6th Prize
Hunting Journal with Weatherby Logo (100 awarded)
Mike Rulli, Pennsylvania
“The last five hunting seasons have been tough on me as I have been tracing another dream of mine. I set out to find the woman of my dreams. Once I found my soul mate, we courted and she accepted when I was on one knee asking for her hand in marriage. We both are independent individuals and went about planning a marriage, finding our first home, and preparing to start a family by ourselves without the aid of friends or loved ones during the process. We were successful in all that we set out to do, we were wed, had a beautiful wedding and reception, bought the house of our dreams, planned parenthood and now have the most beautiful little boy we could ever wish for. All of that took a lot of time, effort, sacrifice and cost to achieve and it was worth every second and penny.
However my true passion for hunting had to take a spot on the shelf as I just did not have the time or money to spend on doing it all. Now that fire in my belly, that deep passion to be in the outdoors, in the woods, up a tree or in a blind is calling me loudly. Having a brand new family does not offer a lot of time for my passion but my wife is very understanding and wants me to live out my passion. I guess I, myself, have been my biggest hurdle to getting back out into the woods, not wanting to disappoint or make my family feel as if my passion is greater than my love for spending time with them.
I saw this contest and knew that this may be my only chance to seek my true dream hunt. I have always admired the majestic presence of the true Monarch of the west, the great bighorn sheep. I am amazed at how such a grand creature can withstand some of the harshes elements in some of the most rocky and some times barren terrain and still thrive. How mature rams seek out dominance by there display of those massive horns and by ramming other rams until the dominant ram is declared the victor. I hear that Idaho and Utah have some of the largest herds of these species. Hunting the Bighorn sheep with a bow first, then a rifle would be my one and only true dream hunt of a lifetime.”