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South Texas sheep with BNB Adventures.
It was to be the last hunt of the 2007 season for Operation Injured Soldiers and we would be
hunting with Scott Byrd of BNB Adventures from Louisiana. We were to hunt the Forister Ranch in
Rocksprings Texas, for the ever majestic Corsican rams. Scott had found our web site on the
internet and being a former soldier himself was instantly drawn to the cause. His first question was
how can I help, what do you want to do I ask? I want to take some of these guys hunting. No
problem that’s what we do I told him. How about a sheep hunt in Texas was his response, mine an
enthusiastic yes. The plans were made and the date was set, the next step was to contact the
soldiers and see if they were available. After pouring through my list of soldiers signed up I was
getting nowhere. A quick call to friend and former soldier Scott Powelson had the answer, he new
a soldier who knew about the foundation but did not feel his injuries were serious enough to
warrant him coming on a hunt. After a call to Sgt. Chris Wicker I had assured him that his injuries
were indeed serious enough to warrant him coming on a trip, Chris had broke his neck while diving
for cover during an artillery attack in Iraq.
Now I had only 1 more slot to fill, as I pondered this my wife asked, “Didn’t some of the guys you
were in Iraq with get hurt pretty bad”? Of course, a quick call to the unit I was with got me the
numbers I needed and then I let my fingers do the walking. My first call was to SSG. Don
Barkheimer, Don and I had served together in Iraq, matter of fact the last time that I saw Don he
had been put on stretcher and was being loaded into a medivac helicopter. Don had taken an ak-
47 round through the shoulder when our convoy was ambushed on Easter Sunday 2004. A bullet
through the shoulder may not sound as though it could cause life changing disabilities, but Don’s
did. After the bullet entered his shoulder it bounced around a little and tore up his shoulder pretty
bad. The result was limited movement, lose of strength, and serious tendon, nerve, and muscle
damage.
At first Don was skeptical that something like this could happen to him and be totally free, what’s
the catch he wanted to know, I told him the same thing I had told a hundred soldiers before, no
catch, no tricks this is a hunt for you, to say thank you. Still skeptical Don agreed to the hunt.
“Tony if it had been anybody else and I would have turned it down figuring it was some kind of
scam .”
Now came the travel arrangements, Chris would fly down and we would pick him up in San
Antonio. Don, I would pick up on my way down to Texas and he would ride with me. After picking
up Don at his place in Camden, Arkansas we were off to pick up my good friend and hunting
partner TJ Redden from livehunt.com. TJ and I had worked together in the past many times and
always have a great time together, not to mention the guys from livehunt.com have supported
Operation Injured Soldiers from the word go. After picking up TJ in Ft. Worth we were off to the
airport to pick up Chris, and then off to Rocksprings and the Forister Ranch where we would meet
Scotty Byrd from BNB Adventures, and Bobby Warren the manager of the Forister Ranch. In route
to the ranch Scotty called me and asked when we thought we would be there, he was in San
Antonio and wanted link up, no problem, we decided to meet at Bass Pro Shop in San Antonio and
have lunch there while we got our hunters their licenses. It didn’t take Scotty long to see that these
guys were here for the fun and comradery that comes with being with their fellow soldiers, with all
the cutting up and joking that was going on, it didn’t take Scotty long to get right in on the action
and cut it up with the rest of us. Arriving at the ranch it was right down to business making sure the
sights on the bows were still on after the trip down to Texas and Don needed to make sure the
Ten Point crossbow that was donated to Injured Soldiers from Ten Point was sighted in for him. It
didn’t take long to make sure all was ready for the next days hunt. After a relaxing dinner we
settled in for the night and got some much needed sleep.
Saturday dawned bright and early finding us on the path to the ranch where we would start our
stalk for the rams. Driving in we saw several nice rams and a few that caught Don’s eye and we
decided to stalk our way back to them after Chris made his shot. After parking the trucks it didn’t
take us long to get in the action as we made our way through the Texas hill country, coming up on
a herd of rams as they fed and relaxed in the shade, with the wind in our favor and moving slow
and careful not to spook them we were able to get into bow range for Chris.
