Editor’s Note: Eva Shockey combined the two lifestyles of both her parents – dance and the outdoors. Besides her extensive dance background, as far back as Eva can remember, she’d gone on hunts with her dad as an observer to spend quality time with him. According to Eva, “I didn’t think that girly-girls shot animals, until I saw the first ‘Hunger Games’ movie, and then I was hooked.” Today, Eva co-hosts the "Jim Shockey's Hunting Adventures" TV show and represents the Shockey family at outdoor trade and consumer shows. “I love to go to the shows and meet other hunters. Then I can enjoy the serenity of the woods when I’m there and the socialization of the shows.” Eva has been wearing Mossy Oak for the last 3 years, and the Mossy Oak family is proud to have she and her dad as a part of it.
When I decided that girly-girls could go hunting and not only enjoy the hunt but enjoy taking animals, I wanted to learn to hunt with as many types of weapons as my dad used – guns, bows and black powder. My favorite gun to hunt with is a Thompson/Center break action .270. I’ve shot some really-huge animals with this gun. Depending on what we’re hunting, I’ll be shooting either a .270 or a .300 Win Mag. When I bowhunt I like the Bowtech HeartBreaker.
I’m often asked about if I’m wearing a Heater Body Suit that zips up to my neck, and bowhunting in Saskatchewan, do I have my bow inside the Heater Body Suit, or do I have it on a bow hanger attached to the tree? I guess we’re a low-budget operation, because I’ve asked my dad about using a bow hanger. His answer always is, “Aw, you don’t need one.”
When we hunt in Saskatchewan, we don’t hunt from tree stands, which I guess is part of the reason we don’t use bow hangers. Because the weather is so extremely cold, we hunt out of elevated box blinds. When I get into my blind, I go ahead and nock an arrow and have it within easy reach. Then when I get ready to unzip my Heater Body Suit, I can bend over slightly and pick up my bow. I already have my mechanical release attached to my wrist. I can clip my release onto the string of my bow quickly and easily and be able to draw and take the shot. When hunting in Saskatchewan with a gun, our elevated ground blinds have windows in them. I get into the blind, point the barrel of the loaded gun out the window and sit the stock of the gun in my lap. To make the shot, I bring the stock to my shoulder, look through my scope, steady the rifle on the spot I want to hit and squeeze the trigger.
Another question I’m often asked by girls and ladies is, “What the heck do you do, when you’re sitting in a box stand for 10-12 hours, waiting on a deer to show-up?” Well, I don’t drink any liquids, because my dad says I can’t go to the bathroom unless I have a real emergency. However, I bring lots of snacks with me. Most of the time, we don’t have cell-phone service where we hunt. But when we hunt in areas where we do have cell-phone service, I’ve taught my dad how to text, and we’ll often text back and forth to each other during the day. I sleep sometimes, when I don’t expect to see a deer. But when we have pretty weather, and my expectations are high, I easily can look for deer and other critters for 10 straight hours. I don’t take books or video games with me, because I am excited about seeing animals. Occasionally, my dad will take his Kindle with him to read in the stand. Because we use trail cameras, and I know the size of the bucks that the trail cameras have taken pictures of, I usually just look for deer.
