"The next morning I brought along some additional help," Russell said. "We continued following the blood trail until we lost the sign, approximately three-fourths of a mile from where I had shot the buck. Although we spent nearly the entire day at the site, we were unable to locate the deer."

The hunter continued his search the following two days without success. Russell was scheduled to fly to Kansas the next morning for a guided whitetail hunt, but before leaving, he contacted everyone who lived nearby, explaining about the lost buck and offering a reward for anyone who might find it.

That effort paid off two days later when Jay Ross and his twin daughters, Britney and Tiffany, found the buck not far from their house. Ross immediately called Russell's wife who relayed the good news to her husband in Kansas.

"To say the least, I was excited," Russell remarked. "My understanding is the girls actually found the buck due to the odor it was emitting. I certainly can't thank them enough. Later, after learning exactly where the deer had been discovered, I estimated we had probably walked within a few yards of the buck during our earlier searches; in many places, the brush and undergrowth were so dense, it was impossible to see more than several feet."

The rack of Russell's awesome whitetail has 17 scorable points, 12 of which make up the 6x6 typical frame. Long main beams, measuring 28 and 27 inches, hook outward to form an antler spread of 21 1/8 inches outside and 19 0/8 inches inside. Tine length is impressive, including brows (G-1s) that measure 8 and 6 inches, followed by paired G-2s and G-3s, all of which tape between 11 and 8 2/8 inches. Antler mass is exceptional, with all eight circumference measurements falling between 4 3/8 and 5 2/8 inches. In fact, moving from the basal measurements out, the beams actually increase rather than decrease in size.

In regard to scoring, the 12-point frame grosses 185 1/8 and nets 175 2/8. After including five additional abnormal points, totaling 10 5/8 inches, the final non-typical P&Y score stands at 185 7/8. This ranks the buck as the state's top non-typical bow kill of 2004. Additionally, it stands as the biggest non-typical (bow or gun) ever recorded from Campbell County and ties for 11th place on the state's all-time list. The buck also qualifies for the Boone and Crockett Club's Awards record book.

JOHN BLAKELEY'S SAME STAND 8-POINTER
Bowhunter John Blakeley can certainly appreciate the size of Tim Russell's great non-typical. That's because three years earlier (2001), the hunter arrowed a massive 21-point non-typical in Christian County that had an almost identical score of 185 0/8.

According to an old saying, lightning never strikes the same place twice, but Blakeley has reason to argue that point. Last year, on Oct. 17, the hunter was situated in the same oak tree where he had taken the big non-typical. That's when an impressive 8-pointer walked into shooting range.

Admittedly, the buck may not be in the same class with the 21-pointer, but the rack's 25-inch beams, 17 5/8- inch inside spread, and four tines that tape between 9 3/8 and 7 5/8 inches qualify it as a superb P&Y trophy. After grossing 145 6/8, the 8-pointer nets a final score of 141 7/8. So sometimes hunting lightning does strike the same place twice!