Ducks Unlimited Podcast

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For the guys behind 24.7 Hunt, duck hunting is about a lot more than ducks.

Recorded live from DUX 2026, host Wade Shoemaker sits down with Ricky Nicholas, Ranar Moody, Darryl Moore, Darius Shine, and Aubrey Mack of 24.7 Hunt to talk about the culture, friendships, and shared passions that built one of the most recognizable communities in modern waterfowling.

The conversation covers everything from public land hunting and dog training to entrepreneurship, brand building, social media, and the influence of Southern hunting traditions. Along the way, the group explains how their different backgrounds came together through a shared love of duck hunting and why community remains at the center of everything they do.

They also discuss their new collaboration with Apex Ammunition, the evolution of the 24.7 Hunt brand, and the importance of staying authentic while introducing new hunters to the sport.

Topics Covered
  • The origins of 24.7 Hunt
  • Building a community through waterfowl hunting
  • Southern hunting culture and traditions
  • Public land hunting and lifelong friendships
  • The new Apex Ammunition collaboration
  • Why authenticity matters in hunting media
  • Dog training, fishing, and outdoor lifestyles
  • Raising the next generation of hunters
  • Conservation and stewardship

Listen now: www.ducks.org/DUPodcast
Send feedback: DUPodcast@ducks.org

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Whether you’re winding down with your best friend, or celebrating with your favorite crew, Bird Dog brings award-winning flavor to every moment. Enjoy responsibly.

Monthly Sponsors:
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Creators and Guests

Host
Wade Shoemaker
DUPodcast Host

What is Ducks Unlimited Podcast?

Ducks Unlimited Podcast is a constant discussion of all things waterfowl; from in-depth hunting tips and tactics, to waterfowl biology, research, science, and habitat updates. The DU Podcast is the go-to resource for waterfowl hunters and conservationists. Ducks Unlimited is the world's leader in wetlands conservation.

Aubrey Mack:

Right. Yeah. Up the ramp. Oh, my.

VO:

The following episode of the DU Podcast features a video component. For the full experience, visit the Ducks Unlimited channel on YouTube. Subscribe and enjoy.

VO:

You're tuned in to the Ducks Unlimited Podcast. Conserving wetlands, restoring habitat, and working to fill the skies with waterfowl today, tomorrow, and forever. From field tested hunting insights to the biggest conservation wins across North America, this is your front row seat to wetlands conservation in action. Cocktails. Whether you're wrapping up a hunt with your best friend or kicking back with your crew, Bird Dog brings award winning flavor to every moment.

VO:

Enjoy responsibly.

Wade Shoemaker:

What everybody? We're here in Memphis, Ducks twenty twenty six with the 24.7guys. I'm gonna let them introduce themselves here in a bit. We have a cool group of guys. If you haven't followed along, you should.

Wade Shoemaker:

This is somewhat of an anomaly in this space and something a lot of folks probably won't see. Thank you all for joining us. We're here hanging out. Look, yeah, we got a couple of things going on. You just left a meet and greet with Apex.

Wade Shoemaker:

We just kind of get over here through the crowd and all those things. You've got another one coming up with Can Am, which which is gonna be another cool thing in a couple hours. I want you go around the around the circle. People that don't know you, introduce yourself. We'll start with Rick over here if that's alright.

Wade Shoemaker:

He like yeah. You like to talk a lot.

Ricky Nicholas:

Yeah. Let's let's get it, man. How y'all doing? My name is Ricky Nicholas for y'all I guess all y'all probably don't know, but Ricky Nicholas from Lafayette, Louisiana.

Wade Shoemaker:

Act like everybody's supposed to know who he is.

Ricky Nicholas:

I love I love Ducks.

Wade Shoemaker:

Dang, Rick.

Ranar Moody:

What's up, y'all? It's Renar. I'm from Macon, Georgia.

Darryl Moore:

What's up, y'all? Daryl Moore, Camden, Arkansas.

Darius Shine:

Darius Shine, Warner Robins, Georgia.

Aubrey Mack:

And Aubrey Mac the Great from Warner Robins, Georgia. And the great is the all time favorite person y'all like to see.

Ricky Nicholas:

The only thing come out of Warner Robins.

Darryl Moore:

Mute his mic.

Wade Shoemaker:

I'm gonna apologize in advance because it's not gonna stop. Well, yeah, I'm This is it. I wanna try to keep a look of of organization here. I wanna talk about this this this collab you got coming out. I wanna talk about who who who wants to take it?

Wade Shoemaker:

I'm not gonna give any details. I don't know what I can or what I can't say. Oh, let's go.

Ranar Moody:

Man, so, yeah, we got a collab show coming out with Apex. We worked with Apex in the past, so we're super happy to be back home with them. Man, just good folks all around. We love Jerad and the team. So it's just been a a dream come true to be back where, you know, where we feel, you know, comfortable, appreciated, and stuff like that.

Ranar Moody:

So we, man, working on this shells, it's gonna be good. The name of it is cold front. You know, we kinda got shifty with the name. You know, as duck hunters, we're all waiting on a cold front. It's been hard to kinda keep this a secret, but but we're ready.

Ranar Moody:

In a couple couple weeks, we'll we'll be dropping the shell. The box is gonna be pretty crispy, and we've gotta get some shells worth for these boys to miss these ducks with, so we can't wait. Tell us what the what it

Wade Shoemaker:

is. Like, what's what what's the load? You wanna take over Rick? Let's hear some specs.

