Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

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szwampdonkey
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby szwampdonkey » Thu Jun 03, 2021 12:50 am

Id never even think about entering a deer personally. I have a few pope and young class deer i’ve taped but what’s the point of actually entering them? They are on my wall for me to remember and reminisce and that’s really the only true value a set of antlers really has imo. Once you start talking record book bucks and keeping tabs it is about money and recognition and with that comes the haters.

I keep everything to myself because that’s the only reason i hunt, for myself.


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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby Trail » Thu Jun 03, 2021 1:11 am

Djp32 wrote:Really interesting :think: .. is the guy still alive? I did a super fast search and did not see anything saying he was or wasn’t. Where are the antlers today? What’s more impressive than the kill is the mystery. It’s hard to believe something never leaked out about the location of the actual mount and it never got stolen or robbed. You would think with so many in question for this long about the whole thing that some body would have ransacked the guys house and simply stole the antlers. Maybe that’s far fetched but people are crazy. I mean it’s only the biggest mystery the hunting or outdoor world has ever seen and it seems like it would be easy to prove either way. Granted, if you did produce the antlers somehow illegally then obviously you would be incriminated but like I said who knows.


Not that far fetched unfortunately. There was a kid some years ago that killed a monster buck that got taken from a wall in their house one day when they were away. I don't think that buck had anywhere near the notoriety that the Rompala buck has. Big bucks bring out the crazy in people.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby Djp32 » Thu Jun 03, 2021 1:27 am

It’s also kinda peculiar that if he was going to fabricate a buck it would most likely be the spread. A lot of the bucks he killed had abnormally large spreads. It seams counter productive for a buck to possess those types of genetics in such thick swampy areas. Farm land sure. You’d have to believe it was a nightmare for that deer to just travel in general let alone run and hide to escape pressure all day. It’s funny how those large spreads increase the score by so much when it isn’t even antler your measuring it’s air. I feel like if there was any chance of altering a rack it would be the spread. Really no point to this post other than just what I was thinking.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby cspot » Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:05 am

Tribute80 wrote:I found myself very interested in this topic last year and did a bunch of searching on the internet. I kind of think it’s real like 80% real 20% fake.

If I remember I had read someone he hated and often fought with offered 10k to his charity of choice if he would have it x rayed. If that is true I would have told them to pack sand. Also how many other records have been required to have an x ray for authenticity. Then there was the whole questioning his character and everything he may have done in his past and all that dragging him through the mud. I’m not saying he is a saint but it had nothing to do with the deer or hunting why is it always tied to this story. I think a lot of the website stuff was put out there by his kids trying to defend their dad.

Not that I every will but if I did kill a record just to off all the Monday night quarter backing haters out there I wouldn’t put it in the books either. I would post about a 10 min video on YouTube of it being measured but not sign anything or tell any details about it just to watch the hunting community turn upside down.

My dad always told me don’t believe all you hear and half you see. I wasn’t there so it could all be BS but then again I give the benefit of the doubt to most people when they say they killed this or that so I don’t know why I wouldn’t do the same in this case.


THere has been other deer x rayed to verify they were attached to a skull plate and not a set of sheds. https://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/ ... ors/264232
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby mipubbucks24 » Thu Jun 03, 2021 9:15 am

I want to believe the buck is real, but it seems like he could easily just come out and clear the air. If the contract signed with the Hansen people is real it could be stopping him, but at this point it seems like he could get a lawyer and get that thing cleaned up. The only thing that would make sense to me, is the Hansen people paid him a decent chunk of change to not enter it and to go away so they could keep the money train going. Otherwise the whole thing just does not make any sense.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby Tribute80 » Thu Jun 03, 2021 10:33 am

cspot wrote:
Tribute80 wrote: Also how many other records have been required to have an x ray.


THere has been other deer x rayed to verify they were attached to a skull plate and not a set of sheds. https://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/ ... ors/264232


I read this article last year. Like all articles I read when the author says I have seen something you haven’t this is why it is. I can’t really follow. In this article he list out 3 reasons as to why he feels it isn’t real but never showed or produced anything for his 3rd reason which was “I've seen photos you haven't” this article was clearly slanted. It almost seems like the author was upset he couldn’t get the story after he thought he could cause he knew Mitch.

While I do agree some have had x rays. I said How many have been required to have a X-ray. If it is required for this deer then it should be required for all deer. You should not be able to require a specific additional test because you don’t feel or believe something, when you didn’t require the other record deer to do the same thing. It’s more about principal then the xray. The people in this article had someone come forward and say they knew the horns were sheds or they had evidence foul play was involved. In rompola case there was 4 3rd party witnesses that were familiar with deer racks that said they thought it was 100% real and yet this still must be X-rayed seems like a double standard.

It could very well be fake. I’ll agree his behavior is odd but how long until all hunters are concerned to have odd behavior. I just choose to give them the benefit of the doubt that it’s real until give some tangible evidence. Not just the normal speculation of dropping ears or blurry photos or I seen a photo of a photo, the dirt in the county can’t grow big deer or there are no big deer in the area.


Edited to add this:
I wonder how many Bucks Gordon Whittington ( The author)has in the record books? If he does have some how may of them have been x rayed?
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby cspot » Thu Jun 03, 2021 2:27 pm

Tribute80 wrote:
cspot wrote:
Tribute80 wrote: Also how many other records have been required to have an x ray.


THere has been other deer x rayed to verify they were attached to a skull plate and not a set of sheds. https://www.northamericanwhitetail.com/ ... ors/264232


I read this article last year. Like all articles I read when the author says I have seen something you haven’t this is why it is. I can’t really follow. In this article he list out 3 reasons as to why he feels it isn’t real but never showed or produced anything for his 3rd reason which was “I've seen photos you haven't” this article was clearly slanted. It almost seems like the author was upset he couldn’t get the story after he thought he could cause he knew Mitch.

