By Tiler Williams

I had just gotten a new Steyr 7mm.-08 for Christmas and I was looking forward to using it. I finally got to use it when Tom Powers (manager of Powers Inc.) took me down to Dadeville, Alabama to go hunting. After a few rounds of shooting (the first shots ever taken with a high powered rifle) I was ready to go. We didn't see anything on the first night because I had to pee so badly I got down from the stand at 5 o' clock to go.

The next morning (Saturday) we walked up on two little does but otherwise no more deer. That night we went back to the same spot after seeing a video tape of some deer that had been there. Right after we got into the stand nine jakes came out on to the field. They were so dumb that we would have scared a deer a hundred miles away when we were getting settled. After a while of observing the turkeys I looked up and saw two yearlings grazing on the field.

Something was bothering them back in the woods so they ran off with their tails held up high in alert. Right as the second one went into the woods, a large doe and the two yearlings followed close behind. Just as the doe had gotten five feet from the edge of the field, he stepped out. He was dark bodied and was in full rut chasing the doe all around the field. All this time I was shaking like a leaf. As he got within 100 yards I got my rifle up and resting against my shoulder. With my Redfield Illusion scope I took aim, clicked the safety off but before I pulled the trigger a dumb jake stepped in front of the deer's vitals so I couldn't shoot.

He then made his way toward us and finally turned broadside again so I then took the shot. I thought I had missed, but Mr. Tom was watching the buck as I shot and he told me that I had hit him good! While we were tracking him, we jumped him up so he stumbled off into the woods. We then went back to the club and told everybody about what had happened. After a long two hour wait we finally went back to look for him with the whole hunting club.

We finally found him and dragged him out. He was a 120 pound seven point with a missing brow tine.

Hey what can I say, that's a pretty dang good first deer!