by Christopher Johnson
This past weekend was a big deal for local hunters. As part of opening day for rifle season, Ruckle’s Pier kicked off its holiday spirit with the 7th Annual Buck Pole last Saturday.
A buck pole is a long-standing Michigan tradition that’s been around since the 1900s. Where hunters bring their slain deer to be weighed, measured, and put on display.
Often as part of a friendly competition, such is the case with Ruckle’s, with $15,000 worth of cash and prizes across a wide spectrum of categories. This includes youth hunters, the oldest hunter and longest serving veteran—to name a few.
The contest doubles as a social gathering, both indoors and outdoors. Think Saint Paddy’s Day energy, but colder. With blaze orange and woodland camo instead of green.
“There are no words that can describe the joy on these people’s faces.” Comments owner Deanna Young. “It gives the hunting community a chance to kick off the season together, swap stories, and proudly display their successes. There is nothing more satisfying for a hunter than to tell and retell the story of their kills over a few drinks with friends and other hunters”.
With a robust party atmosphere to sweeten the deal. Sound Productions is always keeping a close eye on the bar’s entertainment needs, quick to send a DJ.
“Even though we’re downtown Clare, you wouldn’t know,” owner Jason Ricketts told Tammy Thompson of 98.5 UPS, who was present and covering the event via LIVE broadcast. “We got a bonfire here. We got the Buffalo up front. We got haystacks here. People are sitting around, having a good time and staying warm”.
The first two deer went up at around 10 AM. They belonged to Kelsey Anderson and Rebecca Fugate, who both received $25 gift cards to Cops & Doughnuts for being the day’s early birds. Kelsey was part of the SYMNS Camp Group that helped get the Buck Pole established 7 years ago.
It’s also worth noting that four of the first five deer belonged to female hunters. A trend the bar has observed over the years that typically shifts after dark when more men arrive from the woods.
The body count eventually grew to 41 bucks by the time the event ended at 9 PM, when announcements were made. Compared to last year’s 36 bucks, it’s looking to be a passive growth that we can expect each year, according to the bar’s staff. Management admits that they were worried they would have to start refusing new arrivals. Given that the trussing had reached full hanging capacity. Fortunately, nobody was left out this year, and all bucks made the grand line.
Roughly 200 pounds of Michigan venison was harvested from these deer collectively, management speculates. Good news for Thanksgiving dinners after a taxing year at the grocery store. This was also the first year the trussing was extended to 45 feet, up from last year’s 30.
“This is only the seventh year doing it (the Buck Pole) in Clare” explains Chamber volunteer, Greg Rynearson. “and we did 41 deer and that’s just the one-day event”. He then compares that success to the Marion Buck Pole which brought in 44 bucks on the same Saturday. Rynearson believes It’s significant to notice, as they’ve been around since 2002. “I think it’s huge for Clare”, he says.
For judging, the deer are evaluated using a few key criteria. First are the widest spread and symmetry of the antlers — typically measured between the outermost tines. Then the longest tine, along with the number of tines on both beams are all counted. Of course, the animal’s overall body mass is always worth consideration in some cases.
Ultimately though it’s the rack, and size matters, as the Ruckle’s staff will happily remind you. These measurements give hunters a fair and standardized way to compare their harvests and celebrate the event’s most standout bucks.
In the case of this year’s competition, the evening’s most outstanding buck went to Clare County’s Larry Kleinhardt, with a score of 39.5. Larry was awarded a Browning Bar MK3 Speed 30-06 rifle, courtesy of the Trading Post of Farwell, Advanced Detailing Auto and Sod-Busters.
The second buck of the night belonged to Travis Smith who scored 39, and tied with Terry Collins who placed third, also with a 39. The tie is broken by shifting preference to the buck that was brought in first. Smith was awarded a Bedliner and Hunting Basket from Auto Solutions, while Collins received a ceramic coating from Jim’s Body Shop.
Interestingly, Smith’s buck also won second for Most Unique, while Collins’ buck placed first for Most Unique. Which yielded even more rewards for the two tied hunters.
Fourth place went to Jared Renner with a 38.5. He received two VIP ringside tables—seating a total of 16 people—for the upcoming MMA event in Cadillac. The prize was donated by Two Piece Promotions, a new sponsor in the region and the fastest-growing MMA organization in Michigan. They are also the only fight group in the country owned by a former MMA fighter. Their event, 2 Piece Promotions VII: War at the Wex, is set for this Saturday at the Wexford Civic Center.
The fifth winner was also the oldest hunter, Gerald Mertens of Clare. Gerald is 85 years old and keeps an early bedtime of 8 PM. Gerald’s buck was a grizzly, massive trophy for a man of his age and stature, which impressed many. The “elk” received a score of 38. In addition to winning $100 as the oldest hunter, Gerald also received $1000 cash from Bishop GMC for placing fifth overall. Winnings that were, “worth staying up late for,” he agrees.
In total, the contest recognized over 20 hunters altogether, not counting special recognitions. Such as the award for Longest Serving Military Hunter, which went to Chad Anderson. Chad served from 1982-1986 in the USMC as rank attained E-5 Sgt, and later from 1988-2006 in the US Army Special Forces (Green Beret) rank attained E-9 Sgt Major. After 24 years of serving the country, hunting deer is a proper escape for Chad. It brings him immense happiness according to others, and we thank him for his service.
Of course, there are youth hunters to congratulate.
The winning buck belonged to Molly Magnus of Clare with a score of 37. Second is Aubrey Huddleston of Clare with a 35. Ellie Shrader of Gratiot County took third with a score of 33.5.
Ellie was also the youngest, at 9 years old. Who was ecstatic to tell her story on live radio when the opportunity presented itself. The top three won $50-150 in cash prizes. Addisyn Ames placed fourth from Isabella County with a score of 21.5 for her deer and took home a $50 Buccilli’s gift card. Which many would argue is as good as cash.
The Chamber of Commerce also played a part. With volunteers running a 50/50 raffle that drew steady participation throughout the day. To put it simply, a 50/50 works like a miniature lottery: every ticket sold goes into a single pot, which is then split evenly between the winning ticket-holder and the organization hosting the event. So, while one lucky hunter walks away with half the purse, the other half goes directly back to the Chamber—funding the town’s projects, improvements, and community programs that help keep the town growing.
Tim Haskell was the lucky hunter in this case, whose winning ticket paid $953. Representing his half of the pot. Which totaled $1,906 by the end of the day, according to volunteers. The remaining half went straight back to the Chamber, adding to the pool of resources they use to fuel local initiatives.
