Shot Show One Month To Go . . .
NSSF’s SHOT Show – -(AmmoLand.com)-Is one month away. Here are a few reminders for those attending and others considering attending the show Jan. 15-18 in Orlando, Fla.:
REGISTER:
Attendees and exhibitors can register for the show online at www.shotshow.org. Registering before the opening of the show promises considerable savings and convenience.
TRAVEL PLANS:
Make your travel and lodging plans. The SHOT Show Travel Desk can help. Some prime locations have already been “sold out,” so be sure to make your reservations as soon as possible.
STATE OF THE INDUSTRY DINNER:
Order your tickets now for the NSSF State of the Industry Dinner, featuring entertainment by Bill Engvall, presented by Versus Country. Engvall is one of America’s most popular comedians and is a master of finding humor in everyday situations. Tickets will not be sold at the door.
SHOT SHOW UNIVERSITY TO BE HELD DAY BEFORE SHOW OPENS:
SHOT Show University is a great learning and networking opportunity, and it needn’t take any time out of your four days of working the actual show. Learn more and register now for this year’s SHOT Show University, a one-day program on Wednesday, Jan. 14, a day before the show floor opens to the industry.
QUICK UPDATES VIA TWITTER FROM NSSF COMMUNICATIONS:
Anyone interested in receiving updates from NSSF Communications for press and other events at the SHOT Show or other need-to-know information during the year is invited to sign up via Twitter for brief updates. From your cell phone or PDA, send a text message to 40404 with the words Follow NSSFComm. You’ll receive a text message back from Twitter with instructions, including how to cancel updates.
Inside the Industry
OTIS TECHNOLOGY NAMED FASTEST GROWING BUSINESS IN CENTRAL NEW YORK . . . Otis Technology, of Lyons Falls, N.Y., manufacturer of gun-cleaning products and kits, has been recognized by Fast Track 50 as the fastest growing company in central New York. The company, in business for 24 years and employing 146 people, has more than doubled its revenues in the last two years, according to a report by WWTI-NewsWatch 50.
GANDER MOUNTAIN SWINGS TO PROFIT IN THIRD QUARTER . . . Outdoor retailer Gander Mountain Co. (NASDAQ:GMTN) reported a third-quarter profit of $700,000, or 3 cents per share, compared to a net loss of $5.1 million, or 25 cents per share, in the same period last year. Sales were up 4 percent during the quarter to $269.9 million. Same-store sales — or sales at stores open for at least a year — decreased 6.5 percent in the third quarter.
WINCHESTER ANNOUNCES LEAD-FREE AMMO LINES . . . Citing consumer demand and the growth of regional lead-free regulations, Winchester has announced new and expanded lines of lead-free ammunition for 2009. The new lead-free products in .223 Rem., .22 Win. Mag., and 22 Long Rifle — and expanded offerings of Winchester E-Tip in popular hunting calibers — are especially important for California’s condor territory, which requires the use of lead-free projectiles (including rimfire) for hunting deer, bear, wild pig, elk and pronghorn antelope as well as for varmints and “non game” animals including coyote, feral pigs and ground squirrels. In addition, California is expanding its lead-free requirements in condor territory to include the shooting of all non-game “nuisance/pest” species.
NWTF REORGANIZES COMMUNICATIONS . . . National Wild Turkey Federation (NWTF) CEO George Thornton announced a reorganization of the management of the communications department, which will now be headed by two directors. Industry veteran Burt Carey, the federation’s editor of its magazine, Turkey Call, has been named Editorial Director, and as such will be responsible for all NWTF publications, graphic arts and video production. Brent Lawrence will continue in his role as Director of Public Relations and Web Operations.
THE SPORTSMAN CHANNEL REACHES DISTRIBUTION DEAL WITH DIRECTV . . . The Sportsman Channel (TSC) announced a distribution agreement with DirecTV that will make the network available, as part of the Choice Xtra package, to DirecTV customers by the end of January 2009.
COMPANIES PARTNER TO BENEFIT WOUNDED WARRIORS . . . Bass Pro Shops is partnering with Legacy Sports International, LLC to sell a commemorative rifle from the Puma brand of lever-action rifles to benefit The Wounded Warrior Project (WWP). Legacy Sports will donate $50 from the sale of every WWP Commemorative Rifle. WWP seeks to assist those men and women who have been severely injured during the conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan and other locations around the world. Gene Lumsden, president and CEO of Legacy Sports, is hoping to raise $25,000 to $50,000 from the sale of these rifles.
