I knew Peter from SCI and would sit with in his booth and we'd chat while he talked to clients and sign books. We wrote back and forth a few times. This was just before and after he moved from Naples to RSA. This was after his divorce from Catherine and he was married to Fiona. Fun guy and had good banter with the various PH's at SCI. The Safari Club Convention was very different in the 1980s on into the early 90's. There were still many of the old hands that started in the 50's and 60's still at it. They still were less "Americanized" and more colonialistic. They were less refined, and somewhat harder and wilder. There were more "characters". Even Harry Selby would be there with Safari South having a drink in the big tent they used as a display. Peter encouraged me to write and take photos. I had a few things published and one story got picked up in an anthology of stories but my talent was limited and my writing career brief.
Peter interspersed a lot of his background in his stories, from growing up in New Jersey, to being a stock broker to working with Winchester Adventures (I think I have that right) to going to South America (Brazil) to hunt jaguar and then getting a chance to go to Africa. I think he started as an apprentice PH with Geoff Broom in Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. Broom talks about it briefly in his book (read it if you haven't). That's were Peter learned about Africa. Geoff and Russ Broom were born and raised and taught him the ropes. If I'm not mistaken that's where he met Silent, Stomach, and the other Black Rhodesians that taught him bushcraft.
Peter did have a stint as a cropping officer and game management officer in Zambia.
Campfire's own Toltecgriz once shared a camp with him in the early days when Peter was green. Capstick never claimed to be the world's best PH, just a guy who dreamed of Africa and actually got a chance to go and do it. His writings are of his experiences AND those of others. In his "Death" books, he was very clear what were his stories and what were retelling of others. His experience was limited to a few season, so his stories ran out quickly and he used other PH's stories he been told or read about in his own writings. He took some grief for that, but he never - that I know of - claimed someone else's deeds as his own.
Deep down, Peter wanted to be Robert Ruark. Deep down, Ruark wanted to be Hemingway. Deep down, Hemingway wanted to be Hemingway. That's how I always sized that up.
Captstick wanted to write and share his love of Africa. He never pretended to be the equal of any of the African born PHs that grew up with the people, the animals, and the land. He makes that pretty clear in one chapter in his "Death" books when he asks the readers "So, you want to be a PH?" (I think
Death in the Dark Continent??) He spells it out that an American who didn't grow up speaking any of the local dialects or language, never growing up with all the animals around you, not having local contacts makes it difficult. (Maybe Jeff Rand excepted, though he did marry a pretty girl from Botswana!)
The best source for info on Peter is Fiona Capstick. The best way I know of to get her contact info is to contact Ludo Wurfbain of Safari Press and tell him what you are up to and see if he will fix you up.
There are a couple of other "Fire members who knew Peter. Maybe they will chip in.
Best of luck!
Hatari
