can of pop and that's whatI'll sit with for the whole day.
And then, you know, we'll, you know.
You bring like a string cheeseor anything?
No, I have to at least nibbleon like some type of string cheese

(27:52):
or granola bar.
No, that's the only thing I'dbring out there in the woods.
No, I, I usually don't take awhole lot there.
I'm not gonna say always, butmost, more often than not, I don't,
I don't take anything with me.
And it's also interestingbecause I usually end up, actually,
I usually end up losing 15 to20 pounds throughout hunting season,
like through November.
I use a nice fasting momentfor you, right?

(28:14):
Yeah, I don't bring too mucheither with me.
I'll bring a bottle of watermaybe, maybe once in a while, like
a pack of pop Tarts, maybe inthe morning or something.
Just, just a little something.
I don't want all that extracrap in my bag.
And 90% of the time I'm notout there that long, I'm back home.
I either kill something orcome back home.
So I'm not starving, you know.

(28:36):
Yeah, but.
Yeah, and then, you know, whenwe're done for the evening, we'll
go have dinner wherever we're at.
And then usually, like if I'min a camp with a bunch of people,
I always get roped intositting up, talking, you know, just
hunting stories and shootingwith people and that.
There's been a few times wherethat's kind of got me in the butt
where I've been sitting, youknow, up till 2 or 3 in the morning.

(29:00):
Then we got to get up in twoor three hours and go do another.
All day sit.
But you know, that's, that'sthat is one of the fun parts about
camp too, you know, but itdoes get draining mentally taxing
when I do that too.
Oh, yeah.
Let me ask you this.
So you're married with kids.
What is the life like on youas a husband and a father?

(29:23):
And what's the life for eachindividual person in your family
feel like on your wife and heras a mother and then your child?
And how do you guys.
How does each person deal with it?
Because you're constantlytraveling through a hunting season
majority of the year.
And how does each person dealwith it emotionally and mentally
and then all together as a family?

(29:44):
It.
It gets taxing, for sure.
I have an absolutelyincredible wife and daughter.
My.
You know, they both love andunderstand my passions for it.
Both of them are also hunters.
And when we're huntingMichigan, I spend more time behind
the camera filming my daughteror my wife than I actually probably
do hunting myself.
But it.
It definitely gets taxing, for sure.

(30:05):
We.
We have phenomenal support forus too.
Like, my.
My family's around, my parentsare around, and then also my wife's
family, so they kind of helpus out with, you know, getting our
daughter to school and doingother stuff or picking her up from
school and watching her.
And we.
We try to schedule stuffaround hunts.
Like, I try to plan everythingout in advance so there's the smallest

(30:27):
amount of stuff to actuallyhave to take care of on the home
front while I'm gone.
And then I just make surethat, you know, I'm calling them
multiple times a day.
Like, if.
If it's the middle of the dayand we got nothing going on and I'm
sitting out in the stand, I'llFaceTime them from, you know, the
tree so I can have someinteraction with them.
Then I make sure I call themevery night when I'm out of the.
Off the stand, too.
That's awesome.

(30:48):
Yeah, my.
So my wife and I, we have theiPhones and we have the calendar
there.
Constantly sharing ourcalendars and updating and moving
things around and be like, allright, well, I got this going on
this day and here and here.
And it's.
If you just looked at my phonecalendar, it would just be just filled
from six in the clock in themorning until midnight.

(31:10):
Just filled with freakingthings each moment of the day.
And my parents, I wasfortunate enough to.
My parents, they still live in.
I moved 30 minutes away frommy parents, and they retired to help
with my kids.
They purposely retired fromtheir work about two years early

(31:30):
to help watch the kids.
So Here in Michigan, childcare is like 300 bucks a week at
a cheap place.
Yeah, cheap places are stillnice, don't get me wrong.
But it's just child care isexpensive on top of that.
And that's a whole nother conversation.
But I was very fortunateenough with that.
So I understand that.
Yeah, you got to work thingsout with the family and being able

(31:52):
to make sure you guys are onthe right page.
And my wife knows I was veryfortunate enough.
My wife, she grew up in theoutdoor world and he was.
She grew up with a father thatwas in the military.
He was a marine, her brotherwas a marine.
And I was former lawenforcement for seven years.
My dad was former lawenforcement, 30 plus years.

(32:14):
So she was.
She's been in the whole graspof the outdoors and first responder
type lifestyle.
So when it came to hunting, Itold her about it on our very first
date.
Like, well, this is me inOctober through December.
I'm hunting throughout Sundaythrough Friday and on Saturdays,
Maya sits in a chair and Iwatch college football all day long.

(32:36):
That's what you're gonna getout of me.
She goes, all right, I canwork with that.
She knew from the beginning.
Yeah.
Yeah.
That's awesome.
Yeah, I was lucky.
Squatch, how's your boyfriend doing?
Well, we're on that.
I got a question for him again.

(32:57):
So being in the spotlight, yousaid you've been doing this for 10
years now and stuff, how doyou deal with the public's perception
or criticism of your hunting?
So there's, there's a fewparts to that.
The.
I don't, I've told people thisbefore in the past.
I don't really like the phraseprofessional hunter.

(33:22):
Drives me, drives meabsolutely crazy.
When people ask me what I do.
I'm like, well, I get to filmhunts and I'm on the American Nitro
and I co host the show or elsewe got the new show coming out.
But it's not.
I don't view that as there's.
There's thousands of betterhunters out there across the country
than myself, for sure.
Hands down.
I can, you know, I know thatI'm just blessed with the opportunity,

(33:45):
you know, to be able to sharemy experiences and different styles
of hunting and differentthings from across the country.
And so there I found, like,whatever you're going to do, there's
going to be critics no matter what.
And my feeling is like, aslong as you're abiding by the law
and doing things legally, ifit's legal in one state, but not
legal in another, I'll usebaiting as a perfect example of that.

