Bowhunter – September 2019

20 BOWHUNTER /// SEPTEMBER 2019

MY HUNTING BUDDY Doyle Shipp crouched behind a bush

and watched the 6x7 bull pace along a ridge. The elk

was 150 yards away, but Doyle was not concerned

about the distance. He was excited, because his son

Ryley was inching toward the bull and had already cut

the range in half. Doyle hesitated a few more minutes,

and then he started sneaking along behind Ryley. He

could not help himself. It looked like the young man might

actually get a shot, and Doyle wanted a front-row seat.

IF YOUR GOAL IS TO STALK A BULL ELK, THEN YOU

MIGHT AS WELL SEE HOW CLOSE YOU CAN GET TO HIM.

Chuck Adams

O At age 24, Ryley Shipp had already

bagged two bulls in his home state of

Montana with a Hoyt fingers bow — first

a fat 5x5, and then a bomber 6x6 that

gross-scored a touch over 380 record-

book points. Both elk were shot at close

range after they visited waterholes dur-

ing hot September weather. Ryley had

passed up other bulls, and after taking

the huge wall-hanger, he was craving an-

other archery challenge.

“I want to stalk and shoot a Pope and

Young elk,” Ryley told me in late 2017. “Wa-

terhole hunting is great, but shots are short

and all I have to do is hide and wait. I want

the challenge of taking a bull on foot.”

Like many fingers shooters, Ryley

was reasonably accurate out to 20 or 25

yards, but less confident at longer dis-

tances. He knew he might have to shoot

farther during a stalk. Terrain, wind di-

rection, other elk, and a bull’s tendency

to keep moving all might prevent a

pointblank chance.

“What I need,” Ryley explained, “is a

fast and accurate release-aid setup.”

In early 2018, Ryley purchased a Hoyt

Carbon RX-1 Ultra compound bow

based on my recommendation. He’s a tall,

strong, and long-armed hombre, and this

medium-length bow let him draw a 31-

Ryley’s bull was a

handsome whopper,

with symmetrical ant-

lers scoring a bit over

355 record-book points.

Having his dad, Doyle,

along to witness the

stalk and shot made

the hunt extra special.