Ricky Nicholas:

Just just light specs. It is a stratified two four load. It is a very, very, very clean load. We want it clean. We want it lethal.

Ricky Nicholas:

We want it reliable, and that's what Apex is known for. They're a Turkish shell company that has come over to the waterfall world, and you expect that same lethality over there.

Ranar Moody:

So Yeah. So, you know, a company like Apex, you know, starting with turkeys, obviously, everybody knows you pretty much got one shot with turkey. So they they really take, you know, their ammunition and their process of building the shell super serious. You know, they're real anal about what they what they put out. And so, man, if you take a turkey shell and pretty much turn it into a a duck load, man, you just know you're getting something dependable that's gonna go boom in any condition.

Ranar Moody:

And, man, so we're just excited. You know, we've been we shot Apex in the past and never had any problems out of it. So that's the main thing. You know? I know remember when we kinda first started out hunting together, Daryl, you remember how that was.

Ranar Moody:

We worked real hard to get on some ducks, finally get on them, and it kinda it's it's it's it's horrible when the the gun don't go boom. Click. Click.

Darryl Moore:

Click. That that's annoying. You know, you work so hard. You travel so much, and, you know, you spend a lot of money, a lot of time. And to have a shell that don't go off when you got a group of ducks finally come in after you work so hard, it just it ain't worth nothing.

Darryl Moore:

So we just wanted to make sure we got this right, and I feel like this is gonna be a really good shell. Like, Renard was saying, we we we've been to the facility. They make sure everything's right, you know, and it's gonna be a real good shell. And when you click it, it's gonna go boom. Yeah.

Darryl Moore:

At least when I shoot, it will be.

Wade Shoemaker:

I don't

Darryl Moore:

know about everybody else.

Wade Shoemaker:

Mhmm. And we know you're shooting three every time.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. I'm a shoot three every time. Maybe maybe four of my

Wade Shoemaker:

hair, but you're gonna Don't say that on here, dude. Come on. We live,

Aubrey Mack:

dude. I said I said

Darryl Moore:

I put in No.

Wade Shoemaker:

I heard you, but I know what you meant.

Darryl Moore:

You're still gonna miss. Yeah.

Wade Shoemaker:

We must shoot you.

Darryl Moore:

We put 20 on it right now.

Wade Shoemaker:

That's No. Good. I love it. It's sort of like a homecoming for you guys, and I think it's a it's a cool thing to see. I think it is, man.

Wade Shoemaker:

And then not only do you have this going on with Apex, you've also got some cool collabs with y'all had some kind of, like, scavenger hunt going on with a hat. I think there's a meet and greet soon. I think you've first 180 people get a hat. Is that right? Is that where's Clayton at?

Wade Shoemaker:

Is he somewhere around here?

Ranar Moody:

Clayton, he went he went missing.

Wade Shoemaker:

Is it a hundred and eighty? One hundred and eighty hats at the Can Am booth. What is that? Is that one to one one to three?

Darryl Moore:

Yes. At one.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. One one to three.

Ranar Moody:

Okay. So we'll be in the Can Am booth, one to three. Man, love working with Can Am. Great company, great people. People like Clayton, you know, they they make it easy to work with those guys.

Ranar Moody:

And, man, it's just fun, working with brands that let you kinda go outside of the box. We got a bunch of hats with Chanel that we that, you know, they have with all their dealers, and they let us design them. That's pretty cool. You know, they work hand to hand with my wife. So, anytime a brand like that, you know, reaches out and like really does more than the norm, kinda stays in touch with you, you know, always inviting you places to to do stuff with them, then, you know, just getting your input.

Wade Shoemaker:

Invest. Yeah. Invest in you.

Ranar Moody:

1000% and and listening listening to our needs and and, you know, so

VO:

Welcome to the Old Timer Minute, sponsored by Old Timer Knives.

OTM:

One lesson duck hunting has taught me about life, you know, and I talked to my wife about this, and one of the things I look forward to in raising boys and and my two boys and and getting them out in the woods are the lessons that I learned. And I think the number one lesson I learned, my grandfather helped kinda pull this through, stuff's gonna happen. Stuff's gonna go wrong. You're a long ways from the boat ramp. You're a long ways from the truck, wherever you're at.

OTM:

Complain about it. You don't get worried about it.

OTM:

You don't

OTM:

get upset about it. You just figure it out. Figure out what you're gonna do to get past it. It teaches you to be prepared for when things go wrong, and it teaches you not to panic. And I think that's the biggest life lesson I've picked up from duck hunting over time.

OTM:

That's your Old Timer Minute brought to you by Old Timer, built for generations.

VO:

Visit the oldtimer.com.

Wade Shoemaker:

Before we get off the can amphithe, I wanna hear about these machines you guys got. Everybody got some of those got defenders. Some of some of got other machines. Sean, what are you what are you running? You got something.

Wade Shoemaker:

Now you what do you got coming?

Darius Shine:

Clayton, what do I got coming?

Wade Shoemaker:

You know, did that.

Aubrey Mack:

You're welcome.

Ranar Moody:

Man, I don't think nobody runs the machine harder than Aubrey, so I think

Wade Shoemaker:

I I believe

Ranar Moody:

that. That's a good that's a good

Wade Shoemaker:

That's because he's so used to pushing that forward the way it goes.

