Randy’s Rants | On Your Own Adventures

Where is OYOA
June 5th, 2010

Who was your Hunter Education Instructor?

Spent the last two days in Estes Park, Colorado at the International Hunter Education Association (IHEA) annual summit. Spending the time mingling with these hunter ed coordinators and the many volunteer instructors makes you realize just how unique the hunting community is.

Some of you may be hunting ed instructors and if so, you understand the level of dedication these VOLUNTEERS have for the future of hunting. To all of you who volunteer for that activity, I thank you.

Hunting seems to be deeply rooted in the spirit of volunteerism. Whether it is the committee members of the many conservation groups, or the Hunter Ed instructors, it amazes me how much we accomplish as a result of these many wonderful volunteers.

I still remember my hunter ed instructors. Owen Gordon, who was the owner of the local hardware store in our little town, and Paul Reese, the teacher who taught a combined 5th/6th grade at our little school.

If not for the dedication of people like Owen and Paul, and the thousands of others who teach hunter education, hunting in this country would not be the great activity that it is. I am sure all of you have someone similar to thank for your hunting education.

I would ask that if you know a hunter ed instructor, please thank them for their time, effort, and commitment to the future of hunting. Spending time with these people was a true joy.

For the message of our TV show, they all “get it.” They were very receptive for a show that is about experiences of the average person. IHEA has drafted a memorandum of understanding that they would like network and TV show producers to adopt that would outline “best practices” for display of proper hunting behavior and safety. Seems like a “no brainer” to me, but we already adopt those principles in our show.

Thanks to IHEA and all the hunter ed instructors. It was a joy to spend this time with you.

Tags: ethics, fair chase, hunter education, IHEA, safety hunting

TV Show
April 9th, 2010

Sorry friends, its been a while……

Many of you already know this, but my real job is a partner in a CPA firm. You will notice my ranting on this page gets less as tax season heats up. Still plenty of ranting this time of year, just most of it is happening with IRS agents, etc.

I have tried my best to get fired this tax season but I have concluded it is impossible to get fired from a CPA firm between February 1st and April 15th. Trust me, some days I have deserved to be fired, and I still have my name on building. Wonder what it will take?

As if tax season hasn’t been difficult enough, this wonderful tax bill, disguised as a health care/health insurance/health reform bill of some sort, is the most difficult tax bill I have read in 23 years as a CPA. Have no idea how that is going to help with health improvement, as I think most people will suffer from increased blood pressure when they read the complexity it has, the wonderful new taxes it imposes, and how much you are going to have to pay your CPA, just to have better health care. Ah, I digress.

The world of On Your Own Adventures is chugging along as we meet with more sponsors, many of whom you will be hearing about in the next month or two. We think you will like the partnerships we are working on.

We are planning Season Three, and the tags seem to be coming our way. After drawing a lot of blanks in the Wyoming elk draw, we hit the jackpot in the Arizona elk draw, with Larry and Jerry both drawing great tags. No luck for Randy, but we have some great hunts to film.

Like most of you, we have made our applications to New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Nevada, Utah, and any other place that will take our money. We found out today that Alaska didn’t find us worthy of a tag, but I have faith that when Utah issues its results in a couple weeks, the On Your Own Adventures crew will be dancing in the streets.

Good news is that turkey season opens in Montana tomorrow, but I will be at the office trying to disinherit the Federal Treasury. And our bear season opens on April 15th. I only have a few days to hunt bears in Montana, but we leave for Southeast Alaska self-guided black bear on May 2nd, so that should be a ton of fun.

And when the time comes that my mind wanders for hunting, but seasons are not open, I always look at old pictures and video to remind me why I hunt. This picture below is a long time ago, and was only the first of many great days in the field with my son.

Good luck in the draws and find something to hunt this spring.

Hunting with my son - circa 1992

Tags: hunting, on your own adventures, Randy Newberg, tag applications, western states

TV Show
February 3rd, 2010

A Blog about a Blog

Is it proper to write a blog about another blog? Oh well, blogging etiquette might not be my strong point, so I will post a blog about a blog, regardless of the violations of culture my doing so will create.

As part of our Television Show, Outdoor Channel has identified our show as a show that provides a lot of information that could be useful to their viewers, and our viewers. Outdoor Channel has asked me to be a regular blogger as it relates to western hunting and equipment.

The first series will be a ten part blog about making a western hunt a reality. My hope is that people will read it and find the western hunting concept a little less intimidating than it might currently seem.

Enough talking about the blog. Here is the link. Hope you enjoy it. Part Two will follow in a couple weeks, allowing people to follow along as I show them how they too can enjoy an On Your Own western hunt.

The link is below.