(34:06):
So, yeah, like when I go toKentucky or Ohio, it's legal debate
there.
We are 100% going to utilizeeverything that we possibly can,
try to put a big deer on the ground.
And I have.
And.
But I'm sure that there'sgoing to be people out there that
are like, oh, you know, you'rehunting over bait and blah, blah,
blah.
Well, in that state, it'scompletely legal and it helps us

(34:28):
be more efficient, you knowwhat I'm saying?
Because I don't have all thetime in the world and we got to travel
around, do stuff.
And then in other states likeWisconsin or Illinois or wherever,
where we go, you know, we endup having to change up how we hunt
and hunt funnels andeverything, which is another interesting
thing when it comes to, like,Illinois and Wisconsin type hunts.
I will not travel there exceptfor in November, because that is

(34:54):
when I know I don't have thetime, obviously, to spend, you know,
days or weeks chasing one ortwo specific deer for an entire season.
Like, I got to go from stateto state to state.
Right, right.
So trying to be as efficientas possible.
I'll hunt those states.
I'll hunt, you know, stateswhere you can't bait and can't do
stuff like that in November,when I know that the highest probability
to have a mature buck up ontheir feet is going to be at that

(35:15):
time.
Sure.
So, you know, there's alwaysgoing to be critics for something.
I'm okay with that.
You know, if people don't likeme and my personality, I'm okay with
that.
Like, not everybody's going tolike it, and I understand that.
So is what it is.
I'm pretty good at, you know,brushing stuff off.
Yeah, you have to be.
I.
I think with, you know, thekeyboard warriors out there and people
that just like to stir thepot, you're always going to have

(35:37):
that go on.
I mean, we, we have it happen.
You know, we.
We're all on social media, youknow, posting pictures or whatever,
doing.
You know, it's a while back,my buddy Frank posted a picture of
his buck and some lady got onthere and, you know, don't even know
why she was on his site.
I mean, it says right on thesite, you know, I'm about hunting,
I'm about fishing.
This is what we do, blah,blah, blah, blah.

(35:57):
And she's making commentslike, oh, poor dear daughter.
It's like, look, lady, this isan outdoor channel.
This is what we do you know,if you don't like it, you can't understand
it.
It's.
It's too bad.
But the deer didn't go to waste.
We harvested the deer, we atethe deer.
You know, it's like, it's notlike you're out there, just like,
you know, ha ha.
You know, you're runningaround and laughing it off.
You know, it's.

(36:18):
It's not what we're about, man.
You know?
Right, exactly.
Yeah, but there's, there's,there's, you know, it's, it's.
It's sad because, you know,you got people out there, even in
the fishing community and stuff.
I see it.
Oh, why didn't you let them go?
Why'd you keep them?
You know, it's like, who thehell are you?
You're not God.
I bought my.
My tag the same way you did.

(36:40):
Right.
The state has no problem withme keeping what I'm keeping.
As long as I'm followingregulation or I'm taking it legally,
don't have a problem with it.
Just be happy for me.
I'm happy.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
100.
Let me ask you this, Casey.
Since you've hunted inmultiple states, the first question
I want to ask, how do you keeptrack of.

(37:03):
Well, I'm sure by now youknow, what states do, what with their
laws and rules, stuff like that.
I'm sure.
But like, let's say towardsthe beginning of it, how would you
keep track of.
Well, this state doesn't allow baiting.
This state allows baiting, butyou can't do this and vice versa.
And your.
Because you're constantlybouncing around.
How do you keep.
How do you keep track of all that?
Kind of like a notepad, mental note?

(37:23):
No, I just either talk topeople from those states or like,
Tom Nelson is a.
Has been, you know, my mainmentor and he's been a great asset
because Tom's obviously huntedevery place and he knows people everywhere,
all over the country.
So the nice part for me withthat is, you know, I'd be talking
to Tom about stuff and askinghim questions about, well, what is
legal here, what isn't legal here.

(37:45):
And my wife makes fun of mefrequently because when it comes
to whitetail related stuff, Ihave the most incredible memory of
all time.
So, like, when I hear onething about something whitetail related,
it stays in there pretty well.

(38:05):
And I mean, like, we'll be.
It'll be like October 17th and.
And I'll just notice the dateand then I'll tell my wife I'm like,
oh, seven years ago at 7:42pmwe had a picture of this deer on
this camera at this location.
And she's like, how do youremember crap like that?

(38:26):
I'm like, I don't know, it'sdeer related.
I just remembered, right.
So I don't know.
I'll be doing the same thingwith my wife.
I'll be going through thecamera, bringing the SD cards, I'll
throw it on the computer.
And now my kids watch it withme and my wife be like, oh, that's
a cool deal.
I'm like, oh yeah, that deer,I got him on the camera two years
ago at camera A on the backside of the property right here.

(38:47):
And I'll go through the folderand I'm like, yep, look, he's right
there.
And look how much he changed.
You know, he just looks at me,he goes, you can remember that, but
you can't remember the thing.
I need you to go to Mallwareand pick up at the store for.
I get that all the time.
For sure.
Like, what's not that important?
I'll just.
You go to the grocery storemore often than me.

