New Trophy Room
General Topic
After 9 months of work we started hanging animals today in my trophy room. Still have to complete flooring and lighting, but wanted to wait until after animals were placed. Will send more photos as the day progresses. Thanks to all who have shared their trophy room photos and mounts over the last year as i have borrowed a few ideas. richie
Amazing, Richie! You are truly blessed to have had so many Trophy encounters!
Best of Luck, Jeff (Bowsite Sponsor)
Just an amazing room Rich! Congrats on all the trophies to fill it with. JJ
Room, heck, thats a museum!
That is amazing. congrats. Are those all bow kills? Regardless that is simply amazing!
Thanks guys. For the first time ever all of my animals will be in the same location. I'm sure there will be many nights of sitting back and going through all those memories. A lot of fun hunts and some good friends will be represented on these walls.
Your cleaning staff must moonlight for Barnum and Bailey or Cirque du Soleil. :)
You obviously put much thought into the construction and I think it paid off. Congrats.
Owl you bring up a good point. After all the careful planning I have been a nervous wreck all day just wondering if it is all going to come together. I think it is working out good so far. I have a series of safety hooks hidden in the ceiling so that when it is cleaning time I can put on my harness and bounce around!
Now those would make for funny pictures.lol
As Keith alluded, it looks less like a "trophy room" and more like a natural history museum. I hope this thread grows long with photos. Good stuff.
Now boys and girls that is totally (One hell of a trophy room)!!!!!!!!!!
Amazing room Richie! Thanks for posting.
I have to step away from the computer and do a little work. I promise to continue with pictures. Heck, I haven't been able to share my elk and bears and mule deer yet. And yes njbuck these are all bowkills. Thanks again for all the kind comments. richie
Wow, Richie. That is truly awe inspiring! Thank you for sharing! That is just amazing.
What everyone else said, WOW!!!!
So does INCREDIBLE rate higher than WOW? The stories I'm sure you could tell over all the trophies. Congrates on a museum quality trophy room.
Holy WOW! Same Richie Bland from Jack Brittingham videos? You seem like a great guy, congrats!
HOLY S@%^ Batman !!!!! That is AWESOME !!!!!!!
Um Yeah, what they all said. Absolutely beautiful room!!!
When all is said and done, please do us all a favor and take a video tour of the room and post it on bowsite. Individual pictures don't do this room justice.
Wow.
Which one is the Flat River moose?? Beautiful room Richie!
I don't know how many people realize this, but Richie keeps a low profile despite having completed his archery NA29. His grizzly bear bowhunt is still one of my favorite videos.
Richie,
Like everyone else, I am looking forward to the rest of the photos.....and I'm going to collect on that Crown Royal at Pope & Young.....
Jake
Steve, a video of the room is a great idea. I should do that anyway for insurance purposes. Hey Ned, the moose from the hunt we shared together is the one on the left. The room behind the moose is going to be my new archery shop and the walkway you see on the right is my indoor archery range. I thought it would be pretty neat to be working on my archery tackle with all my trophies in view and can then practice on what is basically the third level of the room and not put anyone at risk! Jake, looking forward to buying you a Crown Royal and the offer extends to any other bowsiters we might run into. richie
You made one mistake, I don't see a lot of room for additional trophy whitetails. Amazing room for sure.
Whooooooa
?!?INDOOR ARCHERY RANGE?!?
?!?BOW SHOP?!?
God damn, that is freagin awesome!
I am impressed. I am also a little jealous. Congratulations on all the wonderful memories. Wow as I look at what you are calling a trophy room, I realized that it looks like it is bigger than my house. Again congratulations, You are livin' the dream!!!!
I just want tobe your taxidermist. Fantastic room.
Hey 12yards, I am holding back a little. I haven't showed any pictures from the bottom floor. There is another whitetail room down there. And I did save some room for additional critters. I was thinking, if Jake or Ray Howell or any of those other freaks that shoot them 100+ pound bows shows up at the house it could be interesting watching them shoot indoors. Scared they might blow the end of the house off!!
