Editor’s Note: With the sport of baseball heating up the past couple of weeks, we revisited one of Mossy Oak’s Pro Staffers, Jon Lester. As a pitcher, Lester won the last game in the 2007 World Series. He pitched in games one and five for the Red Sox in the 2013 World Series and won both those games, enabling Boston to be the 2013 World Series championship team. Jon has been playing in the major League for 8 years as a pitcher and enjoys being outdoors.
Question: Jon, I know you’re a bowhunter. What do you like about getting in close to a deer and harvesting those deer with a bow?
Lester: I really like the experience of getting in close and seeing and understanding how and what deer do, whether I get a shot or not. When I’m bowhunting, I feel like I have much-more personal connections with the deer I take and/or the deer I let pass without taking a shot, than if I take a deer at long range with a rifle. I like the work that’s involved in learning where the deer move and what trails they’re on, determining where I need to put my tree stand to see the deer, being dressed in Mossy Oak camo, so the deer can’t see me and knowing how to use the wind to keep the deer from spotting me. When I’ve done my work, seeing an animal show-up in front of me at close range is fulfilling. I like knowing that I have my tree stand in the right spot, the deer will be close, I have to be still, and I’ve got to be at the top of my game for these deer to walk in front of me. I like the challenge of having a bow in my hand, knowing I have to make an accurate shot to harvest an animal. I like the fact that I have to practice with my bow and hone my archery skills, if I’m going to be successful, just like I do in baseball, by practicing throwing strikes and a variety of pitches, hoping the batter won’t hit them. I have to practice and practice and practice. I like practicing. I like improving my ability to perform the very best I can on game day. Bowhunting requires that same kind of discipline to shoot the bow accurately and consistently.
For more information on Jon Lester, visit http://m.mlb.com/player/452657/jon-lester.
Day 3: Jon Lester: Hunting Is Far More Than Harvesting Animals
Tomorrow: Why Jon and Farrah Lester Started Their Philanthropy - Never Quit
