Endure: How to Work Hard, Outlast, and Keep Hammering

by Cameron R. Hanes

wind in my face. With these, I can do what I was born to do.

There is something magical about wild and rugged country, but it’s not something that can be explained. I’ve tried for decades. If the unyielding characteristics of the wild are in your soul, then you know. If they’re not, no words will make them so.

Regardless, where the heart goes, the body will follow,

We started hunting together and we just clicked because we both had no limits on how much misery we would suffer to chase success.

Mountains are the great equalizer in life. Roy and I believed this, so we sought out more rugged country than anybody else, knowing that would give us an advantage because in the regular world, the people with money or connections had an advantage over regular guys like us. But material success, money, and reputation don’t mean anything in the mountains. The mountains don’t give a damn. How tough you are and how good of shape you’re in gives you currency on the mountain. We came to realize that the tougher we were, the more success we had.

“I’ve never been here before. It was unexplored territory. It’s strange. You find yourself in a spot in time you’ve never hit before and you don’t know if you can finish. But I’m always exploring myself. I haven’t reached the threshold of unconsciousness yet. Maybe I never will.”

One of my favorite books of all time is Hunting with the Bow and Arrow by Dr. Saxton Pope. Written in 1923, it details the adventures of Pope and his friend Art Young. On page 181, it reads, “We also began preparing ourselves for the contest. Although habitually in good physical condition, we undertook special training for the big event.” In this case, he and Young were preparing for a grizzly bowhunt. Pope continues, “By running, the use of dumbbells and other gymnastic practices, we strengthened our muscles and increased our endurance.” On page 206, regarding the tough backcountry hunt, he writes, “We were there to win and nothing else mattered,” adding later, “We were trained down to rawhide and sinew, keyed to alertness and ready for any emergency.”

never feel more capable or stronger than when hunting or running in the mountains. It’s like I’m invincible. I can do anything.

What is the most difficult challenge you must overcome to achieve your goals? Are you afraid of the hard work, or do you fear failing in other areas of your life?

“Life is all about the ups and the downs, the peaks and the valleys. How much mental toughness we store up on the peaks will determine how triumphant we are in the valleys.”

So what’s your edge and what are you doing to keep it?

My success isn’t all about what I do. It’s also about what I don’t do. I don’t drink, fish, golf, play poker. We haven’t taken any family vacations. Nothing distracts me from being disciplined.

My choice was either to go by myself or not go at all, simply because I couldn’t get anybody who wanted to join me. Of course, I chose to keep going. I decided I couldn’t rely on anyone but myself.

The wilderness is hard. It will test you and have you questioning how much you actually want to be back there.

From personal experience I can tell you it boils down to how bad you want it. Are you willing to bleed? In most cases, it takes some blood to achieve your goals.

What I learned quickly was, the harder you push, the more people you leave behind.

I knew that if I could get back farther into the wilderness, I could find better hunting. I could get away from other hunters if I was in better shape. And if I was mentally stronger, I could outlast anyone.

The wilderness tested me, mentally more than anything. The mind is powerful and can actually create issues that aren’t even really there, as we can obsess about things in distractionless country. Sleeping deep in the mountains alone is not natural for humans these days. We are taught to fear the dark, taught that there is strength in numbers, and we are conditioned to greatly enjoy and become softened by the comforts of home.

Life is a test. There are times when you realize you’re not passing the class and you need to change your study habits. Kinda like what happened after our first son was born. Once I held Tanner in my arms, I wondered what I was doing with my life. I knew I needed to do better. Suddenly it wasn’t just myself I was letting down.

When I realized things needed to change, I thought to myself, Well, all I really know how to do is work. So I figured I would work as many hours as I could. That was all I really had to offer: hard work. I began putting in a lot of hours, and then I discovered that guys would listen to me. Somehow I could convince them to do things when other guys couldn’t. I don’t know why it’s like this, but when some guys talk, people blow them off, and when other guys talk, people pay attention and say to themselves, “Okay, that makes sense.” I knew I had some leadership qualities, so that plus being willing to work my butt off led to more opportunities. That was how my career started.

This was kind of petty

We would load up our saddle bags and spend the entire day in the mountains, trying to be like the Man from Snowy River.

Would most people risk their jobs—their steady, good jobs—just to pursue a passion? Probably not. Most people are smarter and more realistic than me. I’m glad I did.

Don’t make excuses. Give it your all. Show up when you’re supposed to show up. Speak your mind. Own up to your mistakes. Think with perspective. This is how you live a life worth remembering. That’s what I was starting to do.

