Her P&Y quest...
Whitetail Deer
Lana in 2005 after her first bow-killed deer. She was wearing my late fathers coveralls.
Lana in 2005 after her first bow-killed deer. She was wearing my late fathers coveralls.
Here's a little story I'd like to share with you all about my wife, Lana Embry, and her whitetail addiction. For the sake of thread titles, I sorta went with a take of my 2018 thread, "Traditional P&Y quest". Hope you all enjoy the brief write up and also the photos. I'll lean on the photos more than my writing skills.
A brief background about Lana... she started bowhunting with me back in 2005 several months after we started dating. She actually shot her first deer that winter. She's what motivates me to get out of bed some mornings and I'm glad I've got her to lean on and bounce ideas off of. She doesn't hang stands, but enjoys going along and trimming lanes and supervising. As far as the hunt, she beats me out of bed most mornings and shes not opposed to sitting in a stand from sun up until sun down. It would be easy to assume, bow hunting is her late summer, fall/winter addiction. Kind of funny too beens she's a business owner/operator of a nail salon. A lot of her clients are high affluent and look at her funny when she tells them about her love of bow hunting. :)
For the better part of the last 14 years that we've bow hunted together, and especially after seeing me kill a few P&Y whitetails, she would routinely hit me with... "I want to kill a P&Y so bad!" The fire was burning and the wheels were turning. My reply was usually... "It will happen, just be patient." This question always came up too... "How will I know if it's P&Y?" My reply... "You'll know, and you'll just grab your bow."
Also, she loves what the P&Y club represents and the people affiliated with the club. We've made a lifetime of friends by attending the conventions as well. Proud to be a member! Here we go...
Ok ! Need a good story, but I’m about to hit the stand, I’ll tune in tonight.....
Very cool...congratulations to both of you
Yes! Bring it! Want to hear Lana's happy ending!
WhooHoo!
Go Lana!
Bring it man!
<3 saw this on Facebook. Congratulations! :)
Our yearly "rut-cation" began in earnest on the 2nd of November. Arriving on the evening of November 1st to camp, and unloading 9 days worth of STUFF into our camper, in a DOWN pour! We were there, that's all that mattered. :)
Back in October, I got a pic of a good buck on one of our game cameras that was actually 20 yards or so from a well service road. It was a decent 10 point that I thought would go close to 135 and I sent the photo to Lana. She promptly put it on her screensaver of her iphone watch. Lana says, "I'm gonna kill that buck!" Me... "I hope you do honey, I hope you do." Oh, and it was a couple hundred yards from one of her favorite stands!
Did I mention she loves to hunt?
She loves wearing her "make-up" too. Sometimes she'll put little shapes and odd stuff and asks me if I notice. lol!
...and Oklahoma Bowhunter framed glasses...what's not to love about that?!
A few other tidbits about us that I'd like to take a moment to mention... we hunt primarily on piece of ground that I've been fortunate to manage for a good period of time. There are 4 others that hunt with us and we share ideas, stands and info. I'll be the first to give up my good stands for any person that helps, pays the dues, doesn't become territorial and is engaged. We hunt without the use of bait or plots (I mention that because I know people wonder). Stand locations are setup in and around bedding areas, pinch points and transition areas. We use cameras and might get one or two "big bucks" every season. The cams are not put close to stand sights. That's us in a nutshell.
Any thread by me would be an outrage without a pic of our Tater Tot. Camp ruler and hunter extreme.
Oh... almost forgot. She did this back in September. I told her to quit stacking arrows. That is after I congratulated her. Now quit grouping! lol
I'll just make this brief. Ok, maybe not too brief... :)
North winds predicted the first couple of days. Morning was great! Saw a bunch of deer but nothing neither of us wanted to shoot.
Now... back in May of this year, I put in a few extra ladder stands just for Lana so she would have more options. She feels most comfortable in ladder stands and I made it a point to put a few in select areas just for her and others. The first evening (Nov. 2), she was in one of those stands. Just before dark, I get a text that says... "I just shot a big doe." Then another... "I meant big buck". along with this pic... wait, what!?