Darryl Moore:

Forward. No no forward slender in here.

Aubrey Mack:

We don't do we don't do forward slender.

Darryl Moore:

I think I think I was dragging we're dragging GMCs up the ramp.

Aubrey Mack:

Oh, no. Yeah. Up the ramp. Not mine.

Ricky Nicholas:

Man, we gotta shout out that Defender Max AC unit though, man. We are kinda outnumbered on that. From Georgia, the Dove Hunt's

Wade Shoemaker:

I forgot about that.

Ricky Nicholas:

That HVAC unit is insane in the Defender

Wade Shoemaker:

Max's. Really?

Ricky Nicholas:

Yeah. Like it? I had the HVAC unit?

Wade Shoemaker:

The air conditioner?

Ricky Nicholas:

I had an Outlander.

Wade Shoemaker:

The air conditioner? Yes. He goes to

Ricky Nicholas:

HVAC. Can't go to Can

Wade Shoemaker:

Am nice on the Can Am is what he's saying for everybody that can't, like, decode or decipher this language up here.

Ricky Nicholas:

The website says HVAC, man. But

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. But what do you say?

Aubrey Mack:

Air conditioner?

Wade Shoemaker:

HVAC? When you're like, hey,

Darryl Moore:

go turn that HVAC down

Ricky Nicholas:

67. My entire family can get in my unit and have experience, but still be in the outdoors.

Aubrey Mack:

And the first thing they're gonna say is turn air on.

Wade Shoemaker:

No. It's HVAC in his house.

Darryl Moore:

Turn turn air.

Aubrey Mack:

Yeah. I'd love that.

Ranar Moody:

But, yeah, man, that that HD 11 is is off the chain. I don't have one yet, but, you know, I I ride Aubers all the time. Auburn, you know, everything's beefed up on that unit.

Aubrey Mack:

Come on. He

Wade Shoemaker:

goes in and out sometimes.

Aubrey Mack:

Yeah. That HD 11, man, it's a beast. Back in August '25, before they came out

Aubrey Mack:

with them, Renard went to Connecticut and pretty much got the lease taken off of us to test y'all the piss out of him. So if I couldn't break it, I think pretty much bulletproof. So if you're looking for a unit that you wanna be driving and something reliable, go get your a two eleven.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. I'll I'll I'll agree with that. He's tough on stuff. That's for sure. I mean, for what it's worth, that your your truck has done more than I expected it to.

Wade Shoemaker:

Oh, it's I mean, I'll admit that. I'll eat crow.

Aubrey Mack:

It's parked outside.

Darryl Moore:

What did

Wade Shoemaker:

he hit, like, 360 or 3 something? Yeah. 360. 360 k.

Aubrey Mack:

And we still

Wade Shoemaker:

Hold Hold on. Yeah. That's fun. Golly. Hey.

Wade Shoemaker:

Just real quick, I wanna touch on something, and this is something you guys take real seriously is culture. And I think it's a cool thing because you guys have brought a culture into this space that I'm not gonna say it didn't exist, but I think it didn't exist without being apologetic. I And think it's very cool you brought in something unapologetically. Is that a word? We're gonna go with that word.

Wade Shoemaker:

Unapologetically and just showed people that you can do what you wanna do, how you wanna do it. Right? As long as it's done the right way. I would call this something you guys are something of a a culture carrier, I guess, the best way to put it. And and I I would love for any of you guys here in this semicircle to touch on, like, kinda how what how what what how that makes you you feel, like, kinda what your what your goals are.

Wade Shoemaker:

And I think everybody anybody in here has ever probably heard everybody here talk about kinda from the heart what what that means. I don't mean to get weird, but, like, this is a serious thing, and this is why this whole thing works. This is why twenty four seven is what they are because it means more. Who whoever wants to take that question? I'd like to hear what that means.

Wade Shoemaker:

It's I know who's gonna get it, but

Ranar Moody:

Man, Rick Rick, you lied to get a

Wade Shoemaker:

little deep. Just don't say HVAC, dude.

Ricky Nicholas:

I'll I'll start it off, and we're gonna roll all the way around on a little harsher we got right here, but I think that twenty four seven hunt, whenever you look at it, it is a come as you are brand. It is a brand that allows you to not adapt who you are to to share a passion with somebody. I think it's a brand that long short long hair, short hair tattoos, no tattoos from Louisiana, from Georgia, from Montana. It is a come as you are, enjoy this sport. It's what we have in common.

Ricky Nicholas:

It's a common ground. And when you spoke on creativity and you spoke on brands, that's what makes all of our partners special to us is that you have this creative autonomy. Like Bernard say, go outside the box and do what you wanna do and express yourself how you wanna express yourself and be as creative. I'll let you know that Apex ammunition is gonna be the nicest looking shell, the most lethal, nicest looking shell and box that you can ever see. And that just comes from an an example of the creative autonomy of them letting us do what we wanna do and and and do it the way 24.7 Hunt does it.

Ricky Nicholas:

So what it turns into is a place for everybody to come as you are and your from from where you're you you come from where you are into this space and and be yourself and and express how you wanna express. So it's just a common ground.

Ranar Moody:

100%. I I think, man, that's kinda where we want we we like to thrive and live in. You know, we just wanna be who we are. You know, we all like to hunt, but we all we all come from different backgrounds as well. And so just meshing together in the woods, that's what we like.

