By SEPIDEH BEHZDPOUR
UW News Lab
Kirkland resident Dennis Dunn has won the record for being the first person in recorded history to hunt all 29 species of big game, known as the North American Super Slam, without any additional tools other than his bow and arrows.
The record is officially recognized by the Pope and Young Club, a non-profit organization that ensures bowhunting for future generations by promoting and protecting the bowhunting heritage.
Hunting requires precision and many hunters use various tools on their bows for a more precise aim. The National Field Archery Association defines barebow hunting as archers who use bow, arrows, strings and tools that may be used as a sighting aid.
“You rely on instinct,” Dunn said. “And it is one of the oldest methods of hunting. It goes back in history — before recorded history.”
As a child, Dunn enjoyed archery. He received his first bow-and-arrow set, made out of plastic, at age 7. From there, his love for the sport grew. Dunn started hunting at the age of 11 but it wasn’t until he turned 16 when he started hunting big game.
To share with the world his love for hunting, he wrote a book entitled “Barebow! An Archer’s Fair-Chase Taking of North America’s Big-Game 29.” In it, he shares 104 hunting adventures and misadventures with photos and illustrations. The book is a personal account of his 40-year odyssey to harvest all big-game species in North America – from Whitetail Deer to Grizzly Bear.
Some of his stories are humorous while others are serious, but none of them contain graphic details of killing animals. One of the most exciting hunting trips Dunn shares in the book is when he shot a grizzly bear in Alaska. Here’s an excerpt of the story, titled “The Hacksaw Trick,” from the book:
“With that (the grizzly bear) broke into a trot. Three seconds later – upon seeing my guide’s profile against the sky – he accelerated to a dead run, and I instantly knew I was about to have a very close encounter of the most furry kind. ‘Hairy’ is perhaps a better word than ‘furry.’ As the bear’s trail turned slightly uphill and directly toward me, I hardly had time to get an arrow nocked and drawn before the proverbial moment of truth was upon me.”
He further explained that the book contains only pictures and illustrations of nature and the animals in their natural habitat, done by wildlife father-son artists Hayden and Dallen Lambson.
“There are no ‘hero’ shots, where the hunter holds up the animal and a photo is taken,” Dunn said.
Avid hunters, Caleb Harris and Paul Chatterton, two hunters from Idaho, met Dunn during an interview with the Reporter. Dunn showed them photos of the book and they discussed hunting.
“Can you believe he did that with a pencil?” Harris commented when Dunn showed them several of the Lambson’s illustrations from the book.
Chatterton said the photos Dunn took on his trips, placed in the back of the book, are spectacular and gorgeous.
Dunn wrote the book for two reasons. The first was because he promised his wife he would if he was the first person to set the world record. The second was to educate people about hunting.
“It’s a political reason,” Dunn said. “In the future, people who don’t hunt will be making the laws about hunting and they may outlaw hunting. Hunting is important because it helps control the animal population.”
Dunn considers this book his contribution to wildlife conservation and hopes it will educate many people about hunting.
For more information about Dunn or his book, visit www.str8arrows.com.
Sepideh Behzadpour is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.
