Jake Schmitt: Crushed in the Backcountry - The Survival Story of a Guide, His Dog, And an Impossible Crawl to Safety

The Crawl: How Jake Schmitt Survived a Mountain Crash — Thanks to His DogIn this week’s Team Never Quit Podcast, Marcus & Melanie sit down with Utah hunting guide Jake Schmitt to hear his incredible story of survival in the Uintah Mountains. What began as a summer scouting trip for mule deer turned into an 11-hour crawl for his life — with only his dog, Buddy, by his side.Jake shares how he went from releasing an elk calf from a trap to being crushed in a UTV rollover, and how his knowledge of self-rescue, grit, and an extraordinary bond with his German shorthaired pointer helped him make it out alive. What You’ll Learn in This Episode:• How a routine scouting trip in the Uintah Mountains went horribly wrong• The split-second decisions that led to the UTV rollover and Jake’s devastating injuries• Why his dog Buddy became the key to his survival — providing motivation & warmth• Field-tested self-rescue skills every outdoorsperson should know• Jake’s recovery process, and how he’s preparing to return to the mountains and the buck he first spottedKey Moments:• The Hunt: Scouting for a velvet mule deer buck in remote country• The Rescue: Freeing an elk calf from a trap moments before disaster struck• The Crash: A UTV rollover shattering bones and gear — but not Jake’s resolve• The Crawl: 11 hours of crawling, crossing creeks, and following Buddy’s promptings to safety• The Recovery: Rods, screws, and staples — but a plan to guide hunters again this fallThis episode is more than a survival story. It’s about preparedness, mindset, and the unbreakable bond between a hunter and his dog. Whether you hunt, hike, or just love hearing how ordinary people survive extraordinary situations, this conversation will stay with you.In this episode you will hear:• In between normal life and sports, I always was hunting. (7:12)• Welding funds my guiding addiction. (8:54)• The incredible story of Jake’s accident and subsequent crawl for his life starts here. (22:03• [Jake’s dog, Buddy] went with it. He came up and found me. (26:40)• So, what I ended up doing was grabbing this and summersaulting down. It doesn’t sound like that far, but it was like 100 feet. It was a good tumble, and I’m just screaming. (31:25)• I’ve been guiding way up north where I’ve seen a German Shepherd get baited into the woods by wolves and they rip him to shreds. (33:12)• The first thing I thought was I have no light. How the hell am I gonna do this? I don’t even know where I’m going. (33:33)• I’m dragging the leg, and I’m going so far downhill that if I try to turn around, I start to tumble, but if I go the other way I drag and drag, but you’re going up and over this, up and over that, you’re going under this log, you’re going over that log, so I’ve gone maybe a third of a mile in 3 hours. And I’m like I’m gonna die out here. (36:53)• Jake’s explanation of flipping over on his knee and break his leg again, and Buddy finally gets it. (38:19)• It was 4 miles of straight rock. (44:34)• At the time mentally, I am just gone. But the dog as there and I felt obligated. (45:54)• At some point I just got it out of my head: Whatever’s gonna happen is gonna happen. At that moment, something changed in me. (58:10)• The best PT for me is doing the same damn thing that I was doing. (64:34)Support TNQ  - IG: team_neverquit , marcusluttrell , melanieluttrell , huntero13  -  https://www.patreon.com/teamneverquitSponsors:  - Navyfederal.org       - meetfabiric.com/TNQ  - masterclass.com/TNQ  - Prizepicks (TNQ)  - Dripdrop.com/TNQ  -  cargurus.com/TNQ   - armslist.com/TNQ   -  PXGapparel.com/TNQ  - bruntworkwear.com/TNQ   - Selectquote.com/TNQ   - Groundnews.com/TNQ   - shipsticks.com/TNQ   - strawberry.me/TNQ   - stopboxusa.com {TNQ}   - ghostbed.com/TNQ [TNQ]  -  kalshi.com/TNQ  -  joinbilt.com/TNQ   - Tonal.com [TNQ]  - greenlight.com/TNQ  - PDSDebt.com/TNQ  - drinkAG1.com/TNQ  - Shadyrays.com [TNQ]  - qualialife.com/TNQ [TNQ]  - Hims.com/TNQ  - Shopify.com/TNQ  - Aura.com/TNQ  - TAKELEAN.com [TNQ]  - usejoymode.com [TNQ]