While I do agree some have had x rays. I said How many have been required to have a X-ray. If it is required for this deer then it should be required for all deer. You should not be able to require a specific additional test because you don’t feel or believe something, when you didn’t require the other record deer to do the same thing. It’s more about principal then the xray. The people in this article had someone come forward and say they knew the horns were sheds or they had evidence foul play was involved. In rompola case there was 4 3rd party witnesses that were familiar with deer racks that said they thought it was 100% real and yet this still must be X-rayed seems like a double standard.

It could very well be fake. I’ll agree his behavior is odd but how long until all hunters are concerned to have odd behavior. I just choose to give them the benefit of the doubt that it’s real until give some tangible evidence. Not just the normal speculation of dropping ears or blurry photos or I seen a photo of a photo, the dirt in the county can’t grow big deer or there are no big deer in the area.


Edited to add this:
I wonder how many Bucks Gordon Whittington ( The author)has in the record books? If he does have some how may of them have been x rayed?


I only posted the article to show that other deer have been x-rayed. Not for the Mitch discussion on it. I don't recall that the Rompola buck had to be x-rayed for the books. I thought it was the Milo Hanson camp that filed or threaten to file lawsuits if it wasn't x-rayed and possibly offered some money to him if he would get it x-rayed. Personally if I shot the buck and it is legit then what would I have to hide. Anyway the whole story has alot of weird twists and turns and we likely will never know the truth.

When it comes to deer racks, I tend to be skeptical of all of them until proven that it is legit. Far too many of them turn out to be fakes or have something up with them.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby tim » Thu Jun 03, 2021 6:38 pm

I read an article quite a while back where his son said when his dad dies he will have it x-rayed to prove it’s real.
I’ve always hoped it’s real. As far as Mitch not wanting to prove it well after all the negativity of if it is real I don’t blame him.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby purebowhunting » Thu Jun 03, 2021 7:28 pm

One thing I think of with Mitch that's different from most of us is he already shot 4 state records and none of those required him to prove they were legit harvests then he shoots the WR and all breaks loose. It should be upon the accusers to prove its fake with evidence not the other way around, that goes for all these stories where jealousy from other hunters creeps in and accusations are made. Joe Franz comes to mind, poor guy kills a buck of a lifetime he should be on cloud nine then his world comes crashing down while he has to prove it wasn't shot over bait. I think we'll find out Mitch shot the WR typical, unfortunately not until after he passes away.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby greenhorndave » Fri Jun 04, 2021 2:43 am

Good way to put it Pure.

It’s kind of a cool mystery story that will never be resolved. Interesting to hear the respective sides and speculate, but the reality is that only Rompola knows definitively.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby Grizzlyadam » Fri Jun 04, 2021 2:59 am

In regards to the x ray question. Wasn't it that he had encapsulated the skull plate in some kind of epoxy or something before anyone had a chance to score it? The question was then raised if he had altered the skull plate to increase the spread and covered it up by encapsulating it in epoxy. That's why people wanted proof of an x-ray. The X-ray was unique to this situation. That was the whole droopy ears thing with accusations that he had split the skull plate and altered the spread. To this day every picture I've seen of it something just don't look right with the way the bases are situated on the skull plate so I can understand the uncertainty in skeptical minds.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby szwampdonkey » Fri Jun 04, 2021 4:17 am

Grizzlyadam wrote:In regards to the x ray question. Wasn't it that he had encapsulated the skull plate in some kind of epoxy or something before anyone had a chance to score it? The question was then raised if he had altered the skull plate to increase the spread and covered it up by encapsulating it in epoxy. That's why people wanted proof of an x-ray. The X-ray was unique to this situation. That was the whole droopy ears thing with accusations that he had split the skull plate and altered the spread. To this day every picture I've seen of it something just don't look right with the way the bases are situated on the skull plate so I can understand the uncertainty in skeptical minds.


I thought he put Bondo on the skull caps? Incidentally, my Dad did the same thing but used plaster so that he could get a nice smooth, white skull cap shaped to his liking and then he would cover it with leather and mount it to a nice maple plaque. As such, I do the same exact thing with all of mine and I assure you all of mine are unaltered as are my fathers. So to me, I don't find it odd that Rompola put bondo on his as my Dad was doing a similar thing back in the 80s and 90s, maybe it was just the way things were done back then, maybe it came out in an early magazine article? I don't know but my point is Rompola certainly wasn't the only guy doing something like that to his skull plates.

You can buy kits nowadays which are basically a way cheaper and crappier version of finishing skull plates in this manner. The only difference is my dad and I don't enter anything into Pope and Young and such so no one cares what we do with ours.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby MichiganMike » Fri Jun 04, 2021 5:14 am

I remember when this story broke. It was basically the OJ and JFK mystery of the hunting world. Immediate big news all over the state, and abroad too Im sure. Lots of skepticism all over- especially in the county where it was claimed he shot it.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby Abishai » Fri Jun 04, 2021 12:35 pm

I might check this podcast out too, if for none other reason, that I remember the Rompola Buck breaking the Internet back before the Internet. It was all I heard about for months as a kid. I initially thought it was real, but after all the time and stories kinda decided that it was probably fake.

Interesting to revisit anyways.
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Re: Deer Hunter Podcast Rompola Buck

Unread postby kevinbrd » Sun Jun 06, 2021 6:56 am

Very interesting one. I hope its real. Looking forward to the future episodes very enjoyable podcast. Just can't imagine shooting a would be world record, and then never following through with the formalities. But as they say ain't no ordinary cat.


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