(39:08):
And it's, it's just like yousaid, it's just locked in.
Once it's there, it's just.
I don't know what's.
I'm trying to figure out how Iwant to phrase this question.
Ah, can I ask one real quick?
Yeah, go ahead.
Because I'm, I'm trying tofigure out a word.
Mine.
So what I was going to ask younext because we kind of were still
on that subject a little bit.

(39:28):
I mean, with all thepopularity and stuff that goes on,
how has, how has, you know,hunting changed you as a person?
I mean, obviously when youfirst started out, you know, you
were cutting your teeth,getting into learning how to film,
learning how to edit.
I mean, how, how has itchanged you now down the road.
As a person?

(39:48):
I really don't feel like it'schanged me.
Like my personality and stuffis still the same.
Like any, anyone that talks tome or any, you know, if it ends up
being like an outfit orsomething that we're hunting with
out of state.
I've had a lot of people tellme, like, well, you're one of the
nicest, just down to earthcool people that we've had in camp.
And I'm like, that's just whoI am.
Like, I don't think I deserveanything different than anybody or

(40:10):
whatever else, any special treatment.
And I'm just, you know, hereto have Fun.
Try to put a big deer on the ground.
If it works out, it works out.
If it doesn't, you know, it's.
It's fair chase hunting.
So the one thing I will say isafter getting to experience camps
and in places all over, youknow, the Midwest, it has made me
a much more efficient hunterbecause, you know, I'm always open

(40:32):
to trying to learn new thingsfrom different hunters from across
country.
Like, if somebody says thismight work for them, you know, I'll
kind of observe and see whatresults are.
And if.
If it seems like it's legitand could possibly work, you know,
like I said, I'll throw thatin my arsenal of tricks that, you
know, I'll try and try out and use.
Yeah.
Elsewhere, whether it's, youknow, in my home state here in Michigan
or out of state or wherever.

(40:53):
So.
Yep.
No, that's good.
That's good.
Yeah.
Nice.
When it comes to traveling, it.
That's.
That's where I want to go withthis question.
I just don't know.
Spit it out and you're gonnahave to take it and run with it.
What.
What would you tell the peoplewhen they're trying to travel to
other places and hunt?

(41:14):
There we go.
Like, stuff to pack, what notto pack, focus on this detail and
stuff like that.
So it depends on there.
There's a whole.
That's a pretty loadedquestion, I guess, because there's
a whole bunch of differentthings that I tell people I know
if it's a state closer tohome, when I know I can make it and

(41:35):
do my own scouting and doeverything else.
If I don't have a friendthere, like I have.
I have a friend in Ohio thathe has a farm in Coshocton county
he lets me come down to.
And I know he's a good hunter.
His biggest buck that he'skilled, it's like a 216 and some
change.
And he's got megas runningaround his property.
He doesn't look at anythingless to Booner every single year.
And if it's somebody like thatthat I know that I can trust and

(41:58):
they can.
I can run down there one dayin the summer and hang sets and call
it good.
I'm good with that.
But if you're going to end uphaving to do a lot of your own homework,
I would 100% say, if you'regoing to travel, even if it's for
a week, take cameras with you.
Preferably sell cameras if.
If you got them and.
And you know, you need to kindof Hone in on the locations where

(42:22):
the deer are that you'rewanting to target.
Whatever caliber deer it mightbe, I mean, if it's a newer hunter
and they're just wanting totarget a, you know, their first buck
or a two and a half year oldor whatever it might be, you know,
kudos to them.
And.
But those cameras candefinitely help.
And then I, I take everythingwith me because the, obviously we
all know that the weatherman'snot always right.
So from a gear perspective,you know, I make sure that I've got

(42:45):
all, all my different layersof camo and gear with me for every
possible condition, for sure.
The other thing is I tellpeople if, if it's a, you know, like
an archery hunt, make surethat you're taking your own target
so you can still get someshots in.
Because every single day thatI hunt, I try to get, I, I try to
shoot at least one arrow every day.
Even if it's in the dark, I'llstop, shoot with my headlights on

(43:07):
on my truck and let narrow gojust to make sure that nothing's
moved on my setup.
Well, I think it's importantjust to talk about that point.
I think it's important topractice in low light settings because
most time you're getting outthere extremely early in the morning.
Unlike me, I like to sleep inapparently until noon.
So whatever.
Or you're, you're staying outthere and it's just getting close

(43:28):
to the end of daylight andyou're just, you had that little
bit of slimmer light, leftlight left to shoot.
So I think practicing in lowlight because we can easily just
go out there and shoot insunlight and whatever, practice,
but practice.
And I learned through thepolice academy, in real life situations,
real life situations, ahunting area, you're going to be

(43:48):
possibly shooting in low light situations.
So practice it.
When there's like zero to no light.
You'll never see a guy morehoned in shooting a 3D target out
his bedroom window than Brett Boven.
I'm just here to tell you, Imean, 10 rings every time he's got
that craftmatic sucker, itgoes, it puts him up and his bow

(44:10):
comes off the stand and he'slike, gets back, gets his anchor
point and he just touches itoff right there, right in the X ring
on that 3D target.
Every time, every time he's,he's a badass, I'm telling you.
And then apparently I go weeback down, I go back.

(44:31):
So on that, on that kind ofnote, where we're at I got another
one for you.
What's.
You.
You must.
In.
In the 10 years of what you'vebeen doing, what's been your most
challenging hunt out there?
I mean, it's.
It's going to be hard becausethere's probably so many, but what
was the question?
I'm sorry, I didn't hear you.
I.
I wanted to know, in the 10years that he's been doing it, what's

(44:53):
been his most challenging hunt?
Like, what's.
What's the hardest thing he'sacross to do?
Or, you know, like, you know,it was like, man, he had this buck,
he's been seeing him, and thenall of a sudden, you know, it disappears,
and then he shows back up andhe maybe missed or something along
those lines.
I would.
I would prefer to not say the state.

