Nineteen bucks taken with a gun and 57 killed with a bow in West Virginia in 2008’s hunting seasons qualified for trophy status recognition by the West Virginia DNR.
Each year, the state sponsors its big buck contest. The contest is really a data gathering opportunity to gauge the biggest bucks taken in the state. Official scorers with the DNR measured the racks of 251 bucks submitted for scoring in 2008. To qualify for trophy status those killed with a gun had to score at least 140-typical or 165-non-typical. Deer taken with a bow had to score a minimum 125-typical and 155-non-typical.
Among the gun kills in West Virginia, the biggest typical killed was a 10-pointer killed by Ronald Myers of Charleston. The buck scored 165 6/8ths. The non-typical buck in the gun category was a bruising monster killed by Donald Stroud Jr. from Weirton. Stroud took the big buck in Brooke County and it scored out at 176 2/8ths.
Bow-killed deer honors went to Bobby Kelly of Cumberland, Kentucky. His 10-pointer killed in Logan County scored 157 0/8 in the typical category. Patrick Donahue of Mallory, West Virginia, killed the biggest non-typical buck taken with a bow in 2008. He killed his 16-pointer in Logan County as well. The buck scored 176 1/8th non-typical.
Two bucks killed by physically challenged crossbow hunters met the minimum of 125. Don England of Iaeger was the winner in the typical-crossbow category with an 11-point Wyoming County buck scoring 159 2/8ths. There were no non-typical bucks for a crossbow in 2008 that met the minimum score.
Muzzleloader hunters had to meet the same requirements as gun hunters, but no muzzleloader deer were submitted in 2008.