As the face behind RedBeard Outdoors Podcast, Instagram page, and Fit Crew, Johnathan McCormick is an avid endorser of living an active, healthy, and happy lifestyle. On his platforms, he inspires his followers to get outdoors and live their best lives. In this highlight, we'll be learning more about Johnathan and his relationship with hunting!

What Kind of Hunting Do You Do?

I mainly do western archery hunting and like to mix it up between backpacking in for a few days, singular day hunts, and staying mobile with my truck at night.

How Long Have You Been Hunting?

I’ve been hunting for close to 10 years out here in Utah. In late 2019, I started archery hunting and haven't looked back. As for game, mule deer and elk are the two I go after, with elk being my favorite to hunt.

Why Do You Hunt?

There are many reasons I hunt. For one, I love having a reason to train year-round to keep myself active. Hunting also gives me access to the most nutritionally dense meat available to us on this earth. The lean, protein-packed meat from game animals is nutrient-dense, provides a great source of protein, and contains micronutrients as well. That's all without mentioning that it's untainted from hormones, antibiotics, and more. Lastly, I hunt because it takes me places I wouldn't necessarily travel to if it wasn't in pursuit of big game.

What is Your Favorite Place to Hunt?

Wherever the elk take me, that’s my favorite place to hunt. However, if I had to pick one specific spot, I love mountains covered in aspens!

What are Some of Your Hunting Goals?

My goal is to learn and improve each year, put meat in the freezer for my family, and become a better version of myself each time I leave for a hunt. Even past retirement, I would love to keep hunting and share that with my kids and future grandkids.

Biggest Success While Hunting?

For hunting, my greatest success so far has been getting in close to elk. Even though I haven't had a clear shot opportunity yet, getting in close with big game is always a success. There's a saying I love that basically states the goal is to get in close for as long as possible. Then, an opportunity to fill the tag will happen. It may not have happened yet, but the filled elk tag will happen soon enough.

What is Your Dream Hunting Trip?

The dream hunting trip is taking my kids to hunt elk in the future and getting in on a herd with multiple bugling bulls. Also, a trip to Spain or New Zealand for Red Stag would be amazing!

What are Your Top 3 Hunting Necessities?

My top 3 hunting necessities (outside of knowledge and your weapon of choice) would be a trauma/first aid kit, knife, and water filtration. There are so many more things that I think are important, but these three items will allow you to survive in an emergency and clean the animal you harvested.

Top 3 First Aid Necessities

The top 3 first aid necessities would be a tourniquet, blood clotting, and a trauma blanket. The tourniquet lets you take care of big gaping wounds and the blood clot smaller ones. The trauma blanket keeps heat in if needed and could be used as a shelter if you need to hunker down in a storm.

Favorite My Medic Kit for Hunting

Out of all of My Medic’s kits, my favorite one for hunting is the TFAK. It's small enough to fit in a pack but also big enough to hold the necessities.

Have You Ever Had to Use Your Kit

I have used my kit for the Super Wrap while hiking to keep blisters from forming, but I have never been in a situation where I needed to use my TFAK in the field. However, I have used first aid gear for minor cuts and bloody noses, but thankfully nothing major.

What Advice Do You Have For Your Fellow Hunters

My main piece of advice would be to train with your gear before getting into the field. Whether it's your weapon, first aid kit, shelter/sleep system, clothing, or another piece of gear, you need to know how to use it beforehand. I also recommend testing your gear before you get in the field because it can make or break your hunt.

If you need an encouraging presence on your Insta feed or just want to learn more about what Johnathan does, head over to his Instagram and check out his content!