(45:13):
I'm not going to say theoutfitter that we were hunting with,
but.
No, that's unacceptable.
You tell us right now.
Okay.
There was.
There was one.
One hunt in particular.
It was a November rut hunt.
And these guys, they wanted usto sit.
They wanted us in our stand anhour and a half before sunrise.

(45:35):
And then they were like.
And then when it gets dark,you guys can pack up and walk out.
Well, what they didn't tell uswas they.
They only had one set thatthey wanted us to hunt.
They're like, we don't wantyou hanging other sets.
Like, you're gonna use thisone set for the week, and you will
get a shot at a giant buck ifyou hunt this spot.

(45:57):
And so we were like, yeah, youknow, sounds great.
No big deal.
And the.
The first day we get there, we start.
They dropped me a pin, and I was.
I was looking at it, andthey're like, park here, stands here.
And.
And it looked strange on themap, but I was like, this looks like
it's quite a ways.
Well, it ended up being almost2.2 miles walking from where we parked

(46:19):
to the stand.
And the last.
Probably three quarters of amile was uphill to get to the set.
And then there were no.
There was no trail really, tothe stand.
So we were walking through allthis pucker brush and whatnot.
And it was.
It was so frustrating becauseI remember thinking, walking through.
I'm like, they have us walkingthrough a bedding area basically,

(46:41):
to try to get to the set.
And then we had terribleweather that week.
I mean, we had 40 mph winds,and it torrential downpoured several
days on us.
And it was just incredibly frustrating.
And, yeah, it wouldn't beprobably Nearly as bad if.
Oh, and we almost got killedby two bulls on that trip.

(47:01):
Oh, like, the first.
The first part of our walk wasthrough a giant cow pasture, and
there was no way to get aroundit, and we almost got crushed by
two bulls that were out therewith all the cows.
But the.
The.
Probably the hardest part withstuff like that is, you know, having
to take all of the equipmentand gear out there and walking with

(47:25):
everything that far.
Like, most people walk outwith their bow, one pack, and they're
out there.
Or, you know, for saddlehunters or people that take out a
set of sticks or whatever, there's.
It's still lighter gear overall.
But when you're, you know,carrying multiple cameras out there
and camera arms and all theother stuff, plus all your equipment,
it gets taxing, for sure.

(47:45):
Yeah, man.
One question I have here is,what's the life like behind the camera?
Like, with editing and stufflike that?
Like, everyone sees that finalproduct out there on tv.
What's it like?
What's that process like?
I'm sure it's extremely longand tiresome in some way.

(48:08):
You're pushing a lot yet,like, a million views here.
And then you're trying tocompile into 30 minutes.
Right.
And it.
It.
And it actually ends up beingshorter, because if you're talking
about, like, commercial breaksor whatever, like, technically, every
episode's only, you know, 24 minutes.
So obviously, people likeseeing more action than not.
They don't want to just, youknow, see somebody in the stand right

(48:28):
there.
Well, you know, it's October23rd, and we haven't seen anything
yet, so, you know, it's justnot that enjoyable to just watch
that necessarily.
So it makes it very difficultbecause if, like, I'll use my Michigan
season is an example thatwe'll have airing this pretty soon
here.
I took a nice buck in Michiganthis past fall, and I bet I have

(48:53):
more than 30 hours of footage.
Yeah, probably that we'regonna end up, you know, combing through
and picking the best parts andsequentially, you know, showing my
whole season how it ran out.
But it's very difficult to,you know, keep everything sequential
and.
And have it be a quality, true product.
And that's the other thingthat I.

(49:14):
I'm not a huge fan of is Idon't like taking something from
like this because, like, Icould take footage from, you know,
a bunch of different huntsfrom all over the country and plug
it in and make it look like itwas one of my Michigan hunts.
But I don't want to do that.
That's not authentic.
That's not real.
And so you know, like in lastyear my, my Michigan season was honestly
pretty tough.
Like I didn't have a ton ofgreat deer on camera running around

(49:35):
that we were actually able to film.
I had a bunch of them on mytrail cameras but nothing really
wanted to cooperate for mewhile I was on stand.
I was just the wrong spot atthe wrong time.
And so like on the back end isa freakish number of hours.
And like if I'm droppingfootage off to the studio for the
archer, I try to make it aseasy as possible for you know, our,
our head producer.

(49:56):
I'll, I'll sit there and I'mlist out, I'll watch every single
SD card and clip that I haveand write it out for him.
So I'm like clip 0001 mewalking into the woods.
Clip 0002 me climbing into the tree.
Clip 0003 and so on.
And it'll be, there'll bethousands of clips and I end up making

(50:18):
notes for and then I'll, Iactually have a grading system for
what I think is the mostinteresting actually.
So like those get 0 stars thenit'll go up to like 4 stars if there's
like a kill in this clip or whatever.
So I'll, I'll start like akill is like a four star interesting
clip that the viewers willactually probably want to see.

(50:38):
So I mean it's a very longtedious process for sure.
It is.
I, I, with my channel onYouTube, I've just been doing it
now like seriously for like alittle bit over a year and a half
and learning how to edit.
I mean the furthest personfrom a computer you, you know, I
got off the merry go round inlike the late early 90s, man from

(51:01):
technology and sitting therewith an editing program on the computer.
I had to teach myself how toput stuff in, take stuff out, you
know, how to write in and edit.
And like you said, you've gotso much footage but you try to make
it into a, you know, a 25minute deal so you're not boring
people to death and keeping,keeping the situations.

