Special guests - Hank Parker, Michael Lee, and David Ferraro

Hank Parker

Bryan Gumbel, former host of the CBS Morning Show, best described Hank Parker when introducing him as “the rod-n-reel answer to Michael Jordan, in popularity and talent!” Hank has enjoyed a storied professional bass fishing and outdoor television host career that continues to grow each season! His accomplishments on the professional bass fishing tournament trail support the fact he is one of America’s greatest bass fishermen to ever compete.

Hank’s professional fishing career begin in 1976 when he began fishing the National Bass Association Tournament Circuit, winning their national championship in his first season. The following two years he fished both the National Bass Association and American Bass Association. With this success and help from newly acquired sponsors, Hank began fishing the Bass Anglers Sportsmen’s Society (B.A.S.S.) Tournament Trail where he won the Bassmaster Classic in 1979 and 1989.

Also, he was the first angler to win the Grand Slam of Bass Fishing, which includes a B.A.S.S. qualifying tournament, the Classic, B.A.S.S. Angler of the Year title, and the B.A.S.S. SuperBass Tournament. Amazingly, Hank finished “in the money” in 76% of all the tournaments he fished during his B.A.S.S. career.

“Hank Parker’s Outdoor Magazine” television series launched in 1985 with national syndication. The following season the series moved to The Nashville Network. The Outdoor Life Network, The Outdoor Channel, Pursuit Channel and NBC Sports. For 2015, Hank’s show will air on OUTDOOR CHANNEL and PURSUIT CHANNEL.

Hank’s passion for the outdoors is not limited to fishing, he has been an avid hunter his whole life. Hank has had a love for bow hunting through the years completing the wild turkey Royal slam and has harvested many Pope and Young whitetails and elk. As he built his reputation on the bass fishing circuit he was always slipping away to squeeze in a big game hunt whenever he could. His love and enthusiasm for the outdoors was shared by two of his sons, Hank Jr. and Billy “Catfish” Parker.

Out of their passion for hunting they founded “Hank Parker 3D” television show in 2005. In 2008 the guys started a mini-show on ESPN2 titled “Hunt Like a Parker.” In 2013, they began airing “Hank Parker’s Flesh and Blood” on Outdoor Channel.

Over the years as an outdoorsman, Hank has been honored by being inducted in the Bass Fishing Hall of Fame, the Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame and the International Game Fish Association Hall of Fame.

After 30 years of television Hank’s track record of integrity is shown in that he still has partnerships with most of the companies he started with. Even with all of Hank’s awards and successes, he is still a regular guy whose charm and wit make you realize how much he truly loves people and sharing his passion for the outdoors.

Michael Lee

ABOUT BACKWOODS LIFE

Since 2004, Michael Lee and Kevin Knighton have been blessed to bring the Backwoods Life hunting show and outdoor television into the homes of loyal viewers each week.

The guys work hard to bring their lives, personalities, and experiences to the show while demonstrating what the average person goes through each year trying to fill tags and their freezers.

Viewers get to know Michael and Kevin, as well as the rest of the Backwoods Life® Crew, on a personal level as they watch the great hunts they journey into each year.

After more than 16 years on the air, the guys have grown to new levels and are proud to say they are average folks living a dream.

We hope you all enjoy what we bring with the Backwoods Life hunting show!

 

Davie Ferraro

Born and raised in Tampa, FL, I now reside in Wilmore, Kentucky where I am pursuing a Masters in Divinity at Asbury Theological Seminary. I was brought into this world by two very supportive parents who taught me to love God and to love others. I am an honors graduate from the University of Florida with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and a minor in Management and Sales in Agribusiness. I am a Nationally Certified Personal Trainer with a specialization in Nutrition for Sports and Exercises. I have been married to my wife, Robin, since March 25, 2006 and we are cherishing every moment with our daughter, Emma Kate.

I grew up learning about and experiencing the great outdoors with my father, who is one of the toughest men I know. I am proud to say that I am an avid outdoorsman who enjoys both fresh and saltwater fishing, hunting all different types of wild game, and essentially living off of the land. Hunting is a demanding sport, it is what drives me to train both physically and mentally beyond my own expectations to be successful.  I train for a specific purpose, I Train to Hunt. I train to resist fatigue and to be confident that when the opportunity presents itself, I will be ready.

It is because of my passion for both the outdoors and for training that I began a blog on the internet in 2009 called Hunt Strong.  This blog led me to great experiences with great people.  I became involved in outdoor television as a crew member of the Backwoods Life TV show which airs on the Sportsman’s Channel. As amazing an experience of living out a childhood dream can be, God told me He had more planned for my life, bigger plans…

God kept directing me to push further, to reach more people, seeking His kingdom first (Matthew 6:33).  For the past eight  years I have been abiding in my faith, growing stronger in His word, and have been following the path He is lying before me.  Today Hunt Strong is more than a passion to me, it is my calling to rebuild His holy temples (Mathew 9:12).  Instead of Hunt Strong being strictly outdoor driven, it took on a new approach.  I am committed to helping others understand how to cherish and love their holy temples.  I believe in taking care of the gift God created, died for on the cross, and now lives in.  What can be more important than taking care of yourself so in return you can take care of others through your calling?  I have spent years in preparation for this journey, and I’d like to share with you how I got here.

Do not get me wrong, I grew up like any other normal kid in America.  Fried southern foods and fast food menu items were in my regimen.  I ate what I was given and what was convenient.  Sometimes naivety can be your worst enemy.  Fortunately I was involved in competitive sports year round, so my poor nutritional choices never had the full effect on me.  Not the same can be said for kids today as times have changed with electronic advances.  It wasn’t until college, after having lived through some tough experiences of being told as a competitive kid I will never make it, that I started to question how my body works and how the foods I eat fuel my body for exercise.  I became a junkie on understanding nutrition, constantly feeding my appetite to know more.  I would spend hours researching literature and then experiment on my body with what I uncovered.  I pushed myself to extremes, further than I ever thought possible.  I entered and conquered competitions across all avenues of sports including physique competitions, extreme mud runs, and stair climb races. It is through these trials and tribulations, successes and failures, that I have accomplished my greatest of victories, that of truly knowing Christ.  I now know how to take my success beyond my own body and help others to accomplish their goals for a healthier lifestyle. What I have learned more than anything is to surrender all, my strengths and weaknesses, to Him, letting Him resurrect my whole being. He has made me into His arrow, meaning a polished servant of the Lord. He has taken me beyond my physicality and has made me a new creation in Him in all ways, fully shaped with His heart for His purposes, to be shot from His bow to pierce the hearts of His children.

I am very passionate about what I do. Nothing excites me more than watching my clients, my friends and family reach their goals through being encountered by Christ. I am committed to teaching others what I have studied and perfected all because of His doing an inner working. I am a  follower of Christ, hunter, provider, loving father, husband, son, brother, uncle, role model, author, chef, and friend. The most important testimony I can give is “Follow me as I follow Christ”. For, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me,” Galatians 2:20. May the Lord Himself, receive His eternal reward through my life in entirety. Jesus, be glorified. Amen.