LOREAUVILLE — Ray Dees is a typical sportsman who doesn’t mind bragging about his “big catch of the day.”
In fact, he’s still bragging about a catch he made 10 years ago — his wife, Ericka Huval Dees. Combine smart, athletic, and self-driven with a passion for hunting and fishing and it’s a catch any sportsman would brag about.
After moving from New Orleans to attend the University of Louisiana at Lafayette to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering and play collegiate baseball, Dees had little time for college nightlife, but over a Christmas break he happened to stumble across Ericka Huval, a two-sport high school athlete from Loreauville who had turned down a softball scholarship to Louisiana College to pursue a double major in finance and accounting at ULL.
“It didn’t take me long to realize she had a good head on her shoulders, was self-driven, passionate, goal-oriented and in no way was I going to lose this ‘catch of the day,’ ” he said.
Dees’ “big catch of the day” turned out to be even bigger than he expected. It was the ultimate catch. The all-around sportsman didn’t anticipate his new wife would eventually become an outdoorswoman and share his same obsessions with fishing and hunting, much less compete against him for bragging rights.
“Whether it’s fishing or hunting deer, hogs, doves, squirrel or ducks, you can bet when the light comes on and we step into the field, it’s game time for both of us,” said the Loreauville sportsman.
“Although we regularly competed in a co-ed softball league, typically a team competition, we often found ourselves competing against each other and on the ride home rambling off batting averages, fielding and base percentages and any other game stat that may put one or the other on top for that night. And then she was ready to take our friendly competition to the next level.”
When Ericka Dees, a CPA and partner of Boudreaux Henderson and Co. accounting firm, hears the word hunting, she is quick to grab her pink camouflage backpack and gear. She is the first one out of the door — all in hopes that it is a trip to the Dees’ lease in North Louisiana.
“I always loved the outdoors, but fishing and hunting was never really my passion until I met Ray. My dad and I would go to the camp on the Atchafalaya Basin, but I really didn’t have much time for fishing because I was playing softball on weekends,” she said. “I’ve learned to really appreciate the outdoors even more.”
The 28 year-old sports buff is continually up for a challenge, whether it’s hunting with a rifle or bow. With a little help from her husband, she quickly became a steward of the woods, learning the difference between hog and deer tracks, how to hunt the wind, how to use changing weather patterns to her advantage and patterning deer that are responding to hunting pressure.
In October, Ericka Dees set out with her husband on a hunting trip to northwest Kansas to harvest her first buck. The competition was on. He harvested a fairly large mule deer, but her outcome was not as favorable. It was not until the last day of the visit that she successfully chased down a turkey.
“We had the unbelievable experience of hunting a ground blind together, rattling in Kansas bucks within bow range and I had a chance to watch my wife become engulfed in the unexplainable ‘buck fever.’ She added a wealth of knowledge to her piggy bank on that trip,” he said.
“She couldn’t stop talking about how she was going to get a buck to even up the odds and would not let me be the only one to put antlers on the ground.”
Her determination paid off. The following week in North Louisiana, Ericka Dees killed her first 8-point buck with a rifle. It was time to tally up the scoreboard. The buck scores were even at one buck apiece, until Ray Dees took a quick trip to the woods the following week while his wife was sharing Thanksgiving Day festivities with her family. He harvested his third buck of the season.
“I was OK with that. It is always friendly competition. It is just in our blood, but the competition makes us get better at what we are doing,’ she said.
Hectic work schedules and jobs that involve some travel, leave the Loreauville couple without much free time, so hunting and fishing, along with some horseback riding, have become a way to maximize quality time spent together in their four years of marriage.
“I think it is a good thing that we can spend quality time together and still enjoy the same activities. Unlike most men who normally take the opportunity to fish and hunt to get away from the wives, he doesn’t have that option. This makes our relationship stronger. I just feel the more a couple can do together, the stronger the bond,” she said.
The competition doesn’t end with a rifle and bow. When hunting season is over, the bass spawn is in full swing and that means it’s time to compete for bragging rights for the biggest fish or the total number of fish caught for the day. It didn’t take long for the sportswoman to learn the art of pitching and flipping her Zebco 33 and which baits to use during the different cloud coverage.
On the couple’s latest fishing trip, Ray Dees agreed the trophy of the day would go to the person who landed the biggest fish. That turned out to be a bad choice for the 32-year-old outdoorsman who is sales engineer employed with Altec Inc. His wife is now carrying the fishing trophy and bragging rights as the best fisher of the mutual competition with a 3-pound bass she landed on the trip.
“The competition was decided on the way to the landing. She has one rule in the boat. Since I run the trolling motor and get the first shot at a fish, she gets first shot at what bait to use. I can’t duplicate the bait as long as she is fishing with it,” he said.
“She is a quick learner and I often debate as to whether I have taught her too much.
Ericka Dees said it’s time to consider purchasing a bigger boat. The couple is expecting their first child in mid September and is planning to introduce their young son to the wonders of outdoors at an early age.
“At times, I often feel I have created an outdoor monster out of my wife, but our fun-loving competition allows us to spend quality time together, enjoy the great outdoors and ultimately give thanks to God for all the blessings of allowing us to live in Sportsman’s Paradise,” Ray Dees said.