Ranar Moody:

We like to keep it fun. And anytime we, you know, feel like we're straying away from the fun part of it, we kinda get I gotta reel it back. And, man, that's just the whole thing. So from the from the clothes to the music to, you know, our boats or whatever the case is, man, we just wanna keep it fun, energetic, and, yeah, stay youthful. You know, we we all got kids and stuff like that, so we wanna keep them, you know, interested in what we're doing.

Ranar Moody:

Right. And we also wanna stay true to who we are at the same time. And it's just fun meeting other people that, you know, we all have the same common interests. And then, you know, but they they we all got different backgrounds, so that's pretty cool. Pretty cool place to be.

Ranar Moody:

So I think every sector in life has that, you know, whether you're into sports or whatever the case is, you know, you share common interests with people. And you may not look like them. You may not talk like them. You may not dress like them. You may not be from where they are, but, man, y'all y'all can talk about one thing, and that's the outdoors.

Ranar Moody:

So I think I think that's one thing we always try to represent. You know, we make a few mistakes, and maybe just keep pushing. You know, we don't wanna be the best or anything like that. It's not a competition with us. We just like to hang out together and create cool stuff from film to clothes.

Ranar Moody:

Yeah.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. I mean, I think I think that's pretty much wraps it up. It's just like we're we're all a family up here, you know, and just like every family always have little, you know, just screams, but we all love each other to you know, we we die for each other. And I feel like Renard and his He wife

Wade Shoemaker:

said not me. Hey, man.

Aubrey Mack:

Die. Hey.

Ricky Nicholas:

I'll die.

Darryl Moore:

I'll die for you.

Aubrey Mack:

Not Aubrey. You said, like, almost for life.

Ranar Moody:

Almost died.

Darryl Moore:

Hey. I rode in a boat with him for you. You might die.

Wade Shoemaker:

That's true too. That that's accurate, though, man. No. You

Aubrey Mack:

too. You're world guy.

Darryl Moore:

Best driver. You ain't never gonna work right now

Wade Shoemaker:

with me. I'm a I would work on everything.

Darryl Moore:

Every that's

Wade Shoemaker:

why I drive heavy. That's why drive heavy. Well, that's true. Okay.

Darryl Moore:

No. But no. Seriously, I I think, like, the best thing that, know, you that people don't understand a lot of times is, like, they see they get on social media, and they feel like, you know, with today's age that everything is for social media. But, like, we've been doing it for so long and hunting together that we we truly love to hunt, you know, and hunt ducks and chase whatever it is. And, you know, that's just the biggest thing for us, and that's where it all kinda stems from is, like, that if you turn the cameras off, there's so many times we go hunting and just with our boys and with our dads and all that and just really enjoy it.

Darryl Moore:

So I feel like it's like a lot of people miss it because they don't they just see what's on social media, but they don't see, like, all the long times and hours and how much time we spend on the rivers and chasing ducks and just Really, in the years

Wade Shoemaker:

before there was a camera

Darryl Moore:

in the world. Exactly. You know? And so now, like, the whole camera thing is really just to pass it down and just to kinda document it for ourselves. It's not for anybody else.

Darryl Moore:

It's just for ourselves. Yeah. And so that's it. That's really that's really kinda how it what it is for us.

Wade Shoemaker:

I think it's it that you sum it up. It's just like the goal is the same for everybody. It's just we use different routes to get there. Right? And we do use our own routes because that's who we are.

Wade Shoemaker:

I dig it. Okay. So one other thing, this is kind of in the same vein, but the duck come from somewhere different. You guys started out with, like, an arrow, like, an arrow with twenty four seven across the top. I got the hat at the house, like, still got the sticker on it because I was I like I bought it because I like I got it because I liked it, and, like, I just anyway, I wanna hear how that evolution happened.

Wade Shoemaker:

How'd you go from an arrow to to the iconic duck?

Ranar Moody:

Man, so I kinda came up with the first design. I'm a I'm a big deer hunter.

Wade Shoemaker:

You're talking about the arrow. Right?

Aubrey Mack:

Yeah. Yeah. Okay.

Ranar Moody:

With the twenty four seven hunt with the arrow at the bottom. I like to deer hunt just like all my buddies up here. And I think when we found each other, Ducks just kinda took over. Yeah. Because it's more of a camaraderie team sport, I guess.

Ranar Moody:

Mhmm. And so I, you know, I felt like we needed a logo that kinda represented that. And so that's where that transition came from. And, you know, just knowing, like, the the marketing side and also the creativity, like, we needed something that could be recognized without words put on it.

Wade Shoemaker:

No. I like it.

Ranar Moody:

And so that's where the that's where the cartoon malware kinda came from. You know, send it to Rick, send it to Daryl, send it to bros, and, you know, they're like, man, this is it. This is pretty cool. And, man, once we dropped it, man, it kind of just took, you know, grew legs on its own.

Aubrey Mack:

No. It did.

Ranar Moody:

Man, I think that really probably 50% of why why we kind of kind of got out there as much as we did so fast just because the logo is so recognizable. And, man, so, yeah, it was just a blessing, man. It was already, you know, gifted from God.

Aubrey Mack:

Like Yeah.

