Agree on the Shockey front.  I know what you are saying about the Pompous Ass part but I believe he does that to be funny.  I do enjoy his show and I agree, he chooses to hunt mature animals rather than just any animal for slam.  Eichler is always entertaining to watch as well, with his school boy excitement when he gets it done.  LOL  Adams, I congratulate him on the quest but he is not the most entertaining guy to watch.

I think the short distance weapon guys. (bows) Not to take away from the other 2, but, seems to me, getting to 50 yards and less as apposed to 100 and more takes a little more skill. Just my opinion.

I have respect for the accomplishments, and particularly for Fred Eichler, Jim Shockey,and Chuck Adams.

I had a good bs with Fred at the ABA banquet in Red Deer a couple of years ago. He was VERY down to earth and totally sincere. Not an ounce of pretense there!!

My hats off to the guys that acomplish this just by enjoying hunting and not by making a list and hunting animals to just check them off said list. Ive guided and seen way to many guys that turn the "SLAMS" into more of a prestige thing or obsession. And they start putting that check mark on the list in front of just going for the love of the hunt. The acomplishment of any of the slams is great with bow or gun and I personally dont feel any one person has done it cooler or better than the next.  If it takes you 50yrs or 5yrs it really makes no difference. Time and money are the only things that change the speed of which you get you "Slam".  Each person that has acheived  their "Slam" should be on a level page for coolness and all should be congratulated on their acheivment.

But hey thats just my opinion!

SG

  Slammers who cares?   As far as guys who have stacked the most meat up these guys don’t even make the list 

I was going to post a comment but once I started thinking about it, well......I just don't give a crap about some guy that wants to shoot so many animals on a list.   

My hats off to the guys that acomplish this just by enjoying hunting and not by making a list and hunting animals to just check them off said list. Ive guided and seen way to many guys that turn the "SLAMS" into more of a prestige thing or obsession. And they start putting that check mark on the list in front of just going for the love of the hunt. The acomplishment of any of the slams is great with bow or gun and I personally dont feel any one person has done it cooler or better than the next.  If it takes you 50yrs or 5yrs it really makes no difference. Time and money are the only things that change the speed of which you get you "Slam".  Each person that has acheived  their "Slam" should be on a level page for coolness and all should be congratulated on their acheivment.

But hey thats just my opinion!

SG

Excellent post SG.  This pretty much sums up exactly how I feel about the whole concept of "Slams".  Some guy booking a guided hunt for an animal that he likely never cared about, or had any interest in ever hunting, other than the fact that it happens to be on some list, and then shooting an immature animal just so it can be crossed off said list doesn't impress me in the least.  With that said, I guess I would pick Shockey, just because he did it, and he did it with style.

Just curious guys but why do people put guys that get a few high scoring animals on a pedastal above others? Sure a guy has 3 200" whitetails, but does that make him a better, more accomplished, or seasoned hunter? I know guys from home that kill a bull elk every year and some  pretty good ones. Does that make them great elk hunters? Far from it, they couldnt call an elk if their life depended on it. They just own enough land right in elk country and keep everyone else off of it and have access to other land due to being local that others cant get permission on.

Some of the greatest most accomplished hunters I know have never killed a book animal. They dont care about the score or any lists. They hunt to hunt and take mature animals every year. They dont turn down them average bucks for the chance at a BOONER but that doesnt make them less accomplished in my eyes than a guy with a wall full of 200" deer. A guy can tell me and show me a wall full of booners and unless he shows me exactly how he harvested them and in what conditions it does very little to impress me.
Same as a guy that shows his name on some list. What does that really proove other than he had the time and finances to do it?

Scores and lists show next to nothing about how a guy hunts or how good he is at hunting!

Here is an example,

You could have 3 guys, each has 5 book whitetails all with equal scores. Looking at score they are all equally successful but if you see the circumstances around each hunt that can change in a hurry.

Hunter 1, has sole permision on a tract of land with high populations. He has a ground blind he sits in every day all season and has killed 5 book deer.

Hunter 2, drives around all over the province hunting where ever and has shot 5 book deer from the roads.

Hunter 3, he slowly still hunts public forest and scouts all year. He has also killed 5 book deer.

