Introductions

[GobbleNut]

Introducing the GOATS for 2026. We have some new team members again this year, so everybody should introduce themselves with a short biography.

Avidnwoutdoorsman
Eggshell
GobbleNut
Happy
Mini me
Mountainhunter1
Onlyjakefans
Randy
Reflexl
RLAG
TauntoHawk
WattleWhacker

[eggshell]

Congratulations to the new comers. Your selection to this team is our pleasure and we are glad to have you aboard. Your selection puts you among an elite group of guys. Your so lucky you didn't end up on certain mentally deranged teams.

My given name is Dana and my home state is Ohio. This will be my 55th year of turkey hunting. I typically hunt Ohio and Kentucky, but have hunted 9 states total. I live in a rural area and am retired from a career of 31 years with Ohio Division of wildlife as a Fish Hatchery Superintendent. I am a man of faith in Jesus Christ and volunteer in a juvenile corrections facility running a ministry to the young men. I enjoy watching God change their lives. I hunt to have a conversation with the gobbler and I do very little sorting of the birds I shoot. If he gobbles to the call and comes to the call I consider him fair game.

[GobbleNut]

Captain GobbleNut at your service. I will again attempt to keep the GOAT ship (rowboat, actually) from sinking...or at least go down slower this year. 

Amongst other names friends and foes call me, many of which are not repeatable here, I am known as Jim. I have lived in southern New Mexico all my life...and yes, contrary to popular belief in some parts of the country, we are part of the 50...or I suppose 49 if you are "chasing".

I have been around a while, both on the planet as well as OG. My math skills are suspect, but I believe this will be my 62nd year of chasing spring gobblers, as I was first introduced to it by my father around 1964 (I'm pretty sure some of you can't relate to such ancient history).

In short, our goal as a team is to have some fun, which includes harassing the other teams as much as possible (in a light-hearted way, of course). We encourage everybody on the team to participate in the banter. We also do our best to be competitive in the contest, so all you GOATS get out there and get a big 'ol gobbler! 

[avidnwoutdoorsman]

Always fun to have some new blood on the Team.

My real name is Christopher
I hail from Washington State
I have been sober for 303 days (Time since last killed turkey)
Killed my first bird 4,487 days ago (I use days to sound as experienced and wise as our Captain)
I have killed birds in over a dozen states and could be identified as a casual 49 chaser where as I try to pick up two new states a year on average. I want to enjoy it, I told my wife in '19 my goal was two "new" states a year. I've done zero on my best years and 4 on my worst years, ironically averaging out about perfect to 2 per year. I hope to see a few of you along the journey too.
I am a man of faith, married to an amazing women now 8+ years, have 3 girls, a dog, and work in construction management.
Have never found a way to be near as witty or smart as some of the others on our team but that's likely because I drag the avg age down and don't have near the wisdom or wit of our fearless leaders.

[Happy]

Welcome to all the newcomers. My name is Nick. Mini Me is my son and I have been married to his momma for around 18 years or so. I have been hunting turkeys for quite some time and my enthusiasm has not waned over the years. My main contribution is typically running my mouth and expecting everyone else to back it up. Any turkey I kill is a bonus.

[WattleWhacker]

Newest member, thanks for letting me join.  My name is Chris, been chasing birds for almost 30 years. Young age of 54 and will be married to my beautiful wife for 27 years this May, who took up turkey hunting alongside me 8 years ago. We have two adult kids, daughter is married and she and her husband run their own business, younger son is a math/physics student at that tiny SEC school in Tuscaloosa AL.

I grew up in Central NY, attended graduate school and really learned to turkey hunt for 9 years in CT, completed my postdoc studies and chased some Rios in OR, then got my first 'real' faculty job and lived in the Caribbean with my family for 3 years.  A small medical school recruited me to SW Michigan, where I've lived for the last 11+ years. They pay me to teach medical students and run an animal research facility, otherwise I'm usually at home playing with my 2 beagles.

[reflexl]

My name is Roy and I am from Tennessee. I have been chasing turkeys for something over 40 years. Even managed to kill a few of them. My purpose is to be more deranged than the other teams. I am hoping to get 4 weekends of hunting in this year.

[mountainhunter1]

I am a North Carolina boy and reside mostly in North Georgia these days. I grew up hunting the flat as a pancake woods of eastern NC, but have fallen in love along the way with hunting in the Appalachian mtns. I started out hunting deer, bear and squirrel and ducks, but about 40 years ago, I made the mistake of trying to turkey hunt (it truly is an addicting sickness). After I shot my first Tom at 18 steps with a Belgium Browning A-5 with some federal premium 4's, I was hooked and have killed them with about every technique known to man since then (minus fanning and hunting over corn).

In more recent years, I have become a fan of an air drawn call, and I now make most of the calls that I use in the woods. These days, I chose to hunt them 99% of the time on public land (in the mtns), and Eastern's are my turkeys of choice. I do not know for sure if I am good at this or not, but I have killed way too many turkeys and if the Good Lord allows me to live, more will die this spring. But I have also started a new thing in recent year where I try to let as many walk away from my barrel as I choose to harvest. I have grown to love the Turkey more and more with time and learned that killing a bird is not the main goal. Engaging him is more my everything. But yet, killing a turkey will not be my problem, but posting pictures on here may be. Maybe Happy will help me out as he seemed to be helping my friend Crow. But if you gentleman can drag me across the line as far as posting pictures on here, I can take care of the killing a turkey part for the contest. I could care less who wins this competition, but I want to get to know you fella's and have a good time and think this will be a lot of fun.

Let me close by saying this, God is the only reason that we get to wake up each day and even more so that we get to enjoy his woods and his birds. It is a gift to go hunting each spring and to hear the turkeys tearing the woods up. A HUGE gift! I make no bones about it - I am with Jesus and desire to please Him and the Father - and hope that each of you have a similar heart desire as well. John 14:6