If you’ve ever had the chance to meet and chat with Melissa Bachman, host of “Winchester Deadly Passion” airing on Sportsman Channel, then you know what a down-to-earth, unique hunter and true lady she is. She hunts harder and longer than many others I know – she tells me about her day and I tell her there’s no way I would be in the blind for that long – or get up that early for that many days in a row. But she does it. Season in and season out. A few years ago she did get a buddy to go on some of her trips with her – Pork Chop is her name. You’ll see her in many of Melissa’s photos on her Instagram feed (http://instagram.com/melissa_bachman) and yes, she has her own IG feed too – http://instagram.com/porkchopwashere Knowing Melissa for as long as I have, I could go on and on about her…but this is a “5 Minutes” piece…so onward we go.
Melissa, here we are, 2018 is beginning to reveal itself and knowing you as well I do – I bet you already have your 2018 hunting season booked full. Can you share any details yet?
Yes, I’m really excited for another awesome 2018. I have a numerous turkey hunts planned, a snow goose hunt with my dad and some close friends followed up by an incredible adventure on the South Island of New Zealand for tahr, chamois, and red stag. We will be backpacking up in the high country on top of the mountains so it’s going to be an amazing experience. All this is just this spring, and for fall I have some great whitetails, mule deer, elk and antelope hunts in store.
You just finished a whirlwind tour of trade shows where one of the seminars you give is how to self-film – I know you’ve said that has been your most popular seminar. Why are people so enthralled to learn more about self-filming? Is the power to have your TV show still strong? Or do they want their own YouTube channel? Or just for documenting?
Yes, this is on of the most popular seminars I do and I believe people or primarily filming for YouTube and to share with friends and family on social media. I love helping people learn more about this as I know how powerful videos can be to get new kids and people involved in the outdoors. I’m not sure if as many people are still trying to do tv but the online world has definitely become more and more popular.
What recommends can you give for someone who is just starting out and has the desire to self-film. Say they have a budget of $500 – what should they buy first?
For someone who is on a $500 budget I’d recommend looking for a good used camera to increase the quality you can get. I personally love the Sony XHA1 which is a tiny little handheld 4K camera that we often use as a second camera. It does an amazing job and is simple for anyone to pick up and use.
Ok, I’m going to turn the tables on you – say I just gave you $500 to buy whatever you want for your next hunting adventure – what would it be? And let’s say I donated $500 to a charity of your choice – which charity would to that be and why?
I just got a Kawasaki Brute Force & a Kawasaki Teryx topped off with a bunch of cool Moose Utility Accessories however I don’t have a trailer yet so that would be my next purchase if someone gave me $500. If I had to recommend a charity, it would be Wishes and More. This is a charity that will grant kids wishes, including hunting wishes. I met Kelly through this program and love everything they do and stand for. Some kids wish for a trip to Disney, others like Kelly wish for a hunting trip and Wishes and More makes this possible. (Editor's note – Melissa granted a wish to a young, upstanding lady a few years back to take her hunting – they’ve been fast friends ever since. Although Kelly’s condition continues to deteriorate and take her motor skills…she still tries to get out every hunting season. You can see Kelly on a few of Melissa’s “Winchester Deadly Passion” episodes in 2015 and 2016.)
— Michelle Scheuermann, editor, Archery Wire