At the same general time, I was part of a mass text with t-roy, Brotsky, tkryslyr and Scoot. So, I asked their opinion after seeing the arrow and they were all telling us to wait until morning. I initially agreed, but there was the coyote factor that worried me. Yotes actually got her last buck that we left overnight in that same area. Hmmmm...? The reason we were going to wait was I thought the arrow might've went, lung/liver/diaphragm/guts. Well, after much deliberation and a game plan to go over and check for initial blood (again) and do a flashlight scan in the grown up thigh to shin high grass. So, we...
Come on! GET WITH IT MAN!
Lana and her "trucker hat". lol
Lana and her "trucker hat". lol
So, we went back over after having dinner and making sure our lights had good batteries. Three hours later, we were back at the spot where the arrow zipped through the buck, 12 yards from her stand. I walked out in the field while Lana and our friend Jamie looked for initial blood. There was a large white oak that shielded her vision in the direction the buck ran off, so I used that as my guiding point between her stand and the field, thinking the buck could be lying in the field, dead. Well, just as I was about to call it off, because I didn't want to completely disturb the area, I shined my flashlight into the field once more.... there he was, stone dead 75 yards from her stand!
Beautiful! Congratulations Lana! Nice buck!
Buck #1
Buck #1
Now, you're probably thinking... "that buck doesn't quite look P&Y" Well, you're correct. Nice buck and probably her biggest gross scoring buck. I was extremely proud of her and tell people that hunt with us and also to Lana, don't get too caught up in what a buck scores. You shoot what you want to shoot and what makes you happy. She did!
She was the first to put a dead animal in the new truck and get it bloody. I loved it!
But... there's MUCH more. Back in a few, gotta drive home and cook dinner. :)
Hell, you can type while you’re doing that! HA!
Waiting impatiently for the next installment.....
So far so good, congrats to Lana!
There's more!!! Can't wait to read this!!!
I love this yearly thread. Congrats Lana.
Awesome embry and congrats to Lana on a fine buck! Looking forward to the next half.
Awesome embry and congrats to Lana on a fine buck! Looking forward to the next half.
Atta baby Lana...Congratulations
It’s worth the wait boys! I still smile every time I think about it! Dinner is over by now tic toc tic toc!
You are both very blessed indeed! Thx for the story! C
Great story congrats to the hunter reminds me of my great wife and our love for the deer woods hope to meet you all someday Lewis
Congrats Lana! Great buck...
Okay, where was I...
The week in itself wasn't too bad. I had seen and passed a few bucks, lots of does, and I shot a big boar right in the ass! Lana came close on BiG 8 point on the evening of the 7th. She said, he was A LOT bigger than her 9 point she shot on the 2nd. Guess it was fate that she didn't kill the big 8 on the 7th, because the next day was one I'll never forget... it all started with these text messages...
And these... sometimes my wife uses her voice text and it comes out crazy as hell! She called me a Cu Next Tuesday last week and the only other word that would fit in the sentence was hunt. So, I don't think it was on purpose. :)
Way to go. Great story and very nice buck. Congrats
No idea why her sweater is raised up. Lol
No idea why her sweater is raised up. Lol
To explain a bit about our Friday morning hunt, let's just say weather was perfect! Temps were high 30s and an E/NE wind. Perfect for a stand I have on the far west side of our property near a creek. Lana, was on almost the entire other side at least a mile away. The land we hunt makes a kind of like the letter L and most of it runs along a major creek. Anyhoo... back to the hunt. She was on one side, me the other.
I'm hauling butt over to the other side after getting her texts to meet up with her and help her track. This is what greeted me.... she loves her war paint! :)
This is Awesome. So Oklahoma and so cool!!
We inspect initial blood, which was really good. We traveled about 40 yards following decent blood and his hoove tracks in the leaves. Lana was leading the way...
The way it went down according to her...
The buck came in from behind her, never winded her and was headed for three does that were about 75 yards to her North. She knew he'd walk out and give her about a 25-30 yard shot. When the buck approached the lane he was about 25 yards and she drew back anticipating.
As soon as the buck came out, she made a light meh to try and stop him, but he turned away from her and no shot presented. She's still at full draw and watches him walk straight away and down to some water at about 35 yards, but now he's behind limbs.
