[6][7] She served as student representative to the Chamber of Commerce board, winning an Outstanding Young Person award, played saxophone in the concert, pep, and marching bands,[8] was homecoming queen, student council treasurer, a member of the National Honor Society, captain of track and speech teams, a lector in her Catholic church,[9][10] and earned the Girl Scouts Gold Award by organizing younger Girl Scouts to interact with the elderly.

[11] Bachman graduated Paynesville Area High School magna cum laude in 2002,[12] and attended St.

[15] After graduating in 2006, Bachman sent out 76 video resumes without finding work, and had to take an unpaid internship with North American Media Group's North American Hunter Television in Minnetonka, driving 150 miles (240 km) round trip each day, and working nights as a waitress at a nightclub.

"[2] As a camera professional, she shot, produced, and edited the first season of Mark Kayser's Extreme Pursuits program.

[17][18][4] In March 2012, Bachman took the world record for a red stag shot by a female archer in a New Zealand hunt.

[27] On August 30, 2012, the National Geographic Channel was planning to have Bachman as one of their contestants for the show that would become Ultimate Survival Alaska, until a Change.org petition to exclude her because of her hunting background received 13,000 signatures in under 24 hours.

[31][32] In November 2013, Bachman posted a photograph of herself smiling by the body of a lion, captioned "An incredible day hunting in South Africa!

[33] The photo quickly drew Internet outrage, including multiple wishes for her death,[34] comedian and animal welfare activist Ricky Gervais re-tweeting Bachman's message while adding "spot the typo", and an online petition from a Cape Town resident calling on the South African government to eject her from the country,[35] which gathered hundreds of thousands of signatures.

"[48] Bachman met Rosebud Sioux game warden Ben Bearshield on a hunt on their reservation in 2012, which was shown on Winchester Deadly Passion in 2013.

[55][56] As late as 2015, Bachman struggled for an answer when asked about her life outside TV programs and hunting, saying "I can't even keep a plant alive — that's how little I'm home".

[2][3] On Christmas Day 2015, Bachman received a female Boston Terrier named Pork Chop that began to accompany her on her hunts.

[57][58] Bachman and Bearshield built a house in South Dakota, where she lives with her husband, Jax, two dogs (Pork Chop and Ribeye), and three older stepchildren.