Laura Springer. Photo courtesy of NSSF

In her new role, Springer will manage NSSF’s online efforts, including websites, mobile application development, social media and digital publications. Springer has been with NSSF since 2000, serving as webmaster.

“Laura brings a broad skill set to her new role at NSSF, and her experience, technical knowledge and forward thinking will help NSSF continue to evolve in the digital age,” said Bill Dunn, NSSF managing director, marketing communications.

At NSSF, Springer has played a key role in the development and management of NSSF’s websites and the development of the recently launched Where2Shoot mobile app.

Springer began her web development career in 1995, serving as webmaster for a New York-based publishing company followed by a Connecticut-based Internet service provider. A novice shooter, she enjoys target shooting whenever the opportunity arises.

The WON has undergone several changes in the past month. A new webmaster, search engine optimization improvements, a new host — so that we can support the increased bandwidth demands.

Probably the most important addition, though, is moving from our “news, reviews and stories about you” to our new focus of “shooting, hunting, fishing and adventure.”

Britney Starr

We’ve also brought Britney Starr on as our new social media editor. She is building our Twitter kingdom, probably as I write this post. You all know Britney from her excellent gear reviews here at the site.

The Olympic biathletes, twin sisters Lanny and Tracy Barnes will be joining us with their new column in June, sponsored by Advanced Technology International.

And …. wait! There’s even more! But, we’re not going to announce that for another week — but, we think you’re gonna like it.

And … we will continue to give away cool swag and stuff, including a chunky, funky necklace next week from our new advertiser, 30 Cal Gal, Anette Wachter.

So, please forgive us for the glitches along the way. When we’re up and running, we’ll be trying real hard not to exceed the speed limit!

~Barbara

Molly Smith will attend the National Rifle Association's Y.E.S. this summer. Photo courtesy of Yamil Sued

Summit participants will tour memorials and monuments surrounding the nation’s capital throughout the week as they learn the significance of the American Constitution, the Bill of Rights and the importance of being an active citizen. Scheduled stops include the Capitol Building, the Marine Corps Base at Quantico, the National Archives and the Newseum.

The winning smile and attitude says it all. Photo by Susan Smith

During the summit, up to $10,000 in college scholarships will be awarded to students who excel in the week’s activities. An additional $20,000 in scholarships are available after the summit for Y.E.S. students who create a portfolio describing how they promoted NRA programs, such as the Eddie Eagle GunSafe® Program or Refuse To Be A Victim, in their community.

This year’s Y.E.S. class was selected from hundreds of qualified applicants. Each prospective participant completed an extensive application process comprised of essays about the Second Amendment, personal statements, transcripts and three personal recommendations.

The National Rifle Association launched the Youth Education Summit in 1996 to encourage America’s youth to become active and knowledgeable citizens at the national and local level.

The NRA Foundation provides all funding for Y.E.S. through monies raised by Friends of NRA – a grassroots fund-raising program organized by community volunteers that supports thousands of local and national projects.

2012 Y.E.S. Participants

Kemper Gokmen – Huntsville, Alabama

Jeffrey Dow – Anchorage, Alaska

Sicily Wilcock – Mesa, Arizona

Jace Motley – Conway, Arkansas

Caleb LaCelle – Acampo, California

Molly Smith – Cambria, California

Jessica Chitkuer – Fullerton, California

Brooke Lane – Hudson, Colorado

Joshua Simon – Nokomis, Florida

Dirk Seymour – Coeur d’ Alene, Idaho

Alex Kaper – Mahomet, Illinois

Peter Dykhuizen – Plainfield, Illinois

Adam Weil – Evansville, Indiana

Elizabeth Barringer – Indianapolis, Indiana

Megan Hilbish – Emporia, Kansas

Clay Parker – Pine Grove, Louisiana

Mindy Downing – Brownville, Maine

Wyatt Farmer – Frederick, Maryland

Aiden Koplovsky – Duxbury, Massachusetts

Rudy Simpson – Whittemore, Michigan

Emily Trout – Cohasset, Minnesota

Dillon Hall – Saltillo, Mississippi

Nora Faris – Concordia, Missouri

Nicholas Radzykewycz – Park City, Montana

Kaytlyn Leonard – Liberty, North Carolina

Kyle Pletan – Dickinson, North Dakota

Eli West – Omaha, Nebraska

Sean Foley – Freehold, New Jersey

Emily Allen – Edgewood, New Mexico

Samuel Evans – New Woodstock, New York

Miranda Sternsher – Clarksville, Ohio

Nicholas Johnson – Owasso, Oklahoma

Bethany Janzen – Happy Valley, Oregon

Benjamin Barnes, Jr – Roseburg, Oregon

Kendra Lathrop – Gillett, Pennsylvania

Dominic Montemurro – Tarentum, Pennsylvania

Kaitlin Heitmann – Faulkton, South Dakota

Andrew Raves – Germantown, Tennessee

Michael Garner – Celina, Texas

Wyatt Saltarelli – Montgomery, Texas

Taylor Hart – Cedar Hills, Utah

Caitlin Hester – Colchester, Vermont

Hunter Bolan – Keysville, Virginia

Sydney Smith – Wayne, West Virginia

Kjersti Buckley – Upton, Wyoming

To learn more about the Youth Education Summit, visit their website at www.friendsofnra.org/yes

Photo courtesy of NWTF

Todd received a check as the winner of the NWTF’s $10,000 National Scholarship, sponsored by Mossy Oak Brand Camo.

Todd’s father, Brian, the fisheries supervisor of the Missouri Department of Conservation Northeast Region, had coaxed his daughter, an avid hunter, to come to the office with a text message about a potential summer job.

Todd was met at the MDC office by a group that included NWTF Chief Conservation Officer James Earl Kennamer, NWTF Regional Biologist John Burk, NWTF Regional Director Michael Allen, her parents, and local newspaper and television reporters.

“I was absolutely shocked,” Todd said. “This is great. I had been having a lot of thoughts about paying for college, and I’ll use this to help. I’d like to thank the NWTF and Mossy Oak.”

Todd had already received a $500 scholarship from the NWTF Kirksville Ridge Runners Chapter and a $2,000 scholarship from the NWTF Missouri State Chapter. But she still had concerns about future college expenses.

A straight-A student at Kirksville High School with aspirations of becoming a doctor, Todd was chosen from more than 900 entrants nationwide. She plans to enter the University of Missouri in the fall and major in nutritional sciences with medical school in her eventual plans.

“Chelsie is a very deserving choice for this scholarship,” said Brenda Niemeyer, a guidance counselor at Kirksville High School. “She is a diligent, committed young lady with a tremendous work ethic. She is one of those students you know is going to go out into the world and make a difference.”

Todd’s surprise had originally been scheduled for May 15 at a school awards ceremony, but plans changed with Kennamer and NWTF film staff nearby working on a project.

Todd is the third NWTF National Scholarship winner from Missouri. Melissa Bueker of Higginsville won in 2010; Michael Kromrey of Sullivan won in 1999.

In addition to writing a powerful contest essay, “Conserving the Circus,” which describes her passions for conservation and our hunting heritage, Todd’s numerous achievements include:

Missouri Girls State delegate

Several 4-H leadership positions and awards at the local and national level

Captain of Kirksville High volleyball team

Wendy’s High School Heisman Scholarship recipient

Kirksville High National Honor Society President

Kirksville High Student Ambassador

MDC volunteer and research assistant

Todd and her family will receive a trip to the 2013 NWTF National Convention and Sport Show, Feb. 14-17 at Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn., where she will be recognized for her achievements.

For more information on the NWTF scholarship program, call (800) THE-NWTF, email scholarshipinfo@nwtf.net or visit www.nwtf.org/education.

The NWTF, a national nonprofit organization, is the leader in upland wildlife habitat conservation in North America. Through dynamic partnerships with local, state and provincial agencies, the NWTF has invested more than $372 million and conserved 17 million acres of wildlife habitat.

For more information on the NWTF, call (800) THE-NWTF or visit www.nwtf.org.

The announcement by the White House, along with the appointments of two others, was made May 10. Russell F. Smith III was also named a U. S. Commissioner to ICCAT. The third appointee was Caitlin Durkovich, named to the Department of Homeland Security as Assistant Secretary for Infrastructure Protection.

Ellen Peel. Photo courtesy of the Billfish Foundation

In making the appointments President Obama said, “It gives me great confidence that such dedicated and capable individuals have agreed to join this Administration and serve the American people. I look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.”

Because of her passion and dedication to marine resources, Ellen was asked in 2009 to serve as the Acting U.S. Recreational Fishing Commissioner to ICCAT, pending final approval by the President.

ICCAT is a 42-year old inter-governmental fishery organization of some 50 member nations responsible for the conservation of tunas and migratory species like billfish and sharks in the Atlantic Ocean, and its adjacent seas like the Mediterranean and the Gulf of Mexico.

Peel said, “I’m very much honored to be appointed to serve for the White House in the Commissioner position. The challenges are great, but I am committed to advancing and defending the fishing opportunities for all U.S. fishing interests, including raising the priority of both the recreational fishing industry and the billfish species.”

Peel recently began her 16th year as the head of TBF, a post many in billfishing and marine conservation say was a position she was born for.

Growing up in Long Beach, Miss., with the Gulf of Mexico as her back yard, she’s at home on deep blue water oceans as she is fly fishing a remote trout stream. She broadened her appreciation for the outdoors by working for the National Park Service, before pursuing a law degree at Ole Miss. With a desire to represent big migratory fish including billfish species she continued her studies with a masters of law in marine resources at the Univ. of Washington in Seattle. With her specialization she worked in Washington D.C. at the Center for Marine Conservation getting a solid background with the law-making process.

Despite many challenges like the reduced worldwide populations of billfish caused by commercial longlining and netting, her message has remained clear -good conservation pays in benefits to the fish stocks, the oceans’ ecosystems, improved fishing opportunities, strong economies and prepared future generations of ocean stewards and users. Through education, research, science, advocacy and uniting the recreational fishing community as one powerful voice, TBF’s accomplishments have been many including key socio-economic work in Central and South America, its Tag & Release program and worldwide technology on three oceans.

Now in its 26th year The Billfish Foundation works globally to advance the conservation of billfish and associated species and to improve the health of oceans and dependent economies.

“This year’s IDPA European Cup really centered on standard shooting requirements. Many of the stages focused on one-hand shooting as well as difficult distance shots. The training I did before the match paid off and I couldn’t be happier to bring home the High Lady title for the second year in a row,” commented Rogers. Next up for Rogers will be the Bianchi Cup, scheduled for May 23 through 26 in Columbia, MO.

International Defensive Pistol Association has had an increased popularity the past couple of years with many Italian Nationals attending matches here in the United States as well as the shooters of Calsivano, Italy hosting their own sanctioned IDPA match for the second year in a row. Comp-Tac supported the IDPA European Cup by sending two members of Team Comp-Tac as well as sponsoring a stage at the 2012 IDPA European Cup.

When we take the boys hunting during youth gun season, I wear the coveralls my son outgrew … along with an extra pair of men’s size 11 boots. I am told they will work just fine. As I clunk along and drag these heavy, extra wide boots, I mumble to myself (while breathing heavy and pursing my lips), “Men’s shoes are not made the same as women’s. Size 11 in men’s does not equal size 10 in women’s. Someday I will have my own boots.”

A similar scenario happens when I attend shooting matches with my family. Since the terrain is usually rugged, I am given a pair of worn out, tread bare hiking boots to wear. They aren’t the most attractive and usually have an unpleasant scent if they belonged to my son. Now, one might ask, “Michelle, why don’t you just buy your own boots?” Well, the answer is simple. I haven’t worn a pair I liked enough to invest money in …

Until now!

Just recently I received my own pair of Original S.W.A.T. Women’s Classic Series Boots. These tactical boots are made specifically for a woman’s narrower heel, higher arch and longer toes. The first time I wore my 1152F Classic 9” Side Zip boots, I was on my feet all day. I was running on hills, going up and down stairways and maneuvering around the roof of a building. Never did I have my usual thought, “My dogs are barking! I can’t wait to get these boots off and put my feet up.”

She'd like them in something other than basic black -- and has been assured the boots will be offered another color soon. Photo by Michelle Cerino

These lightweight boots have a custom molded thermoplastic heel counter and toe box, which means they feel already “broken in” right out of the box. My feet were extremely comfortable, never feeling like they were swimming around in boots that were too wide and clunky. I would have no problem paying the $104.99 MSRP. Especially since Original S.W.A.T. guarantees the workmanship and quality of their boots.

However ….

The only complaint I have was I really like the Original S.W.A.T. Classic Tan Side Zip (which they currently do not make in the women’s style). I am happy to say that I don’t have long to wait. Kevin Cole, of Original S.W.A.T., informed me that the women’s specific model will be available in tan color in August.

Do not mess with this mom in combat boots! Photo courtesy of Michelle Cerino

I look forward to wearing these boots on the ranges, whether I am climbing around trying to get some great photos or shooting along with my family. Would I wear these boots hunting in extreme weather? No, these are tactical boots. Hopefully I will get a pair of my very own hunting boots (along with other products just for women).

The WON welcomes new writer Michelle Cerino, a school teacher from Ohio who leads a very active lifestyle outside the classroom. Learn more about Michelle at her website, Chris Cerino Training Group.

While I awed at “Big Foot,” a 16-foot, 3D target shot from 101 yards away, I wondered what made the match this great. Then it struck me: it’s the 3-D characters – from full-size elk to butterflies – that dot the Manzanita covered hills, the tactical challenge, the character of the people that put on this match and the skill and endurance of the competitors.

Another reason it’s great is because so many athletes keep coming back year after year to participate! Two archers in particular come to mind. Wade Smith, a solider from Afghanistan, requested his only leave for the year to allow him to compete in this match. Kelson Uradomo, a Junior National Champion, flew all the way from Maui, Hawaii, to participate! I enjoyed meeting them and hearing about their passion for the competition.  In thinking about the “rigs” the archers use, I found that I made a comparison with shooting.  The longbows I saw were like a limited revolver and the compound bows, with their intricate mechanical parts and sights, made me think of an open semi-auto.

