Featured Hunters: Get to Know the Tag Team
Dec
3
Written by:
12/3/2011 1:24 PM
"What really sets 'Tag Team' apart from other shows is a back to the basics mentality," Dustyn Blindert says. Dustyn is the producer, editor, and co-host of "Tag Team with Dustyn and Shane," a reality-based outdoor show airing on Peninsula TV in California. Dustyn hosts the show with his younger brother Shane. The two brothers "tag along" with one another as they take their viewers with them on exciting outdoor adventures in Colorado and beyond. Between Dustyn's journalistic passion and Shane's precise technique, the show promises to gain the attention of outdoorsmen everywhere.
Dustyn and Shane grew up in Potosi, Wisconsin, a small Southwestern town packed with avid hunters and fishermen. The Blindert brothers were known for their extreme love of the outdoors. Their parents owned and operated two local pro-shops, and the boys helped out where they could. Shane and Dustyn both spent many weekends setting up and tearing down the archery shop's 40-target bow range.
Outside of running the family business, the brothers found plenty of time for their own outdoor experiences. The boys spent many hours scouting and hunting the 25-acre span of woods surrounding their home. A few years passed before they ventured out West for an elk hunt. Dustyn and his dad went hunting in Colorado for the first time in 2001. Shane joined the two on the hunt the following year, and their mom tagged along the next. It didn't take long for the Blinderts to realize they belonged in Colorado. In 2006, Dustyn, Shane, and their parents moved across the country in pursuit of Colorado's sunny weather and picturesque mountains.
The move ended up offering even more than just a nice view to the Blindert brothers. It also offered them a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity: the chance to produce and film their own outdoor show. The opportunity didn't arise from pure luck, though.
"Tag Team" became a reality through good ol' fashioned hard work and determination. In 2010, Dustyn presented a mock trailer for an outdoor television show as a class project during his junior year at Colorado State University. He presented the show as "Tag Team: the next generation of two brothers in the outdoors."
"The idea was a continuation of brothers sharing outdoors stories like Mark and Terry Drury of Drury Outdoors," Dustyn explains.
Tregg White, station manager of Northern Colorado 5 (NoCo 5), a television station based out of Fort Collins, Colo., attended the presentation to give feedback to students. White was impressed with Dustyn's presentation and wanted to see more. Dustyn and Shane worked throughout the summer to produce a 30-minute pilot, presented it to NoCo 5 in late July, and signed a contract with the station by mid-August.
The Blindert brothers aired five episodes with NoCo 5 before deciding to expand their reach to San Francisco. The five episodes from NoCo 5 were compiled into the first season of the show and aired on PenTV. Season Two is scheduled to air in January 2012.
Although Dustyn and Shane are content with keeping the show local for now, their ultimate dream is to have a national audience. There are many up-and-coming outdoor TV shows that "Tag Team" will have to compete with to become nationally known. Dustyn and Shane believe the real-life transparency of their show is what will set them apart from the competition.
"It used to be that outdoor television was about hunting and fishing," Dustyn says. "Now shows seem to be like half-hour commercials that work in the outdoors if there’s room. We still have our plugs to show our sponsors’ support, but nothing is forced. We never recreate, especially to help sell product. That type of production is manipulative and deceiving. If we back a brand, it’s because we believe in that brand. And if we’re in a situation where that product doesn’t make sense to use, we’re not going to use it. We show real outdoor stories with real people. We are the 'working-man' type of hunters, and that’s what you get when you watch our show. "
One particular brand that "Tag Team" is proud to have as a sponsor is Muzzy. Dustyn and Shane say this relationship is as real as it gets.
"We are a very professional production that stands by producing real hunting television, and Muzzy saw that in us early on," Dustyn says. "Look at Muzzy’s track record in who it supports: guys like Fred Eichler and Rodger Raglin; these guys are the real deal! What you see is what you get, and it’s not always a big buck. But that’s what hunting is, especially for the average hunter; we get a big one now and then, but that’s not always the case in the outdoors. Our parents have been using Muzzy since before Shane and I were potty-trained, and we have been since we started bow hunting at 12 years old. The relationship is real."
"Tag Team" is also sponsored by Bogs, Midland, TMC Custom Bow Slings, and, of course, Big Game Logic. In fact, Dustyn and Shane recently field-tested Bogs' knee-high rubber boots and Midland’s action cam.
"We were just talking about how the boots are honestly the most comfortable we’ve ever hunted with, and the action cam adds such an awesome point-of-view element to the show," Dustyn says. "We believe in these companies and the products they make."
"Tag Team" will be giving away TMC slings during Season Two. Visit their Facebook page for details and a chance to win.
Big Game Logic is proud to be the newest sponsor for "Tag Team with Dustyn and Shane" and "Tag Team" is excited about the relationship as well.
"Without a doubt, Big Game Logic is such a clever and helpful tool for the big game hunter," Dustyn says. "We’ve already set up our hunting camp and have been tracking deer movement. The other cool thing about the site is that it’s basically an online hunting album. We’re able to share photos and reminisce about past hunts from each camp, which is very special. Outstanding innovation—Big Game Logic is a big time idea!"