Hunting
FOX NEWS REPORTS ON HUNTING BEING ON THE RISE . . . Fox News reports, “It’s been a year for house hunting, job hunting, bargain hunting … and real hunting,” and then offered data on the uptick in hunting license sales across the nation. “Pennsylvania, New York, Montana, Wisconsin and Missouri are among the states reporting a rise in hunting applications,” reported Fox News. A couple of reasons attributed to the increase are the allure of an inexpensive food supply and the availability of time due to unemployment and a slowed economy.
NEW YORK ENDS PHEASANT PROPAGATION . . . State budget crunches hit sportsmen in the Empire State when Gov. David A. Paterson announced the closure of the pheasant-propagating Reynolds Game Farm, which will produce a projected savings of up to $750,000 in annual operation costs. Despite the unpopularity of the decision with sportsmen across the state, who are the primary funders of New York’s wildlife management programs, the governor is trying to turn this lemon into lemonade by ordering the donation of the farm’s nearly 8,000 pheasants to food banks in the Southern Tier of the state to feed the needy.
THE VANISHING HUNTER . . . Delta Waterfowl Magazine’s fifth and final installment of its excellent series on the challenges and opportunities that hunting and hunters face appears in the Winter 2008 issue. This segment focuses on the culture of hunting and its relevance to developing new hunters and keeping hunters active. Among several sidebars is one about the Responsive Management/NSSF report on “The Future of Hunting and the Shooting Sports: Research-based Recruitment and Retention Strategies, available at taskforce2020.org.
Legal & Legislative
BULLET SERIALIZATION THREAT IN GEORGIA . . . Legislation that would mandate, as early as 2010, bullet serialization — the process by which each individual round of ammunition is identified and marked with a laser-engraved serial number — has been introduced by Sen. Ronald Ramsey, Sr. in the Georgia State Senate. NSSF has made clear that serializing ammunition on a mass production basis is not feasible from a practical standpoint and any legislation mandating such action could rightfully be considered a de facto ban on ammunition. NSSF is encouraging all sportsmen, hunters and firearms enthusiasts in Georgia to contact their state Senator and call the bill’s sponsor, urging them to strongly oppose SB 12. Learn more about bullet serialization.
NSSF SETS RECORD STRAIGHT . . . In the Letters column of the Houston Chronicle in the Dec. 14 edition, NSSF points out the inaccurate references made to semi-automatic firearms in a Dec. 7 article in that same newspaper. “Regarding the Dec. 7 editorial, ‘Border War/Flow of guns to Mexico endangers Texas safety,'” the letter, signed by NSSF Senior Vice President and General Counsel Lawrence G. Keane, states, “it’s disappointing that the Chronicle editorial board would misrepresent certain firearms in order to help bolster its answer to border violence. By repeatedly using the phrases ‘military style’ and ‘assault’ in describing basic semi-automatic firearms, Chronicle readers are left with the false impression that these firearms are machine guns — which have been virtually banned from civilian ownership since 1934. Semi-automatic rifles are not ‘assault weapons.’ Read NSSF’s entire letter.
MARYLAND LEGISLATOR RECEIVES STATE CAUCUS LEADERSHIP AWARD . . . Maryland State Sen. John Astle, a passionate activist for hunting and fishing issues in his home state of Maryland, has been named recipient of the Brad Rowse Leadership Award, only the third person to receive this award. Given in honor of the late state caucus manager of the National Assembly of Sportsmen’s Caucuses (NASC), the award is bestowed only upon an individual who has demonstrated excellence in leadership in promoting the mission of NASC and promoting the sportsmen’s agenda in the halls of state government.
GUN CLUBS TOUT SAFETY RECORD AFTER BOY’S UZI DEATH . . . In conjunction with indictments following the death of an eight-year-old boy at a gun show in Westfield, Mass., when the youth lost control of the Uzi he was firing, sportsmen are emphasizing the safety record of recreational shooting. James Wallace, executive director of the Gun Owners’ Action League, which represents individual gun owners and gun clubs around Massachusetts, says the clubs have a near-perfect safety record and take it seriously. The Westfield Sportsman’s Club and three people face charges, as a result of the accident.
Jobs
INDUSTRY CAREER CONNECTION . . . Visit www.nssf.org/jobs for current employment opportunities in the shooting, hunting and outdoor industry. Employers: Log in to post a job opening.
About:
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