I’m a gun guy, and have been my whole life. As a toddler, my earliest memories, even before girls, or motorcycles, or money, were holding dad’s shotgun and game birds. As an older boy, my worst punishment was to stay home while he went hunting on the weekends with whatever dog we had at that time.
I spent the last couple decades as general manager of one of the country’s largest gun shops and ranges, and in sales and purchasing in a “big box” outdoor sporting goods store. I wouldn’t trade these experiences for the world; they can’t be bought. I was an aircraft carrier based U.S. Navy Gunner’s Mate before that. Saw some big chunks of our wondrous world.
Here are some other current and former qualifications that brought me to Optics Planet:
- NRA certified instructor: Firearms and muzzle loaders
- Competitive firearm shooter and archery staff shooter
- State of Illinois private investigator
- Boy Scouts of America merit badge counselor
- State of Illinois volunteer hunter’s safety instructor
- Glock armorer
- Consultant to Illinois DNR biologists
- Expert witness in firearm related court cases
- CERT member
- NRA life member
- Published author
- TV and radio host
I’ve hunted from Alaska to Africa for large and small game, and prefer to process my own meat from field to table. I love wildlife, especially with butter and garlic. I cook a lot. I am also an avid fisherman, and enjoy watching birds for Cornell University every winter for their feeder survey, although I prefer to watch game birds through my oven window. I regularly shoot a variety of rimfires and high quality adult airguns in my basement range. I do some gunsmithing and have mounted thousands of scopes.
I am blessed with my beloved wife Shirley, and our old boy Radical Lee von Dundee, the world’s most human German Shorthaired Pointer and our best friend. I’ve raced and crashed cars and motorcycles, jumped out of planes, gotten lost in countries and continents, broke things (including myself), built things, blown stuff up, and in general, had a hell of a good time. I’m truly blessed, and wish the same for you.
I’m heading back to NM for a guided elk hunt I did last year. Saw tremendous bulls but couldn’t get closer than 400-600 yds in some cases. If I had the equipment to shoot that far I could have shot a 350″+ bull every day. I’m going to bring my 300 Weatherby Magnum this time but want a tactical scope where I can simply dial in the distance on a custom turret, put the cross hairs on the chest and pull the trigger. I’m struggling to zero in on the best choices and values for this. Do you have any thoughts or recommendations on where to look or who to ask?
Hi Steve, just came across your blog site as i search for an answer about scopes. You sound like the guy who can answer my question. i’ve never hunted with a scope, mostly because i was usually horseback in the high country of Colorado and Montana (Bob Marshall Wilderness) and it was ‘un-handy’ to do so. Now, i’m a much older guy and the eyes ain’t what they used to be, so i’m “in the market” for a scope. Can you tell me what the difference is between a rifle scope and a “Scout” scope?