John Dunaway

Here’s to looking at you kid! I hope people get the opportunity in life to love someone as much as I loved my dog, HRCH Nixon “LT” Sir Lancelot Dunaway for 14 years. When they have to leave you, it’ll hurt so terribly bad that you’ll probably question why I’d want anyone to find that love. Feeling the most alive in life comes from moments where all of that energy is felt, but we don’t realize a tiny part of it stores away in our minds until that moment of loss when they come rushing back out in mass. Perhaps that painful shock is reliving all of those moments at once? Nixon was that supernova of love encompassing the most pivotal 14 years of not just my life, but the one @cfmermaid13 made together. Against all recommendations we secured this rascal for $400 with no idea what ride we’d take together, but the way he ran to us should have defined he’d stand right by us for all of it. Without rambling on our life story, @barton_ramsey put it to me so eloquently the other day, summing up the importance of a dog like Nixon. “There’s something about losing the dog who has been with you from the start of your family unit. Nixon was likely a primary motivator for your love of hunting the marsh… but beyond the blind, he welcomed Kim into your lives… welcomed home your babies, and adjusted to every stage and chapter thrown at him… from infant screams to toddlers knocking food off the high chair, from packing lunch boxes and leaving for the day to hanging by the pool all summer long. He watched you go from a wild young man who would do anything to kill a duck to a family man just trying to balance the time… Hell, he even welcomed in his official replacement recruit, albeit not happily, but still a gentleman. And he did all of that with more grace and patience than either of us probably ever would have. So, as badass as Atlas may be as a Gundog and a family man, there will never be another Nixon.“ As this supernova of love pours out in tears, just know, my only regret is that it couldn’t last longer. “Remember kid, there’s heroes and there’s legends. Heroes get remembered, but legends never die. Follow your heart kid, and you’ll never go wrong.””

Do you live in a Wes Anderson world? Is every move down the street in slow/motion with razor sharp focus and crispy depth of field? Probably not. Making IG like an old school Facebook again because this is how I actually live day in and day out. Craft your life so it’s not a theatrical drama everyday to keep up with trends. Do what comes to mind and fulfills your itches. Carry on. . . . #seeyououtthere #misterspoils #workspace #desksetup #homeinterior #justbereal #heedthecall

𝗧𝗛𝗥𝗜𝗩𝗘. . This is my “please make it out and don’t slam me on the concrete again” face. . During a friendly conversation about life, I made a reference to a buddy about surviving, but he was quick to clarify the error in that statement. “I’m not surviving, I’m out here to thrive.” That comment rings in my head all too often. . In order to thrive, you must push the boundaries to get beyond the baseline, but it’s so important in how you navigate that fine line of risk versus reward. It’s constantly fluctuating as you adapt on the fly hoping to get ahead without crashing and burning. . I pick and choose my battles regularly, weighing the effort to desired outcome and ultimately what benefits my life and that of my family. What works for me will not work for others. What suits them will not be applicable to me. That’s why you must make those decisions for yourself and hold the ultimate responsibility in the outcome. . Push those boundaries, ditch the deadweight and come out the other side thriving. . . . #surftexas #wacotexas #inlandsurf #fakewaves #thriving #sok #heedthecall #howlerbros #texassurf #bsrsurfresort #summertime #charger #misterspoils #seeyououtthere

It was 2021, I took delivery of my newly purchased 94 gallon smoker from @mill.scale from the little shop outside Lockhart where the Johnson brothers had one product. . With a new house, this piece was the focal point of my outdoor cooking with no further visions of an outdoor kitchen. Fast forward a few years when the Santa Maria dropped and all of that would change. An element tested at @thepalomablanco spurred the idea to build an outdoor kitchen around their new piece. Over the years it has played host to feeding countless friends both new and old that braved my cooking. . By burning wood into a cookable fire, innumerable conversations have taken place around this centerpiece. It takes more effort and those willing to be patient are valued at our home for the bonds we form along the way. . Here we are now in 2026, joining serious firepower at @mill.scale Lockhart Rising III all because of the trust I put into their efforts from one product to the array they now produce. What began as a client relationship turned into a true friendship. We have hunted together, broken bread and crashed at their homes. Support the people you believe in.

