The Difference Between An Agreeable & A Difficult Client From A Professional Hunter Perspective...

[IvW]

On Cape Buffalo I only use expanding bullets for backup, Rhinos to be specific, 570 gr. Most of the time even after shattering the neck vertebrae which causes instantaneous death, the bullet is found under the skin on the opposite side from where the shot entered. I had the exact same shot on a large bull on a different hunt and the result was the same, bullet under skin on the opposite side.

Many moons ago, as mentioned sometimes what happens in the bush stays in the bush....

 

[lil 2 sleepy]

This was a fantastic account of the hunt. A+. Thank you for posting this. I enjoyed it very much.

I know you can’t lay out Mr X’s Name, but I would love to know who the TV hero really is. Would be worth a few giggles.

 

[IdaRam]

Thank you for sharing one of your life experiences with us @IvW . I enjoyed it very much. You are quite a good writer, you really should do more of it! I’m sure you have plenty of interesting stories to tell.

 

[Chukar]

Thank you for sharing one of your life experiences with us @IvW . I enjoyed it very much. You are quite a good writer, you really should do more of it! I’m sure you have plenty of interesting stories to tell.

Agreed!

 

[BRICKBURN]

Glad you saved your friend.
That was the real trophy in that fiasco.

 

[Graham Hunter]

Luckily I had been prepared and anticipated that a charge from the cow was imminent, I just had enough time to aim lead and fire, the 570 gr bullet hitting the cow at the junction of the neck and the shoulder, instantly folding her. She dropped at seven yards.

By this time the herd has left in a giant dust cloud and I look ahead and spot the bull down close to the stream with Mr X shouting bring bullets! bring bullets! With his PH having taken evasive action to the left I arrive on scene just before him, real pissed off at this point. The bull is down but not dead, I lift my rifle and kill him.

What does Mr X have to say?? Who was shooting behind me??

I proceed to ask him to please follow me, as we retrace our steps I point out where his footprints are, I further point out that he kept running despite us shouting at him to stop, I then mention that he used solids for back up didn’t you? Yes and what is the problem? He again asked who was shooting behind me. By this time we had reached the downed cow. He abruptly stopped and started changing color.

I then said Sir here is your Buffalo cow that nearly killed your PH after you shot it in the arse, how would you like to have it skinned? A full mount or just a shoulder mount?

He had no words at this point and I turned around gave my mate a hug, got my client and left….

Needless to say the dynamics in camp were not the same after that.

This individual has gone on from there to become a well-known TV hunt host and self-proclaimed buffalo expert, gladly our paths have never crossed and I am thankful for that. That he is uninjured after watching some of his further exploits amazes me.

Not often you get an agreeable and most pleasant client and the total opposite on the same safari….

Which are you…..

Would this be the same TV Host who dry fires at a wounded Buff when his gun is empty and also chases after another wounded
Buff then short strokes his gun?

 

[LivingTheDream]

@Graham Hunter I remember that show, my jaw hit the floor!

 

[One Day...]

Do you mean, like this one Graham Hunter and LivingTheDream?

Magnum TV S4:E3- Cape Buffalo Showdown

The hunt starts at 13:00 minutes ... and culminates after 17:00 minutes...

A very patient buff, and obedient too, he even stays when the hunter says "no" (don't leave).

There are also some interesting bits at 2:56 about asking what the PH wants his client to shoot; at 3:20 "I have had a lot of experience and shot a lot of buffalo" and at 14:50 when he reloads. The rifle appears to be a Win 70, so if he started with 3+1, fired 2 (maybe more the footage does not show), reloaded 3+1, reloaded 1, it looks like it took at least 7 shots to drop the buff.

 

[Adam S]

After reading your story, I have come to three conclusions.
1) You are a fantastic writer with the ability to make your reader feel like they are right there with you. It is not often that I read something on the internet that I absolutely can't wait to read the rest of. You sir, are talented.
2) It is frightening how "celebrity" hunters can act.
3) If/when I am fortunate to enjoy my first safari, I hope I have a PH like you.

