About the Author
of
"Bowhunting Trophy Whitetails"
Bobby Worthington is a six generation Bledsoe County, Tennessee resident. After graduating from Bledsoe County High School he attended Freed-Hardeman College.
His father got him involved in the outdoors very young in life. When Bobby was about 10 his father, the late Arlis Clay Worthington, made his first bow for him, it was a hickory recurve.
Bobby began shooting in archery tournaments and bowhunting when he was around the age of 11. During his long career shooting archery tournaments you can count on one hand the number of championships he did not place first in. Bobby has never been defeated on the state or national sectional level. He holds the Tennessee State Indoor all time high score record for his class. He no longer shoots in tournaments but directs his energy and time toward his first love, bowhunting trophy whitetail deer.
In the past four years Bobby has arrowed three bucks large enough to be featured in North American Whitetail Magazine. You may have read some of these stories: The HoneyHole By The Highway was in the Nov. 2001 issue of N A W. It is a story about a 180 inch monster 8 point Bobby arrowed on public hunting land in Illinois. The Tennessee Monarch In the Jan 2003 issue was a story that told how Bobby patterned an arrowed a 28 inch inside spread 10 point on public land in his home state of Tennessee. Call It Fate is a story in the Oct. 2004 issue that tells about a 180 inch Tennessee non-typical Bobby hunted for nearly three years before he finally arrowed him on Dec. 1, 2003. This story was also featured in Deer and Deer Hunting Journal Of Monster Whitetails Booners issue this passed October (2004).
Most of the huge bucks that Bobby has arrowed was shot on public land. Bobby has never hunted with an outfitter or been on a private lease. His success has prompted several professional people in the outdoor business to label him as one of the best bowhunters in the world today.
Bobby is a Pro Staff member and Bowhunting Adviser for several major archery manufactures. He also speaks in several seminars each year on the subject of trophy bowhunting. Bobby has also been a wildlife photographer for many years and he is currently working on some limited edition wildlife prints.
Bobby began writing for outdoor magazines in 2000 when he wrote his first article for North American Whitetail Magazine about a huge buck he arrowed in Illinois the year before. While there had been other articles written about his trophy bowhunting this was the first article he had written himself.
After Bobby wrote this article North American Whitetail Magazine requested that he write a “how-to” series on the subject of trophy whitetail bowhunting. The result was a six part series titled Bowhunting for Trophy Whitetails.
After that article was published Bobby received other requests from North American Whitetail Magazine, as well as from other national outdoor publications, for articles
Bobby now writes on a regular basis for North American Whitetail Magazines, Peterson's Bowhunting, and Deer and Deer Hunting as well as for other outdoor publications. He has also written some chapters for books. Bobby is considered by many publishers to be one of the most knowledgeable freelance writers in the business today.
Last year, after requests from several people in the outdoor profession including Gordon Whittington the then editor of North American Whitetail magazine Bobby began writing a book on the subject of hunting trophy whitetail deer with a bow and arrow. The result is a full-color hardbound book which is just off the press. It is titled Bowhunting Trophy Whitetails, An Advanced Approach To Taking Mature Bucks. This book is the first ever published by North American Whitetail Magazine. .
Bobby says “when I reflect on my writing career it is hard for me to believe how far I have come. I nearly flunked out of high school because I did so poorly in English. I had to take the subject over every year after my freshman year. I believe it took me seven classes of English to graduate from high school. I guess most of the other students who were in English class with me never thought I would ever read a book much less write one”.
Bobby goes on to comment on the future of hunting by saying, “I am concerned that there are not enough young people being recruited as sportsmen. I am very concerned that many of the ones that are being introduced to hunting are not being taught ethical sport hunting. There are a large number of poachers in this area as well as all over the country who steal game from ethical hunters. Most of these individuals do not even take their own children to the woods with them because of their jealousy; however because of peer pressure tragically some do.
I have never known a poacher to teach a young person to be an ethical sport hunter. Make no mistake about it a poacher is not a hunter but a thief who victimizes sportsman and the young people they take to the woods with them by giving them the wrong impression that it is acceptable to illegally take game as long as you avoid being caught.
This illegal taking of game is detrimental to our sport. It is fuel for the anti- hunters and puts legal hunters in a bad light before the non-hunting community who does not realize that poachers are not hunters.
I do not want to give the impression that I feel like everyone in this area who takes to the woods are poaching game. There are many fine sportsmen in this area and we must all do our part to combat this problem of poaching. I realize many times we cannot change what a person does or teaches his children. We can however give encouragement for either right or wrong by our influence. The old saying, “birds of a feather flock together” is so true. A true sportsman is not the kind of person who will socialize or hunt with the criminals that are jeopardizing our sport. If you do so it is an indictment on you because you are condoning their illegal acts and by default encouraging them.
Looking at the big picture of the issue of game poaching we should come to realize at the heart of all this cheating and stealing is the motivation behind why illegal hunters poach game. Game poachers are frustrated and jealous people who feel inadequate in their hunting ability as well as in all other walks of life. They will go to any and all means to kill animals before someone else does and so others will stroke their ego.
On the other hand and standing in stark contrast to the game poacher is the true sportsman who hunts for much more personal reasons. One of the reasons is for the challenge of matching his wits and abilities against his quarry. He will many times put limitations on the way he hunts and or on the weapon he uses to insure his pursuit is a fair chase challenge. In this challenge the sportsman finds self-worth, self-esteem, and self satisfaction. He feels good about himself when he enters the woods and when he leaves the woods. This person truly enjoys hunting and will enjoy it even if no other person knows anything about his hunting accomplishments.
We must impress in young hunters (as well as many who are older) that the most important point of hunting is not found in where we hunt, neither is it found in what we hunt or even in how we hunt. We must come to realize that first and foremost all hunters need to address the issue of why we hunt!"
Bobby is sponsored by several archery and outdoor companies. He is on the elite pro Staff of MothWing camouflage. This is a new camouflage company that is based in East Tennessee not far from where Bobby Lives. To learn more about this new highly acclaimed camouflage company and to view their great looking patterns you can log on to their web page at www.mothwingcamo.com
Bobby is also a lead pro Staff member for another product that he is passionate about. This product is called Elimitrax. To find out more about this company logged on to www.elimitrax.com
Gordon Whittington,2004