I spoke with many of the competitors and discovered that some are quite skilled hunters; some are exclusively target competitors, while many shoot in trigger sports in the off-season – and those are just the women! Like many similar sports, seeing the women out there competing alongside the men was fun to watch. The sheer strength and stamina of these women was so remarkable. I watched and spoke to women such as Samantha Morgan, a World Champion and Women’s pro, married to Levi Morgan, (ASA Shooting Champion for six years in a row).  The women at this event, and those in other outdoor sports, have an amazing thread that weaves through them – to just “get out and try it” and “it’s empowering, engaging and so much fun!”  I have so much respect for the women and children competing in all sports.  And in this match, the women competing for three days,  about 23 targets each day, up and over terrain that was difficult for me to walk (and I wasn’t lugging gear and babies). It was remarkable to see how great their shots were!

Molly Smith and Samantha Morgan

And speaking of terrain, it was the simulated hunting aspect that was so interesting. Climbing down into gulches and nestled between trees and sandy inclines added to the need to depend on your instincts, to look and listen to what is around you. The importance of paying attention to the environment was evident to me when I watched Jesse Broadwater. He drew back his bow, a long draw as he inhaled; he stopped for what seemed like an entire minute. As the crowd around him held their breath in anticipation, he exhaled and pointed down his bow, just as a huge gust of wind blew up the gulch that separated the group from the targets. That was the gust that could have made him lose his shot. I was in awe. It was pure instincts and skill!

Molly Smith and Kelson Uradomo

That the competitors read signs in nature and were in tune to all that was around them – I’ll always keep that concept with me,  the importance and value of listening to nature and the environment around me.  This revolver shooter sure learned a lot this weekend.

The 13th annual Jim Ehman Memorial “Babes on the Bay” fishing tournament will be held beginning at sunrise on Saturday, May 19. The kick-off will be held at 6 p.m. Friday, May 18, at the Rockport festival grounds.

The weigh-in for the event is from noon until 4 p.m. Prizes will be given for five divisions: team with a professional guide (any bait); team with a professional guide (artificial only); team with non-professional guide (any bait); team with non-professional guide (artificial only); and Babe-ette Division (ages 16 and under). First through fifth places will be awarded for the first four divisions with additional prizes for the Babe-ette Division. Awards will be presented at approximately 6 p.m., after the weigh in Saturday.

The tournament is the largest one-day fishing tournament in the United States. Last year Babes on the Bay had 1,140 ladies, of all ages, on 320 teams. It is expected to be bigger than ever, with possibly more than 1,200 entries.

Along with the fishing tournament, the event also features a food vendors court and a babes shopping mall where vendors sell everything.

For more information, visit www.babesonthebay.com or call 361-386-0028.

Held in conjunction with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) through the Sport Fish Restoration Program, “Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!” is a national organization dedicated to attracting more women to sport fishing and to promoting conservation and responsible angling.

During the three-day, hands-on event, FWC educators will demonstrate ethical angler habits, such as safe hook removal, release techniques, fish venting and more. Local fishing guides will provide instruction on fishing techniques and methods.

Past participants found the event worthwhile.

“Being able to pick, choose and move between skill stations was terrific,” said Mary Hackney of Naples. “I loved the flexibility.”

“I learned more about fishing in two days than from my dad in 20 years,” said Georgia Allen of Bonita Springs.

On the final day of the seminar, women may embark on an optional fishing adventure.

To learn more, visit ladiesletsgofishing.com, call 954-475-9068 or email info@ladiesletsgofishing.com.

Photo courtesy of Lael Will

Lael’s fisheries background is diverse and has taken her all over the country. A native of western Massachusetts, she received her Bachelor of Science in Marine Resource Development from the University of Rhode Island in 2000. She also spent one year studying marine biology at James Cook University in Queensland, Australia.

Upon obtaining her bachelor’s degree, she began working for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service at the Warm Springs Regional Fisheries Center in Georgia, where she worked with striped bass and robust redhorse. She then worked as a fisheries biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in northern California, where she conducted restoration monitoring of Pacific salmonids.

In 2006, she was accepted into the graduate program at the University of Arkansas, where she studied fish communities on the Arkansas River. After obtaining her master’s degree in 2009, she continued to work for the university as a research associate, conducting research on alligator gar and yellowcheek darter. Her most recent position landed her in Santa Rosa, California, where she worked for the National Marine Fisheries Service on steelhead and green sturgeon.

Lael is passionate about her career and is excited to be part of the department’s mission to protect and conserve Vermont’s fish and their habitats for the people of Vermont.

At about the same time, I received a press release regarding Insect Shield products, by Outdoor Research. What is Insect Shield, you ask?

Insect Shield® Fabric treated with Inset Shield® Permethrin inset repellent is EPA registered. Repels mosquitoes, ticks, ants, flies, chiggers and no-see-ums for invisible, odorless protection from bites and inset-carried diseases. — From Outdoorresearch.com

The company sent me a pair of Bugout gaiters. I hunted for 19 out of 21 days — mostly in tall grass and brushy areas. And, although I picked a few ticks off my upper torso, my lower legs (and actually the rest of my body) remained chigger free! Of course, I also treated my hunting clothing in Permethrin, but I believe the additional protection around my ankles and lower legs staved off the mighty mites. I also recommend these gaiters because they keep your boot laces from getting tangled and untied in rough terrain, and furthermore, because they kept the tops of my boots clean. That meant, when I went to undo the boots, they were free of flotsam and jetsam like little sticks, grass, rocks, pollen, you name it.

The gaiters also kept my boot tops and pants’ bottoms dry.

Easy to pop on and velcro-up, they were actually a Godsend to me this hunting season. And there’s more to these gaiters. From Outdoor Research:

• Insect Shield® clothing repels mosquitoes, ticks, ants, flies, chiggers and no-see-ums, reducing the need for topical repellents
• Insect Shield® is odorless and EPA-registered; effectiveness against insects is good for 70 washings
• 8 oz. packcloth
• 1-inch wide hook/loop front closure
• Hook/loop shear tabs at top and bottom of front closure prevent separation
• Elastic bottom and top edges
• Double-riveted boot lace hook
• Hypalon® instep strap Fabric: 100% nylon, 8 oz. packcloth

Check the gaiters! Photo by Marti Davis

Would I recommend? Absolutely! Five stars for this product — one I hope to never be without again during hunting seasons.

The gaiters also come in kids’ sizes, and the adult version retails for $38. I’d definitely recommend them, as they’re breathable, too, for hikers. Outdoor Research makes gaiters that are snake-boot length, as well, and also come in non-bug-treated versions.

Check out the lineup at Outdoor Research.

From now until Aug. 31, Winchester is offering up to $100 cash back on purchases of the company’s legendary AA® shotshell ammunition and the chance to shoot clays with four-time Olympic medalist Kim Rhode.

Consumers who purchase a minimum of ten and a maximum of fifty boxes of AA ammunition are eligible to receive a $2 rebate per box. To download the AA rebate redemption form, visit Winchester.com and click “Special Offers.”

Kim Rhode. Photo courtesy of Winchester

“This rebate is a great chance for our customers to save money and we’re also excited to offer the chance to shoot with a true legend and champion like Kim Rhode,” said Brett Flaugher, Winchester Ammunition vice president of marketing and sales.

In the world of competitive clay shooting, Rhode has dominated for nearly two decades. When the upcoming Summer Olympic Games begin in London, Rhode will attempt to become the first athlete in an individual sport to medal in five consecutive Olympic Games.

To enter for a chance to win a training session for two people with Rhode and five cases of AA ammunition, visit Winchester.com.

As the official ammunition of the USA Shooting Shotgun Team and a personal sponsor of Rhode, Winchester Ammunition makes sure Rhode and her teammates continue their high-octane practice routines by providing them with the popular Winchester® AA® shotshells. Winchester has been a sponsor of the USA Shooting Shotgun Team since 1999.

With a company heritage dating back to 1866, Winchester Ammunition was there for the taming of the American West, the Allied Forces’ victory in World War II and through the years, millions of fond memories made in the great outdoors. Known as The American Legend™, Winchester is a global leader in sporting, law enforcement, military and personal defense ammunition production. Winchester continues to raise the bar with innovative products like Blind Side® waterfowl and PDX1®Defender™ personal defense ammunition.

For more information about Winchester Ammunition, visit www.winchester.com, or connect with The American Legend on Facebook at Facebook.com/WinchesterOfficial.

You may learn more about the twins at their website.

Check out ATI’s inventory of gunstocks, made for competition and other real life reasons, and so woman friendly!

Lanny and Tracy Barnes prefer ATI gunstocks on their Olympic guns. Photo courtesy of Lanny and Tracy Barnes

Texan’s Debbie Kemp and Jan Bruner claimed victories in the LBAA Kick-off Tournament back in 2010.  Kemp won by the slimmest of margins as her 11.5 pounds was a mere 0.42 ounces more than second place veteran Emily Shaffer who brought 11.08 to the scales on the pro side.  Bruner a veteran co-angler caught 6.47 pounds of bass — just enough to edge out second place Kim Giddens who had 5.42 pounds.

With the ladies return to Dardanelle being a late spring event there could be both post-spawn patterns and pre-summer patterns that could come into play in helping to decide the Dardanelle Dash for the Cash next week.

Pam Ridgle is off to a great start this year. Photo courtesy of Larry Morris, LBAA Specialist

Since this the second event on the 2012 LBAA schedule, a win or a good finish at Dardanelle would give an angler the “Big Mo” — momentum that could catapult them into a successful home stretch run in the second half of the LBAA’s 2012 schedule.

Lake Dardanelle, which is located just outside of Russellville, Arkansas, stretches over 50 miles and is a part of the Arkansas River Navigation System.  Dardanelle has over 34,000 acres of water and 315 acres of shoreline for LBAA anglers to navigate, fish, and attempt to get a tournament-winning pattern on.

The LBAA works with some of the finest city/county/visitor’s center/chamber of commerce organizations on their tour dates.  The LBAA now moves from the folks at the City of Garland (Texas) Convention and Visitors Bureau whose hospitality was indeed “bigger than the heart of Texas” to the folks at the Russellville Tourism and Visitor’s Center who will go “Hog Wild” opening their arms and city to the LBAA, its anglers, and staff.

The Russellville Tourism and Visitors Center is hosting the LBAA’s upcoming tour appearance.  They are located at 708 West Main Street Russellville, AR 72801.  Their phone number is 1-479-967-1762 and they have a presence on the World Wide Web at http://discoverrussellville.org/

Lake Dardanelle is off limits through May 11 with official practice starting May 12 and ending at Noon on May 16.

The Lake Dardanelle ProAm is a two-day event running from “safe light” until 3 p.m. CDT on Thursday and Friday May 17 and 18.  Pro anglers may bring in a five legal bass limit and co-anglers a three legal bass limit to the scales each day.

Launches and weigh-ins will take place at the Lake Dardanelle State Park Visitors Center at 100 State Park Road in Russellville, AR.  The Lake Dardanelle State Park Visitors Center’s phone number is 1-479-967-5516, and they are on the World Wide Web at http://www.arkansasstateparks.com/

The LBAA usually has a charity tournament on the Saturday after the LBAA Pro/Am but at Lake Dardanelle, there was a scheduling conflict, so there will be no LBAA charity event on Saturday.  However, the LBAA will still be supporting the Main Street Mission with a raffle of items donated by local and national sponsors that will occur at the conclusion of Friday’s weigh-in.

The Main Street Mission’s mission and purpose is to demonstrate Christian love to those in need as they provide meals, food boxes and other necessities to help meet their physical needs while also striving to address their spiritual needs.  The Main Street Mission is located at 1110 East 2nd Street Russellville, AR 72801.  Phone 1-479-968-8303.  World Wide Web http://mainstreetmission.org/v2/

Lodging headquarters for the LBAA Lake Dardanelle event is the Best Western Inn 2326 N. Arkansas Avenue Russellville, AR  72802.  Phone 1-479-967-1000.  World Wide Web at http://book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/US/AR/Russellville-hotels/BEST-WESTERN-Inn/Hotel-Overview.do?propertyCode=04077

Sponsors of the 2012 Lady Bass Anglers Association Tour are:

Bass Angler Magazine, Red Dirt Bait Company, Reaction Innovations, Legend Boats, Bass Kandi Baits, Integrity Insurance, Progressive Insurance, Kick `n Bass, Reel Girls Fish, Minn Kota, Hummingbird, Vickie’s Threadworks, Rayjus Outdoors, Castaway Graphite Rods, Save Phace, DEKA Batteries, Fish Guardian, West Kentucky LED, Arkansas Tournament Fishing (ATF), SureLife, and River Runner Baits.

The LBAA 2012 Contingency Programs are Legend Advantage Program, Boats, BoatUS Angler Weigh-to-Win, Tundra Bucks, Rayjus Wear-It-To-Win, Skeeter Real Money, Phoenix First Flight, BassCat Quest, and Triton Gold.

For more information on the LBAA contact co-founder Cheryl Bowden @ 1-214-738-7518, co-founder Secret York @ 1-270-748-9041, or media specialist Larry Morris @ 1-540-239-7902.  The LBAA has a presence on the World Wide Web — on Facebook, and at http://www.ladybassanglers.com/

I know, I’m fortunate that I have a place to hunt – thanks to my parents-in-law and their generous gift to us upon their passing. So, I based camp down at the old home site in southwest Missouri. I hunted 19 out of 21 legal spring turkey season days. I put more than 100 miles on my boots, climbing over creek beds and up knobs and down into hollers, with a turkey vest full of stuff and a 12-gauge shotgun. The only two mornings I stayed in and rolled back in bed after the alarm clock went off at 4 a.m., were the two mornings that lightning appeared outside my windows. I draw the line at that …

Turkey hunting in Missouri ends at 1 p.m. daily. Then, I’d head back in, meet deadlines, do laundry, etc.

I’ve never had good fortune to kill a turkey on my own. To call one in and dance with it for a while. I’m not that good yet. My enthusiasm for turkey hunting (and any hunting, if truth be told) far exceeds my prowess.

