Busy January
Blog Sponsored by Dave Hallman Chevrolet
January is a great time to begin scoring deer for the Northeast Big Buck Club and the PA Big Game Records. Most of the archery bucks can be scored because their sixty-day drying period is over, and hunters are interested in seeing how big their buck is. I always look forward to scoring events and seeing what monsters were killed in the archery season or the previous year. It is enjoyable to talk with hunters about their success and listen to them retell their stories.
The first scoring event of 2023 took place in Saegertown at Myers Sportsman's Connection. Multiple hunters arrived to have their trophy bucks scored. By the end of the event, six bucks were officially entered into the NBBC Record Book. A few of those bucks also qualified for the PA Big Game Records. Chris Johnston entered the largest buck, scoring 147 5/8 as a non-typical twelve-point.
For the second year in a row, I was invited to Elk County to score deer for a wonderful event. The Shaft Driven archery event is made up of approximately 200 members. This event was created as a way to remember a friend who passed away. The archery-only event has grown over the years, and its members shoot some fantastic bucks. Six more bucks made the NBBC Record book. The biggest entry was a set of sheds. Robert Krug, a local taxidermist, found a matching set of sheds that scored 219 6/8. The sheds are truly jaw-dropping!
The final scoring event of January was held at Myers Sportsman's Connection. I was very busy at the event scoring 8 bucks for the books. Steve Rihel's PA Rifle kill made the sixty-day drying time, and he brought the buck to be scored. The main frame 10-point had five additional non-typical points and scored a whopping 171 6/8 inches. Not to be outdone, Dave Rudy brought his non-typical rifle buck scoring 167 2/8.
January has been an overwhelming success, with twenty-two bucks officially entered into the NBBC Book and an additional eleven bucks that qualified for the PA Big Game Records. I will be holding more scoring events this Spring. If you have a buck you want to be scored, please contact me. If you have a shop and would like to hold an event, email me at kighty7@gmail.com. Here is the list of all the bucks scored in January and a video to showcase the bucks. Altogether there were over 3,053 inches of antlers measured. Thank you, Dave Hallman Chevrolet, for sponsoring this blog!
Robert Krug 219 6/8
Steve Rihel 171 6/8
David Rudy 167 2/8
Rod Schneider 157 5/8
Keith Maloney 152 1/8
Gunnar Luper 147 7/8
Chris Johnston 147 5/8
Dan Bowley 145 3/8
James Nero 142 5/8
Ryan Ongley 141 1/8
Mike Pavlock 141 1/8
Rod Schneider 136 5/8
Tom Wise 131 7/8
Bradley Sawtelle 128 6/8
Jon Roae 125 3/8
Matt Gotto 128 1/8
Dylan Rerko 119 5/8
Mark Chang 118 0/8
Dylan Rerko 114 4/8
John Sangl 111 4/8
Samuel Kightlinger 103 6/8
Brian Kightlinger 102 4/8
