Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 1

Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 1

Yesterday I’d never shot more than a sporting clay. Today I shot a metal target from 700 yards away in the heart of Texas hill country as a student of the FTW Ranch SAAM Course.  Yep, 700 yards away. And that’s only part of what I learned how to do in my first day as...
Skills of Successful Wingshooting Guides

Skills of Successful Wingshooting Guides

Being a hunting guide might seem like a dream job, one we would all like to have, but there is a tremendous gap between the dream and the reality. There is a famous anecdote, possibly apocryphal, about Fred Astaire’s first screen test for RKO Pictures. Apparently, the...
Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 3

Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 3

Today I went hunting for the very first time and it’s safe to say I’m hooked. Instead of beginning our day in the classroom, we rode out to one of the ranges to practice shooting in different positions. Our instructor, Dave, spent some time showing us how...
Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 2

Dispatch from FTW Ranch SAAM Course: Day 2

I wasn’t sure how my second day here could top my first, which was full of accomplishments, but then I remembered I’m at FTW and that’s how things work around here. We spent the morning with another hour-long class session where our instructor went into more detail...