The MeatEater Podcast – Ep. 791: Game On, Suckers! MeatEater Trivia CXC

Release Date: November 12, 2025
Host: Spencer Newarth (subbing for Steven Rinella)
Guests/Players: Giannis, Randall, Alex, Anthony, Nate, Sarah, Cal, Brody

Episode Overview

This episode continues the tradition of "MeatEater Trivia," the outdoor-themed quiz show where conservation always wins. Host Spencer Newarth presides over ten rounds of spirited, sometimes irreverent competition. Contestants tackle questions from hunting, fishing, gear, cooking, woodsmanship, and conservation, with playful banter and plenty of bragging rights at stake. The stakes are real: the winner chooses a conservation organization to receive a $500 (or in this case $1,000, for a perfect game) donation from MeatEater.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Show Beginnings & Housekeeping

• Spencer introduces the panel and the rules: ten rounds covering four “verticals” (hunting, fishing, conservation, cooking), plus a conservation prize for the winner’s chosen organization.
• Giannis plugs the annual "Effed-Up Old Trucks" calendar, proceeds to BHA (Backcountry Hunters & Anglers).
• Brief discussion about copyright changes as podcasts air on Outdoor Channel (music trivia questions are now off-limits), and Spencer shares a listener question about format changes.

Notable Quote:

“The only calendar where conservation always wins.” – Giannis (03:23)

2. Game Play – Questions & Banter

Q1 (06:38) Conservation

Question: Who is known as the “Father of National Parks”?
Answer: John Muir

• Fun context: Teddy Roosevelt’s impactful hikes with Muir, founding of the Sierra Club.

“John Muir is a Scottish born conservationist who loudly advocated for preserving wilderness in the West.” – Spencer (08:09)

Q2 (09:22) Woodsmanship

Question: Five-letter word for a mass of loose stones on a slope.
Answer: Scree (or talus)

• Educational tangent on the Norse origin of “scree” and animals adapted to scree fields.

Q3 (12:16) Hunting

Question: South American country known for high-volume dove shooting—“a true bird hunter’s paradise.”
Answer: Argentina

• Lively banter about species and “Don’t Cry For Me, Tina” Evita reference.

“Their record for doves shot in a day is 14,000, more than hunters in West Virginia kill in an entire year.” – Spencer (13:09)

Q4 (14:04) Gear

Question: What does IGBC stand for?
Answer: Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee

• Details about bear-proof product testing, and what certification means.

Notable Exchange:

“They place food in a container, cover it in honey, peanut butter, and fish oil, and lock it with a padlock. Then the container must survive 60 minutes with a captive grizzly…” – Spencer (16:51)

Q5 (17:42) Fishing

Question: Seth Bullock caught rainbow trout in the Black Hills 20 years before they were introduced there in which HBO show?
Answer: Deadwood

• Popular tangent about the show’s accuracy, language, and the real history of the Black Hills.

Interlude – Scoreboard Update (21:31)

• Four-way tie for perfect scores: Sarah, Randall, Brody, Cal.

3. Second Half – More Trivia & Chemistry

Q6 (25:01) Hunting

Question: World record typical whitetail deer was killed by Milo ____ in 1993.
Answer: Hansen

• Anecdotes about the community deer drive, and hunter celebrations after the kill.

Q7 (29:07) Cooking

Question: What is the process of slowly melting raw animal fat to liquefy it?
Answer: Render

• Panel shares what they use rendered fat for (candles, lotion, tallow).

Q8 (31:22) Woodsmanship

Question: Only type of tree that grows in saltwater?
Answer: Mangrove

• Yannis jokes about cypress, but the consensus is mangrove.

Q9 (32:54) Fishing

Question: Sunfish with a name combining squash & a part of a squash?
Answer: Pumpkinseed

• Randall gets props for this one. Discussion about sunfish, bluegills, and panfish ensues.

Q10 (36:34) Conservation

Question: 15-letter word: when dry land becomes more arid and loses soil/vegetation?
Answer: Desertification

• A spelling challenge; all three top players get it right, triggering a triple tiebreaker.

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• Evita reference:

  “Don’t Cry for Me, Tina. Hey, I don’t get it. What’s that reference?”
  “Don’t Cry... Evita, the musical. Don’t Cry for Me, Argentina.”
  “Was she a big dove hunter?” – Giannis, Spencer, Randall (13:01)

• On the Deadwood trivia:

  “It maybe like the worst part of the show is they wanted it to be extra gritty...they said a lot of very vulgar...”
  “Oh, it’s just overwhelming, and I just don’t have an ear for that stuff.” – Spencer & Randall (20:45)

• On winning trivia and conservation:

  “We have gone to overtime with perfect games. We have never gone to overtime with three perfect games.” – Spencer (36:36)

Overtime Tiebreaker (39:46)

Question: In what year did the Outdoor Channel launch?
Answers: Randall (1998), Cal (1996), Brody (2001)
Correct: 1994
Winner: Cal

Donation Announcement (42:19)

• Cal selects Backcountry Hunters & Anglers (BHA) for the now-doubled $1,000 donation, citing the organization’s advocacy for public lands and access.
• Spencer notes a big moment: a three-way perfect game, never before seen in the show’s history.

Closing Remark:

“It’s a unique spot in time for hunters and anglers to participate in our government system... We know the true value of America’s public lands...” – Cal (42:25)

Timestamps of Important Segments

• [03:23] – Calendar plug; “conservation always wins”
• [06:38] – Q1: Father of National Parks
• [09:22] – Q2: Scree/talus definition
• [12:16] – Q3: Argentinian dove hunting
• [14:04] – Q4: IGBC meaning
• [17:42] – Q5: Deadwood’s trout gaffe
• [21:31] – Midway scoreboard update (4-way tie)
• [25:01] – Q6: Milo Hansen’s world record deer
• [29:07] – Q7: Rendering animal fat
• [31:22] – Q8: Saltwater tree
• [32:54] – Q9: Pumpkinseed sunfish
• [36:34] – Q10: Desertification defined
• [39:46] – Overtime tiebreaker: Outdoor Channel’s launch year
• [42:19] – Winner’s donation announcement

Summary and Takeaways

This trivia showdown stands out for its tightly contested game—culminating in a never-seen trio tie for a perfect score. The banter is classic MeatEater: knowledgeable with plenty of good-natured ribbing. Listeners learned not just answers, but also unique facts and bits of outdoor and pop culture lore, alongside practical conservation updates. The big winner is conservation itself, with BHA taking home a record $1,000 donation.

“Join us next week for more MeatEater Trivia—the only game show where conservation always wins.” (43:23)