CONGRATS on the trophies and the house/room!!! I am a little disappointed now.........my wife and I just moved into a new house last month and I am finishing the lower level at the moment to be my trophy room. I guess I am feeling a little inadequate now. :) THANK you for sharing!
OFFHNTN
Great looking room...If it were mine I would sit back when it was completely done and think about the memories I had from every hunt. What a treasure that would be. Thanks for sharing!
Wow Congratulations on all those trophies - That is incredible. Thank you for sharing - Very cool.
I am thinking that Robin Leach should narrarate the video and give a run down of each trophy:)
fantantic ...... your own Museum . Where all the kudu taken with bow ? What is the best kudu?
Which mount is your favorite?
Looks better thatn the Fred bear Museum ....Just the design of a TR is an Art form now.
Fred Bear Museum is nice.. but most mounts are terrible ( from the 50s and 60s) . Its alwayss a conflict of : another hunt? Which mount to do next? or expansion of TR ? tough Qs in today`s economy ....regardless of Income.
Only in America! Thanks for sharing with us! Amazing that you and your buds hung all the mounts so quickly!
Bowsite Meet & Greet scheduled for 3 PM on Friday and the Pope & Young Convention. All welcome! C
Do you have any single daughters? I'd make a great son in-law!! :) Just kidding. Fantastic Trophy room!
Amazing!! Love the sheep!!
Simply incredible!!!!!!!! Congrats Richie!
Who are you? That is amazing.
AlexW.
WOW!!! thanks for sharing. That is an absolutely awesome collection.
great room. I always enjoy watching u on video. very humble. nice job
no more arguments on Bowsite
just use what this guy uses and (try to) do what he does
thanks for sharing richie bland, can't wait for finish pics
Richie, how about a narrated video tour! Absolutely fantastic job on the design and layout. Enjoy your accomishments.
I just went through the pictures about 4 or 5 times, as I keep seeing more details. I'm struck by the memories each mount will evoke. I'm a big fan of taxidermy and your collection is stunning. Just a quick question, Is the tour of the room an E-ticket ride or do I just have to make reservations? Very cool and congratulations on your accomplishments. Thanks for sharing. Now I might just have to go to the P&Y convention just to take advantage of your Royal Crown offer! LOL. Cheers!
Richie
Not to long back I started a post on my trophy room (BASEMENT) I have been working on. All I can say is HOLY COW! Your room is unreal. It gives me motivation to keep hunting and to try and fill my room as best as I can.
I own all the trophy rooms book from Safari Press and without a doubt your room needs to be in their next book.
Congratulations on the completion of your room. Enjoy all the memories the room will bring back to you on the hunts for those magnificent animals.
Unbelievable! Truly beautiful room/setup! I have not seen you around as far as posts go and I guess that goes with what Jake said as being low profile. Truly impressive thanks for sharing!
I appreciate everyone's comments very much. Extrem predator--my best kudu is 56" with a couple of 54". High Country--with the exception of some of the whitetails all animals were taken after 1994 with the majority from 2000-present. I started hunting with my father at 6 years of age, taking my first whitetail at age 11 and switching to bowhunting at age 14. I did not start other big game hunting until my 30's. Growing up in Georgia there are not a lot of other big game species to chase and until these last 15 years I did not have the time and money to travel to other hunting destinations. And MassBucks, not sure if I should answer, but I do have a 24 year old single daughter in Nursing school who loves to hunt with me. Better get her permission before I post any pictures! Some more pictures I took last night are a little fuzzy--will try to take some more today. thanks again richie
MassBucks,
You better be careful re: Richie's daughter, or YOU'LL end up on a wall in his gameroom....!!
I have reserved a spot over my fireplace for the guy who ever hurts my daughter. I so wanted to show it to the young man who came and picked her up Valentines Day for a date. My wife didn't think it was a good idea and the daughter thinks that is just too mean. I told them I have a great taxidermist and could make him really life like.