Ranar Moody:

We prayed about it. I I sat on it for a minute, and it just it just came came to me. So, man, I I think I think it serves us all well, and, hopefully, it's something we can pass down our kids. Hopefully, they'll be proud of us when they get our age. They're like, man, we you know, I I want that logo to go down as being the most iconic.

Wade Shoemaker:

I think, I mean, this is a Nike tree. Like, this is what it is.

Ranar Moody:

So I wanna be up there with the greats when it comes to that in that sector for sure. And so, hopefully, we can we can finish that out.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. No. I dig that, dude. I love it. And I I think the kids will agree, dude.

Wade Shoemaker:

I mean, see yours got it on everywhere go. I mean, yours got it on everywhere they go. Yours got it on everywhere they go. Like, they're gonna wear it. It's cool.

Wade Shoemaker:

And it's cool for the kids to wear it too. It's not just like this weird thing you gotta figure out. Like, it's a duck, dude. It's just a cool duck.

VO:

Stay tuned to the Ducks Unlimited Podcast sponsored by Bird Dog Whiskey after these messages.

Wade Shoemaker:

I wanna know what's next. Like, what what's next for twenty four seven? You can tease. You whatever it is, but I know there's something coming that I'm super excited about. Not that it affects me in any way whatsoever.

Wade Shoemaker:

But I think it's such a cool move for y'all's brand to, like, to just go that direction.

Ranar Moody:

Man, I think we all just kinda we're moving as a unit, but all it's it's exciting because we're at this time now where, like, you know, one of the original goals was to get all of us to a place where we all can, you know, stand on our own two feet as well and go do what we wanna do. You know, Ricky's got other interests. I got other interests. You know, Dale, Aubrey, Sean, they all we all got other interests, but

Wade Shoemaker:

Wanna hit that when we done with this.

Ranar Moody:

Yeah. We can all, you know, bring it back to the brand and, you know, that that's that's one big thing. Everybody's got their own goals and, you know, when they when we share them with each other, we can help each other on the way up there. As far as the actual brand, you know, I'm working on some stuff like, I wanna do, like, a mini NIL type of thing with athletes in high school. I think that's a pretty cool thing.

Ranar Moody:

So I've been brainstorming on that, cooking that up at the house. And so, yeah, just just taking the Hunt brand, but but, you know, moving it outside the box. Yeah. And so that's one thing we wanna do. Obviously, man, just staying creative.

Ranar Moody:

I don't never wanna box ourselves in just because we hunt. I don't wanna be boxed in. And so anything to kinda disrupt my own mental on that and and anything I can do to help help my friends to to keep growing as a unit, I'm I'm all for it. So whatever comes up, man, it we'll we'll make it happen.

Wade Shoemaker:

I like it. I like how expansive footprint. One on one over talked about different interests. Some people may know everything about it, some may not, but, Aubrey, you you train dogs. You got, like, upland hunts.

Aubrey Mack:

Attention. We

Wade Shoemaker:

take announcements in the middle. That's awesome. Please

Aubrey Mack:

make his way.

Wade Shoemaker:

Wait. Scared the

Ranar Moody:

Roy

Wade Shoemaker:

bejesus out of me.

Aubrey Mack:

To the main entrance.

Wade Shoemaker:

Roy better get to the entrance because that was a lot. Yeah. No. But you do you you train dogs, you got upland hunts that you got with. I wanna hear a little bit about that.

Wade Shoemaker:

I wanna hear about like because you don't see as much of that like on the on the social side because that's kind of the thing you do. Right? Yeah. I wanna I wanna hear about that.

Aubrey Mack:

So I got into upland hunting probably about back in 2010, 2011, and this close buddy of mine, he had, you know, a bunch of dogs and just kinda he needed some help. So Yeah. Obviously started at the bottom, dog duty, you know, watching them, cleaning kennels, and just trailing them on hunts, then he kind of just taught me the ropes of, you know, how to train a dog, how to especially pointers, you know, how to train a dog, pick up, bring it back to you, find birds, stuff of that nature, man. And I kind of just took it and elevated and kind of used different methods of training and also created some of my own. Yeah.

Aubrey Mack:

And then I don't really as of right now, I don't do it as much as I did.

Wade Shoemaker:

No. For sure.

Aubrey Mack:

But, you know, because we travel on duck hunting and stuff. But back when I was rocking and rolling, man, it was it was an everyday thing. Oh, you were busy. Yeah. Everyday thing.

Aubrey Mack:

And normally, used to host a big quail hunt, you know, in February with all the guys, you know, coming close, but somebody that we know tries to make it a little too bigger than what it is. So not him, but his dad. Yeah. He makes it a little bigger than what it's supposed to be. You know, it's supposed to be all fun and, you know, close group of guys, but it turns out to be about 60 people out there trying

Wade Shoemaker:

to keep birds. He invited me to that quail hunt at open season in Stuttgart one night. Yeah. First time I met Waldo, we're just hanging out and he like, after a couple of conversation, he's like, you ought to come to that quail hunt. And I was like, what?

Aubrey Mack:

We have a good time, man. It's it's always a good time, you know, get people out walking, enjoying, you know, watching dogs work, and it's not really about, you know, killing birds, and it's all about just, you know, hanging out with fellas and, you know, talking crap, smoking cigars, having a few drinks, and, you know, having a good time.

