Meat Eater - Steve Rinella in Africa

[Adam Stevens]

Not sure you caught it, but there is an even earlier podcast with Steve, Morgan, and Roger Hurt - I think maybe 2022-23?

Yep, I normally listen to any podcasts I can find with people I already knew/followed with good African content so I did know of that one. Might of actually been how I started following Morgan, as I knew of Roger Hurt before and was likely why I listened in the first place!

 

[Flbt]

Most of the hate I’ve seen on him is that he “sold out” even though the reason I watch the MeatEater footprint of hunting content is that it is very low ads. But they threw their name on some products and use them during the show, so they have sold out in some people’s eyes. Other people, including his brother, don’t like him because of the loss of hunting opportunity when more people started hunting public lands after he made a push for people to do it (more hunters, more voices to protect hunting and public lands). Mostly misguided hate or selfish reasons from what I’ve seen

Well you know there people here that don’t like long range hunting because it can possibly limit available permits.

 

[MarkB]

Really like the meat-eater series, seams to portray his hunts in an honest, honorable way with mention of conservation and ending with consumption on many. After his kills they are treated with respect and honor. I see him as a good ambassador for our sport. Best of all its not this nosler did this with the leupold, wearing this sika bla bla bla type of show. Or the long eyelash, hair perfect "babe" who just climbed this mountain and never had the mascara run.

He seams real and not "fake". Glad he hunted Africa, any positive spin with valid arguments against the antis cannot hurt us.

MB

 

[SRvet]

I watched a lot of the Meat Eater series but found him way off the mark with his commentary when he visited Scotland. Very negative because there is no public hunting land combined with a lack of balance regarding the benefits of the system. He also looked like a rank amateur when dealing with the red deer carcass but that is a minor point. I stopped listening after that as his thought processes seemed too inflexible when a different system was in place compared to what he was accustomed to.
I can only hope that his mind has broadened to the benefits of different land and wildlife management practices and that he focuses on the good points rather than on what is different and therefore worse than his home area.

 

[Altitude sickness]

I remember when he had Thomas McIntyre on his podcast, Rinella was saying he couldn't picture himself hunting in Africa because a client hunter is sort of going along for the ride not leading the hunt.

The turning point was when he had Morgan Potter on the first time and he started getting excited about hunting Cape Buffalo.

Listening to these Dispatches podcasts, it's obvious he got interested in watching the trackers in action, and learning about the different approaches to land use in Africa. I imagine this might help convince some North American hunters who have a low opinion of Africa hunting to at least respect it. That would be good thing.

I have to admit when I was younger I had many of the same opinions as he did or does. He is still maturing as a hunter.

The more he travels he will find that he still has a lot to learn. Walking around and shooting things from hundreds of yards is fine. But there are so many traditions and cultures to learn and try before declaring yourself an expert in all things hunting.

He most likely got a lessen watching the trackers in action.

It’s easy to be a big toad in a small puddle.

 

[revturbo9967]

What do you think of the Luganzo area ?

Never been. I’ve been talking to Morgan about a buff plains game hunt for a while now, but ended up booking a leopard buff hunt with CMS instead. I still want to hunt with Robin Hurt, just will be a few years out .

 

[375Fox]

The final podcast on his Africa trip is a good listen. He doesn’t go into the hunting. I’ll assume it’s being left for show, but he calls the experience life changing and has a very different tone than he’s had before. Hopefully African hunting has another supporter.

 

[Philip Glass]

Agreed,

LOTS of the anti Africa hunting crowd and even the general anti hunting crowd watch his show and hopefully it will trickle down to some people being enlightened to the fact that photo safaris are not the savior of African game.

We'll see if it has any affect on hunts, as I think it will be good for outfitters but when he started show casing public land access and tag prices for Oklahoma the public areas started to become infested with out of state hunters.

I don't really care for him and his brother is a socialist anti. He, like so many western US hunters, have been down in Africa yet they've never been. Well now Steve is an Africa expert!

 

[Philip Glass]

That last video you posted I watched this morning and it is very awesome.

I’m glad Steve Rinella finally made the trip. I not a huge huge fan and he has made negative comments on hunting Africa before. He admitted his negative comments and ate his words and now shot a buffalo. Good for him and good for Africa I think.

A lot can be said for His PH who made him come see what Africa is all about and book the trip. They met in the US prior.

Same story over and over again. A western US hunter talks down to safari hunters for years then one day they go and voila. They realize what they've been missing! Yes they all eat their words.

 

[mark-hunter]

I looked around YT, and could not find a single video of Rinella actually hunting in Tanzania?
Is there such a podcast?
All I've seen is interviewing in a few episodes.

If I missed something, please provide the link!

 

[dchum]

I looked around YT, and could not find a single video of Rinella actually hunting in Tanzania?
Is there such a podcast?
All I've seen is interviewing in a few episodes.

If I missed something, please provide the link!

He hunted just a few weeks ago - It’s takes longer than that to produce a TV show my man.

Ya he basically did live podcasts from Africa and that’s what we are talking about right now. Just the podcast episodes that have come out.

It won’t be until next year until we see hunting episodes of Africa

 

[Hunt anything]

I don't really care for him and his brother is a socialist anti. He, like so many western US hunters, have been down in Africa yet they've never been. Well now Steve is an Africa expert!

His brother is an anti hunter? Does he have more than one? I thought I saw him and his brother hunting goats, Dalls sheep and turkeys.

I thought it was ironic that he lauded hunting in New Zealand but down played hunting in Africa. Very puzzling to my simple mind.

 

[SCLawyer]

I listened to the africa podcasts because a friend recommended them to me. It was my first time listening to Rinella. I don't know about prior stuff he's done, but the ones with Morgan are awesome.

I feel bad for Rinella - the poor bastard has now caught the fever from which we all suffer.

I would bet $ that he already has a return trip in the works.

 

[Heeler75]

I don't really care for him and his brother is a socialist anti. He, like so many western US hunters, have been down in Africa yet they've never been. Well now Steve is an Africa expert!

You put it more diplomatically than I could. Never did care for him - Steve is far from conservative. He just found a market he could make a lot of money off of and the public lapped it up. Kinda like Randy Newburg.

Another person posted here about not seeing Rinella being the typical 'high fiving, Sitka wearing crowd'. Well, Rinella has his own line from First Lite that he pimps. No more First Lite for me.

 

[RLD]

I don't really care for him and his brother is a socialist anti. He, like so many western US hunters, have been down in Africa yet they've never been. Well now Steve is an Africa expert!

If you are talking about his brother Matt, who he has had one significant public disagreement with (I hear brothers do that from time to time), he is neither a socialist nor anti-hunting.

Is it some other brother or are you just wrong about that?

 

[Gunnie]

I enjoyed his African dispatches his series on tv from what I’ve seen has also been enjoyable. I’m all for increasing interest in our sport which I believe he has done.