Using this opportunity to let her bow down, she does. All of a sudden, the buck darts out towards the does and tries to harass them. She thought at that point, it was over.
Seconds later and for some fateful reasoning, the buck turns away from the does, as if it was his whitching hour or something, and walks right back the way he came and right back to the same lane where she initially tried stopping him!
This time, she was successful at getting him to stop and at 26 yards, she put an arrow through the top of his heart and his lungs. Dead in seconds...
Alright... back to the blood trail. Well, just watch it for yourself. We don't hide our joy. We let it shine like a lighthouse. I'll post kill photos after I eat... enjoy.
If someone wants, since I'm doing this from my iPhone and won't let me embed, please do it for me. Thanks.
She looks very, very happy ! Congrats Lana !
Oh man, not another ruined arrow! :-)
Wow, awesome thread! Congrats to you both, beautiful buck!
That video is amazing . I love the excitement !!
So incredible. Well done
Never going to top this one!!
Look at the excitement. Can't be duplicated. Nothing will ever Top this moment
Great job
Absolutely great stuff!!! Congratulations both of you... But.. if it were me Rick I would have hugged you before I went to the deer...
Remember... this is the SECOND buck and also the buck that was in the trailcam photo and the one she made her watch cover pic.
It was absolutely a pleasure to help her find it, enjoy in the moment, laugh, hug, jump up and jump around, and 100% enjoy life that day, with her! I'm SO glad it happened to this woman, my wife! Couldn't be prouder. Hope you enjoy the photos. ;)
This is the first pic we took quickly in the field before getting him out.
That’s awesome!! Congrats to you both! Thanks for taking us along, I really enjoyed the story from start to finish! I spent more time looking at my phone in the stand tonight than watching the woods around me:)
Now that the story is out, I'll just post a few pics and maybe a bit more scribble. Proud of her for holding it together on such a great animal and most certainly her first P&Y whitetail. As far as I'm concerned, my season is over and I'd be good with it.
Thanks for sharing....that video is priceless !!
Great Story, Rick...Way to go, Lana!
What a great story!! Huge congrats! I love the pure joy you guys have. Your attitude is what it’s all about. So happy she was able to take those deer. Enjoy it!
I took some pics, man... lol
Guess who drug him out... :)
I think I can speak for scoot, Brotsky, Trkyslr and myself, that it was definitely an absolute blast to get to share in your and Lana’s excitement on both of her great bucks! Congrats again, Lana, on two beautiful deer, as well as the wonderful memories that you guys will have of this year!
Also. That was a good catch on your part, Rick, at about the 3:04 mark on the video. Saved yourself some major coin, as well as floor space! ;-)
Awesome my friend! Happy as heck for Lana and yourself!
These are two good people, congrats again Lana..."hello P & Y"!
Perfect, so happy for you both...Great write up Rick!
This made my day! Love the story, video and the pics! A big congratulations to both of you!
Wow Rick, congratulations to both you and your daughter!! I can’t wait til my little boy is old enough to hunt. I’m very happy for you both!
Yooper, that's my wife, she's 56, but I'll tell her. LOL
Great thread and accomplishment!! Congrats!!
Way to go Lana! That’s a hog! Rick your a lucky guy having a spouse that loves to bowhunt as much she does! Oh, and that face paint is epic. I thought Larry D. Jones knew how to paint, but Lana has him beat! Thanks for sharing your hunt.
Really, really cool for both you and your "daughter"! Great season, Lana. May be awhile before you top it. Then again, maybe not! :-)
Lmao! Damn auto correct.......... it’s the Bulleit I swear!
A huge congrats Lana I'm still looking for one that big! Rick always enjoy your stories and pics, you keep the guys in the machine shop wondering why I'm smiling so much looking at my computer!
AWESOME, Great story and great deer!! Congrats to both of you!!! Shawn
There was no doubt in my mind she was going to get a big one. She’s sure to get a bigger one yet too.
How much wall space you guys have? Might need to add on.
Awesome job guys! Congrats Lana on a great buck!
Spectacular!
“HELLO POPE AND YOUNG! Miss Embry finally did it!”
Congratulations Lana!