Very, very fine!
I'm sure there is a way to set up a virtual tour on this site. I'd like to see it the way Richie every morning.
Dr. Richie,
Amazing!! How many square feet and how high are the ceilings? Thanks for posting!
Richie, i'm not sure what you do for a living but it looks like all of your hard work has paid off!! I am in my mid 20's and in a professional role and these pictures just make me want to work harder everyday so that one day i will be able to have some of the hunting memories that you have!!
Thanks for the insperation, and nice room!!
UNBELIEVABLE! These trophy rooms are absolutely unbelievable! An archery range and a shop to boot?! You've done an amazing job. So exciting to think about the memories. I hope to someday have a room a fraction of this size, filled with a fraction of the species represented here! So, basically, what I'm getting at is... Do you need a hunting buddy!? ;>) Hats off to you! UNBELIEVABLE!
How far can you shoot indoors? It is certainly nice to be able to practice in your house - particularly in winter. Awesome set up.
Simply amazing room!! No other way to put it. I think I can put 6 of my trophy rooms into one of yours.But I'm working on expanding. A 24 year old nurse that likes to hunt?? Still waiting on that pic as well!(respectfully of course)
richie, what type of railing is going on those posts?
spare 200" deer & 300" elk racks? haha
glass would look great
MassBucks- If you do pull this off and wedding plans are in your future I will donate the wedding favors:)
OK some more pictures here is whitetail room #2
View from archery shop Bigpizzaman ceilings are 40' and can shoot 38 yds to target the railing is going to be 1/4 inch stainless wire cable ran horizontally hopefully this will blend in and not interfere with visibility
The two rooms on each side of the elk will have real functioning jail cell doors-with one room being the wine cellar and the other for some of my collectable items for display. And if Ned or someone drinks too much red wine, I will be able to lock them up for overnight.
Some elk, mule deer, red stag and bear. This room will have a card table and pool table and tv above fireplace. I suspect I will spend a lot of time in this room!
I will not be dizzy from the wine, rather by turning around and looking at everything over and over. That is soo cool. Proud of you and your accomplishments. I will travel for a poker game. Keep me in mind!!
I'm "ALL IN" Too! Very Cool, Thanks Again!
Wine cellar!!!!!!! Now we are talking!!
I feel like such a wannabe all of a sudden. ;^)
Very nice Richie. Congrats on a great room, and of course all the trophies.
I just do not understand HOW there is enough time in a persons life to kill all of those animals. Unless they hunt everyday all year long for years.
If you dont mind me askin.....what do/did you do for a living???
No doubt, I'm in the wrong line of work!!! LOL
That is just unreal!!
And a picture of all my children.
Ohhhhhh, I see.
Your an immortal.
These trophies have been amassed over many lifetimes.
When the moon is full you retire to the jail cell so as not to eat your family.
Great trophy room and better family. Congrats on living your dream.
Northwoods
Deerman1--I treat cancer patients, I am a practicing radiation oncologist. Here is my daughter with a nice eland.
Richie
That cape buffalo mount is out of this world. So many times mounts that have their mouths open look just down right stupid. That buff has the perfect expression on his face. It's like he is about to trample some poor soul. Truly a work of art.
"I treat cancer patients, I am a practicing radiation oncologist."
When?
Wow, I am still in awe of just about all of it...
Well except for the guy in the suspenders with no shirt! Must be a Georgia thing ;)
"You are truly blessed to have had so many Trophy encounters!"
Heck, you truly are blessed just to be able to afford the taxidermy bill for all of those encounters! Very impressive.
"Well except for the guy in the suspenders with no shirt! Must be a Georgia thing ;)" LOL Overalls are a southern thing :)
Very nice Richie, well Awesome actually.
thanks for sharing the pics. and my Lovely thinks I got to many mounts on the walls. now I can point to the possibilites. LoL
googled "radiation oncologist" Congradulations on a very successful demanding career, hope you have many more great stress reducing hunts.
