Lone Star Outdoor Show

Podcast: Got another good one lined up for you guys and gals! We kick it off by talking reds and trout with our longtime friend of the show- Captain Len Girard. The warm weather means the action is heating up along the Texas Coast and Captain Len tells us where he is finding large groups of staging trout and what he’s catching them on. Then, it’s the return visit of one of the outdoor industry’s most recognizable figures…Buck and Duck Commander Willie Robertson! The Duck Commander crew has a new show set to hit major network television next week and Willie tells us all about Duck Dynasty which airs on A&E- set those DVR’s for Wednesday nights at 9pm CST. Of course we also get will to tell us how this past season was for him. So of course we’ll talk ducks and deer as well. Right now is one of my favorite times of the year as the South Zone turkey season opens this weekend and the North Zone follows suit on the 31st! Our Texas Parks and Wildlife Turkey Program Leader Jason Hardin is the authority on Texas Turkeys and I am thrilled to have him join us this week as well. Hunting strategy, hot spots around the state, public hunting opportunities and habitat management are just a few of the things we discuss. We then round out the show by checking in with Warriors Roadtrip Network founder and president- Rusty Pease. The WRN is a great Texas based organization dedicated to taking service men and women, police officers, firefighters and special needs kids into the outdoors. I am thrilled to have Rusty on the show and even more excited to be a part of this great organization!

Podcast: Episode 111 We’re gonna cover it all today! We kick things off by checking in with our longtime buddy- Lake Fork Guide Heath Hardwick. The male largemouths are already in the shallows preparing beds and hoping to attract a mate. The big ‘ol females aren’t too far behind! Heath tells us where he is catching the big gals during their pre-spawn pattern. Also, Heath advises that you might want to change your line if fishing stumps or flooded timber this time of year. Then a real treat when we sit down for a Q&A with Chris Lane- the 2012 Bassmaster Classic Champ! Chris breaks down the decisions he made that resulted in winning the most prestigious fishing tournament in the world and a $500,000 paycheck! At what moment did he think he had a chance to win? On Day 2, why did he leave his Day 1 spot that produced a pretty heavy sack? All that and a whole lot more with Chris. Then we change it up and talk food plots with Dr. James Kroll. Spring is here and now is the time to start thinking about what to offer your deer during these critical spring months. Bucks need lots of highly digestable energy in order to start growing next season’s antlers. Dr. Kroll tells us what plants to consider for each region of the state. Cowpeas are always a great option and Dr. Kroll has it down to a science as to when they should be planted. We then round out the broadcast by talking deer, exotics and turkey with Will Echart of Squaw Mountain Whitetails. I had the opportunity to deer hunt the ranch during the last part of the MLD extended season during February. While I didn’t harvest a deer, we did spotlight some hogs and drove around the 2,200 acre ranch looking at the different herds of exotic animals like the axis deer below. What an amazing place. Can’t wait to get back out there and turkey hunt this spring!

Podcast: Episode 110 Lots to get into this week. We kick it off when U.S. Senator John Cornyn – Rep. Texas drops in to talk about the Operation Fast and Furious debacle that left U.S. Border Agent Brian Terry dead. Sadly, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has offered no explanation how the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms allowed thousands of weapons (including the rifle used to murder Brian Terry) to illegally slip into the hands of Mexican cartels. Senator Cornyn is adamant that somebody from the Obama Administration at least offer up an explanation as to how this happened. Then we are joined live in studio by our longtime friend and awesome songwriter Justin Bowerman. Justin talks some deer and duck hunting with us and of course he’ll play a couple tunes of his debut CD “Rock You” which will be released on March 9th! If you like good Texas music with some outdoor inspired songwriting then you need to check it out. We round out the show when U.S. Army Lt. Colonel Don Brunson drops in. Last weekend I had the surreal experience of riding out on the ceremonial launch boat at the 2012 Bass Master Classic! Lt. Colonel Brunson piloted the boat and I am sure it was an amazing experience for him as well. As part of the Coalition Pro Staff- he will also be featured on the upcoming ABA show – Force on Force which pitts the different military branches against each other in a knockout style fishing tournament! Lt. Colonel Brunson at the Classic.

