Editor’s Note: Mark Drury started working for Mossy Oak when in college. Then when he and his brother, Terry, started their video-production company, Drury Outdoors that now produces four TV shows and releases three new DVDs every year, their lives became hectic, and their schedules unbelievable. At the same time, Terry Drury’s son, Matt, was attending college. Like all young people, he was trying to decide what he wanted to be when he grew up. He knew he was born with a talent for art and was very creative. Once he took a course in college on video production, he knew what his dream job would be. Matt is a TV producer, but according to Mark and Terry Drury, he’s “The Boss” of Drury Outdoors. So, this week we interviewed “The Boss” to get an inside look at the Drurys’ outdoor lifestyle.
From the very beginning, Uncle Mark and Dad understood that two people sitting in two different tree stands, during the fall and winter, wasn’t what deer saw normally. So, it became very apparent to them that good camouflage would make a big difference in the number of deer they were able to take, and the number of videos they could produced. They also realized that a buck 4-years old or older was probably smarter and more aware of danger than any animal on any property they hunted. They knew they had to try to become invisible and look natural in the tree. Early on Uncle Mark and Dad learned to blend in with their surroundings. They might have to sit in a tree for 2 or 3 hours with 6-10 does surrounding that tree. But they knew they couldn’t spook the does to keep the does from spooking the buck they were trying to take. Every time those does looked at them in the tree, they blended in so well with the tree that the does never saw them.
If you’ve ever gotten a call from your buddy who says, “Hey, come to my stand. I’ve shot a deer, and I want you to help me recover the deer,” as you approach your buddy’s tree stand, you may spot the hunter in the stand. Well, so can the deer. Then think about seeing two people in that same tree and you’ll totally understand how important good camouflage is for both the hunter and the videographer, and how important having back and front cover is to break-up the hunter’s silhouette. We’ve always relied on Mossy Oak to give us the ability to blend in with our surroundings, break-up our silhouettes and help us become invisible, when we’re hunting and filming. In the fall and early winter, most of our team members wear Mossy Oak Break-Up Infinity. But as the season moves into the winter when the leaves are gone from the trees, most of our guys switch to Mossy Oak Treestand. Treestand features the colors of the trunks and the branches of trees, which helps our videographers blend in better with the trees where they’re hunting.
And Mossy Oak isn’t just about helping the hunter become invisible. We are proud to partner with a company like Mossy Oak that knows the importance of giving back to the community. The company helps and supports the Veteran's Outdoor Fund for veterans, and its TV show, “Hunting the Country,” showcases and promotes the average American hunter. They give to so-many worthy charities and promote the outdoor lifestyle that’s so positive. Mossy Oak has outdoor shows just like Drury Outdoors does, but we’ve never considered the idea that we compete with each other. We’re all trying to tell the story of the outdoor lifestyle in different ways with various people. We also realize that most viewers watch more than just one outdoor TV show. So, we both attempt to provide the best TV shows and videos we can to carry the message of the outdoors and hunting. Too, if “Hunting the Country” brings viewers to the Outdoor Channel for a 30-minute show, and one of our shows has been on before or after a Mossy Oak show, we know that most hunters will watch about an hour or two of outdoor programming and usually more during the week. So, we feel like we’re all on the same outdoor team.
To learn more about Drury Outdoors, you can visit www.druryoutdoors.com, https://www.facebook.com/OfficialDruryOutdoors or https://twitter.com/DruryOutdoors. Drury Outdoors is very active on all of these sites, and you can send emails, ask questions and get answers through the website. I read and answer every email I can. Also Uncle Mark, my dad, Taylor, my cousin and Uncle Mark’s daughter, and I try to answer all the questions that we get. We love to interact with the viewers who watch our TV shows and our videos.
Day 3: Matt Drury of Drury Outdoors Explains How a Video Gets from the Field to Your TV Set