Wade Shoemaker:

It's a

Aubrey Mack:

good time. But, yeah, it's I think bird dogs in general between, you know, quail hunting, rabbit hunting, waterfowl, dove hunting, I think that kind of helps bring general hunters around. Yeah. You know, it's always a good topic to talk about, you know, you can kind of ease your mind, you know, watching them work, know, and enjoying them. So I think a bird dog in general just kind of help everybody, you know, come together.

Wade Shoemaker:

I love that. It's kind of something to do, take your mind off of off the water foul stuff too.

Aubrey Mack:

For sure.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. Yeah. For sure. No. That's sick.

Wade Shoemaker:

I like that, dude. Sean, you I think people know less about you than anybody on this stage, probably for good reason, but but I do know, like, you and your boy basketball is a huge thing for you guys. Like, you actually weren't bad when you you know, before you got old. Yeah. And and he's pretty good too.

Wade Shoemaker:

So, like, I wanna hear a little bit about you off camera or or, like, behind the scenes. Like like, let everybody know what's up.

Darius Shine:

As of right now, I work full time on the air force base, the military base, where we live down in Georgia.

Wade Shoemaker:

Hold hold on a

Aubrey Mack:

little bit.

Darius Shine:

I'm a logistics specialist. So what I do right now besides hunting with these guys is I basically like supply the parts for the mechanics and stuff on the base to build like the f 15 fighter jets and the c one thirties. Same thing I did in the military. And I just work work and besides work, you know, I do whatever I can to help these guys like, you know, Frank, you know, Aubrey, Moody, anybody needs help at the office, like, you know, helping do shipments. They need help at the properties, like maintaining properties.

Darius Shine:

You know, I try to just, you know, do what I can basically to help these guys on top of what I do full time too.

Wade Shoemaker:

But you but I I wanna touch on the deal like you and your boy that y'all do share a real thing. I was joking, but the basketball is a real thing. Like, you really weren't and you weren't a chump. Like, you still ain't, but I'm just trying to say I'm saying, like, I wanna I wanna hear about that because I I want people to know who you guys are as people.

Darius Shine:

Okay. Yeah. So basketball is like my first love and passion. I was a I was a okay basketball player growing up. Got Had scholarships in high school, like d one scholarships, but I had a kid my senior year.

Darius Shine:

So that's why I made the decision to go to the military, and he's kinda got the same

Wade Shoemaker:

He's gonna cut out. Just keep on.

Darius Shine:

Yeah. So he plays basketball, football now too. He's going down the same route as me right now. So Yeah. So, yeah, just doing what I do with these guys and then, you know, at home with my son Okay.

Darius Shine:

With sports and stuff like that.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. No. I like it. I dig it, man. Thank you.

Wade Shoemaker:

I just wanna I want everybody to know who you are. Yeah. Yeah, man. Now now, is is Daryl or zookeeper, whichever one we wanna talk about. We all know Daryl fishes, but let's talk about that.

Wade Shoemaker:

Let's let's hear a little about what you got going on. I know you got some cool stuff coming.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. Man, just, you know, fishing was like my first love, so I grew up doing that with my grandpa. We went every weekend, and then when I got older, we went every day. So fishing is, like, my it's, like, my love. I love to do it other than duck hunting.

Darryl Moore:

So, yeah, that's, like I don't know. My, like, long term goal is to one day fish professionally. So that's kind of so that's kind of what And we're working so, yeah, that's just kind of what we're what we're doing. So when I'm not hunting, I literally fish every day as you know.

Ranar Moody:

So

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. That's Well, I mean, what about this coon stuff?

Darryl Moore:

Hey, man. Do

Wade Shoemaker:

love That's a real thing.

Darryl Moore:

That's a that's a real deal thing too.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. You and

Aubrey Mack:

Beck was out there,

Wade Shoemaker:

like, two in the morning.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. Me and I got a four year old, a two and a three year old, and we went every night. Yeah. It was winter. So we duck hunting in morning, then we go coon on the night.

Darryl Moore:

I love running walker dogs

Wade Shoemaker:

and Yeah.

Darryl Moore:

Chasing coons. We we Screw it. We didn't we didn't duck hunting nothing like that. Nobody in my family. So you deer hunt or you come hunt it.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. So that's what we did.

Wade Shoemaker:

And you said you both?

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. So yeah. We love hunting dogs.

Wade Shoemaker:

Love that, dude. Bernard, like, I'll tell them. I mean, like, you you kinda you duck hunt for sure. You deer hunt, turkey hunt, all these things. But I think one thing that I think is cool, and it's because I'm weird and I like crossover stuff that, kinda meshes together but comes out of nowhere.

Wade Shoemaker:

I want, like, your your background and your education, like, what you went to school for. And I think I think all this would make sense after people figure that out. But, like, tell us a little bit.

Ranar Moody:

Yeah. Man, so growing up, went, you know, you just get I I had a a super diverse, you know, upbringing. Seems like every sector of grades, like, you know, elementary to middle school to high school to college, I started, you know, you flip flop, you know. I went to a predominantly white elementary school, then a predominantly black middle school, and then back to a predominantly white high school, then and then I went to an all black college. And so I just have

Wade Shoemaker:

a whole school career like a piano.

Ranar Moody:

Yeah. It's it's all over the place. And so that's where I think my, you know, mixture of personalities and, like, who I am comes from. Yeah. I just like all things from you know, I feel like I had a good look at the world in the South, and so that's why it just comes out in my creativity on everything.