(51:23):
And with me, you know, I'mjust small guy, I don't have any,
you know, big, big deals,nothing like that.
But I try to keep it real justlike your hunters, you know, like
what we're seeing out in the woods.
And I was fortunate enough, Ibought one of those insta360 cameras
and I had to learn thatediting process.
I It was totally differentthan my normal editor.

(51:43):
And I always wondered, whenI'd watch videos, there would be
no cameraman, but the camerawould pan to what was going on.
And then in that editingthing, I figured it out.
You know, you scroll with themouse, move the camera, and it's
like you got your owncameraman right there.
Because that thing's beenfilming in 360 the whole time.
So that opened up a whole newworld of coolness with making videos

(52:07):
and.
But I'll tell you, when I gotinto it, I had no idea.
I, I had no idea.
How frustrating.
And then getting them todownload, the time it takes it to
get it to Download into, intoYouTube and then, you know, going
back and sometimes maybe thesound ain't right or you got something
at a time or something went tofast forward.

(52:28):
It's so time consuming.
It's like my predator huntsare like 15 minute videos and I'm
editing them for like two anda half hours.
Yep.
You know, and it's, it's just15 minutes of me blasting the coyote
and, or a fox or something.
And I'm like, how does thistake so long?
But you know, I, I can't evenimagine like on television, like,

(52:49):
you know, on the level youguys are at.
It's just, it's got to be something.
Yeah, it for sure takes a tonof time.
And then the, and then theother thing that on the filming side
of things that a lot of peopledon't think about.
Right.
If you're seriously wantingto, you know, produce for show or
even just quality content,period, from a social media side

(53:09):
or YouTube side or whatever itis, the, the camera and lack of ability
to film in low light,especially for people in their self
filming times saves moreanimals than you can shake a stick
at.
I mean, like over my 10 yearsnow, I bet I've had 20 or 30 really

(53:29):
good bucks that have gotten towalk because we couldn't get good
enough footage of them.
And it was more than legal.
There's more than enough lightto shoot, and it was more than legal
shooting light.
But just depending on, youknow, the canopy cover and a bunch
of other things like you, youend up having to let a ton of animals
walk that you normallywouldn't too.

(53:51):
Right.
I bet that part's hard enoughalone because I, I, maybe because
of contract reasons why.
Maybe, I don't know.
But I just sit there and like,you're telling me I can't shoot this
world class deer.
Yeah.
We don't have enough shooting life.
Well, You.
I'm shooting it anyway.
That's.
That's just my personality.
I don't give a.
But I'm sure that's got mereally hard on you to pass that up.

(54:13):
Because of our reasons.
The.
The worst.
The worst one I probably hadhonestly was actually here in Michigan.
Like Brett, you understand howhard it is to get on a big deer here
in Michigan.
Yeah.
And I think it was my secondyear filming for the show that I
had a buck.
A local deer that I knew verywell that he was.

(54:35):
He had probably 16 inch browtines on him and I bet he probably
grossed into the 180s.
And I had him in front of metwice at less than 15 yards and the
camera couldn't get him and.
Oh man.
And I had to let him walk.
Well, I guess I didn't haveto, but I did.

(54:56):
I made that decision to lethim walk even though we had legal
shooting light to get it done.
And I could more than see wellenough to shoot.
Oh man.
So yeah, that part can be veryfrustrating for sure.
And back what I rememberwatching when I had Tick Tock before
I had.
I downloaded for like a little bit.
I'm like, yeah, this thing isjust fucking stupid.

(55:18):
I was watching this one videoand this guy passed up on a 200 inch
plus deer because he never gotthe camera angle.
Yeah.
And I was just thinking tomyself, I don't give a.
I'm shooting this deer.
First off, it's.
It's hard enough alone to geta deer and just around your area
to hunt.
I don't know where you're at.

(55:38):
I don't care what othersituation meet.
It's just hard to do two, letalone to get a decent sized buck
in there.
3.
A 200 inch deer.
I mean we've been making theseout to be like, oh, they happen here
and left and right.
They've been this normal thing.
No, a 200 inch deer is stillextremely hard to find, let alone
get.
And let alone have theopportunity to shoot the deer for

(56:01):
this guy.
Well, I'm gonna let him walkbecause I didn't get the camera angle.
Yeah.
So that's just wild.
I don't know.
I don't know if I could notlet arrow go in that instance.
Yeah.
And it was perfect light likehe had.
You could clear lighteverything to shoot.
He just didn't do it becausehe couldn't get the camera to turn.
And I'm just.
I don't know.

(56:22):
I Anyways.
But yeah.
Here in Michigan, I.
I've talked to A lot of otherhunters here in Michigan from last
year because we had ehd justblossom worse than it did back in
2010, 11, 12, back in those years.
In my opinion, it was worsethis year back than it was then.
And I was talking a lot ofpeople because bucks were just.

