“I scored another unusual rack that I remember during my first year as a measurer,” the rack man said. “I had been certified the week before and it was my first show. The rack wasn’t very big. There was no way it was going to make the book.

“It was on the table with all the other racks, but everyone was avoiding it,” Ohmer said. “Finally, Mitch brought it over to me and said, ‘This is your test.’

“That rack was real confusing. It had 17 or 18 points -- none of them being very long -- and a 9-inch spread. It didn’t make the book, but I guess I passed the test.”

The longest tines Ohmer has measured were 18 inches with G-2s on an 8-point that scored 168.

Whitetail brow tines are referred to as G-1s on score sheets. G-2s are next in line along the beam toward the tip. Tines are numbered consecutively.

Ohmer has collected deer-hunting tips from hunters he has scored, as well as his own experiences in the field. One of his favorite deer-hunting methods, for instance, involves hunting corn fields. He likes to hunt across the wind that allows him to cross the rows of corn. He works his way across the field, moves down and re-crosses the field going in the opposite direction.

“If I can see 40 or 50 yards down the rows of corn, I only move that far when I reach the edge and then go back across the field,” Ohmer said. “One time I moved a few rows farther than I could see while making a second pass across a corn field. A buck saw my boots coming and took off before I could get a shot.”

Another bow kill that qualified for a state record taught him that bucks like to hide in thorn apple thickets to avoid hunters as well as eat the food they provide. Ohmer spent an entire season pursuing an 8-point 106 2/8 buck before finally getting him on Jan. 1.

When Ohmer gutted the buck, he opened the stomach and discovered it was full of thorn apple seeds.

One of the buck’s front legs was full of lead, possibly from a shot fired previously by another hunter that had healed. Because of that injury, the antler on that side was smaller than the other. Ohmer said the buck would have scored around 120 if both antlers had matched.

Another piece of deer-hunting advice that applies to bowhunting, was passed to Ohmer by a relative whose personal experience taught him, “When it’s quiet, aim 3 inches low.”

Ohmer was bowhunting near apple trees, when a group of does and fawns that had been eating the fruit, fled at the approach of a buck. Ohmer knew a buck was coming because he heard it grunting and came to full draw when it was almost in view. The forkhorn came in facing him, offering a shot he didn’t want to take, so he waited.

The buck remained so long that Ohmer eventually had to rest his bowstring against his leg to avoid fatigue. After watching the buck eat 11 apples at a distance of 18 yards, the whitetail finally turned broadside. When Ohmer released the arrow, the buck jumped and he missed. If he had aimed low, he would have been successful.