Summer Training. For Your Fall Hunt Pays Off.

Every few weeks, Chase sleeps in his backyard. On purpose.

Call it practice.

When you want the grind...

Not every hunter grows up doing it. Some come to it later, through a friend, a move, a new state. And not every hunt looks the same either. Some are simple. Some take preparation before you ever reach the trailhead.

This year, Chase wants the harder version.

Individual in camouflage jacket carrying rifle.

Here's how he’s getting ready.

 "I did not grow up as a serious hunter. But since moving to Texas, hunting has become a much bigger part of my life. 

Most of what I've done involves a blind about 150 yards from a feeder, waiting for a deer to walk out. That's fun, and it's a good way to get started. But it's not what I really enjoy.

I want the grind. I want it to be difficult. I want to feel like I accomplished something hard, not just put meat in the freezer. 

So this summer, I broke my prep into three pieces: fitness, gear, and shooting.”

Scope Out Summer Training

Breaking Down the Prep

Fitness has been the biggest focus for Chase this summer.

A western hunt will find every weak muscle you didn't know you had. Rucking is where he puts in most of the work. 

A few times a week, he loads up his hunting pack, laces up the boots he plans to wear in the field, and starts walking. The Austin area gives him plenty of terrain to work with, flat trails for easy miles, steeper routes for real elevation. 

His pack rides around 40 pounds ready to hunt. For shorter sessions, he'll add a 45-pound plate to simulate packing out meat, bringing the total close to 85-90 pounds for short stretches.

Pro tip: The military recommends keeping pack weight under 45% of body weight to avoid injury, a good rule of thumb for anyone building up. 

“The point is not to punish yourself. It's to prepare your body for the hunt,” Chase says.

Rifle suppressor detail in tactical setup.

Gear is the second piece.  

Chase doesn't want the first night of a hunt to be the first time he figures out how his tent goes up or whether his gear actually fits inside his pack. 

So every few weeks, he sets up his full sleep system in the backyard: tent, pad, sleeping bag, the works. Sometimes he'll sleep out there just to make it real. He packs his hunting pack the same way he would for the trip, so he knows exactly where everything goes before it matters. 

In Chase's words: “The more I test now, the more confident I'll be later.”

The third piece is shooting.

Chase tries to get behind the rifle at least once a week, and his goal is to feel confident well beyond the distance he'd actually take an ethical shot.

He's not just punching paper from a bench, either. Once the rifle is zeroed, he practices from field positions: prone, kneeling, off a pack, off a rock, whatever he might find on the mountain.

Practicing the awkward positions now means no buck fever when the moment finally comes.

Read the Full Story

Steal Chase’s Routine

Fitness
• Ruck a few times a week with your actual hunting pack
• Break in your boots before the trip
• Start light and build up slowly

Gear
• Set up your full sleep system at home before the trip
• Pack your bag the way you actually will in the field
• Test your stove and eat the meals you're planning to bring

Shooting
• Practice well beyond your ethical shooting distance
• Learn your rifle's DOPE, don't rely only on a ballistic solver
• Shoot from field positions, not just off a bench

The grind starts long before opening day.

Chase covers the rest, gear, food, sleep system, and more, in the full story.

Worth the Read

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