Bow opener produces another record buck

TROPHY RACK. Jonathon Schmucker of Seaman in Adams County shot this 36-pointer on opening day of bowhunting season in Ohio. Photo courtesy of DNR

By Ed Harp Contributing Writer

Seaman, Ohio — Jonathon Schmucker bided his time patiently and finally this year's bowhunting opener arrived.

His patience was rewarded. Hunting in Adams County in southwest Ohio on opening day, Schmucker harvested one of the biggest white-tailed bucks known to exist in North America.

It's a massive animal that will be talked about, written about, and forever hailed as evidence that southwestern Ohio is truly a trophy whitetail venue. First reported to have 33 points and a rack that would easily score over 200 (non-typical), "The Amish Buck" (so named by Schmucker) was actually much bigger than that, according to the hunter.
 

Schmucker told Ohio Outdoor News that green scoring established 36 points. The gross was 304; the net 295 7/8. The final scoring won't be complete until after the mandatory 60-day drying period, which will start shortly. The inside spread is 24 inches.

Now, to be fair, the green figures may change somewhat. Non-typical scoring is as much an art as it is a science. But The Amish Buck, which Schmucker shot with a crossbow, should still be in the class of all time greats.

Schmucker, a member of Adams County's Amish community near Seaman, bagged his trophy the old -fashioned way: Through preparation, skill, and nerves of steel. He watched his prey, built his stand in the most likely spot, and made certain he had a clear shooting lane. Schmucker said he did his homework and was ready when the season opened.

Once the animal lumbered into view, Schmucker watched some more, never got in a hurry, waited for a clear shot within his range, and took full advantage of his opportunity.

"I was nervous when I first saw him but as I made the shot I calmed right down," he said. "Afterward, I got nervous again."

After the kill, Schmucker transported the deer home where "it took three grown men to hang him," he said. Schmucker estimated the weight at 250 pounds, field dressed.

That weight estimate doesn't sound so outlandish when it's compared with other, recent harvests in the southwestern corner of the state. Since 2000, this section of Ohio has produced a non-typical buck with a score over 300 (The Beatty Buck - Greene County) and a typical over 200 (The Jerman Buck - Warren County) . With a rack score of 304 6/8, the Beatty buck stands as the world's largest non-typical white-tailed deer ever taken by a bowhunter. The Jerman Buck, pictured on the cover of last year's hunting regulation booklet, became an Ohio typical record with a score of 201 1/8.

Along with that, according to the DNR Division of Wildlife, half of the Ohio Buckeye Big Buck Club top 10 entries in both the typical and non-typical classes have been recorded within the last 10 years. The BBBC has kept records of trophy deer since 1958.

This is the second year in a row that a hunter has killed a 200-class trophy buck on opening day. Last year, Mike Rex of Athens killed a buck that scored 218 6/8 (Ohio Outdoor News, premiere edition, October 2005).

"Trophy bucks on opening day are getting to be a tradition in Ohio," said Steven A. Gray, chief of the Division of Wildlife. "The state's deer management program is designed to manage for trophy-sized bucks while controlling the state population through hunting of deer, especially does."

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