The first aid kit hunters need
A look at the Tour of Homes
Searching for metal objects
A GUIDE FOR LIVING IN SIOUXLAND
HUNTING SEASON FOR SOME, IT’S MORE THAN SPORT
20 QUESTIONS WITH LARRY MYHRE
NOVEMBER 2015
SIOUXLAND LIFE IS ON THE WEB! VISIT WWW.SIOUXCITYJOURNAL.COM/SIOUXLANDLIFE
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November 2015
Siouxland Life
CONTENTS November
2015
It’s hunting season in Siouxland. But that doesn’t just mean chasing birds and deer. In this month’s edition, we look at other kinds of hunting and what sportsmen need to know if they’re going out for the season. If that’s not your idea of fun, we’ve got some great home ideas and a way to preserve the memories.
18 INSIDE THIS EDITION Reid Cummings prepares for hunting season. Thanks to proper training from Pheasants Forever, the eighth-grader is well-versed in safety and conservation. FEATURES 4 HOME a forever home 10 HOME this year’s tour 12 HUNTING deer at home 14 HUNTING a family thing 18 HUNTING proper training 21 HUNTING a brotherly thing 22 HUNTING accessibility 25 HUNTING gamely cooking 28 HUNTING loyal companion
30 33 36 40 42 44 45 47
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ON THE TOUR Discover whose homes are on this year’s tour.
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20 QUESTIONS with Larry Myhre HUNTING safety HUNTING the right stuff HUNTING metal winner HUNTING first aid HEALTH allergies HEALTH medical answers PARTING SHOT
GAME FOR GAME You can make a gourmet meal from the catch of the day.
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BEST BUDDY A great hunting dog can be a companion for life.
PUBLISHER Steve Griffith EDITOR Bruce Miller EDITORIAL Dolly A. Butz, Tim Gallagher, Earl Horlyk, Ally Karsyn, Michelle Kuester PHOTOGRAPHY Tim Hynds, Jim Lee, Justin Wan DESIGN Mary Garrison ADVERTISING SALES Nancy Gevik ADVERTISING DESIGN Kayla Fleming ©2015 The Sioux City Journal. Siouxland Life is published monthly by The Sioux City Journal. For advertising information, please call (712) 224-6275. For editorial information, please call (712) 293-4218.
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November 2015
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HOME a
forever home
10 HOUSE TOUR:
THINGS
TO LOVE ABOUT BUILDING A FOREVER HOME Text by Ally Karsyn | Photographs by Jim Lee
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November 2015
SIOUXLAND LIFE
Jeff and Alisha Jelken at their home.
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November 2015
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ALISHA JELKEN LOOKS OUT THE window of her family’s modern farmhouse. Off in the distance, her husband is harvesting corn. Jeff tends to 750 acres and 4,000 hogs in rural Le Mars while she teaches at North High School in Sioux City. They settled in this peaceful, private location with their daughters, Aubrey, 3, and Autumn 1, living within view of his parents’ farm and joke they could communicate with light signals shining across the brown, barren fields. “I had so much fun building this house,” Alisha said. “The only bad thing is that you really have to stay within budget.” They made sensible decisions designing their home, imagining a place where they can live even when they’re old and gray. AGING IN PLACE “I never thought we would be able to build a house,” Alisha said. When she found out they could, she went over the details to make sure this home would be livable decades from now. There are no stairs into the house – no steps in the garage or to the front door. Everything is open with doorways wide enough to easily fit through with a walker or a wheelchair. “We’ll never sell this because this is our farmland. We’re never going to move because the farm’s never going to move.”
lace ame from holiday
OPEN HOUSE The living room flows right into the dining room and kitchen. “This is perfect for our family of four,” she said. “We have our old rocking chairs like we’re grandma and grandpa already.” They can host friends and family for food and games and no one’s left out – no matter where they sit.
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November 2015
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SWAP STYLE The broad mantel above the fireplace offers plenty of room to display seasonal dĂŠcor that livens up the home from Thanksgiving to Easter and every holiday in between.
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EXTENDED ENTERTAINING The dining room leads out to a concrete patio with a wrought iron railing, which was a must after dealing with the upkeep of wood decking in the past. The kids love it, too. The pavement is usually covered with sidewalk chalk.
MODERN FUNCTION Beechwood cabinetry with soft-close drawers provides plenty of storage to stay organized even with two kids under the age of 3 in the home.
GRILLED GOODNESS Jeff is the grill master of the house and enjoys cooking outdoors on the Big Green Egg. The charcoal grills sears steaks to perfection in four minutes or less.
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MULTI-FUNCTION MAN CAVE Jeff’s fish, pheasants and deer get displayed in the walkout basement, which serves as a multi-functional living space. “This is where we have Christmas,” Alisha said. She moves the girls’ playhouse out of the way to put up a tree that gets decorated with pheasant feathers. With the extra rooms in down here, they’re able to host family from out of town and there’s a card table behind the sectional for playing games like Euchre, Pitch and Horse.
CENTER FOCUS “This is where we are all the time,” Alisha said. The open concept lets her keep an eye on the kids while she’s making dinner and the warm, inviting space works great for bigger gatherings too. “When we have everybody here, (Jeff’s family gathers for Christmas), we have enough seating because we have the big table and the island.”
GROWING ROOM(S) Three bedrooms are located down one hallway on the main floor, which was convenient when Autumn was a newborn. There are two more bedrooms downstairs that the girls will be able to grow into and they can move to the basement for more privacy in their teens.
HAPPY HUNTER The three-stall garage is heated and semi-finished to be able to host everything from card parties to Thanksgiving dinner. It’s also Jeff’s second “man cave,” complete with a popcorn machine. His hunting trophies are displayed on one wall and a flat screen TV is on another.
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HOME this
year’s tour
HOLIDAY TOUR OF HOMES
t
Text by Ally Karsyn
THE HOLIDAY TOUR OF HOMES IS going dashing through the Dunes again to showcase festive decor at five homes. The last time the tour featured homes in the planned community was in 2012, which was the year Big Brothers Big Sisters of Siouxland became the beneficiary of the popular fundraiser, started by the local Red Cross chapter 10
November 2015
Find out where the tour is going this year 25 years ago. The annual event brought in about $50,000 for the nonprofit youth mentoring organization last year, making it its largest fundraiser. Three days of festivities begin Nov. 19. Daily tours depart from the Dakota
SIOUXLAND LIFE
Dunes Country Club, at 960 Dakota Dunes Blvd. Attendees are encouraged to arrive early for refreshments, complete their registration and browse silent auction items. Tickets are $25, $30, $35 or $40, depending on the tour time selected. High traffic times include 9:30 and 10:15 a.m., 1:15 and 2 p.m., and, of course, evening tours starting at 5 p.m.
IF YOU GO
WHAT: Big Brothers Big Sisters Tour of Homes WHEN: Nov. 19-21 WHERE: Tours depart from the Dakota Dunes Country Club, 960 Dakota Dunes Blvd. TICKETS: $25, $30, $35 or $40, depending on tour time selected MORE INFO: Call 712-226-8687, visit bigbrothersbigsisters.com or stop by their office at 3650 Glen Oaks Blvd. between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday
9 THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Clockwise from bottom left, the homes of: Barry and Nancy Knudsen, 645 N. Country Acres Road. Jerry and Myrah Favors, 389 Riviera Circle. Nathan and Lisa Kalaher, 530 Bay Hill Circle. Mary Sterk, 438 West Pinehurst Trail. Mark and Priscilla Stokes, at 525 East Pinehurst Trail.
Up to 54 people can fit on a bus, but the average tour size is about 30. Lunch will be provided for guests purchasing tickets for 11:45 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Every year, local restaurants donate food for a buffet-style lunch. In the past, they’ve received food from Outback Steakhouse, Olive Garden, Chickfil-A, Zoup! and Famous Dave’s. Organizers also expect to go through about 15 gallons of coffee and cider over three days, plus dozens of cookies and baked goods from Sugar Shack Bakery, the Pastry Parlor and other donors. One of the most challenging parts of putting on this event – and perhaps the biggest – is finding five homeowners who are willing to open their homes to the masses and live out of a hotel for a few days, according to development
director Mike Skaggs. “You’re asking people to make a huge commitment,” he said. “Everybody loves to have their home decorated. That’s really cool. But you’re letting these designers come in and pretty much take your home over for a week or so leading up to the tour. Then you’re taking yourself, your spouse, your kids and you’re moving them out for four days so 1,300 to 1,500 people can walk through your home. “To get someone to say yes the first time you talk to them is very tough because of all those things.” In the end, five homeowners, over 150 volunteers and countless gifts in kind are brought together to help Big Brothers Big Sisters continue programming and making connections for almost 400 children in Siouxland.