Don and I decided to hang back while Chris and Scotty moved into position with TJ along to
capture it all on film. Chris had made his selection on which ram he wanted before separating from
Don and I, a beautiful white Texas Dall. We watched as Chris moved into position and came to full
draw, whoosh, Chris’s arrow flew true and took the ram through the heart. As the herd took to tree
covered hill tops for safety, our soldiers ram made it about 20 yards before performing a back flip
and expiring. With a whoop and jump Chris explained, “this is what I call performing a Michigan
smack down”.
As Don and I approached, Chris looked at Scotty and me and said, “thank you, you have made my
dream come true.”
Now it was up to Don. As we readied our ten point crossbow, Scotty glassed for the rams we had
seen on the ride in, spotting them he informed us that the coal black Hawaiian that Don had his
eye on had joined the regular herd. This would make things more difficult, now we would have 20
sets of eyes on us that would not be surprised again. As we made our stalk Don learned fast why
we told him we were taking him hunting not to a shooting gallery. The rams were on guard, and
right on edge. Every move we made was foiled by the wariness of these magnificent animals. With
the rams paying more attention to what we were doing, and the whitetail bucks chasing does, it
didn’t take much to send these animals into a run over the next hill, or two, or three, after you
chase them for 4 or 5 hours who really counts the number of hills you cross. Next came the plan to
separate the sheep, to try to cut the black out from the rest of the herd, Don and Scotty would put
on a stalk and if they could get close enough for a shot would take it, Chris and I would circle
around them and try to split the herd if they bolted in our direction. Finding a dry creek bed I was
certain that if they ran it would be right down this, looking across the hill we could see Don and
Scotty closing the distance on the rams, and then the race was on as they bolted right in our
direction, Chris and I moved into our positions as planned and the rams did just as we had hoped
coming first in my direction and splitting as we had hoped with the black moving to Chris, this is
where it got hairy with the rams paying no attention to him, Chris was forced to dive for cover as
the spooked animals ran right over where he was standing, and over the hill out of sight and it
seemed into the next county.
The scout was on again as we approached where the trucks were parked Don and Scotty looked
at each other and decided enough was enough and broke out the rifles, Don was being forced to
take a long distance shot that called for a little more range than the crossbow offered. As Scotty
led our merry band through the tree covered hills we caught movement in a little clearing about
200 yards down the hill. Don, Scotty and TJ made their way down the hill while Chris and I hung
back to keep the rams attention on us. The ploy worked and Don was able to close the distance to
within about 50 yards. As Don steadied himself on the shooting sticks the Black Hawaiian he had
picked out acted like he knew his number was up. Caught out in the open with little to give him
cover the ram tried every trick he knew, trying to get into the middle of the herd, moving behind
brush, keeping other rams between him and the man who had chased him for the better part of a
day. As the herd moved toward thicker cover the black was left unprotected, save for a small
clump of brush that kept Don from taking the shot, as the herd moved off and closer to cover the
black cast glances at Don and then the herd, with the pull of the herd being stronger than the
threat of Don’s rifle, or so it must have seemed to the ram, it made its move. With a lunge he was
off to the races but not fooling anybody as Don had expected the move swinging his rifle, (you
would have thought he was at the range as calm as he was), and touching the trigger his ‘06
barked out its death sound. Another perfect shot. The ram staggered and toppled. What a way to
end a perfect day of hunting. As our hunters celebrated that night at the ranch Bobby Warren, the
manager of the Forister Ranch, had another surprise for our hero’s they were both being allowed
to take an axis doe to have some exotic meat to take home and share with their families. What an
awesome thing for these true defenders of freedom, you would have thought that they had won
the lottery with all the celebrating that was going on that night.
With all that has been taken from these hero’s they both agreed, they would do it all over again.
With Scotty and Bobby both pledging their continued support of our cause and Don and Chris
heading for home I was left to remember the smiles on their faces and the feeling that comes from
going out and helping these men and women. My friends ask do you like doing this? No, I love it.
For more information on how you can help our veterans contact Tony Covell at
tonycovell@injuredsoldiers.net. Or visit our web site at www.injuredsoldiers.org.
For information on hunting with BNB adventures or hunting on the Forister Ranch please visit
www.BNBadventures.com.
