AN AMAZING DEER!
The Berestka Buck is the new Massachusetts state record for archery non-typicals. It was officially panel-scored by Northeast Big Buck Club scorers Lonnie Desmarais, Bob Fontaine and Jeff Brown at Watkins Taxidermy in Millbury, Massachusetts. All potential NBBC state records require a panel of at least three senior scorers to validate the final score.

The buck's rack is impressive in many ways. It is a massive 10-point typical with four additional abnormal points, one of which is an awe-inspiring hooked point near the right base. The beams are both over 24 inches long, forming an inside spread of just under 18 inches.

The rack has great mass, with bases of 5 7/8 inches and 5 4/8 inches. The longest tines are 11 inches on the right and 9 5/8 inches on the left.

The final gross score of this amazing rack is 178, with a net score of 166 7/8 non-typical, edging out the former No. 1 in this category by just over an inch! Mark Manoogian shot a 176 7/8-inch 16-pointer in Worcester County in October 2003, and that buck held the top spot until this year.

Over the past few years, the top-ranking archery typical and non-typical spots have been re-established several times. That suggests ever-increasing trophy potential in this state and continued growth in the popularity of bowhunting, even for "throw-backs" like Larry Berestka!

For more information about the Northeast Big Buck Club, visit their Web site at www.bigbuckclub.com. Check out the photo gallery, where you'll find many of the largest bucks taken throughout the Northeast in 2005.

You can write to them at NBBC, 390 Marshall Street, Paxton, MA 01612; call them at (508) 752-8762; or e-mail them at jbhunts@aol.com.

In fall 2006, the club will publish its fifth record book detailing more than 5,000 of the Northeast's best bucks of all time. Contact NBBC on how to reserve your copy.