My mouth calls sound like spitty balloon gas coming out. 

This year, I called on one of the best in the business, my friend Marti Davis. Marti is on the pro staffs of so many fine companies, including Knight & Hale, Mossy Oak, Moultrie Products and the list goes on … if anyone can call in a bird, it’s Marti, and she promised to tutor me along the way.

Well, we spent two days runnin’ and gunnin’ and thought we were close. Thought we had two coming in to visit us. And then, silence. What the heck? It was going to be harder than we both thought.

Marti went to Illinois and filled her tag there. I continued runnin’ and sittin’. Then, she put the pow on a jake over in her neck of the woods.

I kept on pathetically calling. 

I roosted birds. But they wouldn’t be there the next morning. That happens, says my turkey professor pal Steve Hickoff, who blogs at Realtree and Outdoor Life and writes for anyone who’s anyone in the business. He told me turkeys can move in the night from treetop to treetop. They bed-hop.

Dang it. 

By week 2, I was in autopilot. My eyes started popping open at 3:50 a.m. I headed out in the dark, to different areas, and as time went by … the gobblers got quieter and quieter.

I had a few catty situations with hens. We’d squabble every now and then. I called in a few gobblers, but not close enough to seal the deal with a few lead bits. I busted more than I called in. And I walked, and scrambled and sat. About 8 hours a day.

I lost five pounds. 

And then, I saw a gobbler strutting in a field for his lady friend one evening, but it was adjacent to our property, up on a ridge top. So, I called the owner and he gave me permission to hunt the field and asked me to let him know if I found his missing cattle, too.

Three days I sat in the tall grass of that field, and heard gobblers and talked to gobblers and didn’t convince any of them to come in. I did call in four coyotes and one bobcat.

Then, Marti, suffering from a pinched nerve in her neck, took pity on me and headed back to me – fresh from a visit to the chiropractor. She left the convenience and comfort of her huntin’ hut and food plot that she’d been preparing all year for this hunt, to crawl through two sets of five-strand barbed wire with me and sit in a field for two days. And she called her little heart out. And no gobblers came to her call either.

Until the last day, at about 8:30 a.m. A gang of four jakes sauntered over near her decoys. They didn’t like what they saw (the turkey decoys doing the, as Tom McHale says over at My Gun Culture, “nasty”). They did an about-face. Marti whispered, “If you’re gonna shoot, shoot now!” I dropped one at 44 yards. We had turkey nuggets that evening for supper.

Marti and me. Photo courtesy of Jason Baird

What will I remember the most from this year’s turkey season? That Marti is a friend for all seasons, and I’m not just talking about hunting. That when people like Steve or Will Brantley (my editor at Realtree.com) say “Stick to it,” that it sticks in my mind and helps me over one more ridge top.

Thanks, Marti (and Steve and Will). I owe you.

This win marks Julie’s 13th USPSA Ladies National Champion title. In this match, she placed 37th overall, 1st Woman and 1st B Class.

“The USPSA Single Stack Nationals is one of my favorite events!” said Julie. “The staff has so much experience that, regardless of pouring rain or unbearable heat, they excel at ensuring that all shooters have a safe, fun time. It’s also one of the best USPSA matches in that it tests a wide variety of practical shooting skills.”

Julie Golob competes at the 2012 USPSA Single Stack National Championships in Barry, Illinois. Photo courtesy of Paul Hyland of BritinUSA.net

Julie shot the match with her Smith & Wesson Pro Series 1911 pistol  chambered in 9mm, with custom work by Pete Single, a Stan Chen magwell and Warren Tactical sights. In pistol matches she uses ASYM Ammunition with Vihta Vuori components and Starline Brass, and wears a Safariland belt and holster rig and Rudy Project eye protection.

Julie said that going into the match, she knew she needed to prepare for lots of reloads, one-handed shooting and challenging shots.

“I competed with a great squad of shooters,” Julie said. “Even with the weather extremes we faced, from shooting in the rain to the soaring temperatures in the afternoon, we had a lot of fun!”

Julie was especially proud of the fact that she had no penalties in the match despite the challenges it presented.

“I was really happy with my performance and excited to claim the win among a field of very talented women.”

For more photos of the 2012 USPSA Single Stack Nationals, please visit Paul Hyland’s website.

And click here to watch a great video of Julie in action.

http://www.proishunting.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=50

Barb agrees with Bun Bun. This is a super layering piece of hunting apparel. Photo courtesy of Jason Baird

Amanda D'Agostino. Photo courtesy of Bucky D'Agostino

WaveSpin is the only website I am affiliated with and I have truly put the test to these incredible reels. I use them in all of my fishing which includes salt water (I am only a mile from the ocean). My first fish with the reel was a monster bluefish in Barnegat Inlet on braid during an outgoing tide. I don’t know if you have ever caught a bluefish but they are as tough as any fish lb per lb.

Like I said, the setup just looked more fitting in Amanda’s hands (compared to my 7ft rod she often used) and it truly was. A young girl throwing small plastics in a 15 mph wind in the front of a canoe has the potential for problems. It was flawless!

Remember — anglers should not overspool line on these WaveSpins. Doing so does not allow the teeth to do their job. That’s all there is to it.

All The Best,

Bucky D’Agostino

Bucky sent us a message from the president of WaveSpin Reels, Inc., Russ Riley, and he mentioned that Amanda is using the ZTR 1500, half the price of the DHxL. He writes, “The two ZTR models are reels that we brought out last year designed to perform just as well as our higher end reels but on a budget friendly design. The ZTRs have four bearings instead of eight and a one year warranty instead of two, but the spool and drags as well as the bearing are the same IDENTICALLY as our higher end models, the only difference being the color of the spool. Of course, the ZTR are a different body style as well. People underestimate 8lb test line; it works well for bass in all but heavy cover and is great for our light tackle reels. The ZTR 1500 and DHxL are designed to handle 2 through 10 lb test with no problems what-so-ever. As far as my personal suggestions for line — I have found Bass Pro Excel to be the best bang for the buck in mono-filament line and I use it quite frequently. I also love co-polymer lines as they seem to have the best features of both mono and fluorocarbon all rolled in once nice package, a blended line that works well for me.

“Equally, the 5 foot to 6.5 foot rods are what my wife likes best. She is only a little over 5 feet tall with small hands she is most comfortable with a 6 ft rod and the 1500 size reels.”

Retail: $45.95

Learn more about the ZTR1500.

Editor’s note: We know that Bucky D’Agostino is proud of his daughter, Amanda, and rightly so … she looks like she is a pro already! And isn’t she lucky … to have a dad that takes her fishing? Thanks, Bucky!

When you spend a lot of time outdoors, limiting sun exposure is important. Our lightweight shirt with SunSmart™ protection blocks harmful UV rays with a rating of UPF 50+. The high-performance fabric also keeps you cool and comfortable by wicking perspiration away from your skin, then dries in minutes. Updated women’s-specific design with side shaping and streamlined pockets for a more flattering and comfortable fit. Front and back cape venting. Feature two front pockets, tool tabs and eyewear loop. Wrinkle resistant – great for extended travel. Imported. Machine wash and dry.

• L.L.Bean will donate $2 to Casting For Recovery for each sale of this shirt
• Our lightest hot-weather shirt
• High-performance synthetic fabric keeps you cool and dries in minutes
• Rated to UPF 50 for superior protection from the sun’s UV rays
• $49,95

Visit L.L. Bean to learn more about this fly-fishing shirt.

Top Shot - Season 3. Photo courtesy of History.com

My First Experience

I first “experienced” the Smith and Wesson 500 during the first shooting competition on Season 3 of the History Channel’s Top Shot. When Colby unveiled the colossal revolver, I’m sure I smiled – but not because of my fascination over it – but,  because I was worried. I have little experience with revolvers of any size. I had no idea what kind of ride I was in for because I had never shot that caliber. When it came to be my turn to compete, the very first round I shot physically moved me backward. That gun packed a wallop that I had yet to experience when shooting a firearm. It felt like I was shooting a 12-gauge shotgun in the form of a revolver. It didn’t hurt to shoot, but I knew I must have looked ridiculous shooting it. (And after watching the first episode, it turns out I did!) I managed to squeak out a victory, and keep my thumbs intact. But that six rounds I shot didn’t leave me feeling good about my experience or my performance with the 500. That experience haunted me. I don’t like to feel out of control and that gun controlled me. I don’t like to leave bad experiences like that unresolved. I thought to myself that if I ever had the opportunity to shoot the Smith and Wesson 500 again, I was going to and learn to control the beast – or go broke trying.

The Arrival

I contacted Smith and Wesson to review the 500. When the firearm came, I picked it up on my lunch break.  When I came back to work at the end of my shift, I brought the 500 inside the police station with me.  I went down to discuss a case with our some detectives. One of my coworkers is a gun fanatic, so I opened the case to show him. Immediately upon opening the case, the faces of all the detectives in the office lit up – it’s an uncontrollable response.  The 500 is a massive revolver and its size is a curiosity to anyone who sees it. I have shown the 500 to a couple dozen people and the reactions are all the same: a huge smile, a giggle followed by an expletive, a request to handle it, the opening of the cylinder – followed by an insertion of the pinky in one of the chambers, another expletive, and finally a posed photo with the “freakish” firearm.  This firearm has mesmerizing appeal to any gun person. What person doesn’t wish they had that kind of immediate, positive effect on people?

She gives it a try, again, at the range. Photo courtesy of Michael Ahrens

At the Range

One lesson I learned after shooting the 500 the first time is that it is better for me to shoot it in double action mode. On the show, I cocked the hammer back thinking that double action would cause me to pull off my target. Cocking the hammer actually created more issues than it resolved. First of all, the frame on the 500 is so large that in order to cock the hammer, I have to completely give up my grip. Secondly, once I would cock the hammer on the 500, the resulting trigger pull was so light and the travel distance before the shot would break is quite short. I found myself shooting before I was completely on target.  This occurred when my true intention was to prep the trigger. I found that keeping the 500 in double action does not result in me pulling off my target because the trigger pull is remarkably smooth and consistent.

Now, she's smiling! Photo courtesy of Michael Ahrens

Since this was the second time I shot the Smith and Wesson 500, I knew what to expect and I braced myself for the inevitable beating I was going to take. I loaded the enormous rounds and endured the same physiological responses I would endure if I were getting ready to ride a roller coaster. I could feel my heart rate hasten, which caused me to take a deep breath, then I clenched my teeth, forced my eyes open, and held on tight for the ride.

My second experience with the Smith and Wesson 500 was far more enjoyable. Perhaps my ammunition was less powerful than what I first experienced, or perhaps selecting the 10.5-inch barrel assisted with the improved management of recoil. Or maybe, I was simply familiar with what to expect.  Just like riding a roller coaster, the more I shoot it the less scary it is … but, it’s still a thrill!

The perks of being married to Sara! He gets to carry her bags AND shoot her guns! Here's hubby Michael Ahrens on the firing line. Photo courtesy of Sara Ahrens

Sara Ahrens’ OffBeat is sponsored by Otis Technology.

Monday’s final in Women’s Sport Pistol featured Starlin Shi (Potomac, Md.) demonstrating her prowess as a member of the National Junior Team as she shot her way to a gold medal.  After winning a gold medal in Women’s Air Pistol, Taylor Gallegos (Prosper, Texas) earned a silver medal followed by Kathryn Kananen (Florissant, Colo.), who put several nice strings together during the finals to jump into bronze-medal position.

Junior shooters are able to participate in state competitions sanctioned by USA Shooting, allowing them the chance to receive an invitation to shoot at the NJOSC hosted by USA Shooting in Colorado Springs. The program serves as an important element of USA Shooting’s pipeline development system in promoting the shooting sports. Junior Olympic goals are to allow the skilled junior athletes to obtain National competitive experience for future development. The program also serves as an opportunity to appoint the top finishers to the National Junior Team.

“The Junior Olympics are the cornerstone of development for USA Shooting and serve as the pipeline for our future success in this sport,” said Mike Theimer, Director of Youth Development for USA Shooting. “The abilities of the shooters we see year in and year out are a testament to the shooting clubs and state competitions that help nurture the development of these athletes.”

Highlighting the diversity of shooters in attendance over the past three weeks, athletes from 15 different states secured top-3 finishes in the nine contested events.   Individual standouts included Catherine Green(Coventry, R.I.), a Texas Christian University shooter, who was the only double-winner among this year’s field after she won both the Women’s Rifle three-position and Air events.   Michael Matthews (Johns Creek, Ga.) won the Men’s three-position rifle event and would finish third in the prone rifle event as well.  Matthew Chezem (Simi Valley, Calif.) equaled a National Junior Record with 598 match points in his second day of competition, propelling him to victory. Tony Chung (Diamond Bar, Calif.), a 12-year-old air pistol shooter, was the lone J3 competitor (14 years of age or under) to earn a podium spot as the California native earned a silver medal.  For the top-3 finishers in each event, please see below. 

The highlight however for all shooters in attendance is the chance to be selected as a USA Shooting National Junior Team member.  Competitors earn this distinction by finishing in the top-two for any of the Junior Olympic events contested.   In all, eight new athletes officially secured their spot as National Junior Team members and were awarded an official USA Shooting Team jacket.

Numerous opportunities exist for young people interested in both the rifle and pistol shooting sports.  The junior rifle event created to prepare juniors to compete in Olympic-style shooting is called Three-Position Air Rifle (3PAR).  Many organizations have joined to form the National Three-Position Air Rifle Council including USA Shooting, Civilian Marksmanship Program, 4-H Shooting Sports, American Legion, Daisy/U.S. Jaycees Shooter Education Program along with the Army, Navy and Marine Corps JROTC Commands.  In addition, the National Rifle Association (NRA) also runs a 3PAR program.

The junior pistol event created to lead development in the sport is the Progressive Position Air Pistol (PPP). USA Shooting and the NRA both support this event and hold a jointly sponsored National Junior Olympic Progressive Position Air Pistol Championship, which will be held July 6-8 in Anniston, Ala. at the CMP South Shooting Center.