The Holiday Tour of Homes, benefiting Big Brothers Big Sisters of Siouxland, begins Nov. 19.
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1. Arrive 30 minutes prior to your scheduled tour. 2. A complete tour may last up to three hours. 3. Tickets must be completely filled out and turned in before boarding the bus to begin your tour. 4. Be prepared to walk indoors, outdoors and navigate steps while on the tour. 5. You will be asked to remove your shoes upon entering a home on the tour. It’s advised to wear a style of shoe that’s easy to slip on and off. 6. No children will be allowed on the tour. Participants must be 16 or older. 7. Photos and videos are not permitted to be taken while on the tour. This includes taking photos and video with a cell phone. 8. In the case of inclement weather or a missed bus, refunds will not be issued. There is no guarantee your tour will be rescheduled. 9. Tickets are nonrefundable and cannot be exchanged.
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HUNTING deer
at home
KEEP DEER OUT OF YARDS, GARDENS Certain plants, fencing and repellents can help
i
Text by Dolly A. Butz
IF DEER GET HUNGRY ENOUGH, Laurie Taylor said, they’ll eat just about anything. Deer find hosta plants, a perennial favorite among gardeners, tasty. Taylor, Woodbury County Extension Master Gardener coordinator, said they also really love munching on hydrangea flowers, willow trees and, of course, vegetables. Onions, she said, tend to serve as a deterrent. “Some of the research has shown anything in the Allium family, which is the onion family, will help with the deer population and deer grazing,” she said. “They don’t like the smell of that as much.” After receiving complaints from residents whose properties were damaged by deer, the City of Sioux City enacted a ban on feeding deer and other wildlife in 2012. Under the ordinance, people illegally feeding deer and turkeys can be cited with a municipal infraction, which carries a fine of up to $65, or a simple misdemeanor, which carries a fine of up to $100. The feeding ban seems to be helping control the deer population, which is on the decline in Sioux City, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The DNR conducts an overnight count in the same area of Woodbury County each year. Twenty-eight deer were seen in 2014, down from 47 counted in 2012. It’s not uncommon to see does, fawns and an occasional buck foraging in wooded alleys behind residential homes, especially on the city’s north side. Taylor said still she receives calls from residents on occasion who are concerned about preserving newly planted trees. Deer, she said, damage trees when they rub their antlers on the bark. During a particularly harsh
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The Associated Press Many attractive plants, such as these Japanese painted ferns, are unpalatable to deer because of their poisonous compounds, fuzzy or aromatic leaves or tough textures.
Abel Uribe/Chicago Tribune/TNS Marigolds can act as a deterrent against deer.
winter, she said deer will resort to eating bark off trees. “I’ve seen really bad damage on evergreens,” she said. “A lot of times if it’s a mild winter they won’t touch them, but sometimes they will browse evergreens as well.” Plants and flowers deer tend not to bother, Taylor said, are daffodil, coneflower and yarrow – a native flower that’s drought-tolerant. “A lot of things that will have a heavy scent or a certain family of scents like the yarrow, the Russian sage, dusty miller, marigolds – they usually don’t bother those,” she said. Barberry plants, Taylor said, are another good choice because their thorns tend to keep deer at bay. If you insist on planting hydrangeas in your yard because you love their colorful blooms, Taylor said you could try doublerow fencing to protect them. She recommends placing a second row of fencing eight to 12 inches away from the first row. “Deer don’t have very honed depth perception, so if they are not sure how far they would have to jump to get into something they’re a little less apt to jump a fence,” she said. “A lot of times
WHAT TO PLANT?
The amount of damage deer cause depends on seasonal factors, weather conditions, availability of alternative foods and how palatable the plant is. Here are some plants rarely damaged or seldomly damaged by deer: ■ Barberry ■ White Spruce ■ Dogwood ■ Colorado Spruce ■ Forsythia ■ Mugo Pine ■ Honeylocust ■ Austrian Pine ■ Beautybush ■ Scotch Pine ■ Norway Spruce ■ Common Lilac Source: Iowa State University Extension
that will be effective in keeping deer out.” Electric fencing is an options outside of city limits. Deer repellents, Taylor said, could be used in the city, but she said they won’t be effective in the event of dew or rain. “At this time of year when the dew is so heavy in the morning you’d have to reapply them,” she said of repellents. “You would have to be extremely diligent with those.”
A doe grazes behind homes on Sioux City’s north side.
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NOVEMBER 2015
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Jeff and Kara Koehn with their son Hunter and daughter Jaycee pictured in their home near Kingsley, Iowa.
HUNTING IS A FAMILY AFFAIR FOR KINGSLEY, IOWA, COUPLE AND THEIR KIDS
k
Text by Dolly A. Butz Photograph by Jim Lee
KARA KOEHN DIDN’T GET INTO hunting until she met her husband Jeffrey. “I said I couldn’t live in a house with any dead things hanging on the wall,” she said. Kara’s view changed after they married. Preserved deer, turkey, geese and pheasant are mounted on the walls of the family’s home near Kingsley. Son Hunter, 13, is named after Jeffrey’s favorite pastime.
Hunter began accompanying his mom and dad on hunting trips into the rolling fields surrounding their home at age 2. The Koehns have 40 acres of land that years ago was farmed. It is now in the Conservation Reserve Program which allows habitat for wildlife such as pheasant and deer. Even 16-month-old daughter Jaycee went pheasant hunting last year. They tried taking her deer hunting, but Jeffrey said it didn’t work so well. “I’ve hunted with my dad out here since I was 5, 6, 7 years old,” Jeffrey said. “When we do hunt on other people’s
ground, either I’ve combined it or cut hay there and know the area. We don’t wander too far from the home territory.” The Koehns hunt geese at a pond a mile and a half south of their home and travel to Brown’s Lake during duck season. On a trip to Wyoming with Hunter, Jeffrey shot and killed an antelope. “It’s a lot easier,” Jeffrey said of hunting antelope versus hunting deer. “We walked down the sidewalk in the town we stayed in and they’re eating tulips and petunias right out of the flower pots.” Hunter said he enjoys hunting
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HUNTING a
family thing
Hunter Koehn
Kara Koehn with son Hunter and daughter Jaycee pictured in their home near Kingsley, Iowa.
Jeff Koehn
pheasant and deer the most. He said his parents taught him to treat every gun as if it’s loaded and to never point a gun at a person. “I started off shooting a small singleshot .22 just to target, to teach me the basics of gun safety,” he said. When he turned 12 and could hunt with a gun, it wasn’t Hunter, but his mom who bagged her first deer after accidentally dropping Jeffrey’s gun at 5:30 a.m. and breaking its scope. “It was a rush,” said Kara, who shot a nine-point buck. The key to making hunting enjoyable for kids, Jeffrey said, is keeping their minds off the cold and keeping them occupied. “The first duck hunt I took (Hunter) on it was cold and it was wet,” he said. “He 16
November 2015
did pretty good. The ducks came in early so we weren’t out there too terribly long.” Hunter recalled an nearly morning hunt at Brown’s Lake. After setting up camp in the early morning hours, Hunter was about to retire for nap, when ducks and geese started flying overhead. “I couldn’t take a nap because there would always be birds over the top of us,” he said. First-time hunters, Jeffrey said, should go with someone who’s experienced to a place where they’re bound to find wildlife. “You don’t want to take a kid fishing where they’re not going to catch fish. You want to go out with somebody who knows what they’re doing that’s maybe got a dog if you’re going to go after birds,” he said.
