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Is Lee Ellis the best to do it?

I’ll say this too. I see a lot of guys who kill giant deer - I don’t think they could come down to SE LA swamps and kill the biggest deer without cams, a lot of time, help basically. But I do think Eberhardt or Infalt (as examples) could.

That is partially correct, partially incorrect. There are plenty of "guys" that "kill giant deer" who would not be able to be successful in other arenas. But, there are also plenty of hunters that could "kill giant deer" under most any circumstances - because they are consistent killers. Some of these consistent killer put themselves out there, others do not.

The reason you - and others - say certain people's names that come to mind is because these people CHOOSE to put themselves out there. But, really, why do their names come to your mind? How do you even know about JE? Because he injured his shoulder patting himself on the back so much! He, and others, put their names on your radar screen on purpose. Their names do not "accidentally" come to mind about who else 'could be' the best out there. Sure, they put in the extra work to put themselves in that position. Many do not realize the amount of work it takes to be a consistent killer and have your name in the masses. There are plenty of us that might just be as good or better than them as being hunters - but we are not marketers - we either choose to not put in the work to put our names on the tips of your tongues or actually just prefer anonymity! (Uh, maybe some excellent hunters do not have the means, effort, or desire to write books, make DVDs, tour the circuit, go to the trade shows, make videos, create new products. Is is a lot of work. But there are plenty of consistent killers that are excellent in their own right that could certainly go to any state and be successful. You just may not know them.)

Why do some people put themselves out there are others not? Some claim to they only want to educate others, or they enjoy the hunt, or (insert their multiple reasons here). Sadly, for many, it comes down to money. Why do they have a YouTube channel? Money. (Queue the crowd and anticipate some comments at this point: "you must be jealous", "if anyone could do it, why don't you", etc. Priorities, man! Some people actually do not want that life, lifestyle, or the things that come with it - whether they have enough self-awareness to realize it or not. Others, by nature, realize man is lazy, working only under compulsion or when forced to take action. We must each ask: which are you?).

People slam a "famous" person like Josh Bowmar for his foolish antics and videos. (Rightfully so! Main character buffoonery) Yet, you watch the videos! And he makes $2.2M per year on YouTube. (Another site puts it at $518k per year.) Whichever site is correct - that is quite a bit of money. You don't like it, don't watch.

TLDNR: No, Lee Ellis is not the best. That is short changing many other consistent killers, some of whom you have heard of, others not.
 
Lots of people can be killers when you’re single and have no children, unlimited time and resources…. throw a couple of kids and big mortgage in to the mix and let me know how many don’t fade away….. most will… I’m as guilty as anyone of half living in the woods, but I will never do so at the expense of being there for my family when they need me, ever, raise your kids proper, hold down a real job or business, and then kill big bucks consistently on public land and now you have my respect and attention.
 
The key thing you pointed out related to Lee is that he is not tied to a 9-5. Nothing trumps time on stand when it comes to killing big deer. Give a guy who is a good hunter and driven an abundance of time to hunt and he is going to pile them up.
Ok but in the case of this years OH buck, or Kimbo, who cumulatively had more time invested - the sum of every one of the locals hunting those same deer, or Lee solo? Part of it is the time he can invest in a season, and part of it is the time he has already invested over the years honing his craft. He does often seem to have a special sauce as he solves these puzzles.
 
Ok but in the case of this years OH buck, or Kimbo, who cumulatively had more time invested - the sum of every one of the locals hunting those same deer, or Lee solo? Part of it is the time he can invest in a season, and part of it is the time he has already invested over the years honing his craft. He does often seem to have a special sauce as he solves these puzzles.
To make it a valid comparison relative to what I was saying, we would have to know how many of the locals can hunt every day. Cumulative time over a bunch of weekends is entirely different than being able to hunt every day. Again, I am not in any way trying to discredit Lee as a bowhunter. He is really good, WAY above avg without question. I just dont feel he is worthy of being in a GOAT discussion at this point. He is well on the way though to being in the discussion.
 
To make it a valid comparison relative to what I was saying, we would have to know how many of the locals can hunt every day. Cumulative time over a bunch of weekends is entirely different than being able to hunt every day. Again, I am not in any way trying to discredit Lee as a bowhunter. He is really good, WAY above avg without question. I just dont feel he is worthy of being in a GOAT discussion at this point. He is well on the way though to being in the discussion.
Well said.
 
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