Richie,
This is very giving of you, thank you for sharing. It is so great to see a fellow enjoy the passion he so loves, helps others so directly at work and enjoys the fruits of his labor.
I enjoy Cabela visits but your display is something else!
congras on many things esp the family and your job helping others thats a great choice, I wish you and the loved ones the best , Ive only seen one room that would compare to this and that was at the bx zoo many years ago, it was called the heads and horns building They had a collection of animals from Teddy Roosevelt, and others ,, louis
When is the "Grand Opening"?
Richie: You have a beautiful family. If Ned comes down, you had better keep your daughter under lock and key. :-)
The cape buff with the monkey swinging behind it is just awesome!
Congrats and thanks for sharing!
Richie, Are the windows of much concern(sun). Did you design it yourself or did you have some help? Any more bear pics. I can make out the long john polar.
Ned, great question regarding windows. I only have a few windows and they are located such that they are facing the northeast to have the least damaging rays. And I did have extra UV protection built into them. And a few bear pics.
Very impressive sir, and a great looking family. My son turns 7 months tomorrow so it will be a while before we can share his first hunt, but he has been on the trapline with me several times already.
how long were tossing ideas back and forth before you settled on this idea and started building? i would have been going nuts second guessing myself during construction.
Congratulations once again,
Michael
Michael, I probably spent 5 years designing the room. And yes there was a lot of second guessing going on during construction. In fact I got so nervous one time that I went ahead and hung all the animals months before completion just to get an idea that the design would work. Those first hunts with your son will be memories seldom forgotten. thanks richie
I cant wait Richie,
Took him perch and walleye fishing up on leech lake last weekend...
Mike your sons face is priceless in that last pic! Awesome
Tmac,
Yeah, we just got done looking at richie's trophy room pics on my blackberry, he was still in awe! lol
michael
Richie,
My gameroom is done in logs. Years ago, I had all of the windows covered with wooden venetian blinds. NO direct light comes in....just diffuse light. One day I moved a mount and the color of the log was much darker where the mount had been, versus the exposed portion of the wall.
I then bought additional logs, and "logged-off" the windows....all of them (the windows are still there, so if I ever sell the house, you could remove the logs and have windows again). Now, NO Light comes in, AND I got more wall space to hang mounts on.....
The point of my rambling is that even diffuse light was fading my animals...and more rapidly than I would have ever guessed. With you living in the South, I was just wondering if you installed argon windows or UV shaded glass or something to protect your gorgeous collection (and investment)?
Jake
Richie,
Wow!
Question is this an addition to your home or is it a seperate building trying to get a better idea of the setup. I love the design and some of the cubbie hole type locations like the standing brown bear.
Unreal. How do you have the time. It would take me 5 lifetimes to even come close.
Hey Richie? I know you are busy what with treating all your cancer patients and killing every animal on the planet but you could give guided tours through your trophy room with Friday night poker games and fund your next hunts. Charge $5. dollars for the tour and $50. dollar table fees. If you give some of us old guys a break on the admission price we will help keep some of these young punks away from your daughter! Whats not to like? LOL, Mike
Is it too late to move this year's P&Y banquet from MN to Richie's house?!
Haha great idea Mike I'd go broke, I would want a tour as soon as the current tour was over!! Every time I look through this thread I get all warm inside and my mind wanders of back country trophies! Again absolutely beautiful!
Richie- your trophy room is simply awe inspiring! You are truly a blessed man. What's not visible to us though is the passion and hard work that went into obtaining each one of those trophies.
mn_archer- those pictures are priceless! I bet that first one is a screen saver, isn't it?
-Cheryl n Matt
And who ever said the price of medical treatment was outrageously high? Clearly this man is barely getting by....................
This thread is unreal in so many different ways.
mn_archer, that series of pictures deserves a thread of its own.
Andrew
I'm very impressed! Congratulations on all of your memories!!
I think you have more mounts than Cabelas or Basspro combined. Congrats on all the fine trophies!
