In the fall of 1964 I found two #1 Victor long springs hanging in my dad’s garage. I had read about Jim Bridger and Kit Carson, and I was hooked on
the idea of becoming a rich fur magnate. I spent the better part of three weeks setting those traps, using a very clever strategy—it might be summed up by "blunder and
error." I was not an absolute failure. I did manage to catch a squirrel, and although he was pretty tough, he was tasty.
The following winter, after studying Fur-Fish-Game harder than I ever did my social studies assignment, I did catch a muskrat. It was a celebration.
Later that winter, I took my first mink. I have not been normal since.
Each year, I managed to increase my take, and expand the number of species I had captured, and it is funny how, now, 41 years later, I am still learning
how to increase my take, and expand the number of species I have captured.
Today I have more territory to trap than I can find the time to cover, and every one of those properties are by invitation. If someone could show me how
to trap a 26-hour day, I bet I could increase my take even more.
This magazine has truly been an extension of those first two traps. I would say that 99% of any trapping knowledge I have
could probably be attributed to some other trapper who chose to write in a magazine, sharing with me his most precious commodity—his trapping knowledge. I deeply appreciate that.
Today, every issue that hits the mailbox has, I hope, some tip to help someone improve his or her trapping, and hopefully there will be important
political information, trapping news, and maybe a chuckle or two. It is the only way I know to pay back all of those writers who gave me such a fulfilling hobby—see to it that we
pass a little on to someone new. Reading an article can be like finding two old traps in some garage…you never know where it might lead you.
My "day job" is teaching. I have been in the classroom for 28 years, teaching English, speech, debate and drama.
The magazine, however, is a collaborative effort. My wife Loray is copy/composition editor for the magazine, and of course is a trapper’s wife. She
finds it difficult to get into the garage between October and April. Also, she regularly must deal with manuscripts that are pretty tough to decipher. Good trappers are often not
good typists. She will admit to knowing more these days about coyote urine than she ever thought she would. She is a pretty good sport too, in that it is a rare evening when I’m
not on the phone for at least part of the evening, so our family adjusts.
Caleb, our son, is off to college, but when he was home, I nicknamed him the "Minkmeister" as had a real knack for snagging the little brown
predators. Annie, 13, accompanies me sometimes, and is a regular at conventions and meetings across the country.
Regulars on "staff" (The quotation marks mean they don’t get a salary!) include five people who proofread each month: Carol & Louie
Krumwiede, Roy Greenfield, Dan Schweisthal, and Balie Keown. We have regular columnists too, and I would encourage anyone who ever enjoyed the magazine to let them know how much
we all appreciate their efforts. When the monthly deadline comes due, these fellows must drop what they are doing and hit the keyboards. In doing so, they share with us the most
precious commodity—their knowledge. Tell them thanks when you get a chance!
