Whether they’re in the woods or on the podium, Hoyt’s Pro Shooters represent Hoyt to the fullest. And Hoyt.com is the only place where you’ll find behind-the-scenes info about their recent success stories, their travels, their favorite Hoyt bows and accessories, and other details that any true Hoyt fan needs to know.
They’re North America’s Favorite Hunting Couple. They’re among Hoyt’s most recognizable Pro Staffers. They’ve made a habit of filling their freezer and trophy room with all sorts of game. They travel the world to bring you exciting new bowhunting adventures – all in a quest to promote hunting and good times outdoors with family and friends.
Their easy-going, fun-loving approach to life has made them a fan favorite, and their unrivaled passion for capturing dramatic, entertaining bowhunting footage has made them a leader in video production. Their award-winning, fan favorite "Archer’s Choice TV" and "The Choice TV" – as well as their widely-popular DVDs – have shown countless hunters across the globe who they truly are: hard-working, fun-loving, hunting-addicted best friends who are about as humble, grateful and down-to-earth as two people could possibly be.
Hoyt recently caught up with Ralph & Vicki to discuss their success in the field, their upcoming hunts and their thoughts on the state of hunting ...
HOYT: You’ve had great success with the AlphaMax! How has the “AlphaMax Karma” impacted your hunts?
R&V: The AlphaMax Karma is contagious, that’s for sure! We got our bows a couple of days before we left for our annual North Dakota deer hunt with Double B Outfitters. It took only a very short time to get these new, lightweight, super smooth bows set up and ready to rock. When it came down to crunch time ... we crunched ‘em! I took a really good buck out of a box blind in North Dakota, and Vicki took numerous deer with her AlphaMax throughout the fall season. Her highlight had to be her mule deer she took from a treestand at our Colorado honey hole. We actually patterned this buck just like we do our whitetails all across the Midwest. She hammered that buck at less than 20 yards - from her treestand using whitetail tactics!
The Karma continued for me in Pike County, Illinois, hunting with our good friends and POSSE members Ted & Tina of Eagle Lake Outfitters. My AlphaMax did the job and helped me put the crunch on another super whitetail buck at a distance of 55 yards. He never knew what hit him. So between all the deer, bears, caribou, turkeys, hogs, moose, gators, predators and 3-D targets, our AlphaMax Karma rocked!
HOYT: How do you like to spend the off-season? What are you up to this summer? Speaking engagements? Seminars? Chilling at home?
R&V: We try to make sometime for ourselves but this is getting harder each year. But we’re not complaining – that’s for sure. We thank God and all the viewers and our partners for allowing us to do what we do. So I guess it would be safe to say we really don’t have an off-season anymore. Between seminars and appearances, our son’s baseball games, trying to run our production company and training, we’re what you called ALL BOOKED UP!
This summer, we’re heading down to Florida to hunt and film hogs and gators with our good friend Hoppy. Then we'll come back home and have our annual POSSE BASH, where everyone who’s on the POSSE comes in for a filming school, a meeting and a chance to talk with our partners. They learn about new equipment and visit with each other, and then we have our annual awards banquet. It’s all fun and lots of laughs.
Chilling at home? I’m not sure what that means! Vicki’s “Honey-Do List” for me has gotten so long that I think the Bible has fewer pages!
HOYT: You just wrapped up a Vancouver Island black bear hunt. What were some of the highlights of the trip?
R&V: Our first hunt was with Glen Venus of Trophy West Outfitters on Vancouver Island, and we had a blast hunting from a 72-foot boat! We saw some monster bears and ended up putting the AlphaMax to work. I took a super 6’7” bruiser and Vicki got one a little bit smaller. Next, we headed to Alberta but luck was not on our side. We saw a few bears but not the ones we were after. Such is hunting!
Our hunt with Trophy West has to be the best all-around bear hunt you could ever go on! From the scenery, spotting and stalking, seeing all the bears and other wildlife, staying on the boat, cruising the shoreline ... this by far is the ultimate bear hunt for us and probably anyone who wants an incredible springtime adventure!
HOYT: What hunts are you most looking forward to this fall? Will you be headed to any new destinations?
R&V: We’re pumped to be heading back to the Northwest Territories to hunt caribou with Aurora Caribou Camp. The tundra is breathtaking that time of year! Then we head to Colorado for an elk hunt and then back up to the Yukon with MRA, where we’ll be hunting giant Yukon moose. From there we head back to Quebec to hunt rutting caribou with Mirage Outfitters. After that, it’s whitetail deer in Illinois, North Dakota, Iowa, Ohio, and Canada, and mule deer in Colorado and Texas. Then we’re off to Anticoste Island in Quebec to hunt the beaches for whitetails, and then we’ll return home for some late-season whitetail hunting. We may hit a couple new spots, but it’s hard not to go to the places we know well and have had a lot of success in the past.
HOYT: Your son, R.J., has definitely taken a strong interest in hunting. Will he be joining you on any hunts this fall? Has he started shooting a Hoyt yet?
R&V: This summer he’s going with us down to Florida and will hunt hogs. He shoots his Trykon Jr. all the time but does not have the weight or the efficiency he needs to hunt with it yet. But we’re patient parents. The time will come when he’s using his Hoyt in the field, and we can’t wait for that day to come!
HOYT: You’re both outspoken advocates for hunters’ rights. How do you feel about the future of hunting? Why should hunters – bowhunters and gun hunters alike – join forces and speak with a unified voice ... now more than ever?
R&V: We think of hunting as a lifestyle. We all live for this, and we'll always do our very best to get everyone to understand that we hunters are the BEST conservationists out there, period!
Here’s the deal ... if we don’t all come together, but rather continue to divide, we’ll become weaker as a voice and community. We’ll allow those who don’t understand our lifestyle – those who don’t know all we do as sportsmen and women - to have a stronger voice. And when that happens, we will loose our wildlife, and we will loose our lifestyle and the appreciation for what God put on this planet to use and regulate. Hunting, no matter with what equipment you choose to use, is a proven tool for wildlife management. Just take, for example, how limited hunting has become overseas. In certain countries, they now have virtually no wildlife to speak of. We definitely don’t want that. We need to stand strong together as hunters and fight for our children’s right to hunt and own the equipment to continue to do so!
HOYT: How are you preparing for next fall?
R&V: We hike with weighted packs to build stamina and strength, we shoot a lot, and we work and play with all our archery equipment all the time. We normally shoot a few times a week, and as the season gets closer, we shoot everyday. We’ve found that you don’t have to shoot hundreds of arrows a day, but rather focus more on more quality shooting and more prep for each shot.
HOYT: What’s new at Archer’s Choice Media?
R&V: We’re excited to continue bringing new hunting adventures to everyone! We try to keep our Website always changing and up-to-date. We just launched a new blog. I’m not sure how it all works, but I just did my first blog post recently. We want everyone to get to know the POSSE and to understand they, too, believe in the bigger picture. We’re working on some really cool stuff for Hoyt and you all will see it very soon. We love to hear from all of you, so please log on to our forum and chat with us at www.archerschoicemedia.com!
Also, our new releases for this year are “BEAR N DOWN 8”, “SEVERE WHITETAIL DISORDERS (SWD) 5”, and a new title release that we hope everyone will check out and pass along to all the women and girls out there. It’s called “UNRESTRICTED...DRESSED 2 KILL”. This DVD was produced for all the female hunters out there, and we hope the message and the feelings we worked so hard to capture are portrayed in the manner in which we all as hunters know and feel and live for.
To learn more about Ralph and Vicki, Archer’s Choice Media and their award-winning TV shows and DVDs, visit www.archerschoicemedia.com.