I can’t believe its been three years, since we first met Ray Howell.  Shelly and I were exhibiting at a hunting show in Minnesota and so many memories come to mind like: we sold more dvds to vendors than we did people! It was the first year for this show and attendance was, shall we say, way down!  So we had plenty of time on our hands, which we passed by walking to the local Subway and ordering subs…..3 different times that day!  Yep, Shelly and I passed the time by talking to our neighboring vendors and eating 18 inches of subs apiece!! I can’t even think of ordering a cold cut combo without thinking about that day!! 

Anyways, Ray stopped by our booth and told us about his camp and said he was having one in LaCrosse and we should stop by and see what it was about.  We thought it sounded like a lot of fun so we packed up the Malibu and headed to LaCrosse.  And who would’ve known that my old 2000 Malibu still had it in her to break the speed limit, but sure enough, there we were, pulled off on the side of the road, with Shelly running the camera the whole time!! She wasn’t going to let me live this one down!   Thankfully, the police officer was kind to me and let me off with a warning!  

Once we got to camp, we got to witness first hand what ”Kicking Bear” camps were all about.  We saw over 100 kids and their families participating in numerous outdoor activities.  We saw numerous volunteers helping kids learn how to shoot bows, play games like kickball, tug of war, and more!  We learned that this not for profit organization put these camps on all across the country and is paid for by local businesses and individuals who believe that it is important to provide positive role models and introduce the next generation to the sport we so greatly love.  Shelly and I spent the afternoon with everyone and by the time we were getting ready to leave, we told Ray that we wanted to help!  So back in June 2009, we hosted our first Kicking Bear camp!

We had 60 some kids and their families come to our home, campout and spend two days with us.  Families arrived on Friday afternoon around 4pm, set up their tents and then the fun began.  We had so many games we played that day, from kickball, tug of war, hayride to the woods to find sheds, hacky sack races, bow shoot and more.  We ended the day with supper and a campfire.  On Saturday morning, we had breakfast and then a mandatory bow safety meeting.  Immediately after, the kids and the volunteers hit the woods to participate in a 3D target course.  Oh, I forgot to mention that if the kids didn’t own bows, the camp provides them!!  After flinging some arrows, we came back, had some lunch, hit the 100 ft waterslide and ended the day with an awards ceremony. 

After everyone left, it didn’t take long for the emails to start coming in, thanking us for what we did!  One email had me in tears because of the profound effect it had on a mother/daugher relationship and how attending this camp, brought them closer together.  Another dad, thanked us for getting his son away from the video games for two days! 

I am not going to lie, its a lot of work to put on these camps, but it is so worth it to know that we made a difference in a child’s life!!  Imagine a child whose mom and dad might be going through a divorce or maybe a family crisis, (one family’s house burnt down and said this was a great escape for them and their kids), or the child might be heading down the wrong path, and if we can somehow help these kids, then no cost is too great!

We will be hosting our 3rd Annual Kicking Bear this June 17-18th.  The camp is competely FREE to ALL children and their parents!  All we ask of you, is if you plan on attending,  bring another child outside your family that you think might be down on their luck or maybe they’re from a family who doesn’t hunt, and bring them along.  To pre-register, please click the Kicking Bear banner on the bottom of the homepage to sign up. 

If you would like to volunteer your time or donate to the camp, please email me at tara@droptinedivas.com 

We look forward to seeing you this June!

~ Tara Seiler

We have been on the road every weekend traveling to deer shows and have had little time at home.  Tara and I got back from the Ohio show late Sunday night and noticed that most of the snow was gone.  We have been itching to hit the “sanctuary” to shed hunt all winter.  Monday we woke up and decided today is the day to walk that piece before the rain came on Tuesday.  But, we had to wait for Brian and my dad to get done working on the farm before we could begin (it is a tradition that we all shed hunt that piece together, since it is usually the best shed hunting).  At 3 pm Tara, Brian (and their kids Brady and Jackie), my dad Herb, Emmett and I hit the woods in anticipation of finding some bone!  We were not disappointed.  We were able to walk for about an hour and a half and found a total of 13 sheds.