"And who ever said the price of medical treatment was outrageously high? Clearly this man is barely getting by...................."
And jealousy rears its ugly head once again!
Gorgeous room, more power to you!
NEP
NEP, My thoughts exactly, well said. Thanks for sharing your incredible trophy room with us Richie.
Richie,is that u in the blue overalls?
Nathaniel, I am not the least bit jealous. I do fine, and others can do as they choose.
Just at a point in my life where "things" don't matter so much any more. Using what I do have to help others really does matter. As opposed to it being all about "me", which is what this trophy room clearly says (screams).
It's his choice, but imagine how many hungry people could have been fed with what is on those walls...........
"but imagine how many hungry people could have been fed with what is on those walls..........."
And I am willing to bet many hungry people WERE fed from what is hanging on those walls...especially the mounts from Africa!
Awesome trophy room. Thanks for sharing.
Do not kid yourself herdmanager. Being the spouse of a medical resident as we speak. The price tag is huge. On top of having to be one of the brightest in his medical school to get into that field. He had to put in 9 years of training after college. A price tag few are even willing to pay. I enjoy the pictures. Just great!!
The only problem I have with this thread is that it reads "New Trophy ROOM". A more accurate title would be Trophy House or Lodge! Great collection. I'm not mad at ya! LOL
Most impressive. Congrats on your medical career and hunting success.
Richie, can I "harvest that pic? I love it!
HerdManager..... I have worked hard all my life, started my own business at 15, worked my way through college cutting pulpwood and firewood for myself, farming for my folks, and working every holiday and weekend I could get free at a veneer mill.
Built two houses and gave them both away during the divorce, because it was easier on the ex and the kids.
I never asked my parents for a dime, and have never taken a penny of any kind of "public benefit".
This is where I live now:
I said all that to say this:
we all have different goals, skills, priorities, and abilities...heck we even have different luck.
I do not envy Richie the good things he has to enjoy, because I know what he has done to get to those things.
He has chosen a life path and is enjoying it, just as I have and I am happy to share his success.
We are both hunters, and we are both rich men.
Thanks for sharing Richie, your place is beyond awesome!
"The price tag is huge. On top of having to be one of the brightest in his medical school to get into that field. He had to put in 9 years of training after college. A price tag few are even willing to pay."
Yep x 100
Good for you Richie. Really enjoyed the tour and hats off to you! Thanks for sharing :)
I just saw this post. . .
Man, that is awesome!!!
Congrats on many fine memories!
Bake
Hey guys, just saw that this thread has appeared again. Will give everyone an update. The flooring is going in today and the lighting is almost done. I've displayed a few more animals since the last posts. So hopefully soon I can share a few more images. Someone had a great idea of a little video tour, so I might make an attempt at doing so. Thanks again to all for the kind comments. richie
I'm looking forward to seeing more.
right on Richie. bring it on!! awesome room!
Richie,
Looking forward to seeing the video, and tipping a beverage or two at P&Y!!
WOW! Amazing trophy room, awsome animals too. I bought my new house when I turned 22 back in '07, mostly cause of the finished basement I turned into a trophy room. Got a full life-size bear, whitetail buck, coyote and fox mount but it doesn't hold a flame to what to what you've earned! Congrats on an awesome dream come to life.
Congratulations to Richie on a fantastic trophy room, and a thank you to Fuzzy for putting it all into perspective.
High Country, no I don't...at the library, or at work :-)
WOW!!!! Not much else i can say!
How about some finished pictures? Give me something to keep the flame going! (actually to make it burn brighter) Thanks for sharing!
That cape buffalo looks totally BAD ASS!!!
Richie, Reminds me of Jaws . . . when Roy Schieder sees the shark and tells the captain "you're gonna need a bigger boat." Holy crap that is a lot of animals, but how many more will you and your progeny put on the wall??!! Congrats, bro!
That is incredible,
Well done Sir.. Thanks for sharing.
RG