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HUNTING proper
training
SURE SHOT Pheasants Forever programs lead young hunter
f
Text Tim Gallagher Photography by Justin Wan
FOR BEING JUST A MIDDLE SCHOOL student, Reid Cummings is already a sure shot. Exhibit A: A 10-point whitetail buck he felled last fall near Ponca, Nebraska. Exhibit B: A group of four pheasants he harvested in the Woodbury County Pheasants Forever Youth/Mentor Hunt this fall near Sioux City. Exhibit C: A mule deer he shot near Faith, South Dakota, in November 2014. “He loves to hunt,” says Reid’s mother, Lisa Cummings, who then lists Youth/Mentor hunts in three different counties that Reid will take part in during the school year’s first semester. “I love being outdoors,” says Reid, an eighth-grader at Sergeant Bluff-Luton Middle School. “For deer, it’s fun because you get to track the animal and it’s such a rush to finally see it and take your shot. “For pheasants, it’s really exciting to see the dogs, see the bird flush up and take a shot. Again, there’s the adrenaline,” he says. Cummings is just the kind of “student of the game” that Scott Rustwick, secretary with the Woodbury County Pheasants Forever Chapter, loves to encourage. The future of hunting and local conservation efforts probably rests with young people like Cummings. It is why area Pheasants Forever groups host events like the Youth/ Mentor Hunt each season. The special
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Reid Cummings has participated in Youth/Mentor hunts in Woodbury, Plymouth and Dickinson counties.
day in Sioux City took place on Oct. 10 this year. It placed children ages 12 to 15 with an experienced adult hunter. “We try to make it a one-on-one (ratio) and if parents want to walk along, they may,” Rustwick says of the free program. “We make it a safe hunt, but we want to give them a chance to shoot some birds.” Cummings hunts with his dad, Mark Cummings, on occasion, but is limited in those chances because his father resides in Idaho. The two team up every November for a deer- and pheasant-hunting excursion in South Dakota. “It’s a blast,” Reid says. Lisa Cummings likes to shoot, but cannot kill an animal. That makes the Youth/Mentor Hunt for a beginning hunter like Reid such a rich and worthwhile experience. “Reid did the Youth/Mentor hunt in Woodbury County, Plymouth County and he’ll do another one in Dickinson County,” Lisa says. Seven children harvested 12 pheasants in the Woodbury County event, one that played out on a preserve at the KD Hunt Club on Sioux City’s northern edge. “I think every kid got a shot off,” Rustwick recalls. “Reid got several birds. He’s a pretty good marksman.” “I got four pheasants and then assisted on another one,” Reid discloses. He cleaned the pheasants at the site and will dine on pheasant at home during November. He’ll work up an appetite by walking miles in additional hunting treks, including the big one out west. He shot a mule deer near Faith, South Dakota, in 2014. That’s about the same time he succeeded in harvesting a 10-point whitetail. He located that buck near Ponca, Nebraska. “We were in a corn field and saw this deer about 250 yards away on a terrace,” Reid says. “We saw it through the brush and then it came closer to about yards.” Young Reid positioned himself and his Savage 308. “The deer came into a clearing and I shot him, got him in the heart,” he says. His mother had the deer mounted and presented the prize to him over the summer. The buck now hangs in the living room, reminder of a successful hunt, and, maybe, a sign of things to come.
Reid Cummings shows the result of a successful Pheasants Forever Youth/Mentor Hunt in Woodbury County in 2014.
PHEASANTS FOREVER AIMS The Woodbury County Pheasants Forever Chapter held three events for children this summer and fall. A Youth/Mentor Hunt took place on Oct. 10; a Youth Day at Little Sioux Park near Correctionville, Iowa, welcomed 85 children; and, during the summer, a Pheasants Forever Fishing Tournament at Little Sioux Park attracted 103 anglers. The aim of Pheasants Forever is to return wildlife, not just pheasants, to the area. The conservation group also aims to boost water quality while working on land purchases and with landowners in reestablishing native areas for wildlife concerns.
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Siouxland Life
HUNTING a
brotherly thing
BROTHERS IN ARMS
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Jefferson siblings take to Union County fields Text by Tim Gallagher Provided photographs
WILL AND HUNTER GEARY OFFER a new spin in the phrase “brothers in arms.” No, the Geary boys aren’t charging up a hill or waging war. Rather, they’re traipsing the Union County countryside in search of wild game. On Oct. 17, Hunter Geary, 10, shot a doe, his first, as part of the South Dakota Mentor Hunting program. On Oct. 18, Will Geary, 12, got a shot off in his initial pheasant outing of the season. He may have missed, but their dad, Travis Geary, claimed a decent rooster on a rather windy day. “This was Will’s second actual hunt,” Travis Geary said, explaining that, at age 12, one qualifies for a youth tag. Will Geary, a seventh-grader at Elk Point-Jefferson Middle School, will return to the fields this fall in southeast South Dakota as pheasant numbers are rebounding, according to the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks organization, which reports a 42-percent surge in pheasant numbers. As farmers continue the corn harvest, prospects should grow. “We probably saw two other roosters and two other hens on Sunday (the second day of the season),” Travis Geary says. “It was a pretty windy, so a number of birds sat tight. I think the numbers this year should be good.” Speaking of good, the Geary family enjoyed the first bird of the season about four nights later. They put the pheasant in the crockpot, mixed with cream-of-chicken soup and enjoyed a true Union County feast. Hunter, a fifth-grader at Elk PointJefferson Elementary School, shot his doe while participating in the South Dakota Mentor Hunting program that encourages children to get involved in the sport. Travis explained the mission of the program, noting that a mentor, who doesn’t carry a gun, must be present during the hunt.
ABOVE: Hunter Geary, 10, is shown with a doe he harvested in the South Dakota Mentor Hunting program. Geary hunted with his father, Travis Geary, in Union County. This is his first deer. BELOW: Will Geary, 12, holds a pheasant his father, Travis Geary, shot during the pheasant hunting opener in Union County on Oct. 18. Will Geary was taking part in his second pheasant hunt. He has earned his youth tag for South Dakota.
“They are allowed one doe as part of that program,” he said. Hunter and Travis noticed many deer moving that October evening, a sight in line with Travis’ belief that deer numbers are plentiful in this region. Within minutes of getting set up, Hunter was able to get a shot off, which hit both lungs and partially damaged the animal’s heart. “This gives him an introduction to hunting,” said Travis. Hunter and his dad cut up Hunter’s first deer and made jerky, another Union County treat. SIOUXLAND LIFE
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EMERGENCIES accesibility
GROUP AIMS TO MAKE HUNT
ACCESSIBLE
s
Text and photography by Tim Gallagher
A SPECIAL HUNT HAS TAKEN PLACE in Northwest Iowa for the past 13 years, a hunt that’s offered hundreds of young people an experience they maybe wouldn’t have gotten were it not for a committed band of outdoor enthusiasts and volunteers. “This is geared for physically challenged kids, or kids terminally ill,” says Phil Driver, one of the “drivers” behind the hunts organized by volunteers with the Special Youth Challenge Ministries organization, or SYC. A deer hunt held during the youth/ disabled deer season the last weekend of September attracted 24 participants, half of whom came from outside of Iowa. “We’ve had one girl before who flew in from Georgia to hunt,” Driver says. Driver, who hails from Linn Grove, Iowa, said the special ministry grew out of a few conversations about providing opportunities for children in 2002. What started small has grown to involve an army of volunteers, lots of hunting spots in a few select counties, and all sorts of fellowship. “I enjoyed them,” says Nick Rogers, of Moville, Iowa, a participant in three SYC hunts in and around Cherokee and Buena Vista counties. “I didn’t get any deer, but we’ve been really close. The sights were cool and the guns were run by buttons.” Rogers, a 2013 graduate of Woodbury Central High School, suffered a spinal injury in 2011. An accident on a fourwheeler resulted in a two-way fracture of his C-5 vertebrae. While he wasn’t able to traverse fields and CRP ground like he had in the past, Rogers gained something – an appreciation for hunting, thanks in large part to SYC. “I was quite the system. The guide had a button (on the gun) and I had a button. All I had to do was push a button,” he said. “And it was hard for my eye to get close (to aim), so they had a
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Nick Rogers, 20, of Moville, Iowa, became much more interested in hunting after spending parts of three weekends with volunteers associated with the special Youth Challenge Ministries organization, or SYC.