Great story, pics and video!
Thanks Rick!
Heck ya!! Congrats Lana and to you as well Rick as it seems this often is a “couples affair” for you guys. Way cool, loved the story!
I’m still grinning about this a week and a half later! So very happy for you guys Rick and Lana. I always say good things happen to good people and you two are a couple of the best! Congrats again and thanks for sharing the story! I suppose the guys should probably take their turn now but I know I can speak for Rick and myself when I say we wouldn’t have it any other way!
Way to go Lana! Two thumbs up!
GReat pics Rick! Awesome hunt, pics and story telling! Big congrats to you both!
Truly awesome!!!! Congrats to you and your wife. Thank you so much for sharing the great story, video and pictures. This is now the best thread I've ever read on any archery site!
Just got the chance to read this. What a great story!! Congrats, Lana!! Love the war paint! The videos and pics just make me smile. Thanks for sharing.
Very awesome! Thank you for sharing!! Way to go Lana!!!
Sincere congratulations to Team Okie .......truly one of the best stories of my 20 years on the site
Great stories great bucks great season for Lana! Congrats to you both. You sound very proud. Won’t be long before the student passes the teacher by (if it hasn’t occurred already)
Congratulations to Lana... what a beautiful buck!!!!!!
I showed my GF the video and she exclaimed, "Thats exactly how I felt when we found my elk!"
Thanks for sharing that, too. You guys rock!
Amazing story, congrats to both of you. Your guys emotions when you found the buck were priceless!
Awesome story! Congrats to the both of you!
Congrats again! Nice job on the write-up too.
So many greats....story, hunt, deer, shot, wife, video, husband, dog, pictures....and many more. Congrats and thanks for sharing everything!
Congrats young lady awesome buck.
Congrats to Lana and you and thanks for posting.
Well, I just read this whole thread and all I can say is wow it sure looks like you had a great time, these memories are priceless. Congratulations to the both of you, hard work and perseverance paid off. Way to go Lana, I'd say you made P&Y easily.
Do you have any side by side comparisons of the two bucks?
Congrats Lana on taking 2 beautiful bucks and your first P&Y!
Congratulations Lana!! Two great bucks in one season and the “Inspiration” buck no less!
Sometimes we say someone “earned“ or “deserved” a buck or bull, but after watching the video a few times I think we can truthfully say that this someone (or two) truly does appreciate the buck for what it is! That buck and the memories will always be something amazing that you share. Congrats to a very fortunate couple!
Congrats and thanks for sharing!
Congrats again Lana!!!! Awesome bucks!
She wanted me to post this...
Now she's just making fun of me. That's Tater Tots blanket, I'm just borrowing. That's my story... ;)
Lana needs to start doing your makeup.
Were you an ugly baby too?!?
That IS his baby picture, Ambush!!
Way to go, Lana! Congratulations, thanks for sharing the story and photos.
Now that’s a big a$$ deer!!
Congrats,
Lee
Part one was good...Part two was awesome...Congrats guys...
Awesome thread. Congrats Lana and Rick!
That’s awesome Rick. Great job Lana!!!!
Lana wanted me to say, THANK YOU VERY MUCH, for all of the viewing and the kind comments. She's very thankful, and I am the same. Glad we could share a few moments in life that we all share that fire for. Until next time.... ;)
Well done! Congrats to you both!
Had to wait to read this when I could sit down and relish the whole story. I was not disappointed! So proud of you Lana....plenty of guys here (me included) that may have just fallen apart on a deer like that and blow the whole thing. Congratulations!
I was almost in tears watching that video. Couldn't have happened to a nicer couple. You are a lucky man, Rick!
Nicely done! That is awesome!
Congrats Lana, great pics!!!
Congrats Lana super season and Rick has good reason to be proud of you!
Came up with a conservative gross score, should net in the low 140's after drying period. ;)
I missed this earlier. Awesome! Congrats to both of you! Love seeing the hunting stories coming out of OK. These are the 2 weeks of the year I miss OK. At least the years I don't get back for the rut.
Edit: Not sure buck #2 is her first P&Y buck. Number #1 sure looks like he would have a chance. What did that one tape out at?
