thats great man. talk about what comes around goes around. you are blessed.
my dad was an excellent Adirondack hunter. Took 4 slammers in his day scoring from 130-155. That's an accomplishment here in NY. in 1980 he took his last slammer and 138" heavy 10 points. I'm looking at the mount right now in my home office. in 1983 he was paralyzed in an accident and hasn't hunted since. I had to learn to hunt on my own. Was very frustrating. to this date (im 37 years old) I have only taken two NY bucks that score slighly over 100". However, i have managed to take a buck every year for the past 12 years..... so I think he's proud.
This year I took a 167" monster on a bow hunt in Illinois. dressed 252 lbs. called Dad ASAP. he said, "well boy you finally got a buck bigger than your old man. " i replied " 167" illinois buck is equal to a 100" buck in NY. I'd have to had taken a 200" buck in illinois to compare to any of his slammers in NY.
It saddens me to death that we never got to share many hunts. That said, enjoy your pay back to your Dad. I'm sure you'll have a blast.
regards
Dave Kirchhoff
upstate NY