Still to come later this summer will be the NJOSC for Shotgun taking place July 10-17 in Colorado Springs.

For more information on the youth shooting sports, click here: http://www.usashooting.org/membership/youth-programs

You can also check out these videos related to the Olympic shooting sports and featured athlete interviews:  http://www.youtube.com/user/USAShootingTeam?feature=mhee#p/u

Erin Holmes, right, and her mother Karen Maier share a hug on a 2009 camping trip at LaPine State Park in Oregon. Holmes, now manager of Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, credits her mom for instilling in her an early love of nature. Photo credit: Joseph Maier

Whether they worked in the home or out seems not to have mattered ─ no more than whether they raised their kids alone, raised them in the city or country, or used fancy tools or dime-store trinkets to bring nature closer. What mattered was that they shared their obvious joy in nature, say those paying tribute.

“My mom absolutely 100 percent is responsible for my interest in conservation!” says Erin Holmes, manager of Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon. “It is one of my favorite things to tell people…my memories of being a little girl with my mom out in the outdoors and how that led to where I am today.”

A single mom, Karen Maier took Holmes and her sister camping, fishing and hiking in remote, exotic places. She’d pile both girls into the car at four in morning and wake them up when they were close to their destination. “One of my fondest memories,” says Holmes, “is the time, right after I saw ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind,’ she woke us up and right there was Devils Tower,” the otherworldly Wyoming monolith that served as an alien landing pad in the movie.

“My love of the outdoors came from moments like that,” says Holmes. “She instilled a sense of wonder in me, and a sense of the moment, to appreciate what is right in front of us, to want to protect that. She does that to this day.”

Molly Stoddard, who introduces tens of thousands of youngsters to nature each year as an instructional systems specialist at the Prairie Wetlands Learning Center, a Service facility in Fergus Falls, Minn., likewise credits her mom, Ann Nordstrom, for her career path.

“The first way my mom influenced me in my career choice was her repeated mantra:  ‘Go outside and play!’ So I was blessed with plenty of unstructured, unsupervised play time outdoors. I collected rocks, inchworms, earthworms, fireflies; played with roly polies, watched ants in the sidewalk cracks, and ran freely around from yard to yard” in her Chicago suburb.

From the backyard bird feeders her mom made out of milk jugs and plastic soda bottles, Stoddard learned to recognize common redpolls and pine siskins.  That made her curious about other birds. “So my mom and I explored nature areas and went ‘swamp tromping.’  Thanks to her, I aced my high school ecology class.”

Jane Griess’s mom, Margaret, found other ways to open her children’s eyes to the wonders of nature.

A biologist by training, she found biology lessons close at hand. “One of her favorite things to do for us was to find monarch caterpillars on milkweed plants along the highways and feed them til they turned into a chrysalis, and then watch as the butterfly emerged,” recalls Griess, manager ofSavannah National Wildlife Refuge and the six other refuges along the South Carolina and Georgia coasts.  “She even gave me my own caterpillar cage for my birthday one year.”

“We fed birds, raised baby squirrels, incubated eggs, raised ducks. My mom was pretty much the instigator of everything. She allowed things my dad never would allow. She’d take us on nature hikes, because they were free and fun. For entertainment, the family would pile in the car – two adults and seven kids — and drive around the undeveloped fringes of the Oak Ridge Lab in Tennessee, competing to spot groundhogs and wild turkey.

“I had the best childhood ever,” says Griess. “I attribute a lot of that to her.”

Refuge women aren’t alone in expressing a debt to their mothers. Gary Stolz, manager at John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum in Philadelphia, credits his mom, Sandy, with encouraging his interest in nature and “always putting up with my menagerie of reptiles and other pets, even though she would never hold a snake or lizard herself.”

Sometimes, though, even the most understanding mother can be pushed too far.

“One day, when I was in third grade, I was out on the back patio, flipping rocks,” recalls Stolz, “and I found my first spotted salamander. It was the coolest thing I’d ever seen. I was so excited I picked him up and ran in the house yelling, ‘Mom! Look what I found!’ She screamed, ‘That could be poisonous!’ Startled, I threw the little salamander in the air. It landed on the carpet all covered with fuzz. I took it outside and released it unharmed.”

It’s okay, mom. The larger message is the one that stuck ─ the one about the joys of nature.

For more photos of national wildlife refuge staff and their moms, see this Flickr set: http://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwshq/sets/72157629568505280/

Photo courtesy of National Wild Turkey Federation

1. June 2 — Bull Creek Rod & Gun Club, Tarentum. Archery, rifle, shotgun and women’s self-defense.

2. June 2 — Chapman State Park, Clarendon.

3. June 9 — Southern Lancaster County Farmers & Sportsman Association, Quarryville.

Preregistration is required for all events. Learn more about these WITO events.

Rocky ProLight Waterproof Snake Proof Hunting Boot (Style #1570)

This season we did not travel much because all of my efforts and extra time over the last three months have been put into launching the Ladies in Camo website. I have been so busy with that task, I was unable to field test an array of products as I normally do. I did get the opportunity to field test two products that were both instrumental to some great hunts this season.

Living in the warm climate of the South and having my fair share of run-ins with venomous snakes, snake boots are an absolute “MUST HAVE” in my gear bag. My old snake boots were beyond repair after last season and I was in search of a new pair. I had my mind set on the Chippewa Boots or something similar that did not lace-up, but finding a pair for women that can comfortably fit larger calves – along with the added room of tucked in pant legs – has been near impossible. I was fortunate enough to find a pair of Rocky Snake Boots; however, the boots are men’s, but available in smaller women-friendly sizes.

The Rocky ProLight Waterproof Snake Proof Hunting Boot (Style #1570) performed very well in the field. The boot was very light weight and immediately formed to my foot by the second wearing. It is definitely water and MUCK proof since I wore the boots in the swamps mid-calf high many times and I even sprayed them off with a high-pressure sprayer while wearing them when I returned to the lodge … and they did not leak.

The boot is made of durable nylon and full grain leather with a ProLight BioMech outsole that provides excellent traction. The boots were just the right height on my shorter-than-average leg with the cut-away back for perfect comfort when bending at the knee. The boot is a lace-up boot, but also is available in a zip-side style in larger sizes (Style #1581).

Again, these boots come only in men’s sizes, but are available from a size 4 through a 13 medium or wide, so you can easily convert this to women’s sizes for a comfortable fit. The Rocky ProLight waterproof Snake proof boot has a MSRP of $154.99 and can be found at any Rocky Boot retailer.

Another item in my gear bag that brought GRAND success this season was Wild Evolution’s Devastator Series, Little Runt decoy. The design of the Little Runt Decoy is intentionally smaller in size resembling an inferior bird. The upright, stubborn and semi-confrontational posture provokes other birds to come in and investigate. This decoy works well by enticing a henned-up tom to break from courtship of his hens in efforts of domineering his brood.

Meet Nancy Jo's new best friend, the "Little Runt!" Photo courtesy of Life in Camo

The Little Runt is convenient carrying in the field, fits nicely in turkey vest bags, and can be easily and quickly set up. The stake is thin enough to be pushed into the ground with the foot peg that is built onto the stake. The body and head colors mimic that of wild turkeys so closely, at a glance it will fool even you in the field.

The Devastator Series Little Run decoy by Wild Evolution has a MSRP of $34.99 and can be ordered directly from Decoy Planet. Or for a short period you can take advantage of the Ladies in Camo Promo and get $10 off of this decoy with free shipping. Just use the promo code LIC2012 at checkout.

Ladies in Camo has two more turkey hunts scheduled this season with a few limited spots still available. I wish the best of luck to all of those that are still turkey hunting. If given the opportunity, I hope you DANCE.

Editor’s note: We’re heading off to hunt with the Guru Huntress soon! Why don’t you plan on joining her in 2012? Check out the wide variety of ladies’ hunts available at her website, Ladies in Camo.

People – let us stop this madness!  Diaper bags are for babies and the range bag Bang Bang Boutique is giving away this month is for your firearms.

In honor of Mother’s Day, this give away is nothing short of the Cadillac of all range bags.  And doesn’t your mother or mother of your children deserve the very best?  Imagine her delight on the morning of May 13^th when she opens a card that tells her she will soon be receiving the very range bag she has always been searching for, in her favorite color and embroidered with her name in her second favorite color staring back up at her?  No doubt her next move will be to load it up with her gear and realize “Hey!  I need more gear, ammo, perhaps a new gun or two – this bag is not nearly full enough!”  Which will give you, gentle gift giver, a plethora of gift giving ideas for this special lady the rest of the year.

Versatile is almost an understatement as the Handgun Range Bag is three bags in one.

1)     It is a padded handgun carrier with two zippered compartments and a divided middle compartment.

2)     It is a separate carryall bag that has a compartment for the hand gun carrier and a separate compartment for accessories

3)     It is a combination of the two bags that can be carries as on convenient, protective, organizer bag for your handguns and the associated gear.

This "mother" of all range bags retails for $129.95, but you can get it at 15% off when you use the coupon code below!

Made in the USA, construction will be the least of your concerns.  Outside, the bag is crafted in 1000 denier Cordura and available in every color of the rainbow as well as a few wild animal prints, and Pink True Timber Camo.  Other colors or prints may be available upon request.  Inside, find 420 denier nylon packcloth lining, 3/8” high density foam padding and heavy duty YKK zippers.  All seams are taped and double stitched.  All stress points have been reinforced.

As each bag is made to order, it takes 2 weeks to ship.  The winner of this bag can have their mother’s name embroidered on the front pocket – which is also an option for anyone who buys the bag through Bang Bang Boutique.  We will gladly provide you cover on 5/13/12 by making sure you have something to stick in your mother’s day card to prove you were not slacking off and your beyond thoughtful gift is on its way.  If your lady needs a larger bag, be sure to check out the Hand Gun Range Duffel!

No matter what gift you choose, get 15% off at Bang Bang Boutique with coupon code MOMWON.

To win, just tell us about one thing that most people probably would not carry, but that you carry, in your range bag and why. Is it a lucky charm? Is it a special snack? What is it?

Deadline is midnight, May 4.

The bowtrainer was designed by an avid archer who also is a physical therapist. It retails for $44

Bow Trainer by Prairie Innovations

Designed by an avid archer and certified physical therapist, Bow Trainer tm is a unique training tool that can help archers obtain greater accuracy by improving their form and increasing their strength and stamina. Bow Trainer tm is the perfect training tool for archers of any age and level of experience-from novice to seasoned professional.

Custom Slate Turkey Call

2 1/2″ maple call with a purple heart striker. This combination of woods provide for easy use and perfect sound quality. The small size is great for small hands and soft calls.

Perfect for hunting near home or on the road.

HERCAMOSHOP Personal Care Products

Body wash, shampoo, conditioner, hair gel, lotion and hair spray. The complete package that allows you to feel good, look good and be scent-free. No more frizzy hair and dry skin during hunting season.

Here’s what MIchelle wrote: “My favorite bow is my current Hoyt Ruckus. The Ruckus is comfortable, not only because It fits my small frame well, but because it is consistent and I know I can rely on it with every draw. It is lightweight and balanced, and it has never let me down.”

“It was just a fantastic match, and everyone had a wonderful time!” said Molly.

Molly Smith competes with her Smith & Wesson Model 627 on April 21 at the ICORE Southwest Regional Match in California. Photo courtesy of Molly Smith

Competing as part of a record-breaking turnout of 124 shooters, Molly managed to pull off her personal best competition shooting performance (so far) in a single match, winning three top-level trophies: First Place Lady, Limited; First Place Junior, Limited; and First Place C Class, Limited.

Molly said that the stages designed for this year’s Southwest Regional were unusual and very challenging to shoot well, including a rotating plate rack, multiple barricades and even an X-Count field course. Molly shot the match with her trusty Smith & Wesson Model 627 revolver fitted with a titanium cylinder and a Hogue Extended Cylinder Release.

Molly extended her heartfelt thanks to the many friends who rooted for her. “I appreciate everybody’s happy thoughts and well-wishes. They worked!”

The most common complaint I get from people starting out fly fishing is the expense of getting all the gear they need to get started.  This often deters people from ever starting the sport, which is really unfortunate. Good fly-fishing gear often costs an arm and a leg, that is, if you are not a guide or an industry pro.

Katherine Grand is on the water whenever she can be. Photo by Eric Grand

If you buy cheap equipment, it often wears out quickly or there is no warranty if you break your rod. Even if you don’t break a cheap rod, you may outgrow it as your skills increase and end up spending more money in the long run.

The company that I have been the most impressed with thus far which addressed these issues is Redington. They make great-quality, affordable fly-fishing gear that you won’t outgrow. Best of all, Redington offers everything you need to get started, including waders, rods, reels, clothing and LOTS of awesome items made specifically for women!    Furthermore, all their rods and reels have a lifetime warranty! Redington really filled a niche of technical, durable fly-fishing  gear that’s affordable for all levels of fly fishers.

What? She went duck hunting in her fly-fishing waders? Now, that's a testament to Redington's toughness! photo by Eric Grand

No wonder she's smiling! A great 'bow and super waders that keep her dry and move with her. Photo by Eric Grand

I have owned two pairs of Redington’s women’s waders and boots, and every year they just seem to get better and more durable. Both pairs last just as long as my much more expensive waders and I have yet to put a hole in the pair I got last year, even though I have used them duck hunting (which is extremely hard on waders). The fit on their women’s waders is fantastic and I haven’t found better waders in that price point on the market yet. They have developed a super technical woman’s wader this year called the Women’s Sonic-Pro Wader that I am excited to try out … if I ever wear out my current pair.

As for apparel, Redington makes some great women’s apparel that performs wonderfully in the outdoors – no matter what you are up to. It is also attractive and fits great! I personally own three shirts and a great cap, and I am looking forward to purchasing some new items this year. I especially love their Fish and Fly Cap.

