Big Buck 411 Blog

Ringside

Ringside

By Mike Handley

It doesn't take a lot of bang to bring in a buck.

That Levi Tarwater's giant whitetail materialized while two juvenile bucks were butting heads could be coincidence. Or it could be the older deer, curious, wanted a ringside seat.

The 29-year-old bowhunter from Hoyt, Kansas, might never know.

"The noises the two spikes were making weren't very loud, so I don't know if their sparring contributed to bringing in the big one," he said.

The question arose Nov. 3, 2016.

Levi works at a farm supply store in Topeka, and he left the job early that day in order to take advantage of the 10-mph north wind. He was 25 feet up a walnut tree before 3:00.

He'd hung the stand there because rubs and a scrape were nearby. He also had a clear view of a harvested soybean field and a broomsedge field. Hardwoods and cedars were behind him.

Levi hunts mostly evenings, and that was probably his 12th treetop vigil that year.

The first deer he saw that unusually warm day was a spike, which came onstage at 5:30. Another spike appeared 10 minutes later, and the little guys began a five-minute shoving match just 25 yards from Levi's hiding place.

While watching the young deer butt heads, he heard something behind him and turned to see a very large, thick-beamed buck. The rack had lots of points, too.

"I get pretty shaky very easily, so I looked at the deer only long enough to make a decision that I was going to shoot it if I had the opportunity," he said.

The deer came to the edge of the timber 40 yards from the quivering hunter trying not to look at its antlers. The regal animal stared into the broomsedge for a few seconds, and then it melted back in the trees.

Fortunately for Levi, the buck began walking toward instead of away from him. When it was 20 yards closer, it stopped again to stare into the field, presenting a broadside target.

That's as close as it would get.

The buck's BTR composite score is 218 7/8, helped immensely by nearly 43 inches of mass.

— Read Recent Blog!
Trading a Soup Spoon for a Fork: Husky Hummel / BTR Composite Score: 203 6/8"

Copyright 2024 by Buckmasters, Ltd.

Copyright 2020 by Buckmasters, Ltd