BANNER, Ill. — The venison sirloin fell apart at first bite. Perfect. Too many venison cuts I’ve eaten bordered on jerky chew.
As I milled Sunday before the waterfowl-blind draw at Rice Lake State Fish and Wildlife Area, I heard Mike Gensler talking marinades as he turned kabobs on a grill. Regular readers know that’s whom I interviewed.
By the 2 p.m. draw, about 1,200 had bunched in front of site superintendent Scott Schlueter. Of those, 1,028 had entered the draw for 30 blinds and five alternate slots. That’s a 2.9 percent chance of drawing a blind.
Considering the dearth of public hunting areas in Illinois, the draws are parties. Retired site superintendent Bill Douglass is credited by Jeff Lampe with dubbing the Rice Lake draw ‘‘Woodstock with guns.’’
Cornhole was being played as I pulled up at 10 a.m. By 2 p.m., cars lined Route 24 for a half-mile. Smokers, deep-fryers, grilling contraptions, coolers and canopies dotted the grounds. Country music blared, sporadically interrupted by announcements of gun-raffle winners from the vendors and conservation groups circled in the grass near the sign-in.
Many informal groups have a yearly tradition.
‘‘One year I brought venison burgers, and everybody asked where the kabobs were,’’ said Gensler, who has done kabobs all other years in the nearly 20 for their group of about 30.
As far as his luck with the draw, he said: ‘‘We’ve had a lot of good years and some not so good.’’
He estimated someone in his group draws a blind about 50 to 60 percent of the time. Their best draw was third, when they picked blind No. 4. The best blind to pick is No. 15 if you draw first.
Gensler’s wife, Jill, helps prep for grilling. This year she photocopied the marinade recipe, originally passed down to her husband years ago.
Gensler’s key to sirloin tenderness is the three days of marinating. The kabobs included pepperoncini, mushrooms, onions and peppers.
‘‘I cook because it gives me something to do; I’m hyperactive,’’ Gensler said.
Schlueter ran the show like clockwork. State waterfowl biologist Randy Smith (see below) and others checked people in. The draw started at 2:02 p.m. and ended in 10 minutes.
‘‘Kids pull the tickets,’’ Schlueter said. ‘‘That way, you can’t blame me for a [bad] draw.’’
I was standing behind the group that included the first person drawn, Peyton Silverthorn of Morton. It’s the third time she drew a blind.
Next year.
Waterfowl notes
Smith said Black Crown Marsh (by Moraine Hills State Park) will open for duck hunting this fall. One permitted group will be able to hunt Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday or Sunday. Apply through the permit system beginning Aug. 16. There is no blind, but there is a couple of hundred feet of shore. It involves a mile walk in.
‘‘A deer cart would be key,’’ he said.
As to the extended flooded conditions along the rivers and duck food, Smith said: ‘‘I’m telling guys not to panic.’’ He said there is still time for millet and some of the aquatic vegetation.
Bear help
In Bourbonnais, Brickstone’s Hop Skip is a yes; their APA is a no.
Stray cast
Young Cooper’s hawks sound like (plug in hated pop star) without autotune.