 

[LivingTheDream]

@IvW great story, thank you for sharing. I hope you write a book someday as I'm sure you have other stories.

 

[LivingTheDream]

@One Day... that's the one!!!

 

[Brent in Az]

Episode #4.....Mr. X, gets streamrolled by a Buffalo.....

It's a shame that you hard working PH's, have to deal with hunters like Mr. X. He's probably the type of guy who doesn't tip well, either.

 

[sestoppelman]

Great story! What a hoot!

 

[sestoppelman]

You would think that a left handed guy who can afford to go on all these hunt trips would be able to afford a left handed bolt gun!

 

[Areaonereal]

I have hunted Africa six times in as many years and will go again in 2020. These TV 30 minute hunts are disgusting,,with the high five and deep breathing and well dones by the the PH ...give me a break....do not celebrate like some NFL bozo that just scored a 3 yard TD. Give some reverence for what you have just done. Those TV hunters, celebrities, could not not carry many of our Lunch buckets. Is it their dream hunt, do they pay for it after saving for years, and remember every shot...hell no, most are comped for the advertising, give me a break. I just love the bow hunters that stick them too far back and the lose the elk or deer in deep timber so the cameraman gets the best shot, and adds some suspense to the hunt.

 

[Beretta391]

Great story telling!! My wife and I loved it!![emoji1303][emoji1303]

 

[fourfive8]

Yes, great story there IvW thanks.
I usually won’t watch anything that has a label like “Team Yadayada Whatever” but did watch that because of this thread. Holy cr!&)@p!
No practice loading under stress, fumbling trying to find extra ammo, loading cross handed and left handed while fumbling with action, dry firing and flinching with a 375, turning the power down on the scope mid scramble and so on! All with the reversed ball cap- eh!

 

[K-man]

Thanks for telling the story! There is a reason the P in P.H. is capitalized... It means Professional! I am glad you are not revealing the client's name, even though I would enjoy knowing. Every P.H. I have known is the same, telling the story and educating us along the way but Professional enough to keep the identity. Thanks!

 

[Mr. Zorg]

Thank you for posting this tale of adventure and misadventure @IvW.

I'm inspired to follow through your content here for similar prior postings, especially during times it's difficult for me to be restful. These type truths are more intetesting (and therefore more beneficially distracting) for me than fiction.

I strongly suspect both clients reside in the same country I do. Over the course of our globe-trotting scuba vacations, my wife and I have seen our share of both the Mr. X behavioral style as well as your assigned client's behavior. When we were in Bora Bora, there were two American nuevo-Rich couples in their late 20's that were so obnoxious we spoke in false UK accents to not be associated with them. We evolved to do the majority of our scuba diving where we could go as an independant buddy team from shore entrances, Curacao's West Side being our most frequent destination, eschewing the boat divrs and groups. We had our experiences with Mr. X personality divemasters on boats as well, and that wasn't really concentrated in prior residence location during their formative years. Invariably my wife and I, pretty quiet types, held greater scuba training and experience levels (we're certified for 50 meters max depth, up to 3 gas cylinders with up to 3 gas compositions, everything short of reducing oxygen content below 21% and adding helium to a breathing gas mix); in Truk Lagoon, we got a little past 50m depth on the San Francisco Maru dive. We aspired to dive Bikini Atoll, but the land based operation there cratered about 6 months before we considered ourselves ready for that trip where every dive has a mandatory fecompression obligation instead of an advised safety stop, with decompression gas surface supplied by the dive boat on regulators with long hoses and hang bars at 30 feet, 20 feet, and 10 feet. This really freed up divers to only have to carry two large typically back mounted gas cylinders.

 

[meigsbucks]

Thank you for sharing this great story. I’m glad your PH friend came through unscathed.
He “deserved” kudu #1. The buff cow... was a nice hit to his wallet.
Even after this hunt, I’m sure he is the same “maven”.