Measuring up? Experts weigh in on trophy buck
By Julian Emerson and Joe Knight
Leader-Telegram staff
Debate about whether the much sought-after Field and Stream buck named for the outdoor magazine is a world-record deer started in earnest 2 1/2 months ago, and speculation about the topic has exploded since Bob Decker bagged the animal Saturday morning.
A Leader-Telegram story Monday detailed how Decker, of Eau Claire, shot the buck while bow hunting in Buffalo County between Modena and Urne. The deer attracted a feverish following among hunters near and far, who dreamed of shooting the animal hunting experts say could be a world-record typical buck.
Hunters and hunting experts who watched a video posted on the Field and Stream Web site in August showing the massive deer meandering through a Buffalo County woods marveled at its antler size. Several experts estimated its antler total could range between 220 and 240 inches, well above the world record typical buck, which measured nearly 214 inches.
Given the buck's startling potential antler measurement, hunters who have seen the buck since Decker shot it also have pondered whether the animal - a 16-pointer weighing 200 pounds when field dressed - is the new world champion.
"It's a phenomenal animal," said Jack Dodge, the 58-year-old owner of Dodge's Taxidermy in Elk Lake. "You only see a deer like that once in a lifetime."
Bloggers on the Field and Stream Web site have posted comments since Decker dashed the hopes of other hunters by taking the buck. Many said they believe the deer's antlers are typical, potentially making it the world record, while others contend the antlers are nontypical, possibly negating the buck's world-trophy status.
Antler classification depends on shape and formation. To be judged as typical, antler tines must come off of each antler's main beam. The tines also must originate on the top half of the beam.
In contrast, nontypical antlers can come in all shapes and sizes, and one side doesn't necessarily resemble the other. Nontypical antlers are much more common than typical ones.
Judges of antlers follow basic rules when deciding between typical and nontypical, but those decisions can be somewhat subjective, Dodge said.
"This could be measured as a typical. I just don't know for sure," said Dodge, who estimates Decker's buck was 3 1/2 years old.
Dodge declined to reveal a score for Decker's buck other than to say it would total somewhere above 200 inches.
Lu and Ken Zimmerman of Spooner, both certified antler scorers, examined photos of Decker's deer Dodge e-mailed them Sunday night.
Viewed from the front, the rack looks typical, but a photo taken from above shows two tines that appear nontypical, Lu Zimmerman said in a phone interview Monday.
Under the rather complicated measuring system scorers use to measure antlers, those tines could work against scoring it as a "typical" rack, she said.
"It's Boone, but it's not the new world record," she said. "If you look at the Milo Hanson buck (the current world record taken in 1993 that scored 213 5/8 inches), you'll see the difference."
Zimmerman said the rack will have to go through a 60-day "drying" period before being officially scored. Antlers this size, which will probably qualify for all of the record books, will be measured by a team of experts.
Dodge said the tines in question may make it a nontypical, but the jury is still out until it is officially scored.
"This is going to have to be looked at by a panel of judges. This won't be decided by one person," he said.
"It's either going to be something that's never been shot before or it's going to be a super-big nontypical," Dodge said. "I don't think Bob will be disappointed either way."
"It's a great animal, and if it's not the biggest, it's certainly the most popular whitetail around, with all the press that Field and Stream gave it," Dodge said.
Zimmerman said the deer likely will qualify for the Wisconsin record book; the Chatfield, Minn.-based Pope and Young Club's record book, which records archery trophies; and the Boone and Crockett Club's record book, which has the highest criteria. Most Boone and Crockett deer are taken with a gun, but archery deer also qualify.
The world record Pope and Young typical white-tailed deer scored 204 1/2 inches. That deer was shot by Mel Johnson in Peoria County, Ill., in 1964.
In 2004 Michael Beatty of Ohio shot the world record archery nontypical deer, which scored 294.
Until the scoring is complete, Dodge gave Decker some advice about the prize antlers: "Keep them in a safe," Dodge said, "and enjoy the attention this is going to bring."
'Pretty overwhelming'
Dodge was right about Decker's prize buck attracting attention. Both his home phone and cell phone have been ringing nearly constantly since Saturday night, often simultaneously.
Decker was besieged by calls during the weekend from friends and family as word of his hunting exploit spread. On Monday the media joined in, creating a nonstop stream of questions about the buck.
On Sunday afternoon, as Decker discussed the buck with a group of hunters, his cell phone spit out musical tones every couple of minutes. Decker's phones continued to ring into the early hours of Monday morning, and after Decker slept for only a few hours the calls about the buck started again.
"It's been pretty overwhelming," Decker said.
Ed Culhane's Monday was similarly busy. The state Department of Natural Resources public information officer said he was inundated with phone calls from media outlets interested in interviewing Decker.
"There certainly is a lot of interest in this deer and this story," Culhane said.