atlasman

I have said in more then a few posts this year that in my opinion a large buck taken in an area that only sees them once in a blue moon is a much better trophy then a big boy taken where they grow on trees.

Well as fate would have it I now believe that more then ever. I killed a 13 pointer on Thanksgiving morning and it is even better then I ever thought it would be. This deer is legendary already. EVERYONE knows I killed it........EVERYONE wants to see it, hear the story, know where I shot it, what I shot it with, etc

I have hunted 17 years and never seen anything like this guy, my dad has hunted 40 years and never seen one like him, my brothers 24 and 19 each and only one big arse 8 ptr by my older bro.....big bro has never seen a big boy. They just don' t live that long where we hunt. I don' t know how the hell this guy slipped through the cracks but I am just glad when he goofed up I was there to take him.

When I saw him coming I almost died of a heart attack. Guys in Kansas, Iowa, and other huge buck states wouldn' t think this buck was anything to get too excited about..........but here the odds of taking a buck like him are worse then winning the lottery.

So what defines a trophy? Size of deer or amount of skill, effort, luck required to take him??

I take special pride in my trophy because I know that very few guys in my area have been able to what I did last thursday. If 8 out of 10 guys had one just like him on their walls he would be just another big buck in the crowd.

So is it just antler size or is there more to it for you guys??

bobcat 10

every deer i kill is a trophy to me,even a doe.because you can look back and say to my kids i killed this deer.it is all about memorys.but if i kill a big buck it will be a trophy.



go deep hunt hard.

Dubbya

I think a trophy is what you make it, to some people it' s the hunt that takes the animal, to some it' s the size of the animal. To me, every animal I' m able to take is a trophy.

rebel wolf

I agree with the others a trophy is what you get out of it, I have bow shot 7 deer in ten years and everyone of them is a trophy from the doe to the 5pt i' m proud of every one....

CBM SC

You have to define a trophy for yourself !! Doesn' t matter what I consider one !

Congrat' s !!!

Was it a bow kill ??

Zelazny

Theres multiple definitions atlasman.

A kids first deer is a trophy.

A mature doe is a trophy.

A kill after placing XXX limitations on yourself is a trophy.

A rack scored in inches vs those in P&Y book is a trophy.

A 140" deer in an area that never produces them is a trophy.

A 4 1/2 year old buck thats been hunted hard on public ground is always a trophy.


The word " trophy" is a blanket word that means a lot of different things. Not getting caught up in how other people define that word is the real key to Trophy

Zelazny

But to heck with that, I want pictures and details of your hunt !

Belle Island

I don' t think in terms of a " trophy" . I live in Mississippi, we have nice deer, but we do not have moster P&Y and B&C running around. I only know 1 or 2 guys that have killed a P&Y deer. A P&Y in Mississippi is like killing a B&C in Illinois or Kansas, they are out there, but not many are harvested with bows. If I kill a 4 1/2 year old buck that scores 120 in MS, I' ve really got a nice deer that I am very proud of. However, he would not be considered a true trophy in the hunting world. I' m ok with that, I don' t look for others approval to validate my hunting skills or success.

Atlasman, I see you posting a lot on this topic. You need to move on man , everyone can' t live in Iowa, Illinois or Kansas. If you kill an above average mature whitetial deer with your bow, you accomplished a great task and should be proud.

TheBuckeyeOutdoorsman

I don' t need anyone else to justify my definition of trophy. If a 3 or 4 year old buck is rare in your area then a 13 pointer would be an awesome trophy. Here in central Ohio I harvested an 11 point buck in 1999 that scored 131 inches and several people said to me, " Thats a buck of a lifetime! You' ll never see one like that again!" They are right in that it is a trophy, but here in central Ohio they can be found if you work for them. So, I plan on seeing one like it and bigger again someday. We don' t see them everyday or even once a week. We have to work hard and then even have a little bit of luck. I put my homework in and work harder than most. Like I said, there are a few big boys around here to be found, but they are hounded on the public ground here! If you see your buck as a trophy then it is. You don' t need approval from anyone whether they are in Iowa, Canada or down the street! That' s my .02 on it.

TBO

silentassassin

Just a couple of observations:

1. If big bucks are so rare where so live then why does your profile say you are from " Big Buck USA"

2. that will probably be the last big buck that you will ever see on that property if you told everyone where you killed it. I guarantee you if that is the case then you will start seeing new tresspassing problems that you have never seen before. If I kill a thumper, (like yesterday) unless someone happens to pull up and see it in the back of the truck or catch it at the processor then no one is going to know and they certainly aren' t going to know where I was hunting.

Now to answer your question the trophy is in the eye of the beholder. If it' s a trophy to you then it' s a trophy. Personally, a buck that scores 200 isn' t a trophy to me if it' s killed with a gun because I don' t see killing a deer with a gun to be an equal challenge. I feel the advantage goes distinctly to the hunter when a gun is involved. But again that' s just my opinion and it' s not meant to take away from anyone elses deer. There is not a mathematical formula to figure who' s trophy is the " most throphiest" .

PS

Did you kill it with a bow or gun?