 I found a nice 2 1/2 year old set right next to each other, which is always a bonus!  Emmett and I also each found a 3 1/2 year old side, Brian found a very nice 2 1/2 year old that is a match set to one that Emmett found.  I also found the matching side to “Tall Boy”, which team member Alan found a few weeks ago when we walked the field right next to the sanctuary.  We have Tall Boy on film this year and he is going to be a very nice 10 point 4 year old next year.  We found a few sheds that we have on film in ’09, which I think is the coolest part of hunting your own land.  We get to watch the deer grow and mature, so when we have the opportunity to harvest one of them, it really means something.  We still haven’t found some of the ones we are really hoping to find (I would love to find the Crab Claw 8), but there is still some snow in the woods, so who knows, maybe the next and last time we step foot in the sanctuary for the year, we will find one of the big boys.  If not, we as we all know…that is hunting!!  ~  Shelly Seiler

 It was strange not having to pack our suitcases and say good bye to our kids for a few days to hit the road for yet another trade show!  You see, the Wisconsin Big Buck Classic was held right in our backyard (only 15 minutes from home).  We got to tuck our kids in at night, sleep in our own beds, and eat decent meals!  It was a nice change of pace for us considering the amount of traveling we do this time of year!  We want to give a special thanks to our fellow Wisconsinites for coming out and supporting us!  We got a chance to catch up with some old friends and meet some new ones!  Now, Shelly and I are getting ready to head out Thursday for one of our longer trips of the season…we’re East bound to the Ohio Deer Classic.  If you’re near the Columbus area, make sure to stop by and see us!

~Tara Seiler

  Aaaahhh……finally!  This was our first weekend off since February 17th and we spent it wisely with our family and friends.  We spent most of Saturday shed hunting and doing a little filming for our upcoming TV show.  We walked most of our fields which turned up quite a few sheds.  We were very fortunate to find the complete sheds to a buck we call Pretty Boy!  He is going to be a stud this next year. We found a couple other sheds in the woods but the snow is still knee deep in most places, so we’ll have to walk again once the snow starts melting.  But as of today March 9th, we just got another 3-4 inches of snow, so it’s gonna be awhile before we get in there!! GRRR!! 

Hopefully we’ll have some more sheds to show you guys in a few weeks!  Until then, keep Workin’ For Whitetails! ~ Tara

Shelly and Tara checkin’ out the shed they just found                                                                                                              

We just set foot in the woods when Josh stubbles upon this nice shed!

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Alan and Katie find a couple nice sheds while walking one of the fields!

Jeff scores on a nice shed while looking around some farm equipment that was parked by a hayfield!

If you are lookin’ for something to do March 11-13th, stop by the Wisconsin Big Buck Classic held at the Wisconsin Dells Center at Chula Vista Resort! It will feature a world class shed display, big buck contests, trail camera contest, archery shoot, seminars and great exhibits!  All Friday night, ladies get FREE admission and Sunday is Family Fun Day!  The first 500 kids receive a gift bag!  Make plans to come see us this weekend!

Season has been over for us since early January, but I went out one afternoon just to take “inventory” as to what bucks might still be holding their antlers.  This particular night, I came across two bucks we call,  Pretty Boy and Tall Boy.  Going to be some great up and comers for next year! 

We are looking forward to this weekend because it will be our first time hitting the woods lookin’ for sheds!  We also have some of our huntin’ buddies coming up for a brainstorming session to discuss the upcoming season and what work needs to be done to get ready for the season opener! 

T minus 228 days till season opener!!

~Brian

Congrats to Jason Johnson for winning February’s giveaway!  Be sure to sign up for this month’s giveaway provided by our Bad To The Bone friends from Muzzy!!