![mark_profile Mark Rif Hunter](https://suprabeam.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/mark_profile.png)
Suprabeam Ambassador Team
Mark Rif Torbensen
HUNTER OUTDOOR
Mark has been an outdoorsman all of his life, raised with fishing and hikes by his father. Later on in life Mark and his brother discovered hunting, and he has not looked back since.
It could be faith, or it could be a coincidence that Mark has grown to centre his life around hunting, exploring, and outdoor living, but hunting and exploring run in his veins. His great-grandfather was an explorer and hunter in Southeast Asia in the 1930’s, and brought back mounts and examples of culture to educate the Danish people about the land of Siam. A collection that is still on display today. Fast forward 90 something years, and Mark has followed in his great-grandfather’s footsteps.
With a career in advertising, working with some of the largest clients in Denmark, Mark is now self employed and his goal is to combine his career with his love for hunting and provide consulting and content to companies with a relation to outdoor and hunting.
Mark has a very respectful, meticulous, and sustainable approach to hunting; everything has to be done properly. If it is not the right animal, it is not the right animal. The entire experience is what matters to him. When an animal goes down, using as much of it, is key.
“The boar is an amazing creature. They are very difficult to hunt. They seem to know if something is out of place and they move all the time. “
Q&A
Q:
How do you prepare for a hunt?
A:
It depends on the type of hunt and the length of time I have. I try to have as smooth a preparation and trip to the hunting grounds as possible. My experience is that stress will follow you right into the woods. Luckily, the woods are part of the cure for that. But I want to be on point from the get-go. I’ll check up on the rules of the hunting ground and the laws of the country. And then I use almost a whole day charging gadgets, cameras and lights.
Q:
In your mind, what is the most important part of a successful hunt?
A:
It goes without saying that the most important part of the hunt is a job well done. But besides that the most important part for me is sharing the experience with great people. Seeing and helping other hunters succeed with a hunt, will get my blood pumping just as much as hunting by myself.
Q:
Do you have a hero or idol?
A:
I don’t really idolize people but I have a lot of hunters I highly respect. There has been a huge focus on new hunters and people with a lot of followers, who think they are experts from the get-go. Many hunting and outdoor brands throw money and products at them, but I don’t think they get enough value for their money. I am tired of influencers bragging about what they got instead of helping the brand.
But of people I highly respect, I can mention:
My brother @the_hunting_photographer who has been documenting all aspects of why we hunt for 12 years
@orskovhunting who documents his exciting adventures in a way that makes you feel like you are there on the mountainside next to him.
@greatdane_hunting for always taking the gear and adventures to the next level, with a meticulously and thorough approach.
Q:
What is so special about hunting boar?
A:
The boar is an amazing creature. They are very difficult to hunt. They seem to know if something is out of place and they move all the time. They are very intelligent, tough as nails, their sense of smell is about 2000 times better than a human beings, and you do not want to be at the business end of an angry boar. They are night active so in our part of the world you hardly ever see them during the day. But if you get one, the meat is delicious. Most farmers don’t care much for them, as a sounder of wild boars can plow up a field in no time.
Q:
Is there any animal or place you dream about hunting?
A:
Wild boars have a special place in my heart, and I would love to hunt the different species of pigs in the world. I have my eye on returning to Africa to hunt a Bushpig. Would love to go to Alaska, Australia and New Zealand. But a hunting trip in my great grandfather’s footsteps with my brother would be the all time favorite.
Q:
Tell us about your best hunting experience
A:
I think every hunter would have a hard time picking one. The problem is that they are all so different. But I think I have to go with a ‘walk and stalk’ on a sounder of boars in the night. I saw them from about 300 meters away and decided to stalk them. With boars you have to calculate where they will be, when you get in range, because they are always on the move. It was almost pitch black and I swear I walked straight into a tree and ended up knee deep in a stream on the way. But I got within 50 meters without spooking them. Then I heard the metallic noise of a boar clearing its snout from dirt, they tend to do this to sharpen their smell. 20 meters to my right was a 100+ kg Keiler. I couldn’t believe I got so close and it was first when the smoke from the shot clouded my vision and light, I got aware of the graveness of the situation. There were pigs running all over the place and the flash from the rifle had burned an imprint of the boar silhouette into my eyes. No matter where I looked, there he was. Luckily, the impact of the bullet had knocked him down where he stood, and when the smoke cleared I saw that he was on the ground kicking his legs for the last time. The last run.
Q:
Which is your favourite animal to eat?
A:
Any animal that has lived a free life would be my favorite. I strive to only eat meat that I have harvested. The funny thing with game meat is that the flavour is so rich that you don’t need to eat so much to feel full. You don’t get more sustainable, ecological and tasty meat. As I have said before, wild boar meat is very tasty, but I can highly recommend: Fallow deer, moose, zebra, eland and gemsbok. They all rank as some of the best meat I have had. But again when you have worked hard and been a part of the whole process, from the forest to your plate, nothing tastes better.
Q:
What is the best thing about being an “outdoorsman”?
A:
Being an outdoorsman is a great contrast to the hectic life of living and working in the city. Don’t get me wrong I love both sides and being so fortunate to be able to enjoy both is great. I love coming home after a great trip but quickly yearn to go again. I recharge my batteries in the woods and completely drain them in the city. As I grow older the scales are tipping more and more towards the outdoors and the forest. But I still love the contrast.
Q:
How do you use portable lighting in your hunting and outdoor life?
A:
Good lighting is essential when going hunting and enjoying the outdoors. If you don’t have good light in the wild your world gets small very fast and the day ends very quickly. For me as a hunter it is important because I hunt very much in the dark and often sleep outdoors. Most animals come out at dawn and dusk, and specifically at dusk the light fades quickly and processing or searching for a harvested animal in the dark is no good. So I use a search light on my rifle for night hunting, a headlamp for all tasks like processing, trailing and cooking.
Q:
Do you have a favourite Suprabeam light or accessory?
A:
The ones I have each serve a different purpose. The Q3r is good for searching and with the camp diffuser bulb it is great for low light photography and camp light. I’m impressed with how much I have been using the Q1mini in my daily life. I never knew how much I actually needed a light on me before now, and I often have it with me. But I must say that the M6xr is my favorite so far. I carry a lot of stuff when hunting and this light almost meets all my needs. Would be nice with a diffuser for it.