Peax Thrive Vodcast

Six percent. That's how many public-land elk hunters actually punch a tag. The other ninety-four out of a hundred go home empty-handed.  Those six percent aren't luckier than you. They're not tougher than you. They just did the work, months before the season, behind the e-scouting screen. It's July. While everyone else is posting countdowns to September on Instagram, the smart hunters are already...

In this live from the hunt Thrive episode, Chiam and I are joined by Lucas, the Peax Equipment spring bear hunt giveaway winner. We sit down together on the hunt to talk about the lessons learned and the highs and lows of spring bear hunting. This season had it all: snow, heat, and a lot of miles! Visit our website: https://peaxequipment.com Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/peax_e...

On the morning of May 3rd, a 33-year-old man named Anthony Pollio left his father a voicemail from a trail in Glacier National Park. He told his dad he was hiking up a mountain. He told him about his day. He said he loved him. He hung up the phone and kept walking up that trail. He never came back down. A search team found his body three days later, fifty feet off the Mount Brown Trail. His injuri...

In this Thrive Vodcast episode, I'm in the kitchen dialing in two custom freeze-dried meals that are going with me on the mountain on my upcoming spring bear hunts.  A Deluxe Mexican Style Scramble and Carnivore Ice Cream. Yes. I did say Ice cream. My goal with this episode is to parts.  One – Maybe it will get you thinking about how you can take control of your food and fuel your performance on t...

Spring bear season is here, and if your gear isn't dialed right now, you're already behind the curve. Today, I'm not going to waste your time. I've got 10 pieces of gear sitting here that have earned a spot in my pack this year for spring bears. We're gonna rip through these and do a quick breakdown on all of them. Rounding out the gear selection is a brand-new gear item just hitting the spring be...

So many elk hunters fail for one simple reason…They can't find elk! But when you really dig into it—that's not the only real problem. They never built a strategic hunt plan with multiple fully vetted Hunt Areas More importantly, they did not build a plan that could adapt to a changing hunt situation. There is one thing you can count on in elk hunting It's that everything is going to change! The ol...

So much of today's hunting tech is overhyped… or flat-out useless. But every once in a while, something shows up that actually moves the needle. This new Bridger Watch might be one of those tools. We're talking best-in-class topography maps, extreme battery life, fast ballistics, and incredible durability. Watch it go into a blender!   This watch could legitimately change how you operate in the ba...

We talk about public land like it's permanent. Like it will always be there. Like nothing can really change it.   But what if the real shift isn't happening through legislation? What if it's happening quietly… through purchase? What happens when the winter range, the migration corridor, the valley floor, and the only access road all sit behind one locked gate?   The West isn't disappearing. But it...

On today's Thrive Vodcast show, Mark is joined by Jeff Helm, they are fresh off the Peax Elk and Bear Tour events, and they break down the latest Western hunting news. In this episode, they dive into Montana's new license changes, including mule deer B tag restrictions, elk, deer, and antelope regulation updates, and a 233% increase to the nonresident base hunting license. We also cover the brand...

In this special edition of The Thrive Vodcast , No Middle Ground Mark and Chiam cut through the noise of modern Western hunting with zero fluff and zero filter. Has Western hunting peaked, or has the rising costs and demand finally broken the system? Do you run a 0° or 15° sleeping bag, and what are the real-world tradeoffs, and does it actually matter in the backcountry? UV pens vs water filters,...

Today's Thrive episode is a little different. No hunt tactics. No gear talk. No strategy.   We will get back to that, but today I want to explore a topic that's been on my mind.  It's about us! More specifically, the disconnect of the modern man. You don't need a PhD to see it, men are drifting and some are completely off course. Society is conditioning our boys to be soft, disconnected, and addic...

Spring bear season doesn't start when the tag hits your pocket, it should start right now!  This year, the snow isn't normal; the prime bear elevation zones they may not line up like they have historically.  Spring bear hunting is snowline game. An elevation game and a timing game. The bear hunters who are guessing are about to get exposed. 2026? It's going to punish the unprepared.    In this Thr...

Remember when elk hunting out West meant hitting the mountains, not crunching numbers, gaming odds, or dodging fine print and deception? Is the elk tag game rigged, and are the rules changing while you're still in line? What's happening in the Western elk tag system isn't just frustrating, it's broken. The states know it. The math proves it. Application season is here, our annual collision of hope...