SIOUXLAND LIFE
device that holds an iPod Touch and that has a hole for the camera. The device was hooked up to the scope.” Rogers could track a deer in his sights by looking through the iPod screen. That’s only part of the offering. There’s an SYC ranch four miles west of tiny Webb in Clay County. The 4-acre ranch site features a house and a machine shed that’s insulated and heated. “We’re working on another project in the bottom of the barn, to put in three wheelchair-accessible rooms, a game room and more,” Driver says. The biggest annual event involves the deer hunt at the end of September. Folks begin arriving on Friday afternoon with new hunters required to go through a target-practice exercise. A 6 p.m. banquet is held for nearly 400 at the fire hall in nearby Sioux Rapids, Iowa. “We invite landowners, guides, the kids and their families,” Driver says. “It’s amazing to see those kids come out of their shell,” says SYC volunteer Sam Palmer, of Alvord, Iowa. “It’s humbling. These kids all have a smile on their face and they never complain about anything.” After the banquet, children and guides and family members then head to the “SYC Ranch,” or to cabins set up in area parks for lodging. Others bunk for the weekend in area homes and motels. “We take donations during the hunt, but we don’t solicit,” Driver says. “We do want all expenses covered for the families of these kids.” The SYC organization has built nearly 30 blinds, some of which remain in the woods at locations conducive to hunting. There are also 20 portable blinds assembled by two-person crews. Rogers remains thankful for the experiences he received while warming to hunting through the SYC program, which provided him with camo hunting gear, boots, pants and more. He even won a raffle for the gun he now uses. Now a business management student at Western Iowa Tech Community College, the 20-year-old anticipates additional hunting opportunities closer to home. Thanks to the SYC mission, Rogers keeps an eye out for deer and other wildlife. He’s also gotten a stand for his gun made to fit his wheelchair, the brainchild of his pal, Moville’s Chris Healy. “I’ve also got a trailer we’ve made,” Rogers says, indicating again how he’s setting his sights on what could become a most interesting pastime.
FOR MORE INFORMATION Special Youth Challenge (SYC) of Iowa is a nonprofit Christian-based ministry designed to teach and assist youths will special challenges to take part in and enjoy shooting sports. With training and special equipment, SYC helps diminish the handicap by empowering them to succeed. SYC also provides aides to help hunters achieve this goal at no cost. Three events are held annually: A turkey hunt in the spring, a fundraiser in August, and a deer hunt in September. For information, see www.syciowa.org or call (712) 390-4480.
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Holding back is a tHing of tHe past A new smile lets you bloom
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November 2015
Siouxland Life
GAME’S ON
s
Wild meat is a delicious option
SMALL TOWN SPORTSMAN OWNER Dave Riemenschneider is used to answering questions about rifles, shotguns and bows from customers coming into his well-stocked store. Despite being knowledgeable about the topic, the lifelong hunter and fisherman seldom fields culinary questions. “We eat everything that we hunt and our family’s meat bill is minimal,” Riemsenschneider, a turkey, pheasant and deer hunter, explained. “We always take our game meat to a local processor for steaks, sausages, even jerky.” On the other hand, Woodbury County Extension Service nutrition and health program specialist Renee Sweers frequently gets questions regarding the cooking of game meat. “The same safe-cooking principles should be applied, whether you’re cooking game meats or any other type
Dave Riemenschneider, owner of Small Town Sportsman, shows a compound bow in his store in Kingsley, Iowa. At left, a deer meat stick.
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HUNTING gamely
cooking
A PLEASANT PHEASANT RECIPE Home cook Alisha Riemenschneider frequently scours the Internet for ways to utilize the game meat her hunting family bring to her. One of the family’s favorite meals came from a website called Sydnegeorge.com and was inspired by a North Dakota grandmother.
PHEASANT DEL-LA-H INGREDIENTS Three pheasants, cut into bite-sized pieces One cup, flour Three cans, garlic cream of mushroom soup One-half cup, Half & Half Seven ounce can, green chiles One teaspoon, salt One teaspoon, pepper Three teaspoons, paprika INSTRUCTIONS 1. Combine flour, salt, pepper and paprika in a large plastic bowl, mix thoroughly. Add pheasant to mixture after drying on paper towels. Place the pheasant pieces in a large frying pans with just the bottom covered in olive oil. Brown until it turns a nice brown color and place it into a larger casserole baking dish.
Associated Press After frying venison steaks on both sides, add the brandy then ignite it to cook it off.
2. Combine soup, chiles (don’t drain) and Half & Half. Place on top of the browned pheasant and put into an oven set at 350 degrees for an hour or hour-and-a-half. Check at 45 minutes and don’t overcook.
of meat,” she said. “When dressing the meat, be sure to do it on a clean surface. Also, be sure to refrigerate it as soon as possible.” A food thermometer is recommended to ensure all meats reach a safe minimum internal temperature. For instance, a deer or venison steak must register an internal temperature of 145 degrees, with no rest time. A roast made of venison or deer must register at 145 degrees for at least four minutes of rest time. Ground game meat can be cooked to a minimum internal temperature of 160 degrees. Sweers recommended combining ground game meats with ground beef or pork to eliminate the gamey taste. Like other poultry, wild turkey or pheasant must be cooked to a minimum temperature of 165 degrees. Sweers said game meat is often a healthy option. “They tend to be low in saturated fat and high in protein and iron,” she said. “They’re also tricky to cook since the meat can be so lean.” Riemenschneider agreed. An experienced griller, he said overcooking game meat can make it tough and leathery. Which is why he lets his wife Alisha do most of the cooking. “Alisha allows me to indulge in hunting hobby,” he said with a smile. “But I know she’s a much better cook than I’ll ever be.” 26
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SIOUXLAND LIFE
The pheasant should be a little moist inside. Serve with wild rice and Caesar salad. Source: sydnegeorge.com
A lifelong hunter and fisherman, Dave Riemenschneider frequently eats what he catches.
ask a professional Q: Doctor, I always wake up in the morning & don’t feel rested. Why is that? A: That’s a great question! While a lack of proper sleep, which is between 7-8 hours, is typically to blame, there’s another culprit that typically goes unchecked: your pillow. When was the last time that you changed your pillow? It’s a common question that we ask our patients, because if your muscles can’t relax and allow you to count those sheep, you’ll be tossing and turning all night, keeping Dr. Joel your muscles, tendons, and ligaments tight – and tender. Pistello, DC Waking up without that rested feeling? A great place to start is looking at your pillow. When we recommend a pillow, it’s not as easy as simply saying, “This pillow is the best!” Indeed there are a lot of options, shapes, colors, thicknesses, and prices out there. We recommend setting the last option aside until you find something that you are comfortable with – and then remembering you can’t put a price on a good night’s sleep. What IS most important is that you get a pillow that will support how you sleep. Do you primarily wake up on your back, side, or stomach? Let’s get the last position covered first: if you are a stomach sleeper, it’s time to turn over. Try to fall asleep on your back or side, as sleeping face down not only contorts your neck by twisting it, but keeps it in a potentially painful degree of extension every night. The next best position is on your side. For this position, you want a higher pillow, about the thickness of your shoulder to your neck, so that the neck stays in perfect position, nice and straight all night. Keep a pillow in between your legs too, to ensure that your lower half doesn’t twist and turn too in the night, giving you that achy low back feeling in the morning. By far the best position is to sleep on your back. While it may feel uncomfortable, it’s the best for your neck, keeping a good curve in it, allowing it to fall back and truly relax. Many cervical pillows have a weird curve shape that is higher on one end and lower on the other. These are going to be the best to get a good night’s sleep. They come in various thicknesses, so have someone size it up for you. Always feel free to stop by and let us take a look at your pillow, let us help you sleep a little easier!
Call 276-4325 today for an appointment 3930 Stadium Drive. (Between Wal-Mart & Explorer Stadium)
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November 2015
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HUNTING loyal
companion
Toby, a one-and-a-half year old male yellow lab, fetches toys at Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center in Sioux City. Labs are known for their retrieving skills.