She loves the cap. Photo by Eric Grand

They have new items every year, and many items that aren’t just classic fly-fishing styles. They also have great men’s apparel too and lots of fun accessories. Regardless of your budget, you can get set up head-to-toe with great gear from Redington.

http://www.redington.com/ 

Tori Nonaka shoots for Team GLOCK. Photo courtesy of Tori Nonaka

Open to all GSSF ladies, the Palmetto GLOCK Girl Shootout is the vision of Lisa Marie Judy, an NRA certified instructor, S.C. Law Enforcement Division CWP Instructor and owner of B.E.L.T. Training, LLC. Judy’s goal is to offer female shooters the chance to compete against their lady peers in an otherwise male dominant field.

“It’s my experience that husbands and fathers make awful instructors,” said Judy. “It has become my life’s passion to teach women of all ages, no matter what their shooting experience, how to shoot firearms. I truly believe that when women are instilled with confidence, they are able to more than hold their own when shooting competitively against the men.”

Working with GLOCK and GSSF, Judy organized the match with one goal in mind – “Just because I am a girl, it doesn’t mean I can’t dominate with my GLOCK!”

As with all GSSF matches, the Palmetto GLOCK Girl Shootout is family oriented and hosts competitors ranging from beginner to expert. There will be a variety of divisions for competitors to enter. Each division with a minimum of ten participants will award a GLOCK pistol to the highest performer. Last year, the first-ever ladies only match was held at the same location May 28-29.

A GLOCK pistol will also be given as a special performance award to the Match Meister, the lady with the single best performance score among all the stock divisions in the match. Special recognitions with cash prizes for the highest score in the categories of High Senior, High Super Senior, High Junior and High Challenged will also be awarded.

Tori Nonaka. Photo courtesy of GLOCK, Inc.

“As a young woman shooter, I encourage all girls to try the sport,” said Tori Nonaka, Team GLOCK Shooting Squad Member. “I think that this ladies only event is one of the best opportunities to get to know other women shooters and to show off your skills!”

All that is needed to compete is a membership in GSSF and $25 for each division. To join, simply log onto www.GSSFonline.com and complete the application or sign up at the event. All competitors are required to shoot with a GLOCK pistol, and representatives will have stock GLOCK pistols for use if competitors do not bring their own.

There are many benefits of GSSF membership, including an opportunity to attend a GLOCK Armorer course. GSSF is affiliated with the United States Civilian Marksmanship Program, whose benefits are also made available to GSSF members.

To register for the match, or for more information, contact Lisa Marie Judy at 843.729.3917 or visit www.belttraining.com.

About GSSF

GSSF is in its 21st year, and continues to welcome shooters ranging from young and old, law enforcement officers, members of the US Armed Forces and even first time shooters. More than 94,000 members have attended events during the past 20 years, including world champions who started their careers at GSSF matches and continue to return to compete, and introduce their families to the sport of competitive shooting.

About GLOCK, Inc.

GLOCK, Inc. is a leading global manufacturer of pistols and accessories. GLOCK’s superior engineering has produced a pistol with only 34 parts and a rugged polymer-frame, providing industry-leading reliability shot after shot. GLOCK is renowned for its pistols which are safe, featuring three safeties; simple, offering a low number of components to provide reliability; and fast, with no encumbering parts to slow the speed to fire. This combination makes GLOCK pistols the first choice among consumers and law enforcement, with 65% of agencies nationwide choosing to carry GLOCK. Austrian-engineered, the company has manufacturing facilities in the United States and Austria. Based in Smyrna, Ga., GLOCK, Inc. is an advocate for our nation’s law enforcement and military personnel, as well as all citizens’ Second Amendment right to bear arms. For more information, please visit www.teamglock.com.

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It looked like a catalog from … J. Crew or Express. It did not look like L.L. Bean. I mean, L.L. Bean? I used to wear those clothes when I taught Sunday School to six-year olds. I liked their fantastic quality, classic lines and vibrant colors.

L.L. Bean's "Signature" boot

For years, I’ve worn L.L. Bean fleece and almost wore out a pair of boots. Well, actually, I lost 32 pounds and 3 shoe sizes and had to send them to the charity shop. I need to replace them though, because  I miss them. And I read that these boots were the rage last winter in the teen and college scene markets.

But, back to the theme. This is not your mom’s L.L. Bean. Sure it still has poplin and linen and cotton and outdoor-related items, but I know what it is … they changed models. Instead of sensible thirty-somethings, they now shoot catalogs with twenty-something models that look like they just came from a session for Abercrombie & Fitch.

Somehow I cannot see teaching Sunday School in this get-up.

And you know what? I hope they do this with their entire outdoor line of stuff, because we oldies know about L.L. Bean’s goodies. And the younger generation? They might look the part first, and then, maybe they’ll wonder if they should act the part. Maybe they’ll actually pick up a fishing rod or a shotgun or a bow, learn some new skills and get outside. Maybe they’ll hike a trail or watch for birds or crawl in a kayak somewhere – all because they have these sweet outdoor clothes that work for them. Visit L.L. Bean Signature. Free shipping on every order!

Indoors and outdoors.

Although the company has been around since 1965, Craghoppers clothing is relatively new to the U.S.  I just tried out three pieces provided by the company on a week-long backpacking trip through the Ouachita National Forest.

Traci wearing the top and trousers and doesn't she look fetching?

Two of the pieces I tried were from the NosiLife line. Nosi is short for no mosquitoes, and this is some of the best insect repellent clothing I’ve used. I wore these clothes literally night and day for seven straight days. My hiking partner picked off ticks by the dozen over the course of the week. I found only two ticks on me the whole week. This repellency is by far the clothing’s most outstanding feature.

NosiLife Flores Atoll top retails for $40

I had two problems with the top as serious hiking clothing. It’s mostly cotton, which doesn’t wick sweat well and stays cold and wet.  I knew this ahead of time, and carried a light wool sweater to slip on when I stopped for breaks.

The other problem was the slightly low décolleté. If I’m wearing clothing for sun and bug protection, I want it to cover as much of me as possible! For future serious hiking, I would purchase the long sleeved nylon NosiLife Kochin shirt.

The two minor complaints aside, after several washings, and totally sweat soaked, this shirt still repelled bugs like crazy, was extremely comfortable, and wore well under many miles of backpack straps without pilling or snagging. I will use it again and again when I want to wear insect repellent clothing and want to look dressed up doing it!

The other mosquito repellent piece was a skirt that offers UPF protection and a great quick dry fabric. The skirt was very comfortable on well-maintained trails (not for bushwacking!), but my favorite use for it was as a biking skirt. I can wear it riding in all sorts of weather, the fabric dries in minutes, and it looks great after being packed in a bag, crushed in stuff sack, or worn from wet to dry. It has become a staple in my work wardrobe, since I bike to work a lot. It has a cute flare cut, and the bug repellency was every bit as good as the Atoll top.

NosiLife skirt retails for $60.

The final piece I tested is probably my favorite. The Kiwi convertible trousers are made of a fantastic stretchy material that made all day hikes up steep hills, well… not a pleasure, but less of a pain! The flat seams rode well under the backpack hip belt without causing hot spots, and I love the zippered pockets. The zippers on the removable legs performed well for dozens of legs off-and-ons over the course of the week. The material held up through a lot of briars and brambles with only minor snags and no rips.

Kiwi Pro Stretch Convertible trousers retail for $70

My only complaint about the trousers: they need some sort of waistband adjustment tabs. I always have trouble getting waist bands to fit properly, and I lost five pounds in seven days of hiking, making the waist way too loose. By the end of the week I felt the trousers were slipping down as I walked. Perhaps a Velcro adjustment tab would do the trick, but the company really needs to address this issue. I made a tie belt of webbing to solve the problem for now, and these will still be the first pair of pants I grab for when I plan a hike.

Visit Craghoppers.

Traci Schauf pens the blog The Adventures of Mother Nature, a rompin’ good read.

Photo courtesy of USA Shooting

Cold, wet and gusty conditions welcomed the competitors upon arrival at the Olympic venue Thursday on the grounds of the Royal Artillery Barracks making for some unfavorable shooting conditions. The weather improved slightly on Friday and so did Rhode as she went on to miss just two targets over her next 75 shots. Her final score of 95 was good enough for bronze after winning a shoot-off with Thailand’s Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit, 4 to 3 hits.

The Chinese champion Wei Ning won the event, after defeating Slovakia’s Danka Bartekova in a sudden-death tiebreaker for the gold medal.

U.S. competitors Brandy Drozd (Bryan, Texas)and Morgan Craft (Muncy Valley, Pa.) tied one another with a final score of 67 targets after a disappointing third round which saw them drop five targets apiece.

Rhode has now medaled in back-to-back World Cups to begin an Olympic year she hopes will lead to Olympic history. A medal at the 2012 Olympic Games later this summer would make Rhode the first U.S. athlete competing in an individual sport to medal in five consecutive Olympic Games. Rhode began her year in Tucson at the opening ISSF World Cup and blistered the home range by notching a perfect 75/75 preliminary score, a new ISSF Qualification World Record, tied the Finals World Record of 99 and also secured a spot to shoot Women’s Trap in London as well.

In Women’s 10-meter Air Rifle contested Thursday, Jamie Gray (Lebanon, Pa.) was the high finisher in 20th position with a score of 396 match points. Sarah Scherer (Woburn, Mass.) finished 41st with 394 points. Germany’s Sonja Pfeilschifter would earn the gold medal with a stand-out 105 out of possible 109 points in the final.

In Women’s 10-meter Air Pistol also held on Thursday, Sandra Uptagrafft (Phenix City, Ala.) finished in 43rd place with a score of 377 points. Tien Chia Chen, a 28-year old shooter from Chinese Taipei, won the pistol match as the first-time World Cup winner made it to the final with the highest qualification score of 388 points. Chen, ranked 33rd in the world in this event, would shoot 101.5 points in the final, keeping her opponents behind and climbing upon the podium with a total score of 488.5 points.

In today’s Men’s 10-Meter Air Pistol match, Daryl Szarenski (WCAP/Seale, Ala.) finished in 22nd place with a score of 578 while teammate Jason Turner (Rochester, N.Y.) finished 29th with a score of 577 points. Daemyung Lee of Korea won the gold with a score of 691.3, shooting a qualifying score of 591 points.

On tap for Saturday, will be the finals of Men’s Skeet and Men’s 10-meter Air Rifle. Through two legs of Men’s Skeet, reigning Olympic gold medalist Vincent Hancock (USAMU/Eatonton, Ga.) and Jon Michael McGrath (Tulsa, Okla.), the 2010 Junior World Champion, sit at 72 targets hit and will need to be nearly perfect to earn a berth in the finals. BJ Blanchard (Vidor, Texas), after shooting 23/25 his first two rounds, shot 21 targets in his third round.

Matt Emmons (Browns Mills, N.J.) will make his Olympic-year debut on Saturday in Men’s 10-Meter Air Rifle as will Jonathan Hall (Carrollton, Ga.).

All fifteen of the ISSF Olympic shooting events – in the disciplines of Rifle, Pistol and Shotgun shooting – will be conducted during the test event that runs through April 28.

Visit www.usashooting.org

As we begin our 17th retreat season, Casting for Recovery is auctioning off a number of unique, fun, valuable, and high-quality items to raise funds for our renowned national program that offers healing opportunities, support, and education to women around the U.S. who have received a breast cancer diagnosis. Our program combines the therapeutic sport of fly fishing, counseling, and medical information that provide tools for improved quality of life. It is provided at no cost to participants!

WE NEED YOUR HELP to make our program available to more women.

We need your support! Our online auctions are an exciting and fun way for you to help us fulfill our national mission to serve breast cancer survivors, and at the same time have a chance to win cool items!

In this Spring auction, we are proud to feature awesome, high-quality items in our catalog, thanks to many generous and creative donors around the country who have made a big effort to get behind CFR’s fundraising efforts. On behalf of the women we serve, we thank you ALL: donors and bidders! Visit the website to see the auction and participate!

The Little Gal and I had big plans for spring hunting this year. We were going on two different spring break hog hunts, a youth turkey hunt and we were going to be doing some good ol’ Oklahoma fishing. These plans unfortunately had to be cancelled, put off and changed. The Little Gal’s grandpa, aka “Pops,” became extremely ill, had kidney failure and passed away. The Little Gal learned a lot from the loss and the brief interruption or “inside-outing” of our lives. She and I are gathering ourselves back together with the help of Hank. He’s been a rock throughout it all for the both of us. He’s re-scheduled a couple of our plans for later in the summer and is working on getting us back to “right-side out.”

Our Spring Break brought us a chance to reflect on last year’s vacation. We were in Oklahoma for the same sort of hunting and fishing. The Little Gal was excited, nervous and scared to be hunting a wild hog. She was, of course, an experienced big game huntress with a mule deer doe and a cow elk under her belt, but this hunt meant a little more to her. You see, we had already learned about Pops being sick. He was going to be seeing a natural healer and as offering he had to provide food. Pops indicated that he would like to take meat, and any meat taken had to be all natural. No hormones and not shots. He asked the Little Gal if she had any of her doe or elk to share and she did. Now, she hoped to add wild hog meat to his package to offer.

With guns, bows, fishing poles and luggage stowed, we safely made trip to Oklahoma. We helped our friend check his hog traps. He showed us the damage the hogs were doing to the land and showed us the massive trails they had made. We worked on some fishing. Then we checked traps again and then fished some more. The Little Gal was excited and having fun, but she wanted to know when she was going to get to hunt a hog. She was pretty urgent about wanting to get a hog to give to her Pops.

After a few days, we finally headed to a spot our friend had set up for her to hopefully shoot a hog. She was very nervous as we went to a trail where the hogs would be crossing from one field to another. We found a place with good cover and sat in the brush to wait.

The Little Gal trembled as she thought of the stories everyone had told her about hogs attacking. She shook and tried to remain calm. Hank and I sat on either side of her with our guns on hand just in case anything got out of control. We wanted to make sure, above all, the Little Gal was safe. You would think this would make a child more comfortable, but I’m pretty sure it did the opposite. She was worried we might shoot it before she could. We assured her that we would not shoot “her hog!”

