A Thing of Dying

A Thing of Dying

In the 89th year of his being, Ben Willow had died where most completely he had lived, upon the hills of home, with a dog and a gun. A little less than midway through this book, iron-willed old Missouri-West Virginian Ben Willow throws himself mercilessly once more...

The Annual Party

The Annual Party

As you are reading this, one of the biggest events in America has come and gone — my birthday. That is the day when Mike fires up the grill, tosses on the steaks, bakes some potatoes and serves me a helping of each. Normally crowds of folks arrive to chew on the...

A Great and Tainted Genius

A Great and Tainted Genius

There’s the greatest writer of the last century and wanderings across the continents with gun and rod, and it begins in 1951 just outside Havana Way up in the Sawtooths, the day comes creeping on the wind. The aspens rattle and the stars fade as the first light hits...

When Older Men Gather Around

When Older Men Gather Around

After an unsuccessful day in my stand on Thanksgiving Day, my daughter and I drove the next morning back to the Philly suburbs where I was born and raised. I suppose I’ll always call that place home, although Lynchburg, Virginia where I now live is becoming more and...

Staying at Hunter S. Thompson’s Digs

Staying at Hunter S. Thompson’s Digs

Thompson, along with Ernest Hemingway, were two of my biggest influences in regards to writing – and unfortunately – in how a writer should live. Hunter S. Thompson is credited with inventing an entirely new style of journalism, is the author of such literary classics...

Spotted Horse on the Windy Prairie

Spotted Horse on the Windy Prairie

Sporting Classics Assistant Editor-Digital, Adam C. Trawick, went with Byers Media to take a couple toms off the windy prairies of South Dakota. It was a brutal, gale-force driven 26 degrees Fahrenheit that smacked us as we stepped foot onto the muddy grounds of the...

Youth Field Trial Alliance

Youth Field Trial Alliance

A Cause We Can All Get Behind I want to give a shout-out to a relatively new organization whose presence on the sporting landscape can’t be viewed as anything but a good thing: the Youth Field Trial Alliance. The brainchild of Chris Mathan, the human dynamo behind...

The Big Predators

The Big Predators

With lions, wolves and grizzlies on the increase, I may start wearing a bulletproof vest when I go to these remote areas. I like hiking in fields and forests to sniff about for deer, elk, birds and rodents. Now, however, I must look over my shoulder and stay alert for...