A Midsummer Hunter’s Dream

Summer. Sigh. Fishing's been rained out lately. I did catch a sunburn or two before the rain moved in.

It seems unavoidable when the summer doldrums have started that deer hunting occupies my thoughts and daydreams a lot. I perked up significantly when the Texas Trophy Hunters Association announced its 2008 Extravaganza from July 11 through 13 at the Alamodome in San Antonio.

This is the granddaddy of one of those shows where the exhibitors let you shoot bows without you having to pledge to buy one, where an expert will show you how to rattle bucks in more effectively, and where children can catch catfish out of a big tank for hats and things.

They call it an extravaganza and what an extravagance it is: a modern-day hunters' fair in a Texas-sized pavilion, a real "renaissance" fair - a renaissance of trophy white-tailed deer hunting.

Events such as TTHA's Extravaganza highlight how strong hunting is in the great state of Texas. Wandering around the massive exhibition floor, among endless vendors showing off everything from laser rifle sights to wildlife high-fencing supplies, it quickly becomes apparent there is an awful lot of money involved in the pursuit of big deer in particular.

I suppose it might be off-putting for some to hear talk about hunting for so-called "trophy" deer, the bucks sporting antlers that resemble dead mesquite trees, the lotto bucks that cause infirm men to die of sudden heart attacks, but anyone who has ever hunted deer has had antlers on their minds. Some folks dream of antlers year-round: antlers in the brush, antlers on the buck harvested by a brother-in-law, antlers lying on the ground, shed from some bygone March.

For some, the idea of trophy hunting is pure vanity, but I tend to think it is something ingrained in the DNA of our species, and not just the male of the species. When my brother killed a trophy feral hog last spring, the first thing my very non-hunting wife asked was, "Can I have one of the tusks?"

It has not been terribly long, biologically speaking as a species, that we emerged out of the primeval forests and plains of this world, where the ability to hunt and take the dominant animals by males or females was a badge of skill, where a skull on display with enormous antlers and a tale to go with it meant the harvester was someone to be reckoned with rather than scoffed at.

With all the high-tech gadgets out there - and many are extraordinarily useful (handheld GPS, red-dot scopes, high quality binoculars, etc.) - the field remains remarkably level when it comes to harvesting trophy deer. There still is an equal amount of luck vs. skill that keeps the pursuit infinitely intriguing during the course of decades, and keeps money flowing into the industry.

Come Friday, I'll be in San Antonio hunting for some of those little camouflage dresses for my 2-year-old daughter, and looking for the latest and greatest in the sport.

The TTHA Extravaganza runs from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 7 a.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5p.m. Sunday. Adult admission is $10, children age 13 to 17 get in for $5 and children under the age of 12 get in free.

Ben Christensen can be reached via e-mail at bc@riograndeoutdoors.com.