The Little Gal and Mia Anstine with her hog for Pops. Photo by Hank Anstine

Soon we heard a grunt and the Little Gal sat up. She leaned into her gun, which rested on her shooting sticks. She held a little too tight. We told her, “Here it comes.” She was frantic, whispering that she couldn’t see it. It ran past and sure enough, she couldn’t see it. She was just a little too low in the brush. We quickly stood her up and saw more hogs coming. She was pretty rattled after the first hog ran by so as this group came, we spent our time quietly trying to get her settled. She relaxed a bit and the last straggler of the group headed our way. She aimed her Benelli Super Black Eagle (20 ga.) as the hog came quickly. We weren’t sure if she was going to be able to shoot it on the run. Suddenly, there it was! BAM! She squeezed off a shot and hit that hog, “right in the goodies,” as she would say. With the hog’s momentum carrying it, it trotted a few steps farther and fell over in the tall grass.

Just like this year, the Little Gal overcame fear, learned a lot and grew as a person as well as huntress. She was very proud when Pops told her how much the Healer appreciated her donation. She also will forever be proud of her contribution to him through her hunting experiences.

Follow Mia and the Little Gal’s adventures off this site at Mia’s blog, My Many Outdoor Adventures.

A safari experience in South Africa is always good. Throw in a bit of shooting action, on a package designed exclusively for friends of GunGoddess.com, and it gets even better!

Tracking, trailing & spoor identification

Participants will learn the ancient art of tracking, trailing and spoor identification, which has been perfected by the San Bushmen and still used today. The Big 5 (lion, African elephant, Cape buffalo, leopard, rhinoceros) will be tracked on foot, if fresh tracks are found. Information on the birds, plants, insects and animals encountered on the way will also be provided, together with Shangaan myths and legends and the guides’ amusing anecdotes.

Firearm sessions

Firearm sessions include the use of a pistol, shotgun, semi-automatic rifle and large-bore bolt-action rifle. Participants shoot a variety of man-made, static & moving targets, jungle lane shoots, timed shoots and a selection of exercises to get the adrenalin and competitive spirit going.

Bush craft

Participants will be treated to an interactive bush craft session, covering topics such as lighting fire using friction, carrying a fire from one location to another, making rope and snares from plants in the area, making teas and herbal remedies, baking bread underground and more!

Bateleur Mobile Camp is situated in the heart of the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, adjacent to the Kruger National Park. This prime wilderness area boasts the ‘Big Five’, a large diversity of antelope species, the entire range of smaller predators and over 500 bird species.

This adventure can be booked on dates of your choice if you have a group of 4 or more, or join the GunGoddess group from 4 – 9 August. See photos, contact info, camp and course details at: www.gungoddess.com/shoot-n-safari-in-south-africa/.

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Contact: Athena Means * (916)412-5811 * Athena@GunGoddess.com

Laura Burgess. Doesn't sit the fence ... ever.

True story and most people will never know it.

Here’s an interesting side bar. After the Japanese decimated our fleet in Pearl Harbor Dec 7, 1941, they could have sent their troop ships and carriers directly to California to finish what they started. The prediction from our Chief of Staff was we would not be able to stop a massive invasion until they reached the Mississippi River. Remember, we had a 2 million man army and war ships in other localities, so why did they not invade?

After the war, the remaining Japanese generals and admirals were asked that question. Their answer…they knew that almost every home had guns and the Americans knew how to use them.

The world’s largest army … America’s hunters! I had never thought about this …

A blogger added up the deer license sales in just a handful of states and arrived at a striking conclusion: There were over 600,000 hunters this season in the state of Wisconsin.

Allow me to restate that number.

Over the last several months, Wisconsin’s hunters became the eighth largest army in the world.

More men (and women!)  under arms than in Iran.

More than in France and Germany combined.

These hunters deployed to the woods of a single American state to hunt with firearms, and no one was killed.

That number pales in comparison to the 750,000 who hunted the woods of Pennsylvania and Michigan ‘s 700,000 hunters, all of whom have now returned home.

Toss in a quarter million hunters in West Virginia and it literally establishes the fact that the hunters of those four states alone would comprise the largest army in the world.

Sign up to receive Laura Burgess Marketing newsletters by email.

The point?

America will forever be safe from foreign invasion with that kind of home-grown firepower.

Hunting — it’s not just a way to fill the freezer. It’s a matter of national security.

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That’s why all enemies, foreign and domestic, want to see us disarmed.

Food for thought when next we consider gun control?

Visit Laura Burgess Marketing.

“We experimented with a little bit of pink on our boats last year,” shared Kerkvliet, pictured below with a nice 28.5 inch walleye from prefishing earlier this week. “This year we really kicked it up a notch. You think they’re pink enough?” he laughs.

The fishing duo loves embracing a great cause. Those that battle cancer, particularly breast cancer have enjoyed a smile and a good time in a beautiful pink boat, whether at a fundraiser event or on the water fishing. “We’ve worked with some of the most amazing groups of gals across the Twin Cities that help raise funds and awareness for breast cancer,” added Dean Kaminski. “They love having our pink boats at their events and we love taking folks out fishing to help raise money for great causes. And some of the gals are even willing to share their pink fingernail polish if we need to doctor up some lures.”

“We work hard for all of our sponsors, promoting their products and services wherever we go,” continued Kevin Kerkvliet. “Our logo, the pink boats, even our pink shirts get us invited places that professional anglers just might not get to go. And that hugely expands our reach. All while we’re doing something good that we both belive in.” Their sponsors are 100% behind it, too.

“These guys are doing a great job bringing fishing, a sport that we love, into new groups of people,” shared George Liddle, Manufacturer’s Rep for Ranger Boats and sponsor of Pink Boats for Hope. “It takes real men to run pink boats,” laughs Liddle. “I love what they’re doing and how this brings the sport of fishing into so many more people’s lives. Almost all of us have had folks we care about battling cancer. It feels good to help out in this way.” Liddle Marketing Company has helped Kerkvliet and Kaminski with logo’d decals and even lapel pins in the shape of a pink boat. The items sell for a nominal fee of $10 or $20, and fifty percent of the proceeds on the logo’d items will go to local programs that help those in the midst of their cancer battles. Organizations like Hope Chest or Hope Kids or even Prevent Cancer Foundation. A link to donate directly to these non-profits can be found on the website: www.pinkboatsforhope.com.

“The pink boats are an ice breaker, that’s for sure,” shared Kaminski. “People will come up and talk to us at the gas station or at the boat launch…and sometimes they want to tell you about someone in their life that’s been affected. It’s a privilege that folks want to connect like that. And then we can talk about how the walleyes are biting and what we’re catchin’ ‘em on.”

See www.pinkboatsforhope.com for complete information.

With more than five million women participating in shooting sports, an increase of 46.5 percent since 2001, this growing demographic will enjoy classes ranging from Handguns and Heels, An Introduction to Personal Firearms to How to Carry Concealed Discreetly. For those looking to expand their knowledge in other areas, seminars will include Dutch Oven Desserts to Blackened, Breaded or Fried, An Introduction to Serving Fish to Your Family. Classes will be taught by local experts and free of charge.

Product specialists and industry experts will be on hand to answer questions and make recommendations while offering suggestions to help make the ladies’ next outdoor adventure a success.

“Our Ladies’ Day Out event is about encouraging women to try new outdoor activities in an environment that makes them feel comfortable and at ease,” Enrique Mendez , Glendale General Manager, said. “We want women to feel welcome, appreciated and supported.”

Marti Davis will be at the Hazelwood, Mo., location of Cabela's on April 21 for Ladies' Day. Photo by Barbara Baird

According to the National Shooting Sports Foundation Firearms Retailer Survey Report, 2011 Edition, 61 percent of retailers surveyed saw an increase in female customers in their store in 2010 over 2009.

All ladies in attendance will be eligible to enter a drawing for a $500 Cabela’s gift card. Winners do not need to be present to win.

For more information about Cabela’s Ladies’ Day Out, visit www.cabelas.com.

Note: The WON’s Marti Davis will be attending Ladies’ Day Out at the Cabela’s in Hazelwood, MO.

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About Cabela’s Incorporated

Cabela’s Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, Nebraska, is the world’s largest direct marketer, and a leading specialty retailer of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor merchandise. Since the Company’s founding in 1961, Cabela’s® has grown to become one of the most well-known outdoor recreation brands in the world, and has long been recognized as the World’s Foremost Outfitter®. Through Cabela’s growing number of retail stores and well-established direct business, the company offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products at competitive prices while providing superior customer service. Cabela’s also issues the Cabela’s Club® VISA credit card, which serves as its primary customer-loyalty rewards program. Cabela’s stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “CAB”.

Contact:

Patricia Zeman 623/872-6719 or 623/640-6284

Editor’s note: We were delighted to see our pal, Natalie Foster, from Girls Guide to Guns, and  Kim Rhode, Olympic shotgunner, in a video at the website, explaining the function of the network. And of course, all the women are believable and honest. We especially appreciate Sandy Froman. Froman was the second woman to serve as president of the NRA.

If you’re looking for a handgun for personal protection, you’ve got your work cut out for you. A recent search of the exhibits at the National Rifle Association’s Annual Meeting in St. Louis gave me the opportunity to talk to the company representatives about the guns and also, to handle them. If only … there were an accompanying range nearby, so that I could shoot them. Because only when you shoot a gun can you tell if it truly is for you. Just like when you try on shoes. You must walk in them first.

Tammy Ballew and Britney Starr also checked out the guns and as you can tell, we had a good time together.

Let’s get started. These are some of the reasons I like these guns.

She likes! Tammy Ballew likes the look and feel of the new Shield. Photo by Barbara Baird

The buzz at the show centered around Smith & Wesson’s Shield, available in 9 mm and .40 cal options. Here are five things I like about this gun: 1) a skinny Minnie at only .98 inch at its widest, 2) comes with two, single stack magazines (the second one is a little longer and can hold one more, plus it extends the stock a bit so you can get a three-fingered grip), 3) patented Palmswell grips (think of filling in all the parts of your hand), 4) stainless-steel chassis (think sweat and summer) and 5) it looks like its counterparts in the M&P line. MSRP: $449.

Safari outfitter Britney Starr, of Starr and Bodill, thought the Mustang was a little thoroughbred. Photo by Barbara Baird

Colt’s little pony, introduced earlier this year and believe me, it created a buzz at SHOT Show, the .380 Mustang Pocketlite, continues to find its way into pocket holsters and purses across the land. I shot it last January and frankly, was shocked at its accuracy. Five things I like about the Mustang: 1) short, single-action trigger, 2) sleek, shiny, scaled-down beautiful 1911 look, 3) lightweight in an aluminum-alloy lower receiver, 4) major components were cast, so that means tight tolerances and 5) commander style hammer. Colt also makes nice 9s, like the Defender. MSRP: Under $600.

The ladies, Tammy Ballew and Britney Starr, really thought the P238s felt "balanced." Photo by Barbara Baird

We couldn’t leave Sig out of the loop, so we stopped there, too. A rep told us that the P238 continues to be a favorite little carry gun with the ladies. Five reasons why? 1) It weighs under a pound 2) anodized alloy beavertail style frame with wood grips that are so secure and so … beautiful, 3) stainless steel slide with slide serrations (I am a stainless snob), 4) sweet sights (SIGLITE rear Night Sight and Tru-Glo Tritium Fiber Optic Front Sight and 5) perfect trigger. I shot this one recently. I like it. MSRP: Somewhere in the middle of $500. Also, note all the configurations and attractive colors of this gun at the website.

So many guns. So little opportunity to really try them. Unless you live in a big city with a big indoor gun range with a big variety of rental guns, you often have to 1) take your chances and hope that the guns shoots to your liking, 2) beg or borrow a gun, 3) keep putting it off until someday, 4) shoot thousands of bullets through several that don’t fit (How many shoes have you taken to the charity shops?) and 5) go to that big city and rent that gun for downrange time.

Do you have a little favorite you’d like to tell us about … and maybe even five reasons why?

One of the many, many, many things I love about turkey hunting is the opportunity to put to use my Mossberg 835 Ulti-Mag Turkey Shotgun. I own several shotguns, but when I’m headed to the turkey woods, I always grab the Mossberg.

Tammy Ballew sports her fav Mossberg on a turkey hunt with good friend Marti Davis. Photo by Barbara Baird

My 835 Ulti-Mag is a 12 gauge with a 24-inch overbored barrel and adjustable fiber optic sights. According to Mossberg, the smooth bore barrels are overbored to 10-gauge bore dimensions, which reduces recoil and produces uniform shot pattern from both light and heavy shot charges. The barrel has eight strategically placed ports on each side, which directs gasses upward and outward, also reducing recoil, in addition to minimizing muzzle jump for a quick second shot recovery.

I’m extremely impressed with the LPA (Lightning Pump Action) of the Mossberg shotgun. It’s a smooth transition when racking in another shell. I don’t worry about it jamming up and having to dig the spent shotshell out.

Additional specifications that the 835 Ulti-Mag features that I think are important for a turkey shotgun:

• Ulti-Full turkey tube
• Fiber optic sights that are windage and elevation adjustable
• Ultra-quiet thumb operated safety
• Receiver is drilled and tapped for scope base attachment

This terrific turkey gun comes in Woodland Camo, Mossy Oak Break-Up Infinity, Realtree Hardwoods HD Green and Mossy Oak New Break-Up. And last, but definitely not least, this shotgun is priced right. Depending on the model, of course, they run between $516 and $555.

One of my hunting goals is to achieve a Grand Slam turkey hunt, and when I do, I will be using the Mossberg 835 Ulti-Mag Turkey Shotgun to successfully complete this endeavor.

www.mossberg.com

The Women's 10m Air Rifle podium at the 2012 NJOSC (L to R): Emily Holsopple, Catherine Green and Hannah Black. Photo courtesy USA Shooting

Green, a sophomore at Texas Christian University (TCU), entered the final with a two point lead over National Team and University of Kentucky Rifle Team member Emily Holsopple (Wilcox, Pa.). The lead changed hands often between the two, and after identical 10.7s in the ninth shot, it came down to the final shot for the win. Green excelled with a 10.3 point shot, while Holsopple surprised the crowd with 8.4 points. Green finished with 886.6 and Holsopple shot 885 total points.