DOGS CAN POSITIVELY
‘ENHANCE THE EXPERIENCE’ OF A HUNTING EXCURSION
Text by Michelle Kuester Photographs by Jim Lee
FEW TOOLS OR SPECIALTY PIECES OF equipment can aid a hunter quite like an adept hunting dog. “A dog enhances the experience,” said Cindy Rarrat, owner of Sioux City’s Animal Adoption and Rescue Center and 35-year veteran dog trainer. “A good dog will go out in the field and tell you exactly where the birds are.” 28
November 2015
She noted that researching different breeds and their uses is the first step. “Before you get any type of dog, research what it is that you’re after,” Rarrat said. There are dogs bred for pointing, flushing and retrieving, among others. “It all depends on what kind of hunting they are doing,” Rarrat said. She also noted that, as long as they are spayed or neutered, females and males are equally adept hunters.
SIOUXLAND LIFE
COMMON HUNTING BREEDS Pointers: German Shorthaired Pointer, Setters, Vizsla, Weimaraner Retrievers: Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, Chesapeake Bay Retriever Flushers: Cocker Spaniels, Springer Spaniels
TIPS FOR TRAINING PUPPIES TO HUNT Here are the basics when it comes to training hunting dogs, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. ■ Begin with basic commands such as sit and stay. Puppies can never be too young to start this. ■ Introduce the puppy to water when it’s young so it isn’t afraid of water when it gets older. ■ Allow the puppy to become familiar with the scent of birds through feathers and use decoys and dummies. Work with this every day. ■ Introduce the dog to the sound of gunshots during a target practice before it’s in the field. ■ Always use positive reinforcement when the dog performs well. Cindy Brodie plays fetch with Toby, a one-and-a-half year old male yellow lab, at Sioux City Animal Adoption and Rescue Center.
Potential hunting dog owners also need to consider whether the dog will live inside the house and be a family pet or live outside. If the plan is for the dog to live outside, choosing a breed with a longer coat is good due to cold winters. Rarrat added that hunting dogs do make excellent family pets, however. “Usually sporting dogs, aside from their high drive, make really lovely family dogs,” she said. Because of this high level of energy, they are best for a more active family. Maintaining exercise year-round is important to ensuring the dog stays in shape and healthy when it comes to hunting season, a time when the dog might be expected to run all day. “A lot of these dogs don’t get any exercise except for the two months of the year of hunting season,” Rarrat said. Rarrat stressed the importance of purchasing a hunting dog from a reputable breeder and paying the higher price for a well-bred dog. “A good breeder will let you see the parents, and they breed healthy dogs without hip and elbow problems,” she said. “That can cost you $2,000 on up. You get what you pay for.”
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SIOUXLAND LIFE
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HUNTING Profile
20 QUESTIONS with outdoorsman
Larry Myhre
Larry Myhre, former editor of the Sioux City Journal, loves the great outdoors. For him, fishing season never ends. He started fishing when he was 4 years old. Provided
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SIOUXLAND LIFE
l
Text by Ally Karsyn
LARRY MYHRE RETIRED AS EDITOR of the Sioux City Journal eight years ago, but he continues to write a weekly column about his outdoor adventures – something he has been doing since 1973. Recently, he was inducted into the Freshwater Fishing Hall of Fame, which recognizes outstanding achievements in sport fishing. He reflected on his seasons of fish tales and offered some sage advice for anyone who’s thinking about picking up a rod and reel.
1. When did you start fishing?
I started fishing when I was 4 years old. We lived on a farm so we didn’t have a lot of time to do it, but we’d take a couple of trips every year to a lake.
2. Where do you go fishing now? I fish pretty much throughout the upper Midwest and Canada. I go out West to fly fish for trout. I just got back from North Carolina. All over the place. I even once fished in the River Jordan in Israel. I was over there on a newspaper assignment.
3. Do you have a favorite place to fish around Siouxland?
the fish I catch, I release. If I fish by myself, I release it. If I’m fishing with someone else, I might keep the walleye and clean them. They’re really good eating.
8. Do you have a favorite way to cook fish?
Most of my fish are fried. I grind up some saltine crackers, throw in some flour, salt and pepper. The big danger in frying fish – and this is true of cooking any wild game – is overcooking it. You’ve got to get it when it’s done just perfectly. With the fish, when you touch it with a fork, it will just flake off. You really got to be careful when you’re frying fish that you’re not overcooking it.
9. Why do you catch and release most fish?
A famous writer once said, “A trout is too valuable to be only caught once.” That’s kind of true. You have to realize not all the fish you release are going to survive, but most of them will. It’s kind of a conservation thing.
10. Do you have a boat that you fish out of?
It kind of depends what a person’s fishing for. Catfish: the river that runs right through Sioux City. Walleye: I like Lake Francis Case, a Missouri River reservoir. For all species of fish: I like West Lake Okoboji or Big Spirit Lake.
Yes, I do. I have two boats. I have an 18-foot fishing boat for the bigger lakes, and I got a 16-foot sport canoe. I got my first boat when I was a junior in high school, and I’ve had a boat ever since.
4. What do you like about going fishing?
11. Do you still fish off a dock or fish from shore?
I like being outdoors. That’s No. 1. I like the challenge of it. To me, fishing has been more about education than it is actually catching fish. I like learning different techniques to catch fish.
5. What’s the biggest fish you’ve caught?
It might have been a catfish that was about 34 pounds from the Red River in Manitoba.
6. So it’s not hanging up on your wall, is it?
No, I have only one fish mounted and that’s a 15-pound 8-ounce walleye. I caught it, and when I went to release it, it had died. I couldn’t release it so I took it to the taxidermist.
7. What do you usually do with the fish you catch? You know, probably 95 percent of
I do. I have good fishing from the shore.
12. You said you were just in North Carolina. What did you do out there?
I was screen fishing for trout, so I just had my hip boots and waded out. If I travel a long way, I’m usually pulling my own boat or I’m going to fish with someone who has a boat. When I fish from shore, it’s probably going to be locally – on the riverfront here, farm ponds, smaller bodies of water.
13. What do you do for fun when you’re not fishing?
I make a lot of my fishing tackle.
14. When does fishing season really start and stop for you? I pretty much fish every month of the year.
15. Do you get into ice fishing as well?
Yes, I do. Ice fishing is not my favorite form, but I do. I have a portable fish house that I can pull out on the ice. I don’t do a lot of ice fishing anymore.
16. What do you take out with you to eat when you go fishing?
I’ll take along breakfast bars. I always have half a dozen of those in my camera bag. Of course, my camera goes with me all the time. Or we’ll stop and grab a sandwich at a quick stop.
17. What are a few of the things you can’t leave home without no matter what kind of fishing you’re going to go do that day?
My camera. I write a column for The Journal and take pictures for that, so I have my camera. I always have rain gear. It can be a bright, sunny day, and if you don’t have your rain gear, it’s probably going to rain. I usually have water, especially in the summertime. A fishing cap. I always wear a cap. And polarized sunglasses because it cuts down on the glare on the water.
18. You mentioned that, as a boy, you’d go fishing with your parents, but who really taught you how to fish?
I learned from people who were expert fishermen. I started doing more reading, studying. Then, I started teaching fishing seminars myself, teaching fishing classes around the area. In the ‘80s, there was very little fishing information out there. So the seminars were very popular. Now, I still do that, but attendance is really low.
19. In your opinion, what’s the best fishing magazine?
Probably the one that helped to educate fisherman and is still doing a good job, In-Fisherman magazine.
20. Do you have any advice for beginner fishermen or women?
Just go fishing. That’s a big part of it. A lot of people say to me, How do you find the time to go fishing so much? I don’t find the time. I take it. I just step back, take some time and do it. Fishing is who I am: an outdoorsman.
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Andrew Albrecht, 12, of Le Mars, Iowa, takes aim at a target at Yard Indoor Shooting Range. After passing an Iowa DNR online hunting shooting course, young hunters must also pass a hands-on field class in order to be certified.
