Our Coaches
Students of Banded University receive one-on-one instruction from some of the top hunting professionals in the country. When you enroll in a class, you' ll have the unique opportunity to view training videos prepared by our coaches and receive personal feedback from them. Our coaches rotate classes to interact with many different students. The coach for your class will make contact with you soon after you upload your first video. Don't be surprised if more than one coach takes and interest in your progress.
Chad Belding
Dean of Banded University Chad Belding is synonymous with a passion for the hunt. Born in 1974, Belding's father was his mentor and inspiration, introducing him to the outdoors at a very young age. In 1995, Belding began hunting predators, followed by waterfowl hunting in 1997. Two years later he became involved in competitive duck and goose calling. This led Belding into positions with Avery Outdoors and Zink Calls.
After graduating from college in 1999, Belding went on to co-own and operate businesses in Nevada, Colorado and Washington. His drive and energy is what compelled Belding to start Banded Productions in 2008. Since that time, Banded Productions became part of Banded Nation, which encompasses several of Belding's other ventures: Banded Gear, Last Call Ringtones, Banded Hunts, Banded Calls, Banded Retrievers and Banded University.
Among Belding's greatest achievements is hosting The Fowl Life and Dead Dog Walkin' on The Sportsman Channel and WILD TV. The Fowl Life is entering into its third season where the philosophy of the show is to hunt hard, stay safe, respect the animals and share hunting lifestyles. The goal of the show is to include heart-pounding action with in-depth instruction. For his efforts on The Fowl Life, Belding was nominated for Best Show Host for the Sportsman Channel's 2010 Sportsman Choice Awards.
Dead Dog Walkin' launched in 2011. This is a predator-based show which encompasses the lifestyles and approaches of different predator hunters across the country. In the future, Belding's Banded Productions will look at adding a fishing show as well as big game hunting.
In his 36 years, Belding has worked with the best in the hunting industry. His ties to Avery Outdoors and Zink Calls led to his appearance on DVDs as well as DU TV and DU Waterdog TV. His personality exploded in front of the camera, which led Belding to hosting The Fowl Life.
Belding's determination, work ethic and sheer love for the sport has led to numerous endorsements by big names, including Hevi-Shot, HI VIZ, Dakota Decoy, HonkQuackBang, Toyota Motor Company, and Sportsman's Warehouse. Balancing professional and personal life is never easy, but Belding has always had support from his family including his wife, Melanie and daughter, Alyssa. Belding's two brothers, Clint and Clay, also work and hunt with him, and all are supported by Belding's mom, Faith
Clay Belding
The Rock
Clay Belding was born May 12, 1978 in Reno, Nevada. He is married to his beautiful wife, Dawn. They recently had their first
baby, a boy, Chase Orville Belding. Growing up, Clay excelled in sports and received a baseball scholarship to the University
of Nevada Las Vegas. He started hunting at a very early age thanks to his late father, Orville. Some of his fondest memories
are hunting with his dad and two brothers, Chad and Clint. He is a Realtor for First Choice Realty 500 in Reno, Nevada and
videographer, primarily working for Banded Productions.
Over the years, Clay has been involved with the Nevada Waterfowl Association, Greenwing Days, and Ducks Unlimited. He is also on the Avery Outdoors and Team Maniac pro-staffs, which have opened many doors. Clay cherishes the friendships made possible through his associations with these companies. Working in the outdoor industry has allowed Clay to travel the country, Canada, and Mexico with his brother, Chad. He cannot thank them enough for allowing him these opportunities. Clay loves traveling, meeting new friends along the road.
When not hunting, Clay enjoys spending as much time as he can with his family, especially the family Sunday dinners at his mom's, Faith's, house. He also enjoys working in the yard, hanging out with friends, and fly-fishing in Northern Nevada. He wants to thank his late father, Orville, for teaching him about the outdoors, but most of all, to always keep your family first.
Quinton Pohl
Quinton lives in the heart of the central flyway hunting along the Platte River near Kearney, Nebraska. Living in this thriving waterfowl area gives Quinton the opportunity to fulfill his constant passion for waterfowl hunting. Quinton's dedication to the outdoors stems from his early childhood as Quinton and his father have enjoyed countless deer, turkey, duck, and goose hunts together. Their most recent elk hunt together adds to their collection of unforgettable hunting memories. Quinton looks forward to continuing this family tradition as him and his wife Sandy are expecting their first child.
Quinton enjoyed being employed at Cabela's for four years all the while staying current on all the new innovations of calls and decoys. Perhaps the best part of his Cabela's experience was sharing this information with other passionate outdoorsmen. To further his knowledge of the outdoors, Quinton received his Bachelor's degree in Park and Recreation Management. In his free time, Quinton likes to spend time working with his faithful hunting partner, two year old yellow lab named Wrigley. With Quinton's waterfowl experience and dedication, he brings great depth to our Banded University coaching staff.
Chad Ryan
Chad was born and raised on a farm in Underwood, Iowa. He remembers pushing timbers and walking fence lines with his dad before he could carry a gun. And when he wasn't wrestling he was hunting! Chad hunted quail, pheasants, and whitetails growing up and it was in college when his passion for waterfowl began. His good friend introduced him to waterfowl in the fields of Colorado and he just could not believe the amount of birds, the challenge of calling and watching them respond to the calls.
Chad wrestled in college, was a 2X Junior All-American and competed in competition overseas. Coaching is also in his blood, an assistant to an Iowa state championship team, and has coached a national team from Iowa.
After leaving Iowa, he moved out to Idaho where he discovered the quantity and quality of the hunting out west and now calls Idaho home. Chad resides in Star, Idaho with his daughter Maddie, and still coaches wrestling when he can. Training Labs as working dogs is a big part of his life as well, and loves hunting over a well trained dog.
His new passion is hunting the many miles of the Snake River and the grain fields that follow it for ducks and geese. As a Pro-Staff member with Avery Outdoors and Banded Calls and his lab Slick by his side he travels to Canada, Colorado, and Montana every year to feed his passion. He hunts deer and elk in the fall, spring turkeys and never misses an opportunity to be out in the field. Chad values the time with family and friend's whether hunting or scouting and is excited to teach his kids about the outdoors. Chad's experience, passion and knowledge products are a great addition to Banded Calls Pro-Staff and coach here at Banded University.