Podcast: Lots to get into this week. We kick it off when U.S. Senator John Cornyn – Rep. Texas drops in to talk about the Operation Fast and Furious debacle that left U.S. Border Agent Brian Terry dead. Sadly, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has offered no explanation how the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms allowed thousands of weapons (including the rifle used to murder Brian Terry) to illegally slip into the hands of Mexican cartels. Senator Cornyn is adamant that somebody from the Obama Administration at least offer up an explanation as to how this happened. Then we are joined live in studio by our longtime friend and awesome songwriter Justin Bowerman. Justin talks some deer and duck hunting with us and of course he’ll play a couple tunes of his debut CD “Rock You” which will be released on March 9th! If you like good Texas music with some outdoor inspired songwriting then you need to check it out. We round out the show when U.S. Army Lt. Colonel Don Brunson drops in. Last weekend I had the surreal experience of riding out on the ceremonial launch boat at the 2012 Bass Master Classic! Lt. Colonel Brunson piloted the boat and I am sure it was an amazing experience for him as well. As part of the Coalition Pro Staff- he will also be featured on the upcoming ABA show – Force on Force which pitts the different military branches against each other in a knockout style fishing tournament! Lt. Colonel Brunson at the Classic.

Podcast: Episode 109 So much to get into and so little time to do it! We kick this week off by checking in with one of the finest shooters in the Lone Star State. Pistols, rifles, shotguns… it made no difference to Zavalla, Texas native Dustin Ellerman. You might have seen Dustin take home the $100,000 grand prize as the Season 3 champion of the History Channel’s hit show Top Shot. Not bad for a self taught Christian summer camp director. Dustin doing what he does best. Then a real treat when The Honkey Tonk Kid- Aaron Watson drops in. One of my favorite Texas singer/songwriters, Aaron is as passionate about the outdoors as he is about his music. He even has a new website devoted to the outdoors: An avid bowhunter, his favorite thing these days is to take his 4 and 5 year old boys into the blind with him. Below you can see him and 5 year old Jake sitting in the deer blind- that’s what it’s all about! We round things out with some bass fishing talk as the hill country’s Lake Austin has stormed onto the scene as Texas’ premiere sharelunker producing reservoir. Lake Austin has produced 3 of the state’s 5 entrees into the sharelunker program this season. We are thrilled to have Austin area Texas Parks and Wildlife Department District Manager Marcos DeJesus stop in to talk about Lake Austin’s recent ability to produce so many big fish. The most recent sharelunker- entree 528 was caught this month by Landon Glass. TPWD puts ID tags in all lunkers entered into the program. This fish was also caught as sharelunker 481 back in 2010! Time to get on down to Lake Austin and wet a line.

Podcast: So much to get into and so little time to do it! We kick this week off by checking in with one of the finest shooters in the Lone Star State. Pistols, rifles, shotguns… it made no difference to Zavalla, Texas native Dustin Ellerman. You might have seen Dustin take home the $100,000 grand prize as the Season 3 champion of the History Channel’s hit show Top Shot. Not bad for a self taught Christian summer camp director. Dustin doing what he does best. Then a real treat when The Honkey Tonk Kid- Aaron Watson drops in. One of my favorite Texas singer/songwriters, Aaron is as passionate about the outdoors as he is about his music. He even has a new website devoted to the outdoors: An avid bowhunter, his favorite thing these days is to take his 4 and 5 year old boys into the blind with him. Below you can see him and 5 year old Jake sitting in the deer blind- that’s what it’s all about! We round things out with some bass fishing talk as the hill country’s Lake Austin has stormed onto the scene as Texas’ premiere sharelunker producing reservoir. Lake Austin has produced 3 of the state’s 5 entrees into the sharelunker program this season. We are thrilled to have Austin area Texas Parks and Wildlife Department District Manager Marcos DeJesus stop in to talk about Lake Austin’s recent ability to produce so many big fish. The most recent sharelunker- entree 528 was caught this month by Landon Glass. TPWD puts ID tags in all lunkers entered into the program. This fish was also caught as sharelunker 481 back in 2010! Time to get on down to Lake Austin and wet a line.

