Editor’s Note: Many times the story behind the story is better than the story itself. What are the people really like that we see on outdoor TV shows? How does an outdoor TV show start? What are the high and low points of bringing outdoor TV shows to your TV sets? What are the lives of the TV hosts like? This week I think you'll enjoy learning more about the people on “Live 2 Hunt with Cody and Kelsy Robbins” TV (www.live2hunt.com) from Kelsy’s point of view. Kelsy Robbins has lived in Delisle, Saskatchewan, Canada, her entire life. She co-hosts their TV show, she’s a Mossy Oak pro, and her favorite pattern is Mossy Oak Break-Up Country. Kelsy says, “That pattern fits in with all the terrain we hunt. Before Country came out, I was 100 percent a fan of Mossy Oak Break-Up.” She’s a mom, a wife, a business partner, a barrel racer and an avid hunter - far more than the person you see on TV.
One morning on the hunt, Cody was saddling up his horse and I woke up. I remember saying to him, “This is it. I'm done. I'm not leaving Berkley again. When we get home, you can cancel all the trips you have booked for me.” Cody had heard me crying in the tent at night, and he really felt bad for me. All he said was, “We’ll talk about it when we get home. I understand how you're feeling. We’ll be home soon enough, and you'll get to see her.” I knew that we would only be home for 5 days before a trip to the Yukon to hunt moose. I told Cody, “I'm not going on that hunt. You can find someone else to go, but I'm not going.” The moose tag was in my name, but I didn’t really care.
Once I got home and realized that Berkley was fine, and my mom was taking really good care of her, I started getting excited about the moose hunt. But I didn’t want to tell Cody, because he had seen how upset I was about being away from Berkley. I went from one extreme to another in a short time. To be honest, I felt guilty inside about being excited about this hunt and leaving my daughter. I knew I wanted to be with her, but I felt like I was being a bad parent because of my excitement. However, I didn’t want to admit this to anyone. Then, I realized that if I wasn’t doing the TV show, I’d be working in the city, 9 – 5, and Berkley would be at daycare instead of with my mom.
We’ve solved part of the problem by taking Berkley with us to some of the trade shows, and she stays in the booth with us. She seems to enjoy running around and playing in the booth. Then, I take her back to the hotel for her naps. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to do anything else other than what I'm doing. I love hunting; I love being with Cody, having an outdoor TV show and working with Cody. But, I also love being a mom, being with our daughter and having family time. So, we’re learning how to work all these things out. We’re thinking about having another baby – well, Cody is. I'm trying to balance running a business with being a mom. Sometimes, I'm not sure if I'm doing a good job of either one. So, I don’t know how I’ll manage with two children, but that’s a bridge I'm sure we’ll cross.
Many times people will say, “You’ve got a great job. You get to go hunting all the time, all over the country.” They're absolutely right. However, many times they don’t see the other side of a hunting TV couple’s life - what has to happen to get our TV shows done and maintain our family life. But all of it is good, and I don’t want to change any of it.
One of the questions I'm often asked at seminars and trade shows, especially by women hunters, is: “What kind of hunting clothes do you wear?” I answer them with, “I wore my dad’s hand-me-downs for many years. Then, I wore Cody’s camos.” Of course, women’s bodies are different from men’s bodies. Now, I wear ScentBlocker Sola (www.robinsonoutdoors.com) in Mossy Oak - camouflage clothes made to fit the woman’s body. I really didn’t understand the difference in men’s hunting clothes and women’s hunting clothes, until I started wearing ScentBlocker Sola hunting clothes for women. I was accustomed to wearing men’s hunting clothes and having the crotch hang halfway to my knees. I didn’t realize how much more comfortable lady’s hunting clothes were than men’s hunting clothes. I didn’t realize how much easier crawling would be in lady’s camo when I was trying to get close to a big mule deer to get a shot.
Nicole Reeve, who is also a Mossy Oak Pro Staffer, worked with ScentBlocker on designing their line of women’s hunting clothes. Nicole is a good friend of mine. I know that she’s very into fashion, and she always looks really good. So, I knew the clothes that she helped design would fit women in the outdoors and be comfortable for hunting. I advise any women who hunt to try on some of the new Mossy Oak camouflage clothing that’s designed specifically for women. If you are a man and take your wife, your daughter or your girlfriend hunting, do her a favor, and outfit her in clothes designed for her, instead of having her wear your camo clothing.
To learn more about hunting, check out John E. Phillips’ new eBook and print book, “Bowhunting Deer: Mossy Oak Pros Know Bucks and Bows.” You also can download a free Kindle app that enables you to read the book on your iPad, computer or Smartphone.
For information on making jerky from your deer to provide a protein-rich snack, you can download a free book from http://johninthewild.com/free-books.
