Macon, Georgia
Ranar grew up hunting in the hardwoods of Georgia with his father and grandfather. Mainly hunting whitetails, turkey, and quail, but occasionally they’d drive down to Arkansas and try their hands at mallards. The first time Ranar hunted flooded timber, something changed in him. Any given weekend during the fall, you can find Ranar at a public boat ramp in the dark early morning hours.
When he’s not chasing ducks, he’s writing rap songs about chasing ducks. He’s an entrepreneur and an innovator, and we’re proud to call him a YETI ambassador.
What goes through your head when you first wake up in the morning when you go hunt?
Firstly, I am just grateful to open my eyes and to be able to do something that I love. I know that it’s going to be a good day no matter what and that I get to learn something new and create a new memory. After that, it’s all about moving quickly and going through your mental checklist of everything you need to do to have a successful day.
Where is your favourite place to hunt?
The flooded timber in Arkansas hands down! The history that place holds and everything about it is why I am so in love with the life. Ducks are special when put into flooded timber environment and habitat.
Tell us a favourite story from a day out hunting?
One day, my best friend and I went to one of our go-to spots but we did not expect to see much. It was late season and we were just making the best of it. We got the morning hunt started and things were slow. But we kept hunting though, just enjoying the time outdoors. Darryl and I are standing beside each other on two trees just talking when we heard a hen mallard off in a distance. We both look at each other in excitement and we call in a huge group of birds with easily 300+ in it. The sky was black with mallards circling above trying to get into this hole. We never fired a shot as the group broke up but it was a crazy experience that I got to share with my best friend.
How do you up your game year after year?
Every year my preparation is better and better and I just set goals to get a little more time in the woods every year.
What goes through your head when you first wake up in the morning when you go hunt?
Firstly, I am just grateful to open my eyes and to be able to do something that I love. I know that it’s going to be a good day no matter what and that I get to learn something new and create a new memory. After that, it’s all about moving quickly and going through your mental checklist of everything you need to do to have a successful day.
Where is your favourite place to hunt?
The flooded timber in Arkansas hands down! The history that place holds and everything about it is why I am so in love with the life. Ducks are special when put into flooded timber environment and habitat.
Tell us a favourite story from a day out hunting?
One day, my best friend and I went to one of our go-to spots but we did not expect to see much. It was late season and we were just making the best of it. We got the morning hunt started and things were slow. But we kept hunting though, just enjoying the time outdoors. Darryl and I are standing beside each other on two trees just talking when we heard a hen mallard off in a distance. We both look at each other in excitement and we call in a huge group of birds with easily 300+ in it. The sky was black with mallards circling above trying to get into this hole. We never fired a shot as the group broke up but it was a crazy experience that I got to share with my best friend.
How do you up your game year after year?
Every year my preparation is better and better and I just set goals to get a little more time in the woods every year.
If you could do anything better, what would it be?
I would love to become more organised or learn how to give some other people the workload that stems from my ideas.
Who are your heroes? Who do you look up to?
My dad is my hero, his work ethic and his faith really drive me. It’s amazing to see him take chances and ultimately every situation is a WIN because he learns from his mistakes. I hope to be more like him as a spend more time on this earth.
What haven’t you accomplished that you aspire to do in your lifetime?
I would like to continue to chase the ability to be 100% wild. What I mean by that is to be able to be fully dependent on hunting from a spiritual level and a means of financially supporting my family from hunting. I would like to wake up every day with a task to connect with nature in my own way which would make me wild.
What goes through your head when you first wake up in the morning when you go hunt?
Firstly, I am just grateful to open my eyes and to be able to do something that I love. I know that it’s going to be a good day no matter what and that I get to learn something new and create a new memory. After that, it’s all about moving quickly and going through your mental checklist of everything you need to do to have a successful day.
Where is your favourite place to hunt?
The flooded timber in Arkansas hands down! The history that place holds and everything about it is why I am so in love with the life. Ducks are special when put into flooded timber environment and habitat.
Tell us a favourite story from a day out hunting?
One day, my best friend and I went to one of our go-to spots but we did not expect to see much. It was late season and we were just making the best of it. We got the morning hunt started and things were slow. But we kept hunting though, just enjoying the time outdoors. Darryl and I are standing beside each other on two trees just talking when we heard a hen mallard off in a distance. We both look at each other in excitement and we call in a huge group of birds with easily 300+ in it. The sky was black with mallards circling above trying to get into this hole. We never fired a shot as the group broke up but it was a crazy experience that I got to share with my best friend.
How do you up your game year after year?
Every year my preparation is better and better and I just set goals to get a little more time in the woods every year.
If you could do anything better, what would it be?
I would love to become more organised or learn how to give some other people the workload that stems from my ideas.
Who are your heroes? Who do you look up to?
My dad is my hero, his work ethic and his faith really drive me. It’s amazing to see him take chances and ultimately every situation is a WIN because he learns from his mistakes. I hope to be more like him as a spend more time on this earth.