Podcast: Episode 108 Man what a great show! We get things rolling when our longtime buddy and Army Bass Anglers Founder and CEO Major Cody Roberson drops in. Army Bass Anglers have some exciting news regarding their new fishing show Force on Force which will begin airing this spring on Sportsman’s Channel. Also, ABA will once again be the honorary lead boat out of next weekend’s Bass Master Classic in Shreveport, LA. And of course, who does the Major see winning this year’s Classic? Then a real treat when comedian, actor, and tv host Jeff Foxworthy drops in! Jeff has been delivering laughs to millions of folks with his blue collar brand of humor for over 25 years. His other passion, however, happens to be deer hunting…well any hunting really. Jeff loves the management side of hunting and is also an avid conservationist. He has co-hosted outdoor tv shows such as The Bucks of Tecomate and been a frequent guest of various other hunting shows. So what does the future hold? Also, you don’t want to miss him tell the story of his greatest deer camp prank, I about died laughing! We round out the broadcast when Angie Becker of Tioga Retrievers joins the show. Erin and I sent our chocolate female Belle to Angie last spring. Belle went thru the Basic Gun Dog program and just finished her first season in the field. Impeccable manners in the blind and extremely eager to please, Belle picked up over 200 birds this season…and while that made me proud, we still have work to do. Handling and blind retrieves take alot of work and patience. Angie gives us some off season tips on what we can do to continue developing our hunting dogs. Like I said- Belle was eager to please. This goose is almost as big as her LOL!

Podcast: Man what a great show! We get things rolling when our longtime buddy and Army Bass Anglers Founder and CEO Major Cody Roberson drops in. Army Bass Anglers have some exciting news regarding their new fishing show Force on Force which will begin airing this spring on Sportsman’s Channel. Also, ABA will once again be the honorary lead boat out of next weekend’s Bass Master Classic in Shreveport, LA. And of course, who does the Major see winning this year’s Classic? Then a real treat when comedian, actor, and tv host Jeff Foxworthy drops in! Jeff has been delivering laughs to millions of folks with his blue collar brand of humor for over 25 years. His other passion, however, happens to be deer hunting…well any hunting really. Jeff loves the management side of hunting and is also an avid conservationist. He has co-hosted outdoor tv shows such as The Bucks of Tecomate and been a frequent guest of various other hunting shows. So what does the future hold? Also, you don’t want to miss him tell the story of his greatest deer camp prank, I about died laughing! We round out the broadcast when Angie Becker of Tioga Retrievers joins the show. Erin and I sent our chocolate female Belle to Angie last spring. Belle went thru the Basic Gun Dog program and just finished her first season in the field. Impeccable manners in the blind and extremely eager to please, Belle picked up over 200 birds this season…and while that made me proud, we still have work to do. Handling and blind retrieves take alot of work and patience. Angie gives us some off season tips on what we can do to continue developing our hunting dogs. Like I said- Belle was eager to please. This goose is almost as big as her LOL!

Podcast: Episode 107 Man what a show! We kick things off with our Cabela’s Corner fishing report with Lake Fork Guide Heath Hardwick. Due to the mild winter the big females are already starting to head for shallow water. Watch out as the next 2 months should be on fire! Heath tells us where to catch ‘em and what to use. Then our good buddy and Elite Series Pro Kelly Jordon stops by- but we aren’t talking bass with Kelly. Instead, we get into some deer hunting talk as we recap the South Texas deer hunting experience. Also- Kelly talks about taking this trophy 12 pointer with a drop-tine kicker- what a deer! We follow that up with a real special treat. History Channel’s Swamp People has taken the country by storm. Season 3 premiered this week and we are thrilled to have Troy Landry stop in and talk some gator huntin’ with us! You won’t want to miss what this full blooded Cajun has to say! We round things out when 1982 BassMaster Classic champ Paul Elias stops by. This Elite Series pro brought the Alabama Rig into the public eye by destroying the field by 17 lbs at an FLW event on Lake Guntersville this past October. Not only did he cash a $100,000 paycheck, but Paul simultaneously revolutionized the sport of bass fishing. We got Paul’s thoughts on B.A.S.S.’ recent decision to ban the A-rig from all of there sanctioned events- including the upcoming BassMaster Classic on the Red River. Also, we want to congratulate Paul as he was recently elected to the Pro Bass Fishing Hall of Fame!