Ranar Moody:

I like to hunt, but I like fashion. And so where I where I dwell in, I I like to mix both of those together. And so I just like cool stuff. I like fly stuff and, you know, I I get down and dirty too. You know, I grew up working construction with my dad.

Ranar Moody:

Grew up farming pecans.

Wade Shoemaker:

Farming what? Pecans. Pecans. You heard pecans.

Aubrey Mack:

No. No. Pecans. Pecans. Own the pecans.

Aubrey Mack:

Pecans? Pecans. We still on the

Ranar Moody:

right side. Pecans.

Wade Shoemaker:

Let's see y'all. Pecans. You raised your hand twice. There's like, somebody raised their hand for both of them. That wild.

Ranar Moody:

But, yeah, man. Just all over the place like that, and I I you know, it's definitely it's definitely different. You know, I I really don't find many people like me until I met met my friends. And so I I you know, just living in that space right there is where I where I where I like to be. And, you know, just being true to who I am, and it comes out in all of the work we try to put in.

Ranar Moody:

So, yeah, man, I grew up running deer dogs and coil hunting and, you know, then we switched over to, you know, sitting in a ladder stand and then man, the next thing, you know, I'm picking up a bow and, man, and then I, you know, just fell in love with I've been in love with dogs my whole life and that kinda you know, when I met Daryl, I was already duck hunting a little bit in Venice, Ricky's territory, beating up all them ducks in Louisiana. I Before you knew Rick? Yeah. Before I before I knew any these guys

Wade Shoemaker:

let him come down there and just take Hey.

Ranar Moody:

That's one thing. From from me and Aubrey's area, the Georgia boys, we we used to run Venice.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. Sure.

Ranar Moody:

1000%.

Aubrey Mack:

Whatever. They don't hey. I got some boys right now I can call. What but where

Wade Shoemaker:

are they from? Georgia. Make it Georgia. That run Venice. Run it.

Wade Shoemaker:

I got some dirty friends down there that would probably disagree.

Aubrey Mack:

They would they would go down there and smack every duck in the mouth right So

Ranar Moody:

that was I don't know. I'm not good on years, but that was before I met these guys. But I just fell in love with Mallards

Aubrey Mack:

Yeah.

Ranar Moody:

Greenheads, and I want to kill more of them. I was on Instagram. Daryl and Ricky was on Instagram, and we had finally linked up. And, man, the rest was history there.

Wade Shoemaker:

Ricky was probably doing blood deep when you found him.

Ranar Moody:

I think yeah. He was. He was. He was. He had blood deep.

Ranar Moody:

Daryl had You had something good? What'd

Darryl Moore:

you say?

Ranar Moody:

Don't tell me. Don't tell me. Oh. Don't tell me.

Wade Shoemaker:

I don't know. I'm trying to

Ranar Moody:

I figure don't know why I'm why I'm having a blake right now.

Wade Shoemaker:

Why I don't know.

Ranar Moody:

Riverbottom Outdoors.

Wade Shoemaker:

Riverbottom Outdoors.

Aubrey Mack:

So

Wade Shoemaker:

Okay.

Ricky Nicholas:

Man, we all we all just had

Ranar Moody:

something going on. And so, man, when you meet people like that and y'all just click, man, it's just like it just kinda takes off from there. So, man, man, we all kinda brushed shoulders together, iron sharpens iron, and, man, we just here we are.

Wade Shoemaker:

That's good. That's good. Rick, we're gonna come to you. Like, there's a lot more to you too. There's layers.

Wade Shoemaker:

There's there's there's fishing. There's a whole deal with Gator Tail, I think, that people don't realize how long you've been around that brand and Blood Deep in itself. And then Michael that that I met last year, year before last, I think, like, that whole thing blew. I want you to tell these folks, like, kinda where you where you come from, like, the best state in the world. You know?

Ricky Nicholas:

Yep. Louisiana building. That's it. Salute. No, man.

Ricky Nicholas:

My name is Ricky Nicholas again. I'm from Latfield, Louisiana. I grew up deer hunting with my dad, and I had a good friend from I I oh, I'm also in the I was in the National Guard, and I just came home from Iraq, and I I got a security job somewhere, and this guy introduced me to ducks and redfish. I was used to rabbits and deer, and we swapped hunts, and I've been locked in on ducks ever since. And, man, really just had a passion for serving, had a passion for just being out there.

Ricky Nicholas:

So I started an organization that took kids hunting and fishing called Blood Deep Outdoors and passed the torch, and that's kind of what connected Daryl and myself. But really, man, we just we want it. We want to experience it. We want to experience the outdoors. We we love people.

Ricky Nicholas:

We love God. We love the outdoors, and and we've just been going ever since. I just recently retired from the Louisiana National Guard, this will be my first duck season hunting as a civilian, and I'm excited. Get out of the way. I'm on my way.

Ricky Nicholas:

I have been a part of Gatortail marketing probably since 2015, so that's a big passion of mine. Just designed a new layout.

Wade Shoemaker:

I think you you were associated with it before that even.

Ricky Nicholas:

I was a customer of Gatortail starting in 2010. Like, a long time ago. And they loved me and I loved them back from from 2010 to 2015. And then I'll tell you, my boat that's where that motto came from. My boat is my duck lease.