Need to go up, but don’t want a staircase? Found a solution. . I dug all over the web for designs and ideas people had produced to access their second floor, landing on the same issue. They consume a large area with little return for the loss. . Attic stairs are too narrow to haul up gear. Lifts cut off the middle of the loft. Staircases either blocked the aesthetic or took too much room. Rolling ladders seemed legit, but then it would sit around all the time. . Enter, the collapsible staircase. It folds down when needed, then flush to the wall when not. You can customize the color, height and pitch, but I went with a standard model from @bcompactdesign . A railing will go across the loft next, giving the final post a spot for the catch bolt to rest the stairs on when folded out. . Sure, they’d look better black to keep everything on point, but that’s a project for another day. I have bigger fish to fry.

Is it a barn? Is it a shop? We’ve always called it the barn, but since it doesn’t have animals, it’s probably a shop. . Most of the heavy lifting is done and we’re just working on final placements along with tightening up details. All black outlets, hiding wires, ditching unwanted gear and so forth. . Give me two weeks to put the polish on this shop. In the meantime, I’ll get showing off the organization hacks and how this place fits for my life.

LOCKHART RISING CHEF ANNOUNCEMENT We're adding more fuel to the fire. When it comes to Lockhart Rising, you can never have too many cooks in the kitchen. Join us in welcoming these chefs and pitmasters to our 2026 lineup: - Ben Lambert - @leroyandlewis , Austin - James Peck - @rest_ember , United Kingdom - Michael Hunter - @antlerkitchenbar , Toronto - John Dunaway - @elcapitanhuntclub , Houston - Levi Goode - @goodecobbq , Houston

Off & Gone. . The little victories are often the largest. A chance to reset your clock and attitude can do wonders. . I’m not apologetic for being absent lately, but I’m disappointed in myself for losing the desire to create. What is in front of me regularly has felt stale amongst life priorities so instead of forcing it, they have gone by the wayside. The moments are here, I just need to look for them again over scurrying to the next objective.

What is it like driving ships for a living? . You see the highlights of daylight operations, but this is far from banker’s hours. We roll 24/7, living off naps, caffeine and @sesh for those long hours in the dark. . We can go to over 200 docks in a 52 mile channel, moving over 52 ships per day on average. Countless flights of stairs, numerous gangways, short ladder climbs and long ladder climbs to get on/off said ships. It’s a giant animal that rarely sleeps and we just find the ways to keep it rolling.

Let’s be honest, this would be a bit much even for me. But if you did choose to store your @sesh by milli in individual drawers, more power to you. . What’s your flavor and mg of choice?

What do you travel for? . “Men go abroad to admire the heights of mountains, the mighty billows of the sea, the long courses of rivers, the vast compass of the ocean and the circular motion of the stars, and yet pass themselves by.” -St Augustine . At times it’s adventure. At times it’s seclusion. At times it’s for stimulation in masses. The beauty is that the reason need not remain the same. You get to decide each and every time what your purpose will be and often return with a new perspective that wasn’t intended. . The later comes about when you choose to take each day for yourself, absorbing what comes and interpreting it as you see fit. I snatch ideas from people all the time on a location to visit, but the trip is yours. We can’t see it all or do it all. That’s the great journey of life, turning those travels into a story that is authored by you alone.

As a kid, we were always told to have our rooms shipshape. I just knew that meant everything was to be put away and didn’t give it too much thought as to why. . Years later when I started going to sea, it really made sense. First, it insured that come rough weather, you could quickly secure any loose items over an entire room. Secondly, when a tool was needed, you wouldn’t waste finding said item to get the job finished. . There was nothing worse than finding yourself at the bottom of a cargo hold needing a piece of gear that someone couldn’t fetch because the bosun locker looked like a teenagers room. You could always tell the posture of how a ship operated by the organization of its tool and gear lockers. . Today that is someone else’s problem, but my barn is mine. A quick call to go surfing? I know right where that bin is and can quickly sling it in my truck to take off. Duck hunting trip is on the table and you need to pack for that specific outting? There is an entire @levrack cabinet with those items, all in plain sight. . Recently, I added two 10’ @levrack to my barn to send that “shipshape” organization to a new level of readiness. It’s all tucked out of sight until they’re opened and I can amass my gear with precision. Some Husky tool bins line the walls, doubling as workbenches where smaller gear can reside for further organizing. . It’s so precise, I can send my kids down there to load because every item has its own home. Space is limited, but time is invaluable. Get in, get out and spend less of it searching for stuff and more of it doing what you like. . Not only are the @levrack storing the gear, but an extra 360 ft2 of storage lives above as the frame supports a loft. The barn project has a few more steps to complete, but for now the organization is nearly dialed.