It was to be the last hunt of the 2007 season for Operation Injured Soldiers and we would be
hunting with Scott Byrd of BNB Adventures from Louisiana. We were to hunt the Forister Ranch in
Rocksprings Texas, for the ever majestic Corsican rams. Scott had found our web site on the
internet and being a former soldier himself was instantly drawn to the cause. His first question was
how can I help, what do you want to do I ask? I want to take some of these guys hunting. No
problem that’s what we do I told him. How about a sheep hunt in Texas was his response, mine an
enthusiastic yes. The plans were made and the date was set, the next step was to contact the
soldiers and see if they were available. After pouring through my list of soldiers signed up I was
getting nowhere. A quick call to friend and former soldier Scott Powelson had the answer, he new
a soldier who knew about the foundation but did not feel his injuries were serious enough to
warrant him coming on a hunt. After a call to Sgt. Chris Wicker I had assured him that his injuries
were indeed serious enough to warrant him coming on a trip, Chris had broke his neck while diving
for cover during an artillery attack in Iraq.
Now I had only 1 more slot to fill, as I pondered this my wife asked, “Didn’t some of the guys you
were in Iraq with get hurt pretty bad”? Of course, a quick call to the unit I was with got me the
numbers I needed and then I let my fingers do the walking. My first call was to SSG. Don
Barkheimer, Don and I had served together in Iraq, matter of fact the last time that I saw Don he
had been put on stretcher and was being loaded into a medivac helicopter. Don had taken an ak-
47 round through the shoulder when our convoy was ambushed on Easter Sunday 2004. A bullet
through the shoulder may not sound as though it could cause life changing disabilities, but Don’s
did. After the bullet entered his shoulder it bounced around a little and tore up his shoulder pretty
bad. The result was limited movement, lose of strength, and serious tendon, nerve, and muscle
damage.
At first Don was skeptical that something like this could happen to him and be totally free, what’s
the catch he wanted to know, I told him the same thing I had told a hundred soldiers before, no
catch, no tricks this is a hunt for you, to say thank you. Still skeptical Don agreed to the hunt.
“Tony if it had been anybody else and I would have turned it down figuring it was some kind of
scam .”
Now came the travel arrangements, Chris would fly down and we would pick him up in San
Antonio. Don, I would pick up on my way down to Texas and he would ride with me. After picking
up Don at his place in Camden, Arkansas we were off to pick up my good friend and hunting
partner TJ Redden from livehunt.com. TJ and I had worked together in the past many times and
always have a great time together, not to mention the guys from livehunt.com have supported
Operation Injured Soldiers from the word go. After picking up TJ in Ft. Worth we were off to the
airport to pick up Chris, and then off to Rocksprings and the Forister Ranch where we would meet
Scotty Byrd from BNB Adventures, and Bobby Warren the manager of the Forister Ranch. In route
to the ranch Scotty called me and asked when we thought we would be there, he was in San
Antonio and wanted link up, no problem, we decided to meet at Bass Pro Shop in San Antonio and
have lunch there while we got our hunters their licenses. It didn’t take Scotty long to see that these
guys were here for the fun and comradery that comes with being with their fellow soldiers, with all
the cutting up and joking that was going on, it didn’t take Scotty long to get right in on the action
and cut it up with the rest of us. Arriving at the ranch it was right down to business making sure the
sights on the bows were still on after the trip down to Texas and Don needed to make sure the
Ten Point crossbow that was donated to Injured Soldiers from Ten Point was sighted in for him. It
didn’t take long to make sure all was ready for the next days hunt. After a relaxing dinner we
settled in for the night and got some much needed sleep.
Saturday dawned bright and early finding us on the path to the ranch where we would start our
stalk for the rams. Driving in we saw several nice rams and a few that caught Don’s eye and we
decided to stalk our way back to them after Chris made his shot. After parking the trucks it didn’t
take us long to get in the action as we made our way through the Texas hill country, coming up on
a herd of rams as they fed and relaxed in the shade, with the wind in our favor and moving slow
and careful not to spook them we were able to get into bow range for Chris.