Ricky Nicholas:

I lost my duck lease, got kicked out of my duck lease. So I bought a gator tail, couldn't afford it. My wife wanted to kill me, and I started hitting the roads

Wade Shoemaker:

I chasing

Ricky Nicholas:

may be the only center console gator tail that has hunted by your meter. Yeah. That might have been before Daryl had a boat, but we were in there with a square front eighteen fifty four center console gated tail in the metro.

Wade Shoemaker:

That's booming. Brave.

Ricky Nicholas:

I know, man. There was no on x. There was none of that. We were just getting lost in the woods looking for a spot trying to learn a game.

Wade Shoemaker:

Did y'all hit trees?

Darryl Moore:

No. We didn't know trees.

Ricky Nicholas:

And we ran over trees.

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. We don't we ain't worried about trees. Oh, well, not now. You ain't.

Wade Shoemaker:

No. Go ahead. I'm sorry. I was blew my mind.

Ricky Nicholas:

Yeah. So anyway, all of that happened, man. Started a family, and now I'm at this season in life where my kids are starting to really love the outdoors. They're loving hunting. They're loving fishing.

Ricky Nicholas:

So I've been kinda just spread out doing boats, doing twenty four seven hunting, and raising kids, and just kinda, you know, trying to show them the right way of doing it all, man. So I'm excited this year to get on the water. I'm excited create with these guys. I'm excited to work with my partners and my sponsors, keep God centered in everything that we do, chase birds and and meet people, and and motivate guys out there who are raising kids, who are, having families, who are dream chasing to get out there and bet on yourself, and get out there and do it. If you want it, do it.

Ricky Nicholas:

If you wanna do it, do it. If you have interest in it, do it. There's no better time than right now. There's no better time than this season. There's no better person than yourself.

Ricky Nicholas:

So being able to work with Renard, man, all the way from Georgia, his outlook was different than anything I was exposed to in Louisiana, and he was a why not right now guy, and I needed that in my life. So you need a friend that's with you that is willing to also just just push it, you know, and give it like, bet on yourself. Go and do it. So that's what I'm excited about right now, man. This is a new life for me right here.

Ricky Nicholas:

I grew out a little bit of hair. Beard came out. It was great. Kids are getting old.

Wade Shoemaker:

That was good.

Ricky Nicholas:

So thank you, bro. I also want to salute Renoir on this, man. We did a Gatortail 24.7 Hunt collaboration hat. It's live on the Gatortail website. I think there's a 165 of them, small batch, but I needed it, man.

Ricky Nicholas:

I'm gated tail to the bone, 24 to the bone.

Aubrey Mack:

And you didn't bring four of them?

Darryl Moore:

Yeah. What did

Ricky Nicholas:

I sell that? At least. I checked I checked with the chief. He said, y'all don't need that, bro. He said, y'all got enough nice penthouse hats that I don't have, but I do have four.

Wade Shoemaker:

That's sick. I like the

Ricky Nicholas:

I will also say that that's how I met Wade that's how I met Wade Shoemaker. Yeah. That was because that

Wade Shoemaker:

was before 2015. It was. It was. Because my young no. Wasn't either.

Wade Shoemaker:

I'm lying, dude. Because my young Drake, my youngest, he had he was like it was twenty sixteen, I think. Or 20 it was twenty seventeen when we met down there.

Ricky Nicholas:

Wade Shoemaker was a a grizzly photographer, relationship over rations Working at a railroad. Working at the train station saying, man, I'm gonna risk it all

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah.

Ricky Nicholas:

And and jump out and and trust God and

Wade Shoemaker:

What is this thing?

Ricky Nicholas:

You you would think, but here we are today

Wade Shoemaker:

Now we're hanging.

Ricky Nicholas:

To be on a DU Wow. DU stage talking about what we love.

Wade Shoemaker:

Yeah. It's crazy, dude. I dig it. Well, guys, I think we've covered everything we can cover. I am so glad you guys had the time to do it.

Wade Shoemaker:

You got a lot of things to cover. Like, the rest of the day, you got a meet and greet at one, one to three. Remember, 180 hats at the Can Am booth. If you're the first at hundred and eighty, you get one. So I would say do that.

Wade Shoemaker:

Get in line early because wildly enough, a 180

Aubrey Mack:

goes quick. I know two kids is not

Wade Shoemaker:

gonna miss that. Oh, no. They in there. They in there, because for sure. Oh, y'all on the website?

Wade Shoemaker:

I love it. Oh, y'all getting a wet spaghetti tail? I love it. I love it. Guys, thank y'all.

Wade Shoemaker:

Look, we're gonna go ahead and call it quits here. We'll go to the next one. We'll see y'all soon. Cool. That's it.

Wade Shoemaker:

Appreciate it.

Ricky Nicholas:

Hey. I wanna thank everybody for the support and the love. Everybody listening, thank you for the support and the love, man. We love you back.

Ranar Moody:

Love y'all.

VO:

That's a wrap for today's episode of the Ducks Unlimited Podcast brought to you by Bird Dog Whiskey and Cocktails. From post hunt unwinds to celebrations back at camp, Bird Dog delivers award winning flavor to every moment. Enjoy responsibly. Don't forget to rate, review, and subscribe, and check out ducks.org/dupodcast for more stories, science, and all things waterfowl. Guest opinions are their own and don't necessarily reflect those of Ducks Unlimited.

VO:

Until next time, stay fired up, stay focused, and stay tuned to the ducks.