I believe this unwavering union was forged because, for many years early on, our mindset was, “It’s us against everyone else,” in regard to bowhunting.

It’s just man versus animal, the country, and himself.

“Cam, it’s what we do.”

Knowing that I make more money from my side hustle of bowhunting, people always ask why I don’t just quit my day job. Since my work ethic is the only reason I excel, and my job at the utility company has been a huge part of developing that work ethic, I feel called to stay and continue working there. I really like the guys who work for me. I believe in them and want them to succeed. Maybe I’m just loyal? Also, I don’t quit things. And I’m not going to start now.

Balancing it all just means I have to grind harder every day. I love working where I work, so it doesn’t feel like there is really a choice to make. This is what I do. I’m a worker.

The truth is that I’ve always worked really hard because I’ve never really felt like I had a ton of natural skills or talent. It would feel unnatural to me not to have a regular job. I feel like such a life is reserved for someone who’s a star, and I don’t think I’ve got that, so I grind it out. I grind it out at training and I grind it out at work. Not taking a day off is my only edge. I can’t just say, “You know, today, I’m not gonna run. I’ve sacrificed enough.” No. That’s what everybody does. Everybody has an excuse. Everybody has a reason. You can always come up with a reason to not go after a challenge. So I’ve learned to never care what the excuse is.

It’s never valid. That’s my attitude, and that’s my edge. It’s how I’ve built endurance and fostered resiliency. There are no rest days in my s...

It’s not talent. Not luck. Not know-how. It’s discipline. Endurance. Work ethic.

Decide to do something every day for a year. Whether it’s running a mile, reading a chapter, writing a paragraph, eating breakfast, or drinking a gallon of water: find something that will help you improve yourself and do it every day for a year. That’s how you build a work ethic.

you have to love the hard work you’re going to have to put in along the way.

Before making that kill, the time in the country is full of silence, bouts of homesickness, and likely second-guessing the decision to take in such a monumental challenge. Endless hiking in rugged and unforgiving country with the sun beating down on you or the wind drying your face, cracking your lips, or maybe your fire for the hunt being literally and figuratively doused by rain, while looking for an animal, can end up producing doubts and fears inside of you. And that’s just during the day. The nights are obviously darker but can be an even greater test to the wandering mind and loneliness.

There are no shortcuts to success in the mountains, and in life. Those who work the hardest are successful, period. Get to work.

Bowhunting is not easy, which is perfect. I despise easy. Easy does nothing for my spirit. Easy can’t change my life. No one tells an epic story about an easy path they’ve traveled.

“Train hard, hunt easy” means I want my training to be so hard that even the most difficult of hunts are easy by comparison.

You don’t wake up and see a new person in the mirror. There are no overnight transformations or dramatic improvements. Just little tweaks along the way.

Try to make training as hard as possible and you will go a long way toward succeeding on those ball-busting hunts. I shoot my bow every day of the year anyway, but I believe the reps that really count are when I shoot after running an ultra or after a tough lifting session, when I am beat down, tired, weak, and mentally exhausted, much like I get on those long mountain hunts. I know if I practice putting the arrow on its mark when feeling like this, I’ll be that much more proficient come crunch time.

The human body is capable of amazing things if we get out of our own way mentally.

I knew writers wanted and needed feedback. You put your heart out there, so you eventually have to ask the question to somebody: What do you think about my heart?

“I want to be there with you on the hunt,” he said. “I want you to paint that picture with your words and put me there.”

I took a chance and was faced with either getting better and growing, or throwing in the towel.

The British scholar, writer, and soldier T. E. Lawrence, also known as Lawrence of Arabia, once said this about dreams: “All men dream: but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act their dreams with open eyes, to make it possible.”

Are you willing to take a chance on yourself? Are you willing and able to be stupid like that?

I was in ‘07

I like writing when the feelings of success, failure, pain, or victory are fresh so that my words are the most accurate and poignant.

“In my heart there may be doubt that I deserve the Nobel award over other men of letters whom I hold in respect and reverence—but there is no question of my pleasure and pride in having it for myself,”

What brings you fulfillment and a sense of purpose? Focus on that and foster a life built around it. Study your craft and spend time excelling in it, whatever “it” might be. Find others who share your passion and follow their footsteps. Love the journey and ignore thoughts of the finish line, as this is a race that never ends.

“The writer is delegated to declare and to celebrate man’s proven capacity for greatness of heart and spirit—for gallantry in defeat, for courage, compassion, and love. In the endless war against weakness and despair, these are the bright rally flags of hope and of emulation. I hold that a writer who does not believe in the perfectibility of man has no dedication nor any membership in literature.”