I went back and continued to read and what a read it was. Congrats to Lana - #1 is fine and #2 is Super fine. Great story and congrats to Lana.
Hopefully, there can be more connections this year !!
Wow! What a year. Congrats Lana. Way to hold it together in crunch time.
-Mitch
John, that first buck was right at 122" gross.
Congratulations Lana!! Finally had a chance to check out Bowsite this morning, and this thread made my day! What an accomplishment by such a dedicated couple of passionate bowhunters! You have to still be smiling from ear to ear, Rick! Great stuff, and a memory that will last forever! :)
Incredible buck for her! Great work you two and congrats to Lana on her 1st of many P&Y's!
Freakin awesome video. You guys are great. Please tell her huge congrats!!
Lana, did I see you do the "happy dance"?????? Nicely done. my best, Paul
Thank you all once more. She still goes out and looks in the freezer once or twice daily. I caught her out there with the freezer door open just gazing at the 10 point buck (waiting to take to taxidermist). I said... well, is he getting any bigger? She just smiled, shook her head, and said... "I can't believe it finally happened!" :)
Congratulations to Lana on the beautiful buck, and to you Rick for sharing the story in such a compelling way. You two are very blessed to share this passion for bowhunting in common. Again....super happy for you on accomplishing this milestone Lana!
Incredible! Congrats Lana!!
Copperhead... sorry I didn't answer you a while back. Here is a bit of a comparison of the two. Quite the difference between a 149" buck and a 122" buck. She was out there showing off last month with the freezer door open and said... "take a pic of them together." Dang show off! :) She is still in shock over how that week all played out, as am I. That text I got that morning was magical!
Wow that picture really shows the difference!
Well done! Making memories! Many more! C
What I want to know is why do you have a frozen bag of deer chit in your freezer? :-) Oh, and I'm still super happy for Lana!
Missed this. Made my night reading this one! Good things happen to good people.
Outstanding thread. Congrats!
Those are acorns, Justin. We bag em' up like peanuts, freeze them and sling them around our stand. Lol!
Just kidding, those are grapes from her grapevine. Lol
Glad you clarified that, Rick. You don’t want the wrath of sitO comin down on ya! ;-)
sitO is a big teddy bear. :)
Bears are drawn to bait..... :-)
sitO probably likes donuts. :)
Hard work, dedication, real enthusiasm great story! congrats!
This thread is so good, I had to read the whole thing again. The Embrys get my vote for Bowsite Couple of the Year ;-)
I missed this thread, my bad! This is so cool to see her success and achieve a very respectable goal. God Bless you both for enjoying the outdoors together. My wife hunts too but she has a pretty crappy coach/guide. Well done Lana! Thanks for sharing Embry!
Beautiful pair of bucks! Can’t wait to see the finished product up on the wall! Lana is going to be excited about that buck for a very long time:-)
Congrats Lana! What a great season you had, now go out and beat it next year!!!!
That's about as good as it gets! Congrats Lana on a fantastic deer season! Thanks for taking us along Rick!
Congrats Lana! Loved the emotion in the video. Great job keeping it together and making the shot. Rick - You might have missed your calling as an outdoor writer.
This is the best. Congrats to you both!
Thank you all, very much! I love sharing parts of our lives with all that take the time to look in. Merry Christmas to all and Happy New Year!
I like donut holes! Merry Christmas to you two Ricky & Lana!
Thanks for kicking this up. I missed it.
Congratulations Lana!!!
I remember meeting Rick and Lana for the first time at the Dallas P&Y convention, over beers. It was like meeting legends (as with so many at P&Y). But Lana's fame is also from being one of the glamorous girls in ZZ Top videos! :-)
Spec-effing -facular! Love seeing this one back up!
Loved seeing this thread brought back. This is the type of threads we all come to Bowsite!
Congrats Lana. Fun to re-read
Lou… I’ll see if I can find an old photo of her standing beside the old ZZtop car, maybe. ;) Speaking of that, every time they would come to town, Lana’s friend would get front row seats/backstage passes. I was privy to them at one time and got to meet Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill. This was with Tom Petty as the headliner two years before he passed away. Petty was REALLY good.
