Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/528216
S P O R T I N G C L A S S I C S 5 6 impressive studio outside Denver. "I'd been doing work for you already, and when I got wind of the Ultimate Sportsmen's Lodge, I knew you'd have some big projects for me." He had no idea. You see, my company also produces Ram Outdoorsman on the Outdoor Channel, and along with my co- host, Gerald McRaney (HBOs Deadwood, Netflix's House of Cards), I travel the world in pursuit of unforgettable adventures and truly exceptional animals. Mike has handled the taxidermy for many of the animals we've killed on Ram Outdoorsman. Well, thanks to Mike's amazing skills, my lodge will be alive with world-class mounts of all kinds. There's a record-book tule elk from British Columbia. There's a life-size muskox from Cambridge Bay in Nunavut, Canada. A Lord Derby eland and roan antelope from Cameroon and, my personal favorite, a record-book mountain goat that I killed on camera after one of the most grueling hunts of my career. Mike has transformed that world-class goat into a work of genius worthy of New York's Museum of Natural History. With his thick woolly coat, powerful shoulders, barrel chest, and 11-plus-inch ebony horns, the billy will stand forever, primed to leap to another precipice. "I love that mount," Mike chimes in as I rave about it in his studio. "I have to say, every time I catch that guy out of the corner of my eye, I think he's going to charge me." And that brings us back to the magic in the fingers, eyes, and sportsman's soul of Mike Jankovsky. For my money, he is the finest taxidermist in the country. And you won't find a more down-to-earth guy anywhere. "I 'm in this as an artist," he says in his quiet, serious-yet- friendly way. "I want to treat my clients well and do a great job. I want to show people the difference between ordinary mounts and true works of art." Mike added: "We're an Exception to Designated Port and USDA approved to receive restricted animal imports. So no matter where hunters go or what they kill, they can ship directly to us, then my wife, Vicki, and I will work with them to find out what they're hoping and dreaming for with their mounts. Then we'll bring the mounts to life in the most artistic fashion possible." S tories are common from hunters who took their prized trophies to a taxidermist only to receive a caricature in return— deer that look surprised, elk that look tired or rumpled, animals that look just plain fake. Mike's original mounts are stunning, but he's also in the business of transforming poor workmanship. For example, Mike took a mountain lion that had previously been mounted by an inexperienced taxidermist who reduced the puma to a near cartoon. Tragically, the big cat that's synonymous with with dignity and grace looked more like Sylvester the pussycat—sad, hungry, desperate. Once Mike got his hands on it, he performed a miracle. He reshaped the form, sculpted new details beneath the skin, and magically—mystically—turned the mount into a stunning specimen. Realistic art is what Mike Jankovsky's Artworks Taxidermy is all about. His amazing work literally adds so much to Ultimate Sportsmen's Lodge. And I wouldn't have it any other way. M ike Jankovsky is an expert at transforming old mounts. He carefully removed and rehydrated the skin from this mount by another taxidermist (upper left), worked the pelt onto a dramatic, newly sculpted mannequin, and then positioned the cougar on a simulated rock outcrop.