Aero Hunter is proud to introduce our Pro Staff hunters. They are ready to answer your questions about choosing and using Aero Hunter products. They are happy to share the experience and success they have enjoyed hunting this way, and they have tips and tricks that can help you make the most of your own Aero Hunter outings.
You can reach Pro Staff members directly using the email address listed in each bio below. You can also visit our Ask a Question page, submit your question, and one of us will write a reply for all to see.
I grew up in Central Missouri and began hunting at the age of 9 and quickly became obsessed with bow hunting. While I attended college in Central Arkansas, where I pursued a degree in Wildlife Biology, I was introduced to saddle hunting and it changed the way I hunted. After obtaining my degree, I relocated to Northern Virginia where I currently reside. I am an avid outdoorsman, using almost any legal hunting method; although, I do prefer using archery equipment, and hunting with both traditional and compound bows. While white tailed deer are what I enjoy to hunt the most I have also hunted black bears, sika deer, and mule deer.
When hunting from the Aero, I typically look for smaller trees about 6 to 10 inches in diameter, that are relatively straight and in a small cluster of trees with about 2 or 3 trees within 4 or 5 feet of each other. My current climbing setup is four Muddy pro climbing sticks and my current platform is a prototype I am testing from ODIN hunting products.
Saddle hunting allows me to be mobile and comfortable while hunting. The Aero offers adjustability unlike any other saddle on the market. This allows the individual user to adjust the saddle to their hunting style and personal preference. In addition, the Aero is an extremely light weight and packable system.
As a Pro Staff member of Aero Hunter, I will answer any questions that someone might have via video posts, via posts on forums, through email at budro_11@hotmail.com, and over the phone. In addition, I will continue to help create instructional videos and offer up tips that I have learned though my experiences and share tips learned from other Aero hunters. Furthermore, I will continue to promote the Aero style of hunting through various media outlets like my YouTube Channel, as well as posting on forums that include: ArcheryTalk, Saddlehunter, Bowsite, Tradgang, ArcheryAddix. Also, I will continue to submit tips, techniques, and hunting reports to my blog that is hosted on Saddlehunter.com.
I have always loved the outdoors since I was a kid, including hunting, fishing and camping. I started hunting when I was twelve years old, and my first hunting experiences were for small game and then, later on, for deer.
Stories from my Uncle Bill and a family friend about the challenges of bow hunting fueled the desire for me to personally experience it, and in 1982 I received a compound bow as a graduation present. Bow hunting has been one of my passions ever since. I have taken deer with longbows, recurves, compounds, and most recently with a crossbow.
Hunting in southeastern New Jersey has been a challenge for many reasons, and I have spent a lot of time trying different hunting techniques: stalking, still hunting, and hunting from tree stands and ground blinds. While I have found some of the forms of hunting extremely enjoyable, none have been as productive as hunting from a tree stand.
After many years of trying different tree stands such as hang on, climbers, and ladder stands, I was never one hundred percent satisfied with traditional tree stands and I always felt like I had to sacrifice something when choosing one type over the other. Then I learned about a new saddle-type of tree system that was being made by a company called New Tribe, and I was really excited. I was able to locate a local New Jersey hunter, Scott Hamilton of Saddlehunter.com, and he agreed to give me a demo. It changed the way I think about hunting from a tree stand!
For me, the saddle was the missing link — it was extremely versatile without sacrificing anything I needed in a tree stand. I believe the Aero Hunter Evolution is the ultimate tree hunting system that has all the features that I’m looking for but without any of the drawbacks of traditional stands. Using the Aero Hunter Evolution has added a new dimension and rediscovered excitement to my tree stand hunting, and hopefully I can help other hunters feel the same! Feel free to write me at stykbow1@comcast.net.
I am newcomer to the sports of archery and hunting, but they have become my passion and I relish every opportunity to bow hunt whenever and wherever I can. I have traveled to Florida in pursuit of wild boar and Osceola turkey, Michigan for Eastern turkey and pursued whitetail in Iowa, Ohio, Kansas as well as Indiana, my home state.