OutdoorChannel.com - On Your Own Adventures Blog Column

Tags: hunting, On Your Own, Outdoor Channel, western

Tags
January 16th, 2010

Arizona Elk and Antelope Deadline is near

For those of you wanting to experience the dream of hunting the big elk and antelope of Arizona, the deadline is February 9th. Those applications must be received by that date, not postmarked.

To help those of you not familiar with the Arizona draw process, we have provided a Resources Page for Arizona and we have also started a thread on the Hunt Talk portion of our website where hunters are asking questions and sharing information about the Arizona draw process.

Having hunted elk and deer in Arizona, it is a hunt that is well worth the hassles of learning the complicated draw process that Arizona has implemented for non-residents.

Arizona Resources Page

Hunt Talk threads on Arizona Draw Process

Good luck.

Tags: Add new tag, antelope, Arizona, elk, hunting, on your own adventures

TV Show, Where is OYOA
January 15th, 2010

SHOT SHOW - 2010

Well, it is that time of year again. Trade show season.

At my house, we have four seasons - Hunting season, fishing season, tax season (being a CPA), and trade show season. This is the first of many shows of the year.

SHOT is sponsored by the NSSF - National Shooting Sports Foundation. A great group and THE show if you are in the hunting or shooting industry.

This show is where we catch up with sponsors, meet with potential new sponsors, and visit with old friends. Outdoor Channel uses this venue as a location to conduct much of their promotion and meetings for the hosts of the TV shows they air.

Thursday night is the big Outdoor Channel party. The Golden Moose Awards will be announced at that event. OYOA is in the running for quite a few of them, so we are keeping our fingers crossed.

This show is an industry show, and not open to the general public, until the last day, when the general public is allowed to attend. It gets pretty busy when the consumers start walking the halls.

If you will be in Vegas next week, there is a good chance you are going to the SHOT Show. If so, I hope I get a chance to visit with you.

Tags: hunting, NSSF, on your own adventures, SHOT SHOW

Tags
January 7th, 2010

Application Season is Here!

Well, it is that time again, where we start researching where we want to hunt for the upcoming year. The most common reason for not getting that tag of dreams is that an application was not submitted. Sounds simple, but often is the case.

For many of us who make this research our second job, it is fun. Yet for most, these complicated tag drawing schemes implemented by western states, is nothing more than another hurdle to be cleared if they want to go hunting.

Here in January, the elk hunts of September and October seem far off. Yet, that is when the Wyoming elk applications are due. Followed shortly thereafter, by Arizona elk and antelope, and Utah for all species.

On the Hunt Talk forum of our website, we are starting threads where we discuss the application process of all these states. Members, many of whom are very experienced in these applications, add their comments and recommendations.

Wyoming is so great, because we find out the elk results by late February, which is before many other states applications are due. Therefore, we can plan our other state applications based on what we find out from Wyoming.

And, if I were to pick the state with the best mix of quality, access, and availability of elk tags, Wyoming would be my choice.

To learn more about Wyoming and the resources that will help you with the application process, go to the Wyoming Resource page.

To learn what other members are thinking about as they make their Wyoming applications, go to the Hunt Talk thread titled Wyoming Elk Deadline.

Good luck in the draw. Remember, if you don’t apply, you won’t draw.

Tags: application, drawing, elk, hunting, Wyoming

TV Show
December 9th, 2009

Some TV Show Updates

It is that time of the year when the outdoor TV industry starts having all of their big events. The biggest being the SHOT Show in Las Vegas, coming the middle of January. At that event, Outdoor Channel holds a big event for all the industry people to come and see “who’s who” in the outdoor TV world.

Just got a letter from Outdoor Channel that is pretty surprising. Well, not that surprising, but considering who we are up against, has put a pretty big smile on my face. Here is how the deal works.

There are two types of awards - 1) Fan Favorites, and 2) Professional Panel Judging.

The fan favorites are pretty easy to explain. Get as many votes as possible, and the show with the most votes for that category wins the award.

The Professional Panel judging is more complicated. Here is how it works.

1. All 130 shows submit their best footage for any of the seven categories. We submitted for five categories.

2. Outdoor Channel does a preliminary screening of the shows and then sends the majority of them to a committee of the 30 “industry experts” for the Professional Panel grading/voting.

3. Scoring from that Professional Panel is tallied, and the top five shows are then considered as nominees in that specific category and the winners will be announced in January at the Outdoor Channel Awards show.

So, guess who has been nominated as a Top Five show in four of the five Professional Panel categories we submitted for? Yup, pretty easy guess, eh?