“I knew I was too far right to the target after my second nine-point shot,” said Green. “I moved an inch to the left and shot a 10.7 and then a 10.3-I knew I was on track then. In my last shot I knew Emily was ahead of me and I was thinking, ‘As long as I shot a ten, I don’t care where I end up, I’ll be happy.’ I was thrilled when I saw the gold next to my name on the monitor.”

This win represents a lot of firsts for Green-her first final, first medal in a national USA Shooting match and first-ever appointment to the National Junior Team. Both Holsopple and Green were awarded spots on the National Junior Team as a result of their terrific performances.

The bronze medalist was Hannah Black (Richmond, Va.) with 783 match points and 101.5 points in the final. Black, a homeschooled senior, will be joining Green on the TCU Rifle Team in the fall of 2012. Another TCU shooter, Jamie Dowd (Pueblo, Colo.) made her mark on the final finishing fourth overall with 883.5 points.

TCU Rifle Coach Karen Monez was thrilled to see three of the top four finishers in Horned Frogs’ colors. “Coming off the NCAA Championships, the goal for Catherine was to earn a spot on the National Junior Team and I was glad to see her come here and shine,” said Monez. “It is great to have a talented group of shooters that will continue the TCU tradition of excelling at the national level and beyond.”

Kelsey Emme (Piedmont, S.D.) finished in fifth place with 879.7 total points. Emily Cock (Silverton, Ore.) was the youngest shooter in the final at just 13 years old. Cock, a J3 division shooter, shot 779 match points and a solid final of 100.4 points to finish sixth overall. The seventh place finisher was Danielle Foster (Newport News, Va.) with 879.4 total points. Foster topped Shawna Griffin (Woodland Park, Colo.) in a shoot-off to earn a spot in the final. Jaycee Carter (Live Oak, Calif.) finished eighth overall with 877.6 total points.

In the J2 Division, Carter and Griffin topped the ranks with the gold and silver respectively. The bronze medalist was Alison Weisz (Belgrade, Mont.) with 776 match points. In the J3 Division, Cock won by ten points with 779 match points. The silver medalist was Casey Lutz (Meridian, Id.) followed by Sarah Osborn (Hampton, Va.) with the bronze medal and 765 points.

Women’s 50m Rifle Three Position

The women’s rifle action continues throughout the week with competition in women’s smallbore. The Women’s 50m Rifle Three Position final will take place Tuesday, April 17 at 5:15 p.m. MST.

For final scores and rankings, please visit the National Junior Olympic Program page.

This year’s National Rifle Association’s Annual Meeting, held in St. Louis, found women outdoor/gun bloggers and writers meeting and greeting and beating feet on the floor at America’s Center in downtown St. Louis — just a few blocks away from the famous Arch, a symbol of  the westward movement and so much more.

With more than 500 exhibitors and 340,000 square feet of exhibit space, it barely contained the enthusiasm of attendees and even, exhibitors. We can feel it, the optimism and hope for some significant changes in the industry and in the country as a result of another peaceful election this fall.

In the meantime, this week, we’ll bring you news, reviews and stories from the NRA. Camo Mom Tammy Ballew and Gear Court reviewer Britney Starr worked the floor, searching for stories and gear info to bring to us. We met with Julie Golob (Captain Team Smith & Wesson), Joyce Rubino (Vice-president & CRO at Colt Manufacturing Co.), Gabby Franco (Olympic pistol shooter and recent Top Shot competitor), Natalie Foster (Girls Guide to Guns), Lanny and Tracy Barnes (Olympic biathletes), Cristie Gates (Benelli), Laura Burgess (Laura Burgess Marketing), Kathy Jackson (The Cornered Cat book and website), Tammy Surgi (Secure Firearm Products), Marie D’Amico (Kahr Arms) and Lisa Looper (Flashbang Holster). And there were more … we’ll take you there!

Natalie Foster, Lisa Looper, Barbara Baird, Tammy Ballew and Britney Starr in front of the NRA news area. Lisa was going to be interviewed by Cam Edwards, for her success with Flashbang Holsters. Photo by Mike Haller

SW MP Shield.jpg

“Throughout the industry, there has been a progressive demand for a reliable, accurate self-defense firearm,” said Mario Pasantes, Smith & Wesson’s Senior Vice President of Marketing and Global Professional Sales. “Whether used as a backup for police personnel, an undercover firearm for plain-clothes officers or a dependable carry gun for private citizens, the M&P Shield expertly fulfills the need. Built to professional standards and backed by Smith & Wesson’s reputation for innovation and quality control, the M&P Shield adds another high performance option to our company’s broad line of purpose built firearms.”

Chambered in 9mm and .40 S&W for proven stopping power, the M&P Shield features a high-strength polymer frame with a black, Melonite® coated stainless steel slide and barrel. Both models are standard with a 3.1-inch barrel, which contributes to an overall length of 6.1 inches and an unloaded weight of 19 ounces. For fast tracking and smooth target acquisition, the M&P Shield is standard with a 5.3-inch sight radius and has been enhanced with a short, consistent trigger pull measuring 6.5 pounds. Featuring a quick and audible reset made possible by the striker-fired action, the M&P Shield allows multiple rounds to be placed on target both consistently and accurately.

The accuracy of the pistol has been further refined with a white dot stainless steel front sight and a white two-dot stainless steel rear sight. The M&P Shield retains familiar operating features on the left side of the frame, including a simple takedown lever, flat profile slide stop, magazine release and thumb safety. The flush-mounted safety allows users to carry the pistol comfortably and confidently. For improved firearm control, the M&P Shield is standard with a fixed textured backstrap and additional texturing at the forward portion of the grip. An extended trigger guard has also been added for operation of the pistol with or without gloves.

Internal features of the new M&P Shield mirror the standard M&P Series. Its stainless steel internal chassis reduces flex while providing a stable shooting platform and its low-bore axis helps maintain ease-of-use and a comfortable feel. Other familiar features include a passive trigger safety that prevents the pistol from firing if dropped and a sear release lever that eliminates the need to press the trigger in order to disassemble the firearm. A loaded chamber indicator is located on top of the slide.

The M&P Shield is shipped with both an extended and flat magazine offering users the ability to customize the length of the grip. The 9mm M&P Shield offers an 8+1 or 7+1 magazine capacity while the .40 S&W M&P Shield is standard with either a 7+1 or 6+1 magazine capacity. The M&P Shield will also be introduced in a California compliant model. Both the 9mm and .40 S&W M&P Shield have an MSRP of $449 and are available now.

As an added bonus, Smith & Wesson has worked with the industry’s top holster, laser and aftermarket sight manufacturers so that owners can personalize their M&P Shield with high-quality accessories that are immediately available from various providers.

About Smith & Wesson
Smith & Wesson Holding Corporation (NASDAQ Global Select: SWHC) is a U.S.-based leader in firearm design and manufacturing, delivering a broad portfolio of quality firearms, related products and training to the global military, law enforcement and consumer markets. The company’s brands include Smith & Wesson, M&P and Thompson/Center Arms. Smith & Wesson facilities are located in Massachusetts and Maine. For more information on Smith & Wesson, call (800) 331-0852 or log on to www.smith-wesson.com.

Photo courtesy of Casting for Recovery.

The CFR program is unique in that the curriculum incorporates the elements of fly fishing to promote physical and mental healing. It is an opportunity to experience a true respite from familiar surroundings and everyday routines. The casting motion provides a gentle exercise for joint and soft tissue stretching. Fly fishing provides stress relief and promotes a sense of calm, while the social interactions offer women a chance to share, laugh, and rejuvenate.

Since 1996, CFR has served over 4,500 breast cancer survivors nationwide, with the help of 1,500 medical, psychosocial, fly fishing, and alumni volunteers. The Texas Program of Casting for Recovery has been providing retreats for Texas breast cancer survivors since 2005. Casting for Recovery is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Support for this program is received from Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Trout Unlimited, Texas Women Fly Fishers, and many individuals and organizations. Their leading national sponsor is The Hartford. National sponsors include L.L. Bean, SmartWool, and Under Armour.

Joshua Creek Ranch, located in the beautiful Texas Hill Country, is nestled on an isolated stretch of the pristine Guadalupe River just 40 minutes Northwest of San Antonio International Airport. The ranch’s diverse terrain, including Texas prairie grasses, high bluffs that present a dramatic backdrop to crystal clear Joshua Creek, and magnificent, ancient oaks create a perfect environment for fly fishing and the best quail hunting in Texas, with the added bonus of pheasant and partridge. Enthusiasts enjoy fly fishing for trout and gunning on three different automatic, state-of-the art clay-shooting scenarios. There’s trophy Axis deer hunting year-round and whitetail and turkey hunting in season. Gourmet dining and lodging with spectacular views top off the ultimate outdoor experience. Joshua Creek Ranch is celebrating 22 years as a superior hunting and wingshooting lodge and is the only Texas recipient of the prestigious Beretta Two Trident Designation for excellence in upland bird hunting.

For more information contact:

Susan Gaetz, 512-940-0246

info@castingforrecovery.org

www.castingforrecovery.org

Established in 2007, the WWIA is the nation’s leading nature-based non-profit charity providing world-class outdoor sporting opportunities to our nation’s combat wounded Purple Heart recipients. The WWIA focuses on our heroes’ healing processes, welcoming them home, and repaying a debt of gratitude for the great sacrifices they’ve made.

According to the WWIA founder, John McDaniel, “We are very excited about this tremendous opportunity and Alabama is the perfect venue for us. Lady Purple Heart Recipients are very special and very rare. We wanted to do something that focused exclusively on them as they represent the very unique portion of the combat wounded population. We’re helping heal the wounds doctors cannot fix.”

This first time event is also being supported by Larysa Switlyk, a professional Huntress volunteering her services for this activity. “It gives me a great deal of joy to be able to take someone out on their first hunt and provide them the opportunity to experience something new. I’m excited to be able to share my passion with these ladies who have done so much for our country and help them get their first turkey down!”

The WWIA is exceptionally grateful to Mr. Steve Lambert and his family and friends; the Military Order of the Purple Heart Service Foundation; and the Tampa Bay Lighting Hockey Foundation for making possible this amazing event.

The WWIA’s primary goals are to empower our heroes by: increasing self-reliance; bolstering self-confidence; promoting spiritual healing and wellness; instilling a sense of belonging; and providing employment opportunities for our heroes.

For more information about the Wounded Warriors in Action Foundation (WWIA), please visit them online at wwiaf.org by phone 888.308.9942 or email info@wwiaf.org.

~Nichole Robinson, Staff Writer, Wounded Warriors in Action Foundation

Participants will learn how to use a compass, read a topographical map and use them together to find their way in the woods. The workshop will also provide an introduction to a simple hand-held GPS unit. The session will be led by Al and Lorri Menard and Randy Curtis, who are certified Hunter Education and BOW Map & Compass instructors.

A brochure and mail-in registration form are now available at http://www.nhbow.com. The cost for the class is $25, which includes lunch and use of equipment. Participation is first-come, first-served, so sign up right away if you’re interested. Women must be 18 years of age or older to take part. Applications will be accepted starting on Monday, April 9, 2012.

“Beyond BOW” courses expand the offerings of the traditional Becoming an Outdoors-Woman fall and winter workshops. These in-depth courses are designed to give women the skills to do the outdoor activity on their own.

New Hampshire’s Becoming an Outdoors-Woman programs are co-sponsored by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department (http://www.WildNH.com

) and the New Hampshire Wildlife Federation (http://www.nhwf.org

Polyester mesh front and back • Cotton twill trim • Full-length quilted shooting patches on right and left shoulders with sewn-in REACTAR™ pad pockets (pad sold separately) • Button tab waist adjustment • Two-way front zipper • Larger rear pocket for hulls and other gear • Buckmark embroidered pocket and Claymaster embroidered back yoke • Interior security pocket

Price: $67.99

Visit HERCAMOSHOP.COM for more information about this vest and other items for HER for the outdoors.

Julie’s NRA Agenda
Golob’s schedule is jam packed with booth appearances at several locations throughout the 3-day event. Look for Golob to meet and greet with NRA members at Smith & Wesson, Benelli and Safariland booths. Golob will also be signing copies of her book, SHOOT: Your Guide to Shooting and Competition, at Kaltron Outdoors.

• Smith & Wesson #3325 – 9:00–10:30am, 3:00–4:00pm Friday & Saturday, 10:00–11:30am Sunday
• Benelli #2219 – 2:00–3:00pm Friday & Saturday, 12:00–1:00pm Sunday
• Safariland #2940 – 5:00–6:00pm Friday and Saturday, 2:00–3:00pm Sunday
• Kaltron Outdoors #1104 – 4:00–5:00pm Friday, 11:00am–12:00pm Sunday

Julie Golob -- 2010 IDPA Ladies' National Champion. Photo courtesy of JulieGolob.com.

“The atmosphere at the NRA Annual Meeting is always exciting. Where else can you meet with 50,000+ NRA members and talk hunting and shooting? As a shooter, and now an author, it’s a wonderful opportunity to visit with readers and those who follow me at matches, online and on television,” said Golob.

“Thanks to the wonderful support of my sponsors, my schedule will be packed with booth appearances and I look forward to sharing my product insights with and match experience with those NRA members looking to get a new competition gun, choose the right holster or pick the right ammunition for their next hunt,” added Golob.

In addition to the numerous booth appearances Golob will also attend the NRA’s Women’s Leadership Luncheon on Saturday. Golob also personally donated three signed copies of SHOOT for the luncheon’s auction.Look for Golob to cover the event on social media where she will be sharing her experiences at the NRA Annual Meeting with live tweets and facebook posts as well as sharing updates on her blog.

