The mount from Jolynn Radinovich’s mule deer that she bagged in 2019 took the top spot in its category and second overall at the Head and Horns competition at the 2020 Pacific Northwest Sportsmen’s Show.

Radinovich said the event, held in February at Portland Expo Center just days before state and nationwide pandemic shutdowns, is the largest of its kind in the state and the second-largest nationwide.

She took first in the mule deer (typical) four-point buck category and second overall.

Radinovich said people at the event peppered her with questions about the buck.

“I didn’t realize how big and how special he was,” she said. “It’s pretty awesome.”

She said a hunting guide from Africa stopped and marveled at the size of the buck.

“It was pretty neat,” she said.

Radinovich said she called him “Jerky” initially, but she said it did not fit.

“He’s too nice and too big to call him jerky, so we call him Big Papa,” she said

She told the Eagle that she loves being out in the wilderness. Radinovich said the rugged outdoors is why she lives in Grant County.

“It’s not just about killing. It’s about, ‘Oh, I wonder how this road’s doing’ and ‘I wonder if I’ll see any animals on this road,’” Radinovich said.

Radinovich said she hopes winning the contest in 2020 would serve as an example to young females that hunting is not exclusively a male sport.

Radinovich, whose mother took her to the convention, said she grew up hearing that hunting was not for girls and that it was a “man’s sport.”

“I would tell them no,” she said. “It’s not just a man’s sport. It’s a family sport.”