On Your Own Adventures has been selected among all of the Outdoor Channel shows for a top five nomination, and possible winner in these categories:

Best Overall Production (Montana Bear episode)

Best Big Game (New Mexico Archery Elk episode)

Best Turkey (Montana Turkey episode)

Best Educational/Instructional (Montana Whitetail episode)

For us to win any of the industry panel awards, or to win any of the fan favorite awards would be a big splash. This seldom happens with a new show. And for us to be doing that well, across all categories, is amazing. Those you who watch outdoor TV know the big names and supporting sponsors we are up against.

Rumor has it that we are doing amazingly well in the fan favorite voting, also. The fan favorite voting is still open, until the end of December. If you can garner any votes on our behalf, it would be greatly appreciated - Family, hunting friends, or anyone you think would like to support the concept of non-guided hunting. Here is the link:

Outdoor Channel Fan Favorite

Thanks for all your support. Your emails to Outdoor Channel and sponsors have been making a big impact, not just for us, but for the voice of average hunters in the world of Outdoor TV.

Tags: Golden Moose Awards, on your own adventures, Outdoor Channel

TV Show
November 24th, 2009

Federal Premium Ammunition Takes Title Sponsor of On Your Own Adventures

Wow, it has been a while since I made a blog entry. Guess that is what happens when you are out in the hinterlands filming big game hunts.

Some big news for On Your Own Adventures to announce.

Federal Premium Ammunition was one of the first sponsors to step forward and support the concept of a show dedicated to the On Your Own hunter. They are one of those great companies operated by hunters, who understands their market. As I say, “They get it!”

Well, after the great feedback of the first season, they have decided to renew their agreement. And, the bigger news is that they want the show title to carry their name. So, starting in 2010, Federal Premium Ammunition will be the title sponsor of On Your Own Adventures.

As you can see by the press release attached to the link below, the president of Federal, Mark DeYoung, understands what the non-guided experience is all about, and Federal is putting their money where their mouth is.

Premium Ammunition Takes Title Sponsor of On Your Own Adventures

I hope that when you purchase ammunition, you will consider how strongly Federal supports your style of hunting, and will purchase thier products.

Thanks Federal.

Tags: ammunition, Federal, hunting, non-guided, on your own adventures, premium, self-guided

TV Show
October 19th, 2009

Vote for On Your Own Adventures

Outdoor Channel has announced they are now taking online votes for the 2009 fan favorites - The Golden Moose Awards. I cannot over-emphasize how much weight sponsors and networks put into this fan voting. They view you as the final judge of what is working, or not working. This really is your chance to have your voice be heard.

Golden Moose Awards - Fan Favorite Voting

On Your Own Adventures is eligible for the first four categories -

1) Best Series

2) Best New Series

3) Best Host/Personality

4) Best Hunting Show

Personally, I could care less if we win any awards, for the sake of winning awards. But, if a non-guided show wins an award, it will be shake up to the hunting TV world, beyond what I can even explain in words.

Let’s face it, we are a unique concept. One that was laughed at. Now, Outdoor Channel is getting inundated with emails about our show, to the point that they are moving us up the scale.

What would be amazing is if we were to demonstrate to the sponsorship and other media, not only the number of hunters wanting to see this type of programming, but also the avidity these hunters have for seeing a different hunting message.

With all of that, I can’t thank you enough for voiting. It is what will really determine if this idea of promoting non-guided hunting, becomes part of the mainstream hunting media message. Hopefully, you will share this link with your friends, and ask them to vote for On Your Own Adventures.

Thanks again, not only for any vote you might cast, but for your support and encouragement to take on this crazy idea and see if we could do what the naysayers said was impossible.

Randy

Tags: Fan Favorites, Golden Moose Awards, Outdoor Channel

Where is OYOA
September 18th, 2009

Leaving Arizona, On to Colorado

Been a while since I have had time to post much in the rants. So busy filming these hunts, that making my posts on Hunt Talk is about all I have time for.

We just left Arizona, where Buschy was hunting archery elk in Unit 1. It was a great hunt. We only had a week to film, and then had to move on. Greg (Buschy) stayed behind to fill his tag, until season closes next week. He called yesterday, very excited.

We are heading up the mountain this morning, to join a friend who has a big horn sheep tag here in Colorado. Should be great fun. This is a short season, so we will have to bust our hump to make sure we find some sheep, get some footage, and hopefully kill a sheep.

From here, we leave Colorado and head to Wyoming, where we will be hunting antelope, then elk, and if time allows, hopefully mule deer. ‘Tis the season for filming, so I ask for your forgiveness my delinquency in posts.

If you want to see the pictures of our endeavors and our hunts, go to the Hunt Talk threads. We try to post daily updates over there.

And, please post you stories and pictures on Hunt Talk, so the rest of our members can share in your success.

Happy Hunting!