SAFETY FIRST
a
Learning the ethics of hunting Text and photographs by Earl Horlyk
Already an experienced bow hunter, Andrew Albrecht revealed a steady hand when shooting with a shotgun at the Yards Indoor Shooting Range. This is pretty impressive since Andrew is only 12. “That was fun!” the Le Mars Junior High School seventh-grader said, smiling at instructor Aaron Iacino. “Let’s do it again.” Andrew was one of the students participating in an Iowa Department of Natural Resources (Iowa DNR) hunter safety course. While adult hunters can be certified in Iowa by passing an online safety
Albrecht received hands-on training from Aaron Iacino, a certified hunting instructor.
course, hunters, ages 11 -17, must pass both an online course as well as a field course that stresses safety, ability and hunting ethics. Iacino, a certified firearms instructor who works for Siouxland Safety Services, had been teaching safety field classes for
more than five years. “Iowa has a long history in hunting and a long history in hunter safety,” he explained. “You can’t have one without the other.” During a two-hour class, Iacino will instruct a classroom of young hunters on the proper way to load and unload a gun as well as ways to stay safe. “The only time your finger should be on the trigger is the moment you’re ready to shoot,” the instructor told his students. “Your own personal safety and the safety of your fellow hunters should always be on your minds.” While the majority of his students are teenagers, Iacino has also taught his course to adults. “To be honest, kids are easier to teach than adults,” he noted. “With kids, you can teach them the right ways to hunt and that will stick with them for the rest of their lives. With adults, you end up
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HUNTING Safety
having to correct a lifetime of bad habits.” In addition, Iacino is proud to be able to turn young hunters into responsible gun owners. “That’s the key,” he said. “Guns are simply a tool. My job is to ensure people know to operate these tools.” Iacino said becoming certified is a rite of passage for many young hunters. “Oftentimes, the joy of hunting is passed down from one generation to the next,” he said. “It’s a family thing.” That’s true for Yards Shooting Range manager Tiffani Smith. Her 13-year-old
son Warren was one of the students taking Iacino’s field class. “We’re an ‘outdoor’ family, and hunting is one of the things we like doing together,” Tiffany Smith said. “Whether we’re hiking, camping or pheasant shooting, we’re doing it as a family.” Still, safety should be a primary consideration when operating any weapon, according to 12-year-old Andrew Albrecht. “I like hunting,” he said. “But I also want to be a safe hunter.”
HUNTING EDUCATION HELPS EVERYONE According to Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the goals of its Hunter Education Program is to educate Iowans about hunter safety; promote hunter safety and ethics; train volunteer instructors to teach hunter education; and continue to keep hunting a safe activity. Hunting education is designed to introduce students to lifelong skills that are important to many different types of outdoor recreational opportunities. Iowa law requires that anyone born after Jan. 1, 1972, must be certified in hunter education before they are eligible to purchase an Iowa hunting license. Classes are typically held in various locations between March 1 - Nov. 15, each year. Since the classes are taught by volunteers who are also hunters, there are very few classes taking place after Nov. 15. If you are interested in enrolling in hunter education class near you, log on to iowadnr.gov/Hunting/ Hunter-Safety-Education/Hunter-Education-Program.
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November 2015
35
HUNTING the
right stuff
GET IN
GEAR
Proper clothing, equipment necessary for bountiful hunt
a
Text by Michelle Kuester Photographs by Justin Wan
A PRODUCTIVE HUNT REQUIRES more than just a top-of-the-line gun. Being prepared with proper dress and equipment is key to having a successful hunt, according to the experts at Scheels in Sioux City. “The No. 1 thing we try to get people into is a good pair of socks,” said Todd Pick, shotgun manager at Scheels. “Nothing ruins a hunt like cold, wet feet.” There are a variety of types of socks that differ in fit and thickness depending on what type of hunting will be done. Boots are also important element to the hunt. There is a large assortment of boots with different heights, support and warmth. For the more serious hunter, Scheels carries remote control heated insoles to place in boots for added warmth. The insoles, which have settings for no heat, medium and high heat, have an internal rechargeable battery. The insoles are also good for people who spend a lot of time outdoors in the cold, Pick added. Waders are another vital purchase, especially for those hunting waterfowl and walking through bodies of water. Neoprene waders are waterproof and will help hold in warmth. They also don’t require washing besides the occasional hosing. “They are very minimum maintenance as far as longevity,” Pick said. When it comes to clothing, hunting manager Warren Jensen stressed the importance of layers. “Layers are the secret to everything,” he said. “You don’t want heavy, bulky gear, but you want to stay warm and comfortable.” Jensen said to look for fabrics that say “wickable,” which means it pulls moisture away from the skin, and GoreTex, which allows sweat to come off the skin, but rain cannot come through. “If a customer goes out hunting and is dressed inappropriately, it will make for a bad experience and we don’t want that,” Jensen said. Hunters also need to follow laws
Photos on Previous page, clockwise from top right: Shotgun manager Todd Pick talks about various hunting boots at Scheels. Other products available at Scheels are: A can of scent control spray that bow hunters use to mask their smell in order for deer to get close enough to shoot. An Ozonics ozone device used to reduce scent. Outdoor socks, which vary depending on what kind of terrain the hunter will be on and temperature. A vest for deer hunting.
Shotgun manager Todd Pick talks about various socks at Scheels. There are different socks depending on what kind of terrain the hunter will be on and temperature.
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November 2015
Siouxland Life
that specify how much blaze orange needs to be worn. Turkey and bow hunters are not required to wear orange as they are typically solitary hunters, but all other hunters are required to wear one visible, external article of clothing with at least 50 percent surface area solid blaze orange, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Bow hunters know how important it is to minimize human smell so that deer will come close. This can be achieved through special clothing or, for the more tech-savvy, Ozonics. Ozonics destroys human scent through ozone molecules, which reduces the number of deer that can pick up the scent and become aware of human presence. Trail cameras are another piece of equipment that allow for easier hunting. The almost undetectable cameras start recording when they sense movement in their area allowing hunters to see what game is around and in what direction it is heading. Certain models will send pictures to cell phones for an almost instant viewing. “When I first started, you tied a thread between two trees and if it was broken, there was a deer,” Jensen said. “If you could tell what way it laid, you’d know what direction it went. It’s amazing how technology has changed things.”
The Home Builders Association of Greater Siouxland has begun work on the new project home at 748 Brentwood St. (Woodbury Heights) in Sioux City, Iowa. Stop by and see the daily progress! This home will be completed in the spring. Contact the HBA offices if you’re interested in purchasing this home. Visit us online at www.siouxlandhba.com for a complete list of members or e-mail us at hbasooland@siouxlan.net 3900 Stadium Dr., Sioux City, IA
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HUNTING metal
winner
Denny Rupp, owner/operator of Willow Road Surplus, of Quimby, Iowa, is shown at his business in October, one month before a retirement auction of his equipment, tools, antiques and collectibles.
ON THE PROWL FOR METAL A ‘hunter’ of a different stripe, Quimby man has salvage in his sights
d
Text and Photographs by Tim Gallagher
DENNY RUPP LAUGHS ABOUT THE notion his head has been on a virtual swivel while driving around Northwest Iowa the past three decades. “I did scrapping the whole time I farmed,” says Rupp, 68. “And you know what? It’s never been a day of work for me.” Rupp, a native of Maryhill, Iowa, just
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west of Cherokee, served in the Vietnam War in 1968-69, a cog in the U.S. Army Artillery. Upon his return home, he farmed for a short time before moving near Quimby in 1973 to start farming on his own. He kept at it until 1990. And the whole time, Rupp’s eyes hunted the local landscape, searching for machines collecting dust in the groves around Cherokee County. There were times he’d simply pull in a
SIOUXLAND LIFE
driveway and ask the farmer if he’d like the grove cleaned up. “My head was on a swivel for iron,” says Rupp, a hunter of a different stripe. Most of what he found, he cut up and sold. Oh, he saved some of the more interesting components. He and his wife, Sherry Rupp, also hit more than their share of area auctions and sales. He collected old tools and tractor parts, for example. Her market involved plate ware
and children’s books, to name a few. “I had a good name in Cherokee and then I moved up here (to Quimby) and I’d tell a guy that I could clean out his grove, and he’d ask, ‘Will I get paid?’ “At first, it was pretty deflating,” he says. Rupp established his name and his Willow Road Surplus in a matter of a few short years. Soon, he was scouring the countryside in search of iron opportunities. “Every piece of iron that has come through this place has come through these two hands,” he says. “I separate the brass from the iron, the copper from the aluminum, you name it.” He’ll sometimes toss a few screws or nuts in a bucket. And, in time, that bucket would fill to overflowing. He never restores a found piece of machinery. That’s not his thing. His brother, Roger Rupp, is in to restoration. Rupp’s sense of humor and his passion comes through on his business card. “Into destruction, not construction,” it says. Rupp’s largest project came at Cherokee a few years ago. Rupp was challenged to tear out the old livestock receiving area at a packing plant. He chopped up the old rendering site at the
Denny Rupp has several John Deere seed corn planter boxes. Rupp estimates these planter boxes are from the late 1930s. He dates them by examining the logo.