Podcast: Man what a show! We kick things off with our Cabela’s Corner fishing report with Lake Fork Guide Heath Hardwick. Due to the mild winter the big females are already starting to head for shallow water. Watch out as the next 2 months should be on fire! Heath tells us where to catch ’em and what to use. Then our good buddy and Elite Series Pro Kelly Jordon stops by- but we aren’t talking bass with Kelly. Instead, we get into some deer hunting talk as we recap the South Texas deer hunting experience. Also- Kelly talks about taking this trophy 12 pointer with a drop-tine kicker- what a deer! We follow that up with a real special treat. History Channel’s Swamp People has taken the country by storm. Season 3 premiered this week and we are thrilled to have Troy Landry stop in and talk some gator huntin’ with us! You won’t want to miss what this full blooded Cajun has to say! We round things out when 1982 BassMaster Classic champ Paul Elias stops by. This Elite Series pro brought the Alabama Rig into the public eye by destroying the field by 17 lbs at an FLW event on Lake Guntersville this past October. Not only did he cash a $100,000 paycheck, but Paul simultaneously revolutionized the sport of bass fishing. We got Paul’s thoughts on B.A.S.S.’ recent decision to ban the A-rig from all of there sanctioned events- including the upcoming BassMaster Classic on the Red River. Also, we want to congratulate Paul as he was recently elected to the Pro Bass Fishing Hall of Fame!

Podcast: Episode 106 Anyone who has been following competitive bass fishing this fall knows that the Alabama Rig is responsible for winning just about every tournament out there. The umbrella style, multi lure rig has revolutionized the sport in a matter of months! So much so that BASS is considering banning the bait on the Elite Series and the upcoming Bass Master Classic. Elite Pro Kelly Jordon drops in to talk about the new technique and he also gives us some tips on breaking in a new boat motor. The Alabama Rig: Then we get into some exotic talk with our old buddy Austin Dempsey of the Star S Ranch. You might recall the anti hunters have been trying to prevent exotic ranches from hunting 3 specific species: dama gazelle, scimitar horned oryx and the addax. These animals are endangered or extinct in their native africa- but exotic ranches have done an amazing job managing breeding herds of these animals in the states. The big loser with the latest news is the animlas themselves. Austin breaks it all down for us. The addax- what an awesome animal! We round out the broadcast by tackling the zebra mussel issue with Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Inland Fisheries Regional Director Brian Van Zee. Zebra mussels are a highly invasive european species that once established in a lake or river system can cause extreme environmental and economic problems. Sadly enough- zebra mussels already have an established population on Lake Texoma. As anglers and boaters we must take every precaution to prevent their spread to other Texas waterways! Brian tells us how we can help and breaks down the consequences if we fail. A colony of zebra mussels on the bottom of a boat pulled out of an Oklahoma reservoir.

Podcast: Anyone who has been following competitive bass fishing this fall knows that the Alabama Rig is responsible for winning just about every tournament out there. The umbrella style, multi lure rig has revolutionized the sport in a matter of months! So much so that BASS is considering banning the bait on the Elite Series and the upcoming Bass Master Classic. Elite Pro Kelly Jordon drops in to talk about the new technique and he also gives us some tips on breaking in a new boat motor. The Alabama Rig: Then we get into some exotic talk with our old buddy Austin Dempsey of the Star S Ranch. You might recall the anti hunters have been trying to prevent exotic ranches from hunting 3 specific species: dama gazelle, scimitar horned oryx and the addax. These animals are endangered or extinct in their native africa- but exotic ranches have done an amazing job managing breeding herds of these animals in the states. The big loser with the latest news is the animlas themselves. Austin breaks it all down for us. The addax- what an awesome animal! We round out the broadcast by tackling the zebra mussel issue with Texas Parks and Wildlife’s Inland Fisheries Regional Director Brian Van Zee. Zebra mussels are a highly invasive european species that once established in a lake or river system can cause extreme environmental and economic problems. Sadly enough- zebra mussels already have an established population on Lake Texoma. As anglers and boaters we must take every precaution to prevent their spread to other Texas waterways! Brian tells us how we can help and breaks down the consequences if we fail. A colony of zebra mussels on the bottom of a boat pulled out of an Oklahoma reservoir.

