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Miller co-hosts hunting show on TV
Mike Miller, Linton, is shown with a caribou he harvested while bow hunting. Miller co-hosts "Hunting On The Horizon", a hunting show that airs on the Men's Channel of Dish Network.
A Linton man's passion has landed him a spot co-hosting a television show that is broadcast on the Men's Channel of Dish Network.
Mike Miller co-hosts a hunting show called "Hunting on the Horizon," which airs Monday's at 8 p.m. and Wednesday's at 6:30 p.m. on the Men's Channel, channel 218 on Dish Network.
The show, sponsored by Skylines Camouflage, is in its second year. It currently airs on the Men's Channel; however, it aired on the Sportsman Channel of Dish Network last year.
"We travel all over the world bow hunting," Miller, a licensed bow hunting education instructor, said.
Miller said he hunts a variety of different animals including black bears, caribou, turkey, deer and moose.
"To me, it's a sport (hunting), but something you can do one on one," he said. "I consider myself a hunter, but a lot of people consider hunters killers."
Miller said that he doesn't kill "everything that walks by." He said he'll let 100 animals go by until he sees the one he wants.
He has traveled to 15-20 different states on hunting trips, as well as various places around the world.
A recent barren caribou hunting trip took Miller to the Northwest Territory, which is over 4,000 miles from Greene County.
He has traveled to Newfoundland on a moose hunt.
Miller has plans of hunting caribou and moose for this year's season of the show. He has a bear hunting trip planned for June in Manitoba and Alberta, Canada. He said there's also a possibility of an alligator hunt as well as a mountain lion hunt in Colorado or Idaho.
"It's fun to hunt something that's not native to Indiana," he said. "I like to travel and try to big game hunt."
Hunting, especially bow hunting, is something Miller has enjoyed for over 20 years.
"Frank Gennicks Sr. introduced me to bow hunting and ever since then it's been a passion of mine," Miller, a 1982 graduate of Linton-Stockton High School, said.
Miller enjoys bow hunting more so than hunting with a gun.
"It's a challenge to bow hunt," he said. "The animal has a better advantage when bow hunting. I have to get close enough to outsmart the animal's senses."
Miller said that when outsmarting senses such as sight and smell, camouflage and scent control come into play.
He also noted that to be effective when bow hunting, he has to be 10-20 yards away. When using a gun to hunt, 50-100 yards is a respectable shot.
Since Miller prefers hunting with a bow, he hunts all animals with a bow. He said he has hunted pheasants, rabbits and squirrels with a bow.
"Whatever you can harvest with a gun, you can harvest with a bow just as effectively. It's all about shot placement," he said "You just have to be a little closer with the bow. That's what makes it fun."
Being so close to dangerous animals, such as bears, might be scary for some, but for Miller it's fun.
"It's a rush," he said. "It's fun to hunt something that can be dangerous."
Miller recalls a time when a bear began to climb the tree he was in.
"You have to know the situation you're in," he said.
After bow hunting for a while, Miller got involved in tournaments to hone his skills.
"I got really good at that and started winning state and national tournaments," he said. "I got very good and got recognized."
Getting good and being recognized landed Miller's spots on the pro staffs of manufacturers.
His local sponsor is Willow Point Archery.
He sits on the pro staff of camouflage, knife, binocular and bow manufacturers, to name a few.
One manufacturer he endorses is Muzzy. The company manufacturers hunting equipment such as broadheads. Miller is featured in catalogs and magazines using Muzzy equipment.
"It kind of snowballs if you get a good reputation in the business. I am on the pro staffs of 10-15 different companies," Miller said.
He noted that he doesn't endorse every manufacturer that approaches him.
"It's stuff I've already used," he said, referring to products he endorses. "I won't sell myself to whoever will use me. I'm not going to be like that."
Miller's abundance of trophies has resulted in the addition of a room in his home. The room houses trophies of some of his animals, and also houses a trophy of a life-sized bear.
Miller, who works as pipe fitter, plumber and welder out of Terre Haute union Local No. 157, said he could not pursue his passion without the support of his daughter Cami, 15.
"I couldn't do this without the support of my daughter," he said. "I really appreciate having a beautiful 15-year-old daughter that does that for me.
"She makes me a lucky necklace that I wear when I'm hunting. She helps me scout and film for deer in the spring. She really enjoys doing that and being in the outdoors."