Jackie Bushman went deer hunting for the first time when he was just nine years old and loved everything about it. Of course, at the time he didn’t know it would become a life-long passion and his second career, or that, ultimately, he would share his passion with tens of thousands of people across the country. He just knew that hunting was something he enjoyed.

Years later he became a tennis pro, but Jackie’s passion for deer hunting remained. It bothered him that deer hunting was misunderstood by a great many people. He wanted people to understand what a great sport it is; and that without deer hunters, we wouldn’t have the deer species that we have. Thinking that deer hunters needed some kind of association, he began Buckmasters in the 1980s, and it slowly began to grow from there.

Deer Hunting on TV?
Still bothered by the general perception of deer hunting, Jackie wanted to get his message out to a wider audience. He knew television was the only way to create mass awareness. He also knew that the major TV networks were not interested in putting deer hunting on television. In fact, when he first called the networks and told them he represented the nation’s deer hunters and that he wanted to put an event on TV, he heard a lot of hang-ups.

But Jackie does not give up easily. He contacted several well-known athletes, including baseball and football great Bo Jackson and racing legend Dale Earnhardt, and created a TV show that featured celebrities and athletes competing in outdoor sporting events. There was no hunting, but the show was called The Buckmasters Classic, and he figured that would generate publicity for Buckmasters.

He sent the pilot to the TNN Network (a predecessor of Outdoor Channel) and finally got it on the air at 10:30 on a Sunday night.

The Highest Rated Show On The Network
The next morning he was back to work at Buckmasters when he was contacted by the top brass at TNN.

“Son, you just brought us the highest rated show on our network,” they said. “Now we want to talk about doing a deer hunting show on national TV.”

It had never been done before. The general wisdom was that America had no interest in seeing deer hunting in their living rooms. What’s more, the cameras and lights of the day were simply not technically sophisticated enough to capture the sport.

But Jackie and his crew worked around the technical problems. With all the limitations, they created a show that captured people’s interest. Since then, more than 300 hunting shows have aired on TV, with Buckmasters continuing to be among the top-rated. Jackie created a genre; and he continues to refine and re-invent it, bringing it new life and making it relevant to new generations.

Buckmasters Membership Explodes
Before the TV show went on the air, Buckmasters had about 9-10,000 members. After 13 weeks, membership exploded to 100,000.

But Buckmasters is more than a TV show. What started with a simple magazine for deer hunting enthusiasts now encompasses national TV shows, several magazines, a website, social media, and a variety of annual events, including Buckmasters Expo, one of the largest consumer hunting shows in the country.

Hunts For Wounded Vets And Terminally Ill Children
Jackie says that much of Buckmasters’ success comes from listening to and reaching out to the audience. When he heard that there were terminally ill children who dreamed of going deer hunting, he organized an event to make it possible. Sponsors covered the costs and Jackie helped make dreams come true.

He did the same for disabled vets and critically ill hunters. Every year since 1987 he has presented the Buckmasters Life Hunt for critically ill hunters, raising awareness of the obligation to help those less fortunate.

A Proud Streamlight Spokesman
For more than a decade Streamlight has been a proud supporter of Buckmasters; and Jackie says he’s been proud to represent Streamlight and to tell his followers about our great products.

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