Most Western hunters don't fall short because of bad luck—or bad gear. And no one sets out with the goal to be average. But somewhere along the way, comfort and familiar creep in and take over. This is how the cycle begins, and you need to be intentional to break it.  ·      Same familiar spots ·      Same excuses ·      Same half-ass preparations ·      Expecting different results ·      Doing th...

In the last Thrive episode, I laid out some hard truths. Montana's deer herds are in trouble. The response to that episode was immediate, emotional, and a bit overwhelming.  Hundreds of comments, strong opinions, and a lot of understandable frustration from people who care deeply about Montana's deer herd. But here's the thing, pointing out the problems was only step one. Today's episode isn't abo...

Have you ever seen something coming from a mile away? Yet, nobody does anything about it? Montana's deer herds didn't just disappear overnight. It wasn't random. This was a slow-motion train wreck, and the people in charge of the tracks, well, they stood there and watched it happen. That's Montana's mule deer story. From over 386,000 animals to under 250,000 in just seven years.  While other state...

There's one thing that will end a hunt faster than a blown stalk or busted gear—and that's getting cold and wet. Once extreme cold sets in and your feet start to go numb, your hunt is headed downhill fast. Yes, you can tough it out for a little while, but the truth is, you're on borrowed time and your hunt might already be over! I've been on enough late-season hunts to know this all too well.  Get...

Today's show is going to be a bit different, OK, a lot different. This Thrive episode isn't about hunt planning, elk strategy, or bear tactics. It's about something that comes up more than just almost anything else: Merging Western hunting & successful marriages, and what it looks like when one of you disappears into the wilderness for long periods of time.  I've been on over 100 podcasts, and I r...

In this special Live From the Hunt edition of the Thrive Vodcast, I sit down with my good friend Chiam — cameraman, hunter, freeze-dry fanatic, and world-class skinny-jean-wearing tech gear junkie. Warm weather has delayed the elk migration, the elk aren't cooperating, and we were grinding through long days deep in the backcountry. This was the perfect chance to dive deep into some "new" gear that...

What happens when you give me the keys to the bus and let me run wild? I've been sitting on this pre-recorded episode for a while now. We are now   40 shows deep into this Thrive journey, so I figured it's the perfect time to drop it.   Brice Bishop, a good friend and the founder of Peax Equipment, and I sit down to talk about what he was thinking when he gave me the green light on this Thrive con...

If you hunt long enough, unfortunately, wounding an animal is going to happen. It's not a matter of if, it's when! It sucks. It's heartbreaking. It's real, and it just happened to me! What you choose to do next is where the story can take a sharp turn—for better or worse. In this Thrive episode, I take you deep into the thick—where hope fades and second chances are rare. A blood tracking dog named...

Five years. Four hunters. One millionaire ranch owner. In the end, the Supreme Court said… "We're not taking the case."   In today's Thrive Vodcast, we're breaking down what this decision really means for Western hunters — and what you might need to know before stepping over that corner. Then, we switch gears to the most badass backcountry rifle I've ever carried — the Weatherby Model 307 Alpine C...

This is part two of my conversation with the legendary Bearded Butcher Brothers. Scott and Seth take us from our elk hunt together back to the butcher shop and into one of the craziest chaos stories. A bison breaks loose from their White Feather Butcher shop and goes on a rampage through town! The whole family joined in the chase down, it is real, and it's hilarious. The storytelling is classic Be...

In this special edition episode of the Thrive Vodcast , I sit down with the legendary Bearded Butcher Brothers. Scott and Seth are the two men behind YouTube's most popular carnivore and butchering channels.  I'm blessed to call these two guys friends. They are not only masters in the butcher shop, they're passionate hunters, family men, and fantastic storytellers. We dive into our elk hunt togeth...

That's a wrap for most of the western archery seasons. The bows are cased, the bugles have gone quiet, the bulls are becoming more reclusive, and now it's time to switch gears. We're headed into those late rifle elk seasons, and your entire approach needs to shift. Here's the thing! The elk have changed, and so should you! They're no longer rut-raging love machines; they've changed priorities, the...