(56:44):
Deer were just flying off thewall, passing on the ground left
and right.
Take that out of the equation.
They were just having a hardtime finding deer, getting the deer
to cooperate.
In some weird way, we think wehave it all figured out when we really
don't.
But just deer were doing oddthings that a lot of hunters were

(57:05):
like, I didn't see thatcoming, or I didn't think of this.
It was just a random year fora lot of hunters I were talking to
here in Michigan alone.
It was just off the wall, wildthings with everyone.
I'm like, all right.
It wasn't just me thinking.
It was just something weirdgoing on.
Yeah.
Yep.
I had.
I had a ton of friends thatnormally you can count them in for

(57:27):
taking at least one or twodeer a year, and they didn't even
get a single shot opportunity.
And I, you know, I'd considermost of them pretty good hunters,
you know, just being able tolocate deer and get on deer and people
just right.
So I want to switch it up alittle bit, if that's all right.
I was going to ask you, what.
What's your go to weapons, andwhy do you choose what you're taking

(57:50):
out with you?
So I exclusively hunt with my compound.
I don't have anything againstgun hunting and gun hunters at all
whatsoever.
I have family that gun hunt,and, you know, I love seeing them
be successful.
I.
I just like how.
How difficult it is almost toget a large, mature whitetail within

(58:14):
range and actually have, youknow, all those little things work
out for you to actually get ashot opportunity.
And then, you know, also beingable to execute the shot myself,
like, that's.
That's a completely wholeother part to it, totally excluding
the camera side of it.
Like, it is just so difficult,you know, to have to be at the right

(58:35):
place at the right time.
And then when the animal iswithin range, you know, being able
to get actually drawn on themand make it happen.
And that's just something thatI love about it.
And then, you know, my.
My wife and daughter obviouslylove bow hunting, too.
And, you know, regardless ofwhat season is in, we're hunting
with our archery equipment.
Now, on that same note, howoften do you upgrade your gear?

(58:58):
So that's an interesting question.
So My bow, I usually have atleast two bows at any given time
that I'm shooting prettyconsistently, and I'm not one.
I'm not necessarily brand loyal.
So I run the Midwest's largestarchery shooting facility at Michigan

(59:20):
State University.
We added retail a couple yearsago now, and so I get to shoot pretty
much everything that walksthrough our doors.
Nice.
And I, the last couple ofyears, I pick and choose between
what works best for me and what.
Well, basically, what setupworks best for my shooting style

(59:42):
and my shooting, which I,which I don't agree with that.
You know, there's one best bowthat comes out every year that is
just best, the best period,for every single hunter.
I think that there is aspecific bow for every specific hunter,
if that makes sense.
There's an ass for every seat.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
You know, like what?
Like my setup.

(01:00:02):
My setup won't fit mostpeople, and then, and then vice versa.
Like, there's a lot of peoplesetups that I, I wouldn't, you know,
be as efficient with.
Right.
But yeah, so, like, myequipment, like, my arrows have stayed
the same for several years.
Usually when I find abroadhead, I like, I'll stick with
that for quite a while and,and then I'm always kind of tinkering

(01:00:24):
and playing with differentreleases so that, that, you know,
that changes frequently.
Yeah, no, that's right up myalley too.
I always, I've been shootingMatthews for years.
Shot recurve.
I got my eye on the new Dartonright now, so I, I may buy one before
the season starts, but, youknow, I like to switch it up.

(01:00:44):
I, I, I love my older.
I got a Z3.
I've killed more damn deerwith that boat.
And, you know, it's, it's cool.
Fits me good and everything,but I don't know, I'm getting, I'm
getting antsy.
I want to try something elsethis year.
There's a lot of good stuffout there.
I just, you know, shooting everything.
If you're not brand loyal tosomething, try everything out and,

(01:01:05):
you know, see what fits youbest for sure.
That's just it.
It's all about that trust.
If you got that trust in yourequipment, you know, you know, you'll
kill, man.
You'll definitely kill.
Last kind of question herethat I want to ask before we get
wrap it up here for tonight.
What would you tell the peoplethat shoot YouTube content for videos

(01:01:29):
just on their own page?
For instance, myself, Squatch,Dave, or what would you give?
What advice would you givethem that they could take from the
TV world so they can kind ofimplement it into their own YouTube
videos to help with betterviewing, better content, better title

(01:01:51):
creation, better title namesthrough the actual, actual video
itself.
What, what type of advicewould you give?
There's several things I thinkI, I would start with be as authentic
as possible.
Like when you're on camera,be, you don't, don't necessarily
try to act and, and just be asauthentic as possible.

(01:02:13):
Because I think people can see that.
And you know, I, I don't think.
And that, that's one of theinteresting things.
What I try to do is what, whatpeople see with me on camera, on
the show.
I, I, what if somebody meetsme and wants to talk to me about
whatever.
I try to be that exact same person.
Like, I, I try to not change anything.

(01:02:34):
Be as original with yourcontent as possible.
Like, obviously, you know,there's a million clips out there
of a deer walking into a setand then, you know, somebody drawing
and shooting, which is cool.
Like, I love watching that.
Like, I'll watch a small deerget shot, I'll watch a big deer get
shot.
I like seeing deer get shot.
But, and then the other thingis for people that are, you know,

(01:02:55):
aspiring to work withcompanies or whatever else it might
be, like sponsors and stuff.
This is, Some people probablytell me that I'm crazy for saying
this, but I, I would reallyfocus on working with quality companies
that you truly believe in.

(01:03:16):
And, and that's one of my big things.
Like, there's been a lot ofcompanies out there that have, whether
it's product or, or some typeof different sponsorship or something
that I've been offeredthroughout, you know, however many
years now.
And it's not a product that Ilegitimately feel like I can truly
get behind and I would beusing it regardless of whether I
was filming or not.
I'm not going to promote itand I'm not going to use it and.