Rupp’s hands hold a Fix fishing reel. The 68-year-old says the reel is over 60 years old. Rupp, a Cherokee County native, has been hunting for such finds for decades.
plant and cut up 13 rail cars, each weighing 52,000 pounds. Not only that, he tore up the rails and the railroad ties. “I scrapped and sold it all,” he says. “We cut it up in 18-by-3-foot chunks.” Nearly 20 years ago, Rupp took a call from a businessman in Kingsley, Iowa, who sought to have a farm site cleaned up. Rupp traveled west and did the work. While he was there, a Kingsley farmer from just up the road stopped by and requested Rupp’s salvage skill. The word apparently spread about the man working solo with his John Deere 4020, carting away all these hunks of metal. “By about mid-July, I was on a farm
south of Moville, Iowa, still working,” Rupp says with a laugh. “I finally had to tell people there, ‘No.’ I had to get home and I’d let things go around here.” Rupp is now letting go of his Willow Road Surplus southeast of Quimby. He and Sherry have decided to downsize and will move to Cherokee. Denny will open a smaller shop and call it Spring Lake Metals. Rupp will “bag” his Willow Road Surplus following a retirement auction on Nov. 14. “I’m looking forward to the next stage,” he says. Always the hunter, the word is everpresent: Looking.
New Home ClosiNg Rules aRe Now iN effeCt Closing on your new home is an exciting time — but it also can be an overwhelming process. Home buyers are usually required to sign a seemingly endless pile of documents, most of which are written in terminology not used outside of the housing industry and that can be complicated to understand. Fortunately, now the process is easier. Under new rules required by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, four closing documents were merged into two. The CFPB recently announced that the changes scheduled to take effect on Aug. 1 was delayed until Oct. 3. The Good Faith Estimate and Truth in Lending disclosures was eliminated and combined into a new single Loan Estimate form. The Loan Estimate must be delivered to the
buyer no later than three business days after receiving the application. In addition, the final Truth in Lending Disclosure and HUD-1 Settlement Statement has been replaced by the Closing Disclosure form. This form must be provided to the consumer a full three days prior to the closing, and if there are changes during that 72-hour period, the closing could be delayed.
spelling out the most relevant details all on one page – the interest rate of the mortgage loan, the amount of the monthly payments and a listing of all the closing costs. For consumers applying for adjustable rate mortgages, the documents now explain how their interest rate and future monthly payments could change based on certain factors.
This is a big change from the current process that allows the HUD-1 Settlement Statement to be presented to the buyer as late as the day of closing and allows changes to be made to the statement during the loan closing. These new rules are intended to streamline the loan application process and make it easier for consumers to understand by clearly
Rich Callahan President Heritage Homes of Siouxland
SIOUXLAND LIFE
712-255-3852 siouxlandhba.com November 2015
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HUNTING first
aid
PACKING A FIRST AID KIT COULD
SAVE YOUR LIFE
j
ON A HUNTING EXCURSION
Text by Dolly A. Butz Photographs by Justin Wan
JEFFREY ZOELLE PLANS TO HEAD into the South Dakota wilderness this month to hunt pheasant with family and friends. “They depend on me to take care of them and the dogs,” said Zoelle, a family physician at UnityPoint Clinic Family Medicine at Sergeant Bluff and medical director of clinics. Zoelle, who grew up in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, where the outdoor sport in a favorite pastime, has been hunting since age 12. If someone in his group gets sick or injured, Zoelle rifles through his first aid kit for sterile dressing, sterile gauze and aspirin. On past hunting trips, he said the medical problems he has encountered have been minor – among his human companions that is. “Nothing real severe,” he said. “Pheasant hunting, I’ve had to sew up a couple dogs, but they work a lot harder than the hunters do.” Hunters are at risk for a variety of injuries from gunshot wounds to lifethreatening cardiac problems to rashes caused by contact with poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac. Working in the emergency room, Zoelle said he has treated hunters who have cut themselves after falling or running into something, gotten dust and debris in their eyes and experienced chest pain. “Guys don’t get any exercise. They go and shoot a deer and try to drag it out of the woods by themselves. They do exertional things that they’re not used to doing and put themselves at greater risk,” he said. “For those people who go pheasant hunting they’re used to the walking. They know that’s going to be part of it. But when you’re dragging out a 200-pound deer, that’s a little different.” Hunters age 50 and above who are not usually active, Zoelle said, should consider visiting their doctors for checkups, especially if they’re planning a 42
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Dr. Jeffrey Zoelle, a family physician at UnityPoint Clinic Family Medicine at Sergeant Bluff and medical director of clinics, talks about first aid kits for hunting outdoors.
PUT THESE IN YOUR FIRST AID KIT ■ Sterile bandages ■ A hemostatic agent or something to make a tourniquet, such as gauze ■ Benadryl ■ Asprin ■ Tylenol ■ CPR mask hunting trip in an area that is remote or elevated. All hunters, he said, should have a first aid kit handy to treat minor injuries and stabilize major injuries. Extensive adventure medical kits, available in a variety of sizes, feature a syringe and sterile saline to flush out wounds, a variety of dressings, a CPR mask and a first aid book. “Me personally, I take a few things that the average person would not because I have access to them, so I can sterilely suture people,” Zoelle said. Zoelle recommends packing a QuickClot, which accelerates natural clotting and stops bleeding fast. He said these small packages which contain a hemostatic agent, pads, gloves, duct tape and a triangular bandage, can be purchased online. “It has a compound in there when it comes into contact with blood it forms a big clot,” he said, adding that QuickClot can treat a broad range of bleeding situations. If you don’t have a hemostatic agent or sterile dressing available, Zoelle said, clothing can be used as a tourniquet to stop bleeding. “You can use whatever clothing you have to keep the person warm. Elevate the extremity and apply direct pressure to stop the bleeding,” he said. “Hopefully they have a cellphone they can use to call for help. They may not have service where they’re at.” The most important thing you can do to prevent hunting-related injuries, Zoelle said, is using hunter safety basics. “Properly use firearms and treat them with respect the way you should and then accidents in that manner will not happen,” he said. “If you do have some underlying medical issues you should understand what your risks are and prepare yourself for that.”
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HEALTH allergies
THE GREAT OUTDOORS
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ISN’T THAT GREAT DURING ALLERGY SEASON Text by Earl Horlyk Photographs by Dawn J. Sagert
POSSIBLY THE WORST PLACE TO FEEL wheezy is in a dusty field during hunting season. “Like everyone else, hunters can be irritated by cold air, dust, mold – you name it,” Sioux City Allergy & Asthma PC’s Christopher Tumpkin explained. “The problem is they’re in the middle of nowhere when their allergies kick in.” Which means allergy-prone hunters should carry over-the-counter medication since the outdoors has such sniffle triggers as ragweed, pollen and mold. But over-the-counter medications may carry warning signals to hunters. For instance, an antihistamine – used to relieve allergies, hay fever and the common cold – may also make a person drowsy or give the user what Tumpkins called “brain fog.” “Obviously, hunters want to be alert in the field,” he said. “Anything that will inhibit that should be avoided.” Likewise, nasal sprays or medications containing decongestants may be able to shrink swollen blood vessels and tissues in one’s nose. But they can also make a person feel jittery. “No hunter wants to have an itchy trigger finger,” Tumpkin said. “That’s why such drugs should be avoided.” Which is why he suggested using a fexofenadine like Allegra, which won’t make one too drowsy or too jittery. Still Tumpkin recommended seeing an allergist or physician prior to hunting season if symptoms persist. “A hunter knows he’s susceptible to allergies if he’s sneezing and stuffy every time he’s in the field,” Tumpkin said. “He might as well treat the symptoms when he can instead of being disruptive to other hunters.” If the problem continues, an allergist may decide allergy immunotherapy (allergy shots) is a course of action. This treatment, Tumpkin said, involves receiving regular injections in gradually increasing doses. This will help a person’s immune system become more resistant to a specific allergen, lessening the symptoms as well as the need for medications. “I know hunters want to hunt, but they shouldn’t suffer due to allergies,” he said.