When I started out I was like most hunters. I bought a climber, hung lock-ons and spent as much time in the woods as I could spare. Having a bad lower back I quickly found out that sitting for more than a few hours was very painful. I was wondering how long I would be able to do this as a 52-year-old at the time. I decided to do some research, spoke to a good hunter friend of mine and quickly came up with the tree saddle option. At the time I purchased a Trophyline and was in heaven. I could hang all day with no pain in the lower back. Since then I have switched to the Aero Hunter, wow what a great product, it is almost therapeutic. Now at 60 I am more comfortable than I have ever been hanging from a tree.
When I am scouting for trees to hunt from, of course the key consideration is the location related to deer trails. Secondly I look for trees that have a “Y” split in the area that I like to hunt from, from 30 to 40 feet. I am hunting most of the time in Indiana and it appears to me that the more mature deer are starting to look up. Being a little higher up and fitting into the “Y” gives me a little more cover and a bit of an advantage. Which as we all know is just a “bit”. I use a combination of climbing sticks and steps on private land. But if I am on public land I use strap on steps and platform to conform with the public land requirements.
Hunting is about experiencing the great outdoors in many types of conditions, whether adverse or pleasant, assisting in wildlife management, being able to put meat in your freezer and that of friends or those who are less fortunate, and hopefully pass on the tradition to the younger generation. Bow hunting adds a wonderful challenge and the adrenaline rush is indescribable.
In the winter months I spend most weekends hunting or preparing for the hunting season. My goals each year include hunting in a new state, promoting the sport of tree saddle hunting and always being on the lookout for that buck of a lifetime. I would be happy to offer any advice or answer any questions that you might have, you can contact me at ianm@nuhunt.com
Unlike most hunters, Joe was a latecomer to the world of bowhunting. Having spent most of his younger years immersing himself in guitar playing, he generally avoided sports but became somewhat fascinated with shooting a bow. He went hunting only one time back then and wasn’t very successful.
The years passed as Joe continued with music and eventually discovered amateur kickboxing. After attaining the rank of black belt, competing and becoming an assistant instructor at his gym, he met his soon-to-be wife and found out that her father was an excellent hunter and fisherman. In the summer of 2006, Joe ultimately made the decision to return to bowhunting.
After trying a few treestands and harvesting his first deer, Joe learned about hunting from a saddle in several bowhunting books written by John Eberhart. He purchased a saddle and quickly became a convert to that style of hunting. When the saddle manufacturer appeared to go out of business, Joe searched for a replacement and finally contacted New Tribe to ask if they ever considered making a saddle specifically for hunting.
Casey Jones, product designer at New Tribe, contacted Joe and, together, they exchanged ideas and techniques which led to the development of the first edition of a hunting saddle. Joe even suggested a name for the product and the Aero Hunter system was born.
Joe hails from Southeast PA where he lives with his wife and their two children. He hunts whitetail deer exclusively with bow and arrow during the fall and loves to fly-fish in the spring and summer. Write to Joe with your Pro Staff questions at joaxe@yahoo.com
I began bow hunting fifteen years ago after being introduced to it by an uncle. Although I enjoy rifle hunting, especially for squirrels, I prefer bow hunting over all other methods. My cousin, Bobby Boswell, introduced me to the concept hunting out of a saddle several years ago, and in the last three years, I have not used my climbing stands: I hunt deer either out of a saddle or off the ground. Whitetail deer and turkeys are my favorite two animals to bow hunt but I try to launch an arrow or two at squirrels every season. I live in Central Missouri and do most of my hunting in Missouri.
Although I prefer trees that are about 30-40 inches in circumference, I have hunted out of trees that are no larger in diameter than a softball. I am not very picky about the tree I select on a first hunt to an area I tend to focus on getting within twenty yards of good deer sign. After a hunt or two, I often revise my tree selection based upon deer movement, typical wind direction, and optimal entry pathways. Since the Aero is a stand that I wear in, I do not feel overly committed to a tree, and I have found that I am more likely to experiment with my tree selection. When I hunted out of a climber or a hang on, I often over-hunted a bad location because of the hassle of clearing limbs to set up a new tree. My current climbing set up is four Lone wolf sticks and my platform is six of the discontinued Ameristep steps on a ratchet strap. I enjoy the mobility, the light weight, and the packability of the Aero system.
As a pro staff member, I’ll continue posting and answering personal messages on ArcheryTalk and Saddlehunter forums. In addition, I’ll continue to collaborate with Bobby Boswell to develop tips and techniques for hunting out of the Aero. I will also answer questions via email at itsabigfish@hotmail.com.