What haven’t you accomplished that you aspire to do in your lifetime?
I would like to continue to chase the ability to be 100% wild. What I mean by that is to be able to be fully dependent on hunting from a spiritual level and a means of financially supporting my family from hunting. I would like to wake up every day with a task to connect with nature in my own way which would make me wild.
What part of you, or what you do, reflects a spirit of restlessness?
In my lifestyle, you can’t give up on your goals and you have to always have a plan. If things are going bad during a morning hunt you have to keep fighting because it only takes a second for Mother Nature to turn things around for the better. You have to stay at it and keep a relentless pursuit.
If there is any love-hate relationship with any aspect of what you do, can you describe what that is?
Yes, it is. I hunt ducks on public land. Hunting ducks in the south on public land is challenging in itself. Adding the amount of pressure from other hunters in the south with the crowds makes it’s a tougher job to consistently get done.
What goes through your head when you first wake up in the morning when you go hunt?
Firstly, I am just grateful to open my eyes and to be able to do something that I love. I know that it’s going to be a good day no matter what and that I get to learn something new and create a new memory. After that, it’s all about moving quickly and going through your mental checklist of everything you need to do to have a successful day.
Where is your favourite place to hunt?
The flooded timber in Arkansas hands down! The history that place holds and everything about it is why I am so in love with the life. Ducks are special when put into flooded timber environment and habitat.
Tell us a favourite story from a day out hunting?
One day, my best friend and I went to one of our go-to spots but we did not expect to see much. It was late season and we were just making the best of it. We got the morning hunt started and things were slow. But we kept hunting though, just enjoying the time outdoors. Darryl and I are standing beside each other on two trees just talking when we heard a hen mallard off in a distance. We both look at each other in excitement and we call in a huge group of birds with easily 300+ in it. The sky was black with mallards circling above trying to get into this hole. We never fired a shot as the group broke up but it was a crazy experience that I got to share with my best friend.
How do you up your game year after year?
Every year my preparation is better and better and I just set goals to get a little more time in the woods every year.
If you could do anything better, what would it be?
I would love to become more organised or learn how to give some other people the workload that stems from my ideas.
Who are your heroes? Who do you look up to?
My dad is my hero, his work ethic and his faith really drive me. It’s amazing to see him take chances and ultimately every situation is a WIN because he learns from his mistakes. I hope to be more like him as a spend more time on this earth.
What haven’t you accomplished that you aspire to do in your lifetime?
I would like to continue to chase the ability to be 100% wild. What I mean by that is to be able to be fully dependent on hunting from a spiritual level and a means of financially supporting my family from hunting. I would like to wake up every day with a task to connect with nature in my own way which would make me wild.
What part of you, or what you do, reflects a spirit of restlessness?
In my lifestyle, you can’t give up on your goals and you have to always have a plan. If things are going bad during a morning hunt you have to keep fighting because it only takes a second for Mother Nature to turn things around for the better. You have to stay at it and keep a relentless pursuit.
If there is any love-hate relationship with any aspect of what you do, can you describe what that is?
Yes, it is. I hunt ducks on public land. Hunting ducks in the south on public land is challenging in itself. Adding the amount of pressure from other hunters in the south with the crowds makes it’s a tougher job to consistently get done.
What sound or noise do you love?
I love the sound crows make when you’re by yourself in the Georgia woods, it’s a sound I remember hearing as a young boy so it lets me know I am home.
I am happiest when?
I am hunting with family and friends
What are the 3 most essential things you need for your category?
My dog, gear, and ducks.
What would be your day job if you weren’t doing what you currently doing?
Continue my family business in construction.
If you could bring anybody in the world with you to do what you love (dead or alive), who would it be?
It would be my dad (alive) and my son (9 months). I would like them both to share the moments with me with all 3 of us together.
What does YETI mean to you?
To me, YETI means the enjoyment of life. During fellowship, YETI is there. During exploration, YETI is there. It’s a lifestyle in itself, that for me directly corresponds with being free physically and mentally.
What does it mean to be built for the wild?
It means to be 100% human, and aware of your place on this earth. To be aware of your place in the ecosystem, don’t let the world make you less wild.
How would you explain what YETI is to someone who didn’t know?
YETI is a lifestyle that lives inside of all of us. We are made with love and passion and YETI does a great job at showing this.
What is the YETI that you cannot do without?
I love the Hopper® M30 Soft Cooler.
What, if any, other YETI products do you use?
Love the chairs, Boomer® Dog Bowl, and the Rambler® Lowball.
How do you use a specific YETI product in your market?
Coffee in the morning, boating, and everything we need to cook breakfast in the duck blind.
What is your one favourite aspect or feature of your YETI?
I like the option of having a heavy-duty soft cooler that is durable and built to work with you through anything.
How has any YETI product changed what you do or how you do it?
YETI has made me more organised and planned out. It cleaned up my packing and the way I travel to explore. It made preparing food and storing it properly on the go way easier.