# EP. 489: Why I Chose the Harder Way to Hunt

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247/ep-489-why-i-chose-the-harder-way-to-hunt
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247/ep-489-why-i-chose-the-harder-way-to-hunt.md
Podcast: [Truth From The Stand Deer Hunting Podcast](https://stenobird.com/podcast/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247)
Published: 2026-04-22T04:05:00+00:00
Episode link: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/WPCM5524942548.mp3?updated=1776625823
Audio file: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/WPCM5524942548.mp3?updated=1776625823
Processing state: not_requested
JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247/episodes/ep-489-why-i-chose-the-harder-way-to-hunt
Duration seconds: 4409

## Resource

This week I’m joined by Kolton Schenker, and we spend some time talking through what it looks like when hunting starts to shift from something you do… to something you really commit to. We get into his background—years behind a compound bow, time spent out West, and what came with finally stepping into land ownership. But where the conversation really settles in is around his move to traditional gear. What that transition felt like, the frustration that comes with starting over, and why he stuck with it anyway. He shares a few stories along the way—close encounters, missed chances, and the one that finally came together with a stick bow. And like most guys who make that switch, it wasn’t about making things easier. It was about slowing things down and paying attention in a different way. A lot of it comes back to the same idea: the longer you do this, the more you realize it’s less about the outcome and more about how you go about it. The work, the reps, the time in the woods—and the people you get to share it with along the way. WHAT TO EXPECT FROM PODCAST 489 Long-term reps build intuition 19 years in, Kolton still finds new ways to learn. Trail cams show you what’s there, but observation sets teach you how they move. Getting lower, tighter, and uncomfortable often leads to more real encounters. Switching to traditional gear forces you to slow down and truly focus. Misses aren’t failures, they’re part of the process that makes you better. The reward isn’t just the shot, it’s the encounters, the moments, the grind. Hunting becomes more meaningful when it’s shared, with land, with family, with purpose. SHOW NOTES AND LINKS: —Truth From The Stand Merch —Check out Tactacam Reveal cell cameras — Save 15% on Hawke Optics code TFTS15 —Save 20% on ASIO GEAR code TRUTH20 —Che…

## Actions

- request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247/episodes/ep-489-why-i-chose-the-harder-way-to-hunt/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode.
- read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/truth-from-the-stand-deer-hunting-podcast-175247/ep-489-why-i-chose-the-harder-way-to-hunt.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource.

A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed.

## Transcript

Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.