Podcast: Episode 105 Lots of great content this week folks! We start things off by checking in with Denton County Game Warden Darren Blackerby. I contacted GW Blackerby after a discouraging morning in the duck marsh…the hunt was great- but unfortunately some of the home owners around this Amry Corps Of Engineers lake didn’t appreciate the fact that we were hunting. So much so that they called the cops who came out and tried to get us to stop hunting even though we were more than double the legal distance from any house, roadway or school. We were so far away in fact, that we couldn’t hear the police honking at us or yelling at us thru a megaphone! Unfortunately, this type of unacceptable and ignorant behavior is becoming more and more common. BUT- we have rights as hunters and if you purchased your Type II permit and obey game laws then there is nothing folks can do to prevent you from hunting. If they do, they could go to jail. Here was the result of that morning- pretty good hunt with our buddy Zane Williams. Then we put a stamp on the 2011 Texas Whitetail when TPWD Whitetail Deer Program Leader Alan Cain drops in. Alan has his finger squarely on the pulse of our whitetail herd and we get his thoughts on the season that was. How much did the drought really affect antler growth across the board? We also touch on the Managed Lands Deer Permit Program (MLD). This program has been one of the more successful in recent memory and it allows land owners and ranches extra tags and extended seasons to properly manage their deer. Doe harvest is a major part of the program. Also, Alan has some exciting new regarding archery seasons being opened up in Dallas, Collin and Rockwall counties! We then round out the show when National Wild Turkey Federation- Texas Regional Directer Ray Hood stops by. The NWTF is one of my favorite conservation organizations. Ray has some breaking news to share regarding a new position opening up in the Lone Star State. I know I can’t wait for March to get here!

Podcast: Lots of great content this week folks! We start things off by checking in with Denton County Game Warden Darren Blackerby. I contacted GW Blackerby after a discouraging morning in the duck marsh…the hunt was great- but unfortunately some of the home owners around this Amry Corps Of Engineers lake didn’t appreciate the fact that we were hunting. So much so that they called the cops who came out and tried to get us to stop hunting even though we were more than double the legal distance from any house, roadway or school. We were so far away in fact, that we couldn’t hear the police honking at us or yelling at us thru a megaphone! Unfortunately, this type of unacceptable and ignorant behavior is becoming more and more common. BUT- we have rights as hunters and if you purchased your Type II permit and obey game laws then there is nothing folks can do to prevent you from hunting. If they do, they could go to jail. Here was the result of that morning- pretty good hunt with our buddy Zane Williams. Then we put a stamp on the 2011 Texas Whitetail when TPWD Whitetail Deer Program Leader Alan Cain drops in. Alan has his finger squarely on the pulse of our whitetail herd and we get his thoughts on the season that was. How much did the drought really affect antler growth across the board? We also touch on the Managed Lands Deer Permit Program (MLD). This program has been one of the more successful in recent memory and it allows land owners and ranches extra tags and extended seasons to properly manage their deer. Doe harvest is a major part of the program. Also, Alan has some exciting new regarding archery seasons being opened up in Dallas, Collin and Rockwall counties! We then round out the show when National Wild Turkey Federation- Texas Regional Directer Ray Hood stops by. The NWTF is one of my favorite conservation organizations. Ray has some breaking news to share regarding a new position opening up in the Lone Star State. I know I can’t wait for March to get here!

Podcast: Episode 104 This week was a good one ya’ll! Casey Donahew from the Casey Donahew band talks about the new record- Double Wide Dream… and of course that good ‘ol boy is as passionate about deer hunting as he is about music. Casey talks about his place in West Texas and the two management bucks he harvested this season. Casey doing his thing on stage: Then Clint Montgomery of the Texas Archery Academy drops in. The Texas Archery Academy is a relatively new organization that promotes all aspects of archery in Texas. They have a massive shooting facility in Plano, Texas and are working towards building a strong statewide presence. Clint talks about their goals and events they put on to try and get new folks interested in archery- especially our youth. Here is a snapshot of a recent event aimed at introducing archery to some young Texans: We then round out the show when TPWD Inland Fisheries Program Manager Carl Kittel stops by. Carl oversees the massive Winter Trout Stocking program each winter. This is a great opportunity for anglers of all ages to get out and catch some rainbow trout. TPWD stocks over 250,000 fish in over 100 locations statewide. Visit the TPWD website to find out when they’ll be stocking in your area.