Greenhead presents the 2019 Executive Q&A featuring a slate of executives sharing the moments, tips, guns and gadgets that have made their time in the field special.
Jon Gilmore
President, Gilmore Strategy Group
Number of days you hunt a season?
Ten
Where do you hunt?
I’ve hunted all over Arkansas. From the Arkansas Delta to timber in south Arkansas and even close to home in Pulaski County.
What kind of gun do you use?
Alternate between my Super Black Eagle II and my Beretta A400 Xtreme.
Favorite duck call?
RNT Alpha 2
Fields, reservoir or timber?
Definitely timber.
Rainy, nasty or bluebird sky?
I love watching the sunrise in flooded timber on a bluebird sky day.
Favorite hunting story/memory?
My family has some acreage in Pulaski County and while the ducks are not plentiful, nothing beats the shortened drive and being back home to have a late breakfast with my three small kids. One of my first hunts out there, I was calling on a basic Duck Commander call and brought in a few woodies. Watching them pass overhead and then turn to the sound of the call and come in was incredible. You remember the first time ducks respond to your calling.
What got you into hunting?
My grandfather in Mississippi was an avid hunter and I grew up using his old equipment and just spending countless hours in the woods with my first shotgun, a Winchester 1400.
As a kid, I joined 4-H and selected trapping as my interest and said I wanted to be an AGFC game warden when I grew up. I remember writing Jim Spencer at the AGFC to ask him questions on trapping and as a result the AGFC came out and filmed a video on beaver trapping on our land.
I was hooked on the outdoors and ultimately came to the realization that waterfowl was my favorite. I love everything about a waterfowl hunt: the preparation, the gear, the fellowship with friends and watching the dogs stare at the sky hoping as much as you for those ducks to land in the timber.
What is your most unusual “must have” in the duck blind?
Probably my Spyderco Assist rescue knife. It is the sharpest knife I’ve ever owned and I use it frequently on hunts. I keep it in the middle pocket of my waders because you never know when you might need it on a hunt.
Where is your go-to spot for breakfast/meals on a hunting weekend?
If I hunt in the Carlisle area nothing beats a breakfast from Advada’s Diner or dinner at Nick’s.
If you have children do you take them duck hunting? If so what are some of the highlights from these youth hunts?
On the most recent youth hunt, I took my 5-year-old son Jonathan on his first hunt. He had the time of his life and sharing that experience with him is something I will never forget. Important life lessons are shared like teaching him the reason for hunting and how food is provided. Answering his countless questions like, “Why did God make the ducks?” is something that I know I will miss one day. He is constantly asking me when are we going back and my favorite line from the youth hunt was him saying, “I wish we could live at duck hunting.”
Which Arkansas executive calls ducks the best?
I’ve heard a lot of good callers but I went on a hunt with State Sen. Trent Garner and his father-in-law Matt Stone. Those boys know how to call some ducks.
