Buck was killed in Wild Rose
By Paul A. Smith of the Journal Sentinel
Berlin ? A white-tailed deer killed in Wild Rose last fall by Brian Inda of Wautoma has set the Wisconsin archery record.
The buck, taken Nov. 2 on an old Christmas tree farm, was officially scored Saturday in Berlin.
The rack measured 187 5/8 inches, three-eighths of an inch more than a buck killed by Barry Rose in Dunn County. Rose's buck had held the state record since 2006.
"I'm shaking all over again," said Inda, 26. "We hunt because we love it, not for records.
"And even though we knew we had a very big deer around, we never expected to get a shot at it, much less have it be the state record. This is unreal."
Inda and hunting partner Craig Carpenter of Wild Rose secured a lease on the farm last summer after massive shed antlers were found nearby.
They had seen the buck just once during the archery season until that fateful day in early November.
The buck responded to Inda's grunt call and presented a 15-yard shot. The flight of Inda's arrow was true and the big buck was soon recovered.
A green score of the rack in November placed the rack in record territory; Saturday's official measurement at Wil Ruesch's taxidermy shop in Berlin was highly anticipated.
In addition to Ruesch, the buck was scored by Steve Ashley of Glenwood City, Dave Bathke of Franklin and Stan Zirbel of Greenleaf. All four are certified scorers with Boone and Crockett Club, the Pope and Young Club and the Wisconsin Buck and Bear Club.
As required by the record-keeping groups, the rack had dried for a minimum of 60 days and two teams independently measured and agreed on the score.
The rack had 12 points, five on the right antler and seven on the left. It's inside spread was 22 inches; the longest tine was the left G2 at 14 7/8 inches.
With 205,000 licenses sold annually, bowhunting is one of the few hunting categories increasing in popularity in Wisconsin.
And with the state's rich deer hunting history, the archery buck record is one of the "holy grails" of outdoor sports.
Soft-spoken and modest, Inda has insisted the buck resulted from a team effort with Carpenter, who helped scout and place stands on the land, and his brother Chris Inda, who found the shed antlers.
He will now, however reluctantly, become a celebrity in part of the Wisconsin culture and beyond.
Inda said he planned to submit formal applications for inclusion in the records of Boone and Crockett, Pope and Young and Wisconsin Buck and Bear.
According to Ruesch, the applications are necessary but amount to mere formalities. "This is your new state record," Ruesch said.
What's next?
"We're going to take the weekend off," Inda said. "Then it's back to scouting and shed hunting.
"That's how this whole thing started last year."
http://www.jsonline.com/sports/outdoors/113822639.html
