by Ted Nugent

Each day afield during this glorious fall hunting season, like every glorious fall hunting season, my mind is aflutter with stream of consciousness adventure.

Surely, the here and now of each hunt is compelling and obsessive in our indefatigable quest to connect with the spirits of the beasts, but the clarity of being from which wildground time provides is as soul cleansing as it gets.

The woods breathe life into powerful memories of family time, and sacred campfires shared with fellow hunting BloodBrothers.

I often reminisce of joyous past times with my dad, Fred Bear, Bob Munger, Dick Lattimer, Ed Bilderback, Doug Walker, George Nicholls, Marv Leslie, Ron Chamberlain and so many other amazing friends that have gone to the Big Hunt in the afterlife.

Though I miss them terribly and still struggle with the abstract of life’s end, my thoughts are more happy than not.

Some of them some of you may know, but with the recent loss of an amazing American and amazing bowhunter, I want to be sure you know my friend Dick Mauch.

We who were so very blessed to know the great man truly mourn his passing, but as always, count the eternal blessings of having shared his long, loving, powerful life here on earth.

I will let our Spirit BloodBrother, Frank Addington Jr, tell you about Dick Mauch. Though a mere snapshot of a phenomenal life lived, the more you know about Dick, the better your life will be.

Dick Mauch Showed Me How

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Like the names Fred Bear, Ed Builderback, Howard Hill, Ben Pearson, Bob Munger and so many great founding fathers of modern-day bowhunting, Dick Mauch was right up there with them.  A legendary gentleman, Dick Mauch was a true pioneer and master of our bowhunting heritage.

Born in 1926 in a house his father built in Bassett, Nebraska, Dick was a rancher, farmer, businessman, and manufacturer.

An early interest in flying led to aviation school and eventually to his own plane.  An early interest in the sheer challenge of bowhunting led to his ultimate life’s work and legacy.

In 1961, Dick visited Fred Bear in Grayling Michigan and became one of Fred’s earliest partners in the original Bear Archery Company. Dick was a “virtual human encyclopedia” of those earliest days of the rebirth of the bow and arrow as a legitimate hunting methodology.

He married his wife Carol in 1982, and together they lived the bowhunting lifestyle in the rolling sandhills of Nebraska.  Their legendary Plum Creek cabin was a game-rich wildlife heaven and those who were lucky enough to stay there made memories to last a lifetime.

Dick helped to develop the National Bowhunter Education Program, was heavily involved in the Pope & Young Club and established Corn Husker Archery in his hometown. He was inducted into the Nebraska Archery and Bowhunting Hall of Fame and was the second person to receive the Nebraska Prairie Bowmen’s highest honor, named as “Archer of the Year.”  In 2010 Dick received the Nebraska Bowhunters Association’s most prestigious award, “Bowhunter of the Year.” With more than 60 years of dedication to the sport, Dick received the “Archery Icon Award,” and was inducted into the Archery Hall of Fame in 2018 in recognition of his enormous contributions to archery and bowhunting.

Those who shared a campfire with Dick will think of him often.

As we go afield this special time of year, it is important to not forget the trailblazers who sacrificed dearly to develop and construct this awe-inspiring hunting heritage we so enjoy each day. Dick Mauch was truly legendary in his leadership roles in the world of conservation, land stewardship and hunting ethics.

It is true that my life is richer for knowing this great gentleman, and we should all work hard to keep the honor these founding fathers established in the world of the great outdoors and beyond.

Believe me, when I tell you, in the wind, he’s still alive!