Riley Rozdeba
Riley Rozdeba
Riley Rozdeba is twelve years old. This is his first year of big-game hunting. His season begins the day after he passes his hunter education course. We purchase his first license—a 2008 black bear tag. Riley and his dad put out some bait on their own land, which is near the Duck Mountains in Saskatchewan.
Only a week passed before the bait is hit. It’s time to hunt. The first couple of evenings produce no action, but is was normal in early May. The third time at our stand, only minutes after we settle down, in comes a beautiful reddish-brown bear. Before giving Riley an opportunity to shoot, the bear lies down behind the 45-gallon bait barrel, leaving nothing but his head and hind feet exposed. After 25 minutes the bear finally takes to his feet and begins to show interest in the bait. Dad whispers for Riley to hold just behind the shoulder, and shoot.
Boom! Riley sends the 110-grain tipped TSX on its way. When the .270 bullet strikes, the bear charges toward us, only to pile up after travelling 30 yards. Riley and his dad let out a big cheer.
A few weeks later, the deadline for the big game draw application is fast approaching. Riley’s dad enters him for elk and moose tags, and they apply together for antelope. They also apply together with his uncle for mule deer. Since it’s Riley’s first year, odds are not in his favor for drawing a tag.
There was lots of excitement in mid-July, when we check online and discover we have drawn tags for zone 6. Plans are put in place and we make the six-hour drive to the area in late August to scout and obtain permission. Riley, with his dad and uncle, return in mid-October for a few days of muzzleloading and searching for something worthy. Uncle and dad watch Riley pass up on four bucks in hopes of finding a really good buck.
The first two days of the rifle season finds uncle and dad out hunting, and Riley in school. I phone home Monday night to report to Riley and tell him I had passed up a massive 4×3 and had spotted a couple of other great bucks.
When school lets out Friday afternoon, the three of us again make the six-hour trek to the southwest part of the province. It’s still dark early Saturday morning when uncle drops off the father-and-son team. We hike a mile and half to where we plan to glass from.
As the sun rises, a buck and some does are spotted. They deserve a closer look. While cresting a small rise in the pasture, we see a buck standing still. I don’t need my Swarovski binocular to see that this guy is a shooter. We try closing the distance to the buck, but the land is pool-table flat and the buck is beginning to walk.
I tell Riley to fold out his bipod and take the shot. Riley says, “Dad, I’m shaking.” I tell him to just relax.
Wham! The buck is hit and runs into a coulee about 80 yards away. Soon we reach the spot, and Riley says, “There he is!” I just about fall over when I see it’s the big 4×3 I’d passed on Monday morning.
Riley’s first buck has a gross typical score of 189-1/8. Riley shoots a Model 70 Winchester carbine I purchased new in 1984. It has a Leupold 2.5-8 VX III scope. The stock has been shortened, and has a limbsaver recoil pad and a Harris bipod. The 270 Winchester is loaded with 58.5 grains of IMR4350 and 110-grain Barnes TTSX. My chronograph registers the velocity at just over 3200 feet per second (fps).
I’ve also included a picture of the buck I killed November 10, 2008. My rifle is a stainless-steel Model 70 Winchester I purchased new in 1994. I took it to Tim Janzen while he was working at a gun shop in Regina, Saskatchewan. Tim rechambered the barrel to 7mm STW, then bedded and adjusted the trigger.
This is the first year I have used Barnes Bullets my rifle.. My load is 82 grains of IMR4831 behind a 120-grain Tipped TSX. This produces an average of 3780 fps and outstanding accuracy.
That’s all for now. Monday morning is opening day of the whitetail rifle season. We can’t wait to see what will happen next.
—Kevin Rozdeba
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