I don’t think that we hardly ever have a total dead time in the Outdoor World. Right now, there’s varmint, cougar, wolf hunting and waterfowl hunting going on. Trapping, ice fishing and then of course snowmobiling, skiing and snowshoeing.
For Idaho this is as slow as it gets. Due to this slowdown, they schedule the big shows nationwide January-February.
As you’re reading this article, I’m on a plane headed to Dallas to conduct three seminars at the Dallas Safari Club Conv. & Expo.
While there I’ll conduct my seminars and then be working the show, meeting guides and manufacturers and seeing old buddies.
Then the next weekend I fly to Vegas for the SHOT Show. It’s the biggest Outdoor show in America. All of the outdoor manufacturers will be there-Rifles, shotguns, pistols, ammo, knives, clothing you name it, they’re there. Then all of the big writers & celebrities.
The SHOT kicks off Monday with a Media Day at The Range. It’s a cool deal. You get to test all of the new guns and ammo.
This is where I shot my first BRG9 Elite 9mm, the FoldAR which is an AR that folds on three hinges into a compact AR and I think it may be where I met the Umarex air gun crew years ago.
When you think about it, the Range Day is a smart idea. It lets all of the buyers test out the new gear so they will make purchases for the upcoming year as well as lets the writers test items so they will write about them and get them publicity.
Then the actual show runs Tuesday-Friday, 8:30-5:00. I’ll have meetings set-up every 30 minutes. Some companies are smart and will have a luncheon for a selected group of writers.
They know writers have to eat so while you’re eating, they’ll make a presentation. Then they’ll have display tables showing off their new goods.
There will also be breakfast’s going on with the same format as the luncheons. Then when the show shuts down for the day there will be numerous happy hours and dinners that you get invited to. Some nights there may be 2-4 events that you need to hit.
So, I’ll be running/gunning from 6:30-10:30. It’s a huge show and no way you can go hit every booth. There’s 40,000 people attending so you hit the most beneficial booths and do the best you can. I’ll usually have 2-3 helpers so I can be more efficient and hit more booths but this year I’m only going to have 1-2.
I’m conducting three seminars again this year at SHOT and then will be hitting it hard the rest of the week. I write a weekly Product Review for AmmolandShootingSportsNews.
This year they’re going to have me write a lot of Knife Reviews so I’ve got to set up meetings with a lot of knife companies.
Then I just wrote a Product Review for GUNMADE.COM and we’ll and I think I’ll be writing gun reviews for him so; I’ll need to hit some rifle and optic companies in preparation for those articles. So, you get my drift as to how the SHOT runs.
Then in February the big Safari Club International Convention is held in Nashville. I’ll hit it for 4-days. It is on the same format as the DSC Conv. but it is for SCI members.
There will be a lot of manufacturers booths set up but ¾’s of the booths will be guides from all over the world.
Hunting guides from Africa, bird guides from Argentina, fishing guides from Costa Rica, you name it. If you’re wanting to line up a guide, this is the show to hit.
I’ll also be conducting three seminars at the SCI Conv.
• KNIFE SHARPENING/CHOOSING THE PROPER KNIFE—
Everyone uses a knife and yet I bet less than 5% of the outdoorsmen can sharpen one. I’ll be using the Smith’s diamond stone. Most knives are so hard now that you have to use a diamond stone to sharpen them.
• GLASSING FOR BIG GAME—
If you learn how to properly glass, it will open up a whole new world for you. I’ll be using a lot of the higher end Vortex optics.
• HUNTING BIG GAME WITH AIRGUNS—
Air guns have gotten wildly popular. In this seminar I’ll cover how to hunt big game with air guns, which is a new option. Umarex makes the Hammer (Rightfully named) which is a .50 cal. air gun. Recently SCI came up with a record book-they now have an Air gun record book.
Then there’s the big NRA show on down to the smaller shows such as the Yakima Sports Show, Boise Sports Show, Denver & Omaha shows etc.
Some of the shows like the SHOT show are hard to get into. For instance, the Media is by invitation only, others like SCI are members only but some of them like DSC you can pay a day fee to enter.
If you’re feeling snowed in hitting one of the big shows would be a fun get-away for you and your wife. Plus, you can see all of the cool new gear and meet guides from all over the world.
Plus, on top of that, what Katy really likes is to see all of the taxidermy displays. Wow, these guys are artist. I can’t even tell you of all of the cool mounts you’ll see. At SCI last year was a whole African display.
Then lastly, they’ll have seminars covering all kinds of topics, put on by a lot of the big names in hunting. I barely ever get to hit more than one because I’m so busy. They need to make them 2–3-week long shows.
Tom Claycomb is a hunting enthusiast and writes a bi-monthly column for Great Basin Sun