(01:03:37):
Because if I'm trying topromote a, like, no, I'll just use
Gatorade zero as an example.
So, like, if I didn't, if, ifthis product, you know, somebody's
like, oh, we want you topromote this for hunting.
But I don't truly believe in it.
And I, I think that comesacross in, when people see it, like

(01:03:58):
when they're sitting in thestand and well, today I was sitting
in my stand and thank God formy Gatorade zero because I killed
that giant buck because of it.
Like, if you're not actuallygoing to use the product outside
of filming and stuff justbecause they're offering you, you
know, product or whatever elseit might be or some type of endorsement.
I.
I tell people to try to shyaway from that and not just use anything
because you don't want yourname associated to products that

(01:04:19):
don't work either.
That's my big thing.
Like, if.
If I tell people, this is agreat product, you should use this,
and then people go out, buy itand use it, and then it sucks that's
attached to my name, they'renot going to see the product is bad.
They're going to see just meas being a liar.
So one of the big things is,like, it's hard to turn down contracts,
especially when you're new tofilming and YouTube or shows or whatever

(01:04:41):
it might be.
But that's one of the.
One of the things that, like,you get one name and one reputation
and you need to, you know, actas morally and ethically as possible
and just don't drop your.
The quality of what you'reoffering viewers just because somebody's

(01:05:03):
offering you a product orwhatever it might be.
If that makes sense.
Yeah, absolutely.
When.
When I started back up withWhitetail Advantage, I first, like
12 episodes, I went back andlistened to.
I was listening it, and to behonest, I started falling asleep
with it because it was allscripted and it was phone calls and
stuff like that.
I'm like, this is boring.
I'm not gonna lie.

(01:05:24):
That does.
That is not me.
That's someone that I listento podcasts and I feel like, you
gotta do this.
That's.
That will be old me.
When I came back with this,when I took a year off, away from
here, I want to be authentic.
I want to be myself.
I gotta be that.
But I also want to take updifferent notches here and there.
Long story short, this is me.
You take cameras away and allthis stuff.

(01:05:46):
I want to be saying the samething to a wife, my friends, and
all the same.
Yep.
And I think one thing that yousaid perfectly, you have your name.
I was former law enforcement,and one thing my dad told me was
look at your name plate when Iwas playing sports.
Your last name, Bovin.
You represent all Bowmans.

(01:06:07):
You gotta make sure yourepresent it proudly.
Yep.
Then when I got into lawenforcement, when people would ask
to put my name as a reference,I said, I don't know you.
So I'm gonna say no,respectfully, because then my name
would be attached to it likeyou just said.
Yep, exactly.
And I didn't want that.
If I didn't say I trust you or anything.

(01:06:28):
So I took that type ofmentality like you did, and I took
it here into hunting worldjust like a whole bunch of other
things.
And these companies that wehave here on the show, xop, Rack,
Magnus and Bow Addicts, that'smy name's attached to them.
Whitetail Van's name isattached to them because I truly
believe in those products.

(01:06:50):
And if I'm not gonna endorsesome crappy company, whatever, just
to push my name out there, I'mnot gonna do that.
I don't want that.
I'm not gonna attach my name to.
I'm not gonna put attach aSquatch's name to it, Johnny's days
or anything like that.
If it's a part of WhitetailAdvantage, we've all tested it.
We've all talked about it.
We truly believe in the product.

(01:07:11):
Yep.
And that's the way to go.
For sure 100 and even, even on.
My channel, if I use somethinglike I'm, I'm with warhead arrows.
I, I, I've demonstrated whatthey're capable of doing.
I've put out there the bloodyarrow on the ground.
I shoot that arrow.
Okay.
I'm using it.
You're watching me shoot that arrow.

(01:07:32):
Wreck broadheads.
It's the same thing.
They hit the deer.
I mean, I am not on thefurthest thing from a bullshitter
you'll ever want to meet.
I tell you like it is.
Yeah.
And any of my videos, whetherit's cameras, whether it's arrows,
bows.
If I tell you it's good, Ifirmly believe in it 110%.
And I'll, I'll stake myreputation on saying yes, it's good.

(01:07:54):
Maybe you didn't have the same outcome.
Maybe you're not using it right.
But don't, don't try and sneakthis into as me because I didn't
use it right.
No, I'm not saying you, Ididn't mean you did.
No.
Johnny, he uses moultrie cameras.
Yeah.
So it was like squash.
I didn't like the cameraquality of the, of the results that

(01:08:16):
I was getting.
So I thought that was a notchtowards me because they said, well,
what are you doing itbasically towards the tree and that.
We were joke.
We were joking.
He didn't realize the lens wasfacing the.
Yeah, no, no, but, but likeyou said, like anything, man.
I mean, you know, we'reespecially us like the whole crew
here.
And I'm on with anotherpodcast too.

(01:08:38):
I mean we're meeting so manydifferent meet you we meet just like
you're traveling around,you're meeting new people.
When you're in these huntingspots, we're meeting a person from
a state twice a week.
You know, people, people fromdifferent areas.
Yeah.
I want to be able to run intoyou when I do run into you, shake
your hand and say, you knowwhat, man?
And we're talking.
Hey, man, you just like youwere on the show.
Yep.
No surprises.

(01:08:58):
You know what?
I, I, it's no Hollywood bull crap.
I'm, I am who I am.
You know, it's like, it's,that's why some people, you know,
they'll be like, oh, you guysjoke around too much.
It's not all about hunting.
And, well, you know, whatgives a.
If you don't like it, tough.
Go watch another show.
That's humdrum.
Me and boring.
We like to have fun.
Yeah.
You know, it's not for everybody.

(01:09:18):
I get it.
But you know what?
There's more to life thanjust, you know, whatever.
This is a campfire, man.
We're sitting around, it'slike you got, you know, if you drink,
you have a beer, you'resitting around a campfire with your
buddy or, you know, justtalking about the day, man.
And, and that's why we keep it legit.
We keep it down to earth.
And you know, I, I've always,always told the truth.

