Hunting

In the blitz of demand for Ruger’s polymer pistols, it is easy to forget that America’s gunmaker has the widest line of firearms in the industry. For SHOT 2013 Ruger has introduced three new bolt rifles based on the reliable M77 platform. All three guns have a new heavy caliber muzzle brake from Ruger called the “radial-port” muzzle brake that is said to reduce recoil significantly, and we can’t wait to get one of these guns in to give them a try. The Ruger Guide Gun has an estimated street price of about $900 and is available in several .30 caliber magnums up to .375 Ruger. The new Hawkeye African with the radial-port muzzle brake is available in calibers up to .416 Rigby and is expected to be the same price. Both of those guns have open sights installed, and it appears there will be a left hand in .375 Ruger. The Magnum Hunter is currently available in only .300 WIn. Mag. at $829 expected street price, and comes standard with a Hogue overmolded stock. We also expect a few new Ruger #1 rifles this year, including maybe a .284, but they weren’t ready for the show. There is also a new lightweight American we hope to get to later in the week. Expect an exciting year for Ruger hunting rifles, made in America by Americans. This is a sneak peek with our host Julie Mac from Media Day at the Range, SHOT Show 2013.

While I will never claim to be anything close to being an expert in turkey hunting….I have pursued the quarry on more than a few occasions. I’ve named all those turkeys the “Roadrunner” which of course, makes me “Wile E. Coyote” and no… I am not the “Super Genius”. Far from it, according to my wife. I do give myself an “A” for effort though. How an animal whose head houses a brain the size of a pea can beat me and thousands of other hunters time & time again…for that I definitely do not have an answer. I make no excuses for not being able to routinely beat this Old World majestic game bird. I suppose that is what draws the strange breed of turkey hunters that obsess, scout, gear up, & lose countless hours of sleep and family time to outsmart a gobbler. It can be done and gets done thousands of times each year every Spring and Fall all across this great country of ours. While I will never claim to be anything close to being an expert in turkey hunting….I have pursued the quarry on more than a few occasions. I’ve named all those turkeys the “Roadrunner” which of course, makes me “Wile E. Coyote” and no… I am not the “Super Genius”. Far from it, according to my wife. I do give myself an “A” for effort though. How an animal whose head houses a brain the size of a pea can beat me and thousands of other hunters time & time again…for that I definitely do not have an answer. I make no excuses for not being able to routinely beat this Old World majestic game bird. I suppose that is what draws the strange breed of turkey hunters that obsess, scout, gear up, & lose countless hours of sleep and family time to outsmart a gobbler. It can be done and gets done thousands of times each year every Spring and Fall all across this great country of ours.

Life isn’t always fair. It’s possible to spend an entire lifetime of hard hunting and never get a chance at a truly fantastic, world-class trophy. It’s also possible to take a Boone and Crockett whitetail on the very first outing. The strange nature of hunting is that, while both effort and technique certainly count, ultimately there is a major element of random chance that places a great animal and a hunter in proximity at the same time.