Behemoth Shiras Moose Under Consideration for World Record
OutdoorHub Reporters 02.17.16
The nearly 30-year-old archery world record for Shiras moose may have finally been broken. The Pope and Young Club announced on Monday that a bull moose harvested last October by Bobby Herbert of Golden, Colorado may eclipse the current record.
“I am incredibly grateful to have taken part in this once-in-a-lifetime hunt,” Herbert told Pope and Young. “I literally shed tears of reverence and joy, giving thanks to the Man upstairs.”
The current world record belongs to a 185 6/8 moose harvested by Richard E. Jones in Wyoming in 1987. Herbert’s moose measured 8 and 2/8 inches higher. Of course, the moose will have to go before a panel of judges to account for shrinkage or mis-measurement before it can be certified as the official world record.
“We were making our way around to where I had been calling the night before, when my hunting partner, Mike told me to stop,” Hebert recalled. “He thought he could see a moose in the trees ahead. I slowly raised my binoculars to find it was the bull we had named, Yukon Jack, Mike told me to stand behind some pine trees and he proceeded to walk away. The moose seemed to watch my hunting partner disappear into the trees beyond me and started towards my direction.
“The massive bull grunted with every step as he walked by me at 9 yards. I took a single step and let loose with my arrow, watching it strike home. He ran off about 40 yards and fell over. When I returned with Mike to see my harvest, the bull was standing up. I maneuvered around him for another shot, but he disappeared into some trees. We found him lying down with his head behind a pine about 20 yards away. I nocked another arrow, let it fly and it hit true. He ran another 35 yards and collapsed.”
Pope and Young said the record is currently pending, and Records Chairman Ed Fanchin had a few words of praise for Herbert’s massive harvest.
“The Pope and young Club is excited that Bobby Herbert has entered his magnificent Shiras bull moose into the Records Program as a pending Pope and Young Club world record,” Fanchin said. “The size of the moose is a testament of sound conservation work and game management. It’s great to know that animals of this class are currently roaming the woods. What I like most is the story behind Bobby’s hunt, and how it was a true example of Fair Chase, ethical bowhunting.”
Shiras moose are native to several western US states, including Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and Washington. They are on average the smallest subspecies of moose in North America, but their antlers can still grow to massive sizes.
