Boilermaker targets bucks, hogs on Brotherhood Outdoors

NICK MCWHORTER, right, shares a special moment with Brotherhood Outdoors hosts Daniel Lee Martin and Julie McQueen.

L-105’s McWhorter scores on “redemption” hunt

NICK MCWHORTER, a member of Local 105 in Piketon, Ohio, was ecstatic when he learned he had been picked for a Brotherhood Outdoors hunting trip (televised this past spring). Hunting and fishing are a cherished tradition in the McWhorter family. The McWhorters also cherish their craft as construction Boilermakers: Nick’s father, John, and brother, Matthew, are also members.

On a fall day in 2014, Nick met up in Eufaula, Ala., with Brotherhood Outdoors hosts Daniel Lee Martin and Julie McQueen for a chance to bring home a nice buck. Unfortunately, a sharp cold front and heavy rain put a damper on the deer movement. Nick never got an opportunity for a shot, so he headed back to his home in Rush, Ky. It looked like the TV episode was going to be scratched.

“We gave it all we had,” he said. “That’s the way it goes. That’s hunting.”

But Martin and McQueen weren’t willing to give up. They arranged for a “redemption hunt,” this time at the Wilderness Hunting Lodge in the Cumberland Mountains of Tennessee, where the game would be wild Russian hogs.

On the first morning of the two-day outing, a pair of massive hogs appeared along a wooded creek bed. Nick targeted a large black boar, but his arrow missed low. His second arrow found its mark, but the boar, estimated at 450 pounds, just trotted off. It took two more arrows before the animal was down for good.

Nick’s success was shared with his wife, Sabrina, who made the trip with him to Tennessee. Seeing his experiences aired on Brotherhood Outdoors was icing on the cake.

“I had always dreamed of being on a hunting show,” Nick said. He added, “There’s more to hunting and fishing than filling up your freezer with meat. It’s about spending the best of times with family. I hope to pass it on to my kids and that they enjoy it as much as I have.”

Source: Laura Tingo, Brotherhood Outdoors