So on a list or when you see scores or in clubs due to scores they are equal in most guys eyes but to me one is far superior to the other two! The scores showed you absolutly nothing about the type or quality of the hunters involved.

To me they should throw every list and every scoring system in the garbage as to me it takes away from the purity of the sport.
I score animals and like to hear scores but I still think it even takes away from the trophy. Ive seen huge trophies taken and the hunters to be totally pumped until they see the score and are disapointed because its not what they expected or it doesnt out score their buddies. Could be way bigger but it doesnt matter unless the score says it is.

I guess its just a sore subject with me when guys try and set a standard for hunters or rate hunters by lists and scores. I know hundreds of hunters that could out hunt the guys at the top of all the lists and "Slams" with out putting in much effort. But to most they are way lower on the totem pole becuase they cant claim big numbers, show there names in record books or show a long line of check marks on some dumb list.
 So there is my gripe!!!!!

The only true way to know if a hunter is accomplished, good or any other name you wanna use is to see that guy out one on one in an uncontroled setting hunting not by looking at or hearing about scores, lists, slams taken or record books.

Sorry for the rant and derail!

SG

valid points sg, but i gotta point out that we have had the discussion before about someone "better".  i dont think anyone here in this one or in the last one mentioned better.  i asked for a thumbs up for who you thought deserved one and why, but never said anyone is better than another.  you dontlike lists, slams or scoring in any way....thats ok.  what i appreciate most about this place is that guys can express their opinions onnear enough anything without it turning south.....this site does not suck.   

ill agree again with a few points.  if you knew who kaare gunderson is or how and where he hunts, you would understand why i chose to mention him.  a good comparison would be stan potts.  he has also killed 3-200 inch whitetails....but went about it quite different.  for obvious reasons i am more impressed by gundersons ahcievement than potts.  that said, potts did everything legally as far as i know, so certainly gets a thumbs up too, but gundersons is a more enthusiastic thumbs up.  i actually know of a road hunting entusiast that has 3-200 inch whitetails here in alberta.  many would, but im not going to look down my nose at him.  is his tally less impressive because of his method?....maybe.  from what i know of him, he hunts every single day of the season holding out till the every end for a giant or nothing.  there seems to be a lot of chest thumpers that would sneer at him, but ill go ahead and give him a thumbs up for being successful at what he chooses to do.  in many ways, he is more successful in his method than someone who stillhunts cutlines in the forest who might have a nose like a hound, the tracking skills of an african plainsman, and the fitness of a triathlete who shoots a runt buck every year.  for sure method matters to me a little, but i dont think its a trump card.

as for guys too focused on scores....yep, ive heard some pretty ugly stories out there.  a guy once broke a droptine off his deer to help it get into the book.  the truth came out and it was removed.  another, a guy scored a buck immediately on the ground and when it came up shorter than another guys buck, he wanted to leave it to find another.  thankfully his hunting partner at the time taled him out of it......and also stopped being his hunting partner.  things like that are just sad.

mav, good points also.  the one question i have is about the guy that hasnt shot anything in 15 years.  i dont think i understand that.  seems like he might be trying to prove something, or maybe has lost focus on how hunting is supposed to be fun.  a couple years ago, i brought home what may well be my biggest buck ever.  i cant imagine not taking another animal for 15 years trying to get something better.  if thas how he chooses to do it....ok.  i dont understand it though.

as for guys keeping their stuff private...thats anyones choice.  i find it odd though that people that visit hunting forums find it so honorable that some guys keep stuff quiet, and think those who publicly share their success are boasting.  isnt the whole point of sites like  this for guys to gather and share hunting stories, discuss issues surrounding hunting and share info about it?  if there werent stories and pictures from all of us, would these forums even exist?  ive never understood how someone sharing their hunts with fellow hunters on the internet is bragging, or otherwise unacceptable?  i know for sure its why i visit.

i dont see a battle...just a group of outdoormsen sharing ideas and opinions.  threads like this are why this forum does not suck.  the guys here can express their thought in an intelligent manner and dont have to have a unanimous opinion to get along.  its refreshing to not have to have a battle in every effin thread.