(01:09:39):
My father instilled enemy.
Just tell the truth, son.
You know why you have to tellthe truth?
People can smell a mile away, so.
Exactly.
Yep.
That's why you do what you do.
Yep.
Well, Casey, I want to ask youjust a couple rapid fire questions
here for you, okay?
Okay.
And then watch you go.
Where'd it go?
I just lost it.
Okay, there it is.

(01:10:01):
If you could pick anybody, afamily member and a non family member
to go on a hunting trip withor share a campfire with one time,
who would they be?
My mom's father.
So my grandpa on that sidebecause he passed before I had the
opportunity to really take on hunting.
And he, he was big intowhitetails and I didn't ever have

(01:10:23):
the opportunity.
That's one of the number one questions.
That's, that's one of thenumber one answers, I should say.
Yeah.
Last question here for you, Casey.
What do you think we as fellowhunters could or should do to improve
the hunting community as a whole?
Probably be more supportive ofeach other, regardless of the style

(01:10:48):
of hunting.
Whether it's, you know,somebody hunting with a crossbow
or a firearm or a compound ora recurve or Whatever it might be,
as long as it's a legal stylewithin that season.
I just, I, I hate seeing likewe're all out there to kill deer
or whatever game animal it isthat we're after.
And what I hate seeing is, youknow, on social media, people knocking

(01:11:10):
other people for taking ananimal in a completely legitimate
legal way.
And I think, you know, it'snot affecting someone else's hunt
if they're, you know, theyshoot an animal two states away.
And as long as it's legal, I,I think that hunters really should
be more supportive, love eachother and stand together when it
comes to stuff like that.
With more, you know,congratulations on a great animal.

(01:11:31):
You know, it's.
Whether it's a trophy of alifetime or first buck or whatever
it might be, rather than, youknow, getting after each other on,
you know, weapon of choice or,or whatever it might be.
That's kind of a good answerthat we generally get for most of
the time is.
But yeah, that's.
We already get enoughcriticism from people outside the
hunting community.

(01:11:51):
We don't need to be doing itto ourselves.
100.
Absolutely.
Well, Casey, I want to saythank you so much for taking time
out of your busy schedule tocome on the show.
My.
I know, I greatly appreciate,I know Squatch greatly appreciates
it as well.
Pleasure.
Pleasure having you on.
Yeah guys, thanks.
I had a great time.
For people that want to reachout to you, ask you any questions
or anything like that.
How can they do that?

(01:12:11):
So from a social mediaperspective, I primarily just use
Instagram.
It's at American Archer cc.
My name is Casey Christman.
And then you can also reachout to the American Archer Instagram
page.
I manage that one too.
And then we'll be starting toget more into the social side of
things once our new showlaunches on Waypoint, which is the
Midwestern way.

(01:12:32):
And that's, you know, freestreaming on Waypoint for all hunting
and fishing related stuff.
It's available a milliondifferent ways.
And our new Midwestern Wayshow is going to be kicking off here
in just under a month on there.
Squatch, if people want toreach out to you, I don't know why
they would, but they do.
How would they want to reachout to you, brother?

(01:12:53):
Well, you know why they wantto reach out to me?
Because I'm so handsome.
I can't.
People can't resist my awesomehunting skills.
No, I'm just kidding.
You're awesome.
No, no.
Just possible.
No.
As usual, you guys know,here's the spiel.
Eight o' clock Sundays andTuesdays with the Whitetail Advantage.
You can also catch me on theBoondocks Outdoors Garden State Outdoorsman

(01:13:14):
podcast.
Mike Nitrate, Frank Mystica,and all the rest of the bunch over
there.
Please tune in to my YouTubechannel, outdoors and more with the
Squatch and on Instagram underthe same handle.
You guys know where to find me.
Awesome.
Casey, I hope you have a greatrest tonight, brother.
Again, thank you so much, man.
Yeah, thanks, guys.
Appreciate it.
Have a great night.

(01:13:35):
See you, brother.
Have a good night.
Squash, you want to do theoutro together?
Go ahead.
All right.
Perfect.
Well, everyone, that's goingto conclude another episode of the
YTL Advanced podcast.
Myself and everyone here fromthe team would like to greatly appreciate
and say thank you to everyonethat's tuned in for our live shows
and listen to the audio versions.
If this show made you laugh,made you think, gave you a new perspective,

(01:13:57):
please hit that like andsubscribe button.
If you listen to this on theaudio version, please give us that
five star rating and also giveus your feedback how you think we
can do better.
Anything.
In those regards, please letus know.
We're always trying to improvein any way that we can.
The audio versions of ourpodcast gets released every Monday
and Wednesday at 5am Eastern Time.
If you want to be a guest onthe Whitetail Advantage show, or

(01:14:18):
you want anyone from WhitetailAdvantage be a guest on your show,
head to our website, whitetailadvantage.com and submit your request
through there.
We have everything set upthere for you on Whitetail Advantage.
Check it out.
Everything right there is set up.
Boom.
Perfectly.
With bios about each other and ourselves.
Go and check it out.
Also, want to take quick second.
Say thank you to all companiesthat have partnered up with us here

(01:14:40):
at Whitetail Advantage.
And with that being said, Ididn't say this at the beginning,
Squatch, but put your quarterin the slot machine.
Yeah, put it in there.
Don't get it lost.
Exactly.
And we'll see you guys on Tuesday.

(01:15:01):
Thank you for tuning in to another.
Episode of the WhitetailAdvantage podcast.
We hope you enjoyed the showand we will see you next time.