Recently Daniel Drown and I made the decision to combined our outfitting and guiding efforts under one label. He brings an immense amount of skill to the table, his vision for the future, and dedication fit seamlessly into ours. A new era awaits and we are proud to have Daniel and his expert knowledge, exceedingly positive attitude, and years of hunting and guiding experience as a part of the CTK team. Daniel recounted his motivations of the creations of his own business, Split Tine Outfitters and the decision to combined outfits.
"I have a passion for and lifetime of involvement with hunting and guiding. After guiding for many years with several different Arizona hunting outfits, I started Split Tine Outfitters with the knowledge that I could provide to clients an even better experience as an outfitter. Superior lodging, exceptional communication with clients, outstanding treatment of my guides, and amazing food in camps! Pb&j, microwave dinners, and bland tasting meals would never be an option in a Split Tine Outfitter's camp. A quality experience was one of my main motivation while operating Spit Tine.
My client's accommodation choices included waterproof canvas wall tents with a wood burning stove, raised cots and a floor, or a jumping jack trailer with a heater. Never cheap unsuitable tents or ancient wall tents that leaked like a sieve. In addition to great lodgings, clients always dined like royalty. The fare included ribeyes, garlic shrimp, Malibu chicken, pulled pork, biscuits and gravy, and homemade breakfast burritos, to name a few options.
Having been a guide myself, for other outfits, I knew how important that position was and set out to treat my guides as family. My philosophy is that the guides; who do the most work on the hunt, are financially compensated accordingly. Guiding is never an 8 hour a day job but more like an 18-24 hour a day job, and I made sure that they were never be underpaid. Quality guides are more than employees, they become close friends, as close as family.
One of the most important pieces of any business is communication, guiding and outfitting is no different. Since a large sum of money is being entrusted, to basically a stranger, you as a client more than deserve to stay informed. I make sure that my guides and myself are in continuous contact with clients. It’s important to connect and discuss details of the upcoming hunt, antler growth for the year, weather conditions, forest situation, hunt logistics, or just a general ‘hey, how’s life treating you?’. My approach has resulted in maintaining great client relationships, some that evolved into lifelong friendships.
Dillon Currie and I have been acquaintances for several years and I had always admired the way he conducted himself. Successful, hard working, humble, and integrity are all words I would use to describe him. What started as friendly banter over the past 12-18 months has resulted in new opportunities. Around August 2019 the Lord laid it on our hearts to seriously contemplate a collaboration between our two outfits. After the early bear season ended we had made the decision to join together.
Our focus and long term goals are the same and we are able to bring our different strengths to complement each other. We desire to provide people with information to make better hunting decisions, help teach the younger generation the outdoors, to provide our clients with an incredible experience that goes beyond just shooting an animal, and to honor God and His creation through all of it.
The Chase’n the King brand is synonymous with one thing, Arizona Black Bears. Since one of our main objectives is to be the best at spot and stalk bear hunting in Arizona, we have chosen to work under that name rather than Split Tine Outfitters. However, Split Tine Outfitters won’t be going away, but my time and dedication going forward is going to be working alongside Dillon and Chase’n the King to provide the best service to our clients. I cannot say how fortunate I am to have a partner who is as driven, focused and hungry as Dillon and the killer crew he’s assembled over the years.
Here’s to a great 2020 and beyond, I am looking forward to all that we can accomplish!
Cheers,"
- Daniel Drown