The Red Sox’s Jon Lester Explains How Hunting is More Than Just Taking Game
John E. Phillips 10.17.13
Author’s note: Twenty-nine-year-old Jon Lester from Washington State was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in 2002 at only age 18, spent four years in the minor leagues and then went to the big leagues in 2006. Lester is currently one of the best left-handed pitchers in the sport of baseball, is starting for the Boston Red Sox and has the best record in baseball for 2013. Lester also is a hunter, a cancer survivor, and a family man.
I grew up in Washington State, and fishing was my first outdoor love. My parents didn’t really hunt, but we all fished. However, as a professional baseball player, my work required me to be on the mound playing baseball during the spring and summer fishing months. One of the advantages of being a professional baseball player is that you meet a lot of people from all over the world. I met Chad Spann while playing minor-league baseball when we were assigned to be roommates. Later, he became the best man at my wedding and my best friend. Chad always talked about hunting and how much he loved the sport. We were both playing Class A ball in Augusta, Georgia right after we signed to play pro-baseball. Since Chad was from Georgia, when we had an off-day, he took me home with him. I went on my first turkey hunt with Chad, and instantly became hooked on hunting.
When I signed with a new agent, the company that this agent worked with knew a lot of people, and they reached out to Tim Anderson, head of Mossy Oak’s Pro Staff. Tim and I talked over the telephone and developed a friendship. Tim asked me to be involved with Mossy Oak and to go whitetail hunting with him in South Dakota. We had a great time together and both took nice bucks. This hunt was a spot-and-stalk rifle hunt. After that, we became good friends, and this friendship helped me develop relationships with Mossy Oak and the Mossy Oak staff. I’ve learned that hunting is less about taking the animals and more about the people you’re with, the time you share together, and the memories and relationships that come out of a hunt. In 2010, Tim and I went on anther hunt together in Alabama. Once again I was able to spend time with my friend Tim Anderson, meet more Mossy Oak people, and become more involved in the company.
The thing I enjoy most about hunting is waking up early in the morning before daylight, getting into the woods while they’re still dark, and experiencing all the animals waking up. I love to sit in my treestand and watch the wild world come to life. Plenty of times when I’m bowhunting on my farm in Georgia, I’ll have a doe walk out in front of me and present an easy bow shot. I know we have to harvest a certain number of does off my property to keep the herd healthy. But instead of taking the shot, I’ll often just say to myself, “I want to watch that doe and see what I can learn from her.” Maybe a buck will come behind her, and I’ll get a chance to take a buck, or maybe I’ll see something in the woods that I’ve never seen. For example, this year, I saw and heard some things in the woods I had never experienced before. I saw two bucks fighting. I heard a buck grunt and saw a buck do a snort/wheeze. I watched a buck walk into a field, spot a doe at the other end of the field and flat-out run to get to her. Yes, I like to take a big buck like any hunter, but that isn’t what I am looking forward to when I hunt.
In the next few years, I’m looking forward to taking my son hunting with me. I want to teach him the importance of hunting and being a steward of the land and protecting the animals that live on the land. I want to teach him gun safety and how to properly carry a gun in the woods. I want him to learn about the good people in this world who come from families that hunt and fish together. I want him to have the kind of outdoor experience that I had with my family. I think that hunting, fishing, and being in the outdoors helps individuals become better people, and that’s why I hunt.
For more information on Jon Lester, visit http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=452657.
John, the 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the year and the 2007 Legendary Communicator chosen for induction into the National Fresh Water Hall of Fame, is a freelance writer (over 6,000 magazine articles for about 100 magazines and several thousand newspaper columns published), magazine editor, photographer for print media as well as industry catalogues (over 25,000 photos published), lecturer, outdoor consultant, marketing consultant, book author and daily internet content provider with an overview of the outdoors.
Phillips has been a contributor to many national magazines, has been affiliated with 27 radio stations across Alabama serving as their outdoor editor and wrote for a weekly syndicated column, "Alabama Outdoors," for 38-Alabama newspapers for more than 13 years. Phillips was Outdoor Editor for the "Birmingham Post-Herald" for 24 years. Phillips was also the executive editor for "Great Days Outdoors" magazine for 3 years.
The author of almost 30 books on the outdoors, Phillips is a founding member of the Professional Outdoor Media Association (POMA) and an active member of the Southeastern Outdoors Press Association (SEOPA). Phillips also is the owner of Night Hawk Publications, a marketing and publishing firm, and president of Creative Concepts, an outdoor consulting group.
Phillips conducts seminars across the nation at colleges in freelance writing, photography and outdoor education besides teaching courses in how to sell what you write to writers' groups. Phillips received his photography training as a still-lab photo specialist for six years in the Air Force. He was the chief photographer for Mannequins, Inc., a Birmingham modeling agency, for 11 years.
While serving as 2nd Vice President of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, Phillips was in charge of all press releases for the organization as well as serving as Chairman of Alabama's Big Buck Contest, which he founded more than 30 years ago. He also was president of the Alabama Sportsman's Association for three years.
Phillips is the recipient of a Certificate of Merit from the Governor of Alabama and the Department of Conservation for his work in the outdoor field. Phillips is vitally interested in the outdoors and travels the nation collecting personalities, stories and how-to information for his articles and features.
EDUCATION: B.S. degree from the University of West Alabama with a physical education major and a history minor.
EXPERIENCE: 10 years parttime and fulltime physical director for YMCAs and 34 years as a freelance writer, photographer, editor, book author, lecturer and daily-content provider for websites. Currently, Phillips is a field editor for Game and Fish Publications; serves on the editorial board of Grandview Media; is a regular contributor to 12 internet magazines and a daily content provider for 8 websites.
WRITING AWARDS: Runnerup - Best Outdoor Magazine Feature - 1981 - SEOPA; Certificate of Merit - Awarded by Alabama's Governor for writings on conservation; Most Outstanding Sports Writer in Southeast - 1983 & 1984; Best Outdoor Feature in Alabama, 1987 - Alabama Sportswriters' Association 3rd Place; Best Book of the Year - 1989 - SEOPA; 2007 - inducted into the National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame as a Legendary Communicator; 2008 - received award naming him 2008 Crossbow Communicator of the Year from the Crossbow Manufacturers' Association; 2009 - GAMMA Honorable Mention for Consumer/Paid Best Essay for July/August 2008 in "Southern Sporting Journal."