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Sioux City Allergy & Asthma’s Dr. Christopher Tumpkin said hunters should avoid over-the-counter medications that will either make them drowsy or jittery while in the field.
SIOUXLAND LIFE
Dr. Christopher Tumpkin, M.D. talks about a poster that he uses when talking to patients about allergies, testing and treatment at his office in Sioux City. He suggests that sportspeople see him prior to the hunting season if they’re susceptible to outdoor allergies.
HEALTH Medical
Answers
‘DOC, I’VE GOT A QUESTION …’ answers to your medical questions
I went to a health screening and was told my carotid artery was bad and I needed to see my doctor. What does that mean? What could happen? Do I need surgery? Carotid artery stenosis is a narrowing of the carotid artery that provides blood flow to the brain. This condition has an increasing prevalence with age, and is often screened for at health fairs. The most feared condition associated with CAS is stroke, but it is also an indirect risk factor for heart attack and coronary artery disease. Screening of asymptomatic people for CAS has come under criticism by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force in the last several years and carries a Grade D recommendation. Grade D means that the Task Force actually recommends against routine screening, as the surgery required to fix the narrowing of the artery has significant risks associated with it. If you have already undergone screening and have been told that you carotid artery is significantly occluded, you
should follow up with your primary care physician to decide on the best course of action. Depending on your current medications, risk factors and lifestyle, your primary care physician may recommend close follow-up, or may refer you to a surgeon to discuss surgery options. For many patients, intensive medical management may provide similar results to having surgery, with fewer of the associated risks of surgery. Does it matter which arm you get the flu shot in? Getting the flu shot can be a pain in your arm for the first few days after administration. Don’t let that stop you from getting vaccinated. Receiving your flu shot is the single most important step you can take to avoiding the flu. Here are some simple tips
MEET THE DOC Dr. Mara Groom grew up in a military family, living in several states and countries before finding her way to Wartburg College. While in Waverly, she fell in love with Iowa and decided to hang around indefinitely. She went to medical school at Des Moines University and is now a first-year resident in family medicine. When she’s not at the hospital, Dr. Groom enjoys traveling, biking and shopping. for getting your flu shot. 1. Don’t baby your arm! I like to get my flu shot in my dominant arm. This forces me to use the arm instead of babying it, and increasing blood flow can help decrease any discomfort from the injection site. 2. Relax your arm during the injection. I hate shots! I think everyone does. It can be very easy to tense up during the injection, but keeping that arm loose during the injection can decrease discomfort afterwards. 3. Take some Tylenol that night, or even before the shot. Having the Tylenol on board will decrease the discomfort from the vaccine. 4. Apply ice or heat. Ice works better for the first couple of days after the injection if you are tender. If you are still sore after 48 hours, you can use ice or heat - whatever feels better! The discomfort of the shot is worth the protecting it provides during the flu season! WHAT KINDS OF HEALTH QUESTIONS DO YOU HAVE? Submit your questions and they may be used in this monthly feature. Write to Siouxland Life at 515 Pavonia St., Sioux City, Iowa 51102.
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It seems awfully loud at my office with machines, talking, etc., going on. Could this be harmful to my hearing? What can I do, other than tell people to be quiet? Occupational Noise Exposure is a significant concern for approximately 30 million Americans. According to the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), estimates more than 20,000 cases of noise-induced hearing loss every year, making it one of the most prevalent health care concerns in the United States. According to OSHA, some warning signs that noise at your workplace is too loud include the following: ringing or humming after leaving work, temporary hearing loss when leaving work or needing to shout to be heard from about 3 feet away. OSHA has set legal limits on thresholds for noise exposure at work. Through a fairly complicated set of calculations, they weight intensity of noise exposure over an eight-hour workday to develop a maximum permissible exposure limit. If your workplace exposure exceeds this, the company has several options to decrease your noise exposure. This may consist of several options, from providing headphones or other hearing protective devices to constructing a room away from the noise for breaks. If you have concerns about your noise exposure at work, discuss with your supervisor what your daily noise exposure equates to and how you can decrease your sound exposure.
PARTING SHOT By
Bruce Miller
THE MENTAL SNAPSHOT WORKS BETTER THAN THE CLOUD
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I MARVEL AT PARENTS WHO CAN TAKE 324 PHOTOS AT A high school concert and post and tag everyone in less than two hours. I worry that they’re so busy covering the event they’re not really enjoying it. Oh, sure, I know there’s that big “wall of fame” they’ve got to erect on graduation day. But sometimes, it’d be good to take a mental picture and live with that, instead of the stopmotion animation they’ve created on their cellphone. I say this because I have huge gaps in my life now, thanks to new technology. “Get rid of your photographs,” friends told me. “They’re just taking up space in your house. Put everything on your computer,” which, for the most part, I did. The Cloud – which I’ll never understand nor want to – was supposed to preserve everything for eternity (or until I stopped paying the yearly bill). “Glitches,” however, eliminated a chunk of my photos, never to be seen. Then, an external hard drive was supposed to back everything up that was on my computer. It died, taking another swath through my photographic memories. Flash drives have petered out. Technology has become obsolete. Computers get old and, in many cases, I’m left with nothing but memories. But those memories are fairly strong, particularly since they came at a time when we couldn’t instantly see if our eyes were closed right after we’d taken a picture. I’m old enough to remember when the first Polaroid cameras were released. Like magic, an image appeared and we marveled at the result until someone pulled it away to be preserved with some pink goop you had to squeegee across the photo. Today, of course, those photos have big fade streaks across them and fingerprints from too-anxious subjects. But, at the time, it was a miracle to see pictures that quickly. Usually, you had to wait a week or two for the drug store to return the photos you took. Some of them were blurry. Some were overexposed. Some were black. And some caught people in the worst moments possible. But they existed. They didn’t disappear in the Cloud. Before the era of cellphones, taking photos required planning and patience. Because you only had 12, 24 or (god willing) 36 exposures on a roll of film, you wanted to make the most of the moments. One shot would usually have to do. If you were indoors, you had to be sure you had enough flashbulbs, too. And, for safe measure, you probably licked the bulb just to make sure there was a connection. In the era of flashcubes (check that one out on Google, kids), you were almost guaranteed “red” eyes until Kodak realized it needed to issue “extenders” for the cubes. The stuff wasn’t cheap, either, so 36 photos usually meant you were 1. On vacation 2. At graduation or 3. Attending a wedding. Of a relative. You wouldn’t waste a picture, for example showing duck lips or a BFF throwdown. Because frames were saved for “professional” photos, you put the rest in a scrap book or photo album to jog your
memory. Three pictures might have been enough to bring back hours of laughter, good food and fun. You didn’t need to shoot a Vine of somebody going on a rant. You knew, just by looking at an expression. Those photo albums had their drawbacks as well. Often, Scotch tape would yellow and fail to hold the picture. Little black corners would fall off. And, in the 1970s, “self-adhesive” albums wound up leaving yellow lines across pictures that would require hours of steaming just to remove. In the 1980s, plastic sleeves were more photo-friendly but, still, they didn’t hold 324 shots from one event. That’s why “the future” (as we called the 21st century) seemed so bright. We could save every photo we ever took in one convenient place and reference them whenever we liked. Multiple platforms could hold unlimited shots. On paper, at least, it sounded good. And then, we discovered the fault in our Cloud. Now, with that big chunk of my life missing, I realize I’ve got to take mental snapshots of life’s big moments. And they work fairly well. When I want to recall an event, I just close my eyes and find the moment in that vast hard drive in my head. It’s better than a Facebook post. And it never has anything but “likes” and positive comments.
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