Don and I decided to hang back while Chris and Scotty moved into position with TJ along to
capture it all on film. Chris had made his selection on which ram he wanted before separating from
Don and I, a beautiful white Texas Dall. We watched as Chris moved into position and came to full
draw, whoosh, Chris’s arrow flew true and took the ram through the heart. As the herd took to tree
covered hill tops for safety, our soldiers ram made it about 20 yards before performing a back flip
and expiring. With a whoop and jump Chris explained, “this is what I call performing a Michigan
smack down”.
As Don and I approached, Chris looked at Scotty and me and said, “thank you, you have made my
dream come true.”
Now it was up to Don. As we readied our ten point crossbow, Scotty glassed for the rams we had
seen on the ride in, spotting them he informed us that the coal black Hawaiian that Don had his
eye on had joined the regular herd. This would make things more difficult, now we would have 20
sets of eyes on us that would not be surprised again. As we made our stalk Don learned fast why
we told him we were taking him hunting not to a shooting gallery. The rams were on guard, and
right on edge. Every move we made was foiled by the wariness of these magnificent animals. With
the rams paying more attention to what we were doing, and the whitetail bucks chasing does, it
didn’t take much to send these animals into a run over the next hill, or two, or three, after you
chase them for 4 or 5 hours who really counts the number of hills you cross. Next came the plan to
separate the sheep, to try to cut the black out from the rest of the herd, Don and Scotty would put
on a stalk and if they could get close enough for a shot would take it, Chris and I would circle
around them and try to split the herd if they bolted in our direction. Finding a dry creek bed I was
certain that if they ran it would be right down this, looking across the hill we could see Don and
Scotty closing the distance on the rams, and then the race was on as they bolted right in our
direction, Chris and I moved into our positions as planned and the rams did just as we had hoped
coming first in my direction and splitting as we had hoped with the black moving to Chris, this is
where it got hairy with the rams paying no attention to him, Chris was forced to dive for cover as
the spooked animals ran right over where he was standing, and over the hill out of sight and it
seemed into the next county.
The scout was on again as we approached where the trucks were parked Don and Scotty looked
at each other and decided enough was enough and broke out the rifles, Don was being forced to
take a long distance shot that called for a little more range than the crossbow offered. As Scotty
led our merry band through the tree covered hills we caught movement in a little clearing about
200 yards down the hill. Don, Scotty and TJ made their way down the hill while Chris and I hung
back to keep the rams attention on us. The ploy worked and Don was able to close the distance to
within about 50 yards. As Don steadied himself on the shooting sticks the Black Hawaiian he had
picked out acted like he knew his number was up. Caught out in the open with little to give him
cover the ram tried every trick he knew, trying to get into the middle of the herd, moving behind
brush, keeping other rams between him and the man who had chased him for the better part of a
day. As the herd moved toward thicker cover the black was left unprotected, save for a small
clump of brush that kept Don from taking the shot, as the herd moved off and closer to cover the
black cast glances at Don and then the herd, with the pull of the herd being stronger than the
threat of Don’s rifle, or so it must have seemed to the ram, it made its move. With a lunge he was
off to the races but not fooling anybody as Don had expected the move swinging his rifle, (you
would have thought he was at the range as calm as he was), and touching the trigger his ‘06
barked out its death sound. Another perfect shot. The ram staggered and toppled. What a way to
end a perfect day of hunting. As our hunters celebrated that night at the ranch Bobby Warren, the
manager of the Forister Ranch, had another surprise for our hero’s they were both being allowed
to take an axis doe to have some exotic meat to take home and share with their families. What an
awesome thing for these true defenders of freedom, you would have thought that they had won
the lottery with all the celebrating that was going on that night.
With all that has been taken from these hero’s they both agreed, they would do it all over again.
With Scotty and Bobby both pledging their continued support of our cause and Don and Chris
heading for home I was left to remember the smiles on their faces and the feeling that comes from
going out and helping these men and women. My friends ask do you like doing this? No, I love it.
For more information on how you can help our veterans contact Tony Covell at
tonycovell@injuredsoldiers.net. Or visit our web site at www.injuredsoldiers.org.
For information on hunting with BNB adventures or hunting on the Forister Ranch please visit
www.BNBadventures.com.
 | |  | |  | |  | |  |
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