About Julie Golob

Author Julie Golob is one of the most accomplished professional shooters in the world, having won more than 115 championship titles in international, national and regional marksmanship competitions in seven different shooting disciplines. A veteran of the elite U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit, she was named both U.S. Army Female Athlete of the Year and AMU Athlete of the Year. In September 2011, she won USPSA Ladies Revolver National Champion, thereby becoming the only shooter, male or female, ever to win a national championship in all six USPSA divisions. Her book, SHOOT: Your Guide to Shooting and Competition is the first book of its kind written by a woman and shooting champion. SHOOT is published in beautiful full color by Skyhorse Publishing and is available in print and ebook from Amazon, Barnes & Noble and iTunes. Learn more at JulieGolob.com and follow on Facebook, Twitter, Youtube, and Google+!

Contact:

Karissa Hearn, Publicity Department

Skyhorse Publishing, Inc

212-643-6816 ext. 226

khearn@skyhorsepublishing.com

Karissa Hearn

Publicity Department

Skyhorse Publishing

307 W 36th Street, 11th Floor

New York, NY 10018

Phone (212) 643-6816 x 226

Fax (212) 643-6819

Skyhorse Publishing | Arcade Publishing | Allworth Press | Sky Pony Press | Sports Publishing

Stats:

• 100% Polyester Polyfiber
• 2.5 inch inseam
• Reversible wear two style in one short
• Back Pocket
• Extra Pink GWG button
• GWG Screened Pattern and Logo (which, in OHO, are cute as all “get-out!”)

We just want you to know … you won’t find these at discount stores. And while you’re shopping and making that lifestyle statement that “I like guns,” visit Girls with Guns Clothing online and find a top or two to accompany these shorts!

Brenda, a Tennessee native, is a pillar of the archery and hunting world, with a long list of competitive shooting titles in addition to her enviable collection of bowhunting trophies.  She is a member of the National Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame, the Henry County, Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, Tennessee Turkey Hunters Hall of Fame and is a current inductee of the National Archery Hall of Fame. She is most proud, however, of the credit she is given for introducing more women and children to hunting and the outdoors than any person in modern history. Her new position will allow Brenda to further this passion with the next generation and continue building an outdoor heritage.

A popular outdoor writer, Brenda is also a member of the Bass Pro Shop’s, National RedHead Pro Hunting Team and a co-host of Bass Pro’s hunting TV program for 16 years.  She is a National Spokesperson of the National Wild Turkey Federation and host of the Turkey Call TV show.  Additionally, Brenda is among the 2012 inaugural group selected for the “Legends of the Outdoors” SW Asia tour by Armed Forces Entertainment.

Photo courtesy of Limbsaver

Commenting on her selection as head coach, Brenda stated, “Archery is a sport equally suited for male or female athletes. This is one activity where a person’s size, speed, or athletic ability is not a major factor for success.  I look forward to being a part of a program that enables students to gain a higher education while also participating in a sport they can enjoy the rest of their lives. The National Archery in Schools Program has introduced countless thousands of kids to archery over the last several years and now we are moving them to the next level of competition.”

Brenda is equally adept with bow and firearm. Photo courtesy of Brenda Valentine

Bethel University, founded in 1842 and recognized as one of the fastest growing universities in the south, is a four-year liberal arts university offering a broad range of undergraduate and graduate level educational opportunities through its multiple campuses. Founded in the tradition of the Cumberland Presbyterian denomination, Bethel’s mission is “to create opportunities for members of the learning community to develop to their highest potential as whole persons – intellectually, spiritually, socially and physically – in a Christian environment”.  The Bethel University Wildcats compete in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics conference.

For more information about Bethel University contact the Bethel University admissions office, 731-352-4000, Garry Mason, athletic director for new sports, 731-693-7770, or Brenda Valentine, head archery coach, 731-247-3058.

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

I met Michelle Brantley in February while at the National Wild Turkey Federation’s convention. We had dinner together, along with her husband, Realtree Editor Will Brantley, and outdoor writer Steve Hickoff. Out of the four of us – three of us are outdoor writers – this schoolteacher’s recent adventure in the mountains of Colorado beat any stories we could concoct.

You see, Michelle hunted for a mountain lion in Colorado before Christmas. The story of the hunt includes a lot of climbing, scaling a rock face, running through deep snow in hot pursuit and finally … well, you may read more about it below.

In the meantime, meet teacher, wife, avid hunter, noodler and “Cat Woman” Michelle Brantley.

Babbs: Name, rank and serial number  

Michelle: I attended Murray State University where I received a Bachelor of Arts degree in Elementary Education (my major was in Elementary Education and my minor was in Spanish). I received my Master’s degree in Reading and Writing from Murray State University. I have taught for six years (Kindergarten and fourth grade). I have taught in both Kentucky (rural elementary school in Western Kentucky) and Tennessee (Memphis).

Babbs: I understand that you grew up hunting and fishing? Will you please tell me a little about some of the lessons you learned and about who is responsible for your outdoor education? 

Michelle: I did grow up hunting and fishing; however, it wasn’t something my dad, an avid hunter, took to easily. I am the only female hunter in my family (and my husband’s family, too). I am the youngest of four children. My older brothers both hunted from time to time, and my older sister never showed an interest. I, on the other hand, knew that I was meant for the outdoors.

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

After pleading with my dad to let me go with him, and being assured that “one day” I could go, I put my foot down. I was about 9 years old. My dad had been at deer camp all weekend, and as soon as he put his gun in the cabinet and leaned back in his recliner to relax, I made my move. I had been secretly working on a proposal on the reasons why my dad should take me to shoot guns and hunt – complete with a poster listing the pros and cons. What the poster said, I don’t remember. Seeing how passionate I was, dad started taking me to shoot guns with my cousins (males), bird hunting and coon hunting. A few years later, he started taking me with him on deer and turkey hunts. Although, I was not allowed to actually kill anything on my own, my dad was teaching me about the animals, woodsman ship and how to hunt. My dad bought me my first slate call when I was a sophomore in high school, and he and I would sit in the living room floor and practice for hours every night.

Will, my husband, and I starting dating our junior year of high school and he had a reputation as hunter, and a damn good one. He did not hesitate to take me with him shooting, fishing, or hunting – and he seemed to enjoy teaching me. I can’t recall a time that he left me behind, even when he was going with his buddies. I became a regular. Being bitten with the love bug, I started spending more and more time fishing, scouting, and hunting with Will. He taught me there was more to hunting than just deer and turkeys. We did everything from frog gigging, predator hunting, fly fishing, 3-d archery shooting, mushroom hunting, and crow, squirrel, and dove hunting – you name it, he took me to do it.

When I was in high school, my dad had told me that he did not want me shooting without him, and I respected that. My freshman year of college, however, was a different story, I was eighteen – an adult. That year, instead of tagging along with dad on opening day of deer season, I joined Will on the Brantley farm. Will had set up two stands in a forked tree on the edge of creek overlooking a field. As soon as the fog began to lift, deer began crossing the creek and entering the field. Will coached me as I steady the scope of my hand me down .243. I killed a basket-rack 5-point that morning, and to me the rack didn’t matter. What mattered the most about that hunt came later, when I rolled up into my dad’s deer camp with my buck in tow. Words cannot describe how excited my dad was for me, and how disappointed that he wasn’t with me when I killed my first deer. When spring rolled around, and the turkeys started gobbling, my dad was first in line to take me and this time I was carrying a gun, too.

The people who played the most important role in my outdoor education were my dad (Larry) and my husband, Will. Each one teaching me different lessons along the way and different styles of hunting, but they have both taught me to love and appreciate the outdoors. The two teachers that I have been lucky enough to have by my side have turned into my two closest hunting companions.

Dad and I are hunting buddies. We call each other at least once a week, and talk about hunting, fishing, food plots, trail cameras, how the weather is going to effect the turkey crop this year, etc., and when something is in season it is every day.

Will and I live for hunting and fishing. It consumes our lives. Although we rarely sit together in the woods, Will and I are an everyday hunting team.

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

Babbs: Do you have a favorite memory or two of your childhood outdoors that you’d care to tell the readers?

Michelle: Where I grew up there was several strip-mine lakes around, and access to them required a mile or two trek up and down spoil banks to get there. One in particular we called the Flat Pond, and it was covered up in bluegills and keeper size bass. With rods, tackle, and lunch in tow, Will and I had set out for a day of bluegill fishing. While we were reeling in tiny bluegill hand over fist, Will started to notice a bass hitting the surface. After tying on a bass bait, Will started easing his way around the bank casting as he went. Having wandered away from me, I decided that I need to follow him.

As I made my way around the bank, I was oblivious to the fact that the button on my reel had been pushed in, and my line had snagged on a limb. I had a hundred yards of line tangled behind me. Having realized it, I stopped under an old dead limb to assess the damage. While I was looking at the mess in the trees, I started feeling like something was crawling up my legs. In fact, hundreds of little some things – seed ticks – were crawling all over my legs, arms, neck, etc. I was standing in the middle of a nest of ticks. When I looked down, my white tennis shoes were literally brown with ticks! Will, in the mean time had landed the bass, and was gloating about how big it was. I was yelling that I was “covered” in ticks, and he kept saying just pick them off and come on.

Upon arriving on the scene, Will who noticed my tangled mess started cutting the line loose ignoring the whole tick situation. This wasn’t my first encounter with ticks, but, quite frankly I had never been infested with them either, so I kept complaining. Finally, Will came to investigate and proclaimed that dipping my shoes in the water would remedy the tick situation. Well it didn’t, and we decided the best option was to take my shoes off and leave them. Which meant I was forced to walk back barefoot. Needless to say, my feet were raw and bleeding by the time we made it to the truck. When we got back to Will’s parents house, I got in the hot tub, and the ticks started floating off. Having surrendered my clothes to the trash, I had to borrow a pair of underwear from Will’s mom –completely humiliating. Oh, and Will’s bass was at that time the biggest bass I had ever seen, and so I insisted that he carry it back and have it mounted. Despite his protest that it wasn’t big enough and he should release it. Now, we have a 3-pound largemouth mount in our house.

I drove in from college one afternoon to turkey hunt by myself for the first time. I met dad at the house, and told him that I would be hunting on the backside of the farm, and would be back about dark 30. We parted ways. Me to kill a turkey, and him I assumed to feed the cattle and do chores around the farm. I didn’t have a decoy but, I had my old slate call dad had bought me years ago and a box call Will gave me tucked in my vest. I set up at the base of a big tree on the edge of a food plot, and made some light yelps every now and then. Lo and behold, a hen started answering me. I kept calling, and she eased over to where I was at, and got 15 yards from me and finally went up to roost. I thought that was the most awesome thing I had ever done, and was pumped to go back and tell dad. I did have to wait long because on my way back to the house, I spotted my dad in the next field over, full camo, at the base of a tree. When I asked him what he was doing there, with no gun mind you, he said hunting. Sure dad, checking up on your little girl is more like it.

Babbs: How do you incorporate your outdoor yearnings into your busy life as a fourth-grade teacher?

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

Michelle: Being in the outdoors, whether it involves hunting and fishing or not, takes up the majority of my free time.  I am going to be out there regardless! I am naturally a very organized person, who is always looking ahead, and as a teacher, this helps me to structure my life in a way that I balance both. During early bow season, before the time changes, I am able to get away in the afternoons at least three days out of the workweek to hunt. The other days are spent with the students. On the days I get to hunt, my clothes are always laid out ahead of time, my backpack packed, and Will’s already put my gear in the truck (climbing stand and bow). And there are times that we shoot a deer and are up until midnight tracking and quartering, but it doesn’t matter.

I have often thought that at times getting up at 5:30 a.m. to get ready for work was like sleeping in. Instead of staying late, I go in extra early.

I grade papers in the stand. Especially in the early season, when I am hunting over a food source or when I am going to be making a long sit I will bring papers or something to jot down lesson plan ideas on. My kiddos have come to expect their papers to be wrinkled and covered in mud/blood from time to time.

It consumes me, to point that holidays and family events are often scheduled around hunting. In fact, the morning of my bridal shower was spent in the turkey woods. I washed my face, threw on some clothes, and went. Thanksgiving dinner at my parents’ house is planned around what time I will get in from duck hunting. With me being a teacher, winter break means four weeks to hunt! Will and I always plan a hunt whether it be to Louisiana to duck hunt, Florida for hogs, or a mountain lion in Colorado. With that said, that means that we have spent a lot of Christmas dinners with families of others.

Babbs: How do you pass along your love of the outdoors to your students? 

Michelle: Anyone could walk into my classroom and know that I love the outdoors. My classroom is adorned with shed antlers, skulls, furs, turtle shells, feathers, spurs, fossils, fish bones and photos of my past and present students and myself with our kills. My favorite subjects to teach are math and science, and I equate hunting/conservation into my lessons where I can. Many of my students come from hunting families, and love to share stories and ask questions. In fact, my first year teaching, I had a student bring his deer mount to school to show it to me.

Also, I help expose my students to programs such as Project Webfoot (an old DU program about wetlands conservation), the Junior Duck Stamp Program, the Whooping Crane Project, the KY Conservation Education program, and most recently the Archery in Schools Program.

Babbs: Recently, you went on a mountain lion hunt in Colorado. Please will you tell us why you decided to do that and how you got fit for it? 

Michelle: Hunting a mountain lion has always been on my list of things to do, and when our good friend Miles Fedinec from Craig, Colo., offered to take us … I was all over it. Having gone out West to Snowbird, Utah, for the Bowcast at the Bird 3D archery shoot, I knew that the altitude and rugged terrain were something that I was not physically ready for. I had been an athlete in high school, playing soccer and running track, but years had gone by and I couldn’t even run a mile without stopping. Thus, the training began. I started out running a mile a day, lifting weights, and doing calisthenics. At the end of the summer I was competing in 5Ks. The hunt wasn’t until December, so I had to maintain my current routine through deer and duck season. I made a pact with myself that if we were out late tracking or skinning I didn’t have to run. But regardless of how tried I was if we didn’t, I had to work out when I got home from hunting. As it got closer to my hunt, I started running two miles a day, and always outside so that I could get my lungs and body used to the cold. In all of my training, I lost a considerable about of weight.

I had planned to take my bow on my mountain lion hunt, and did a considerable about of shooting in order to prepare as well.

During all of my working out and bowing shooting, I would often refer to myself as a “mountain lion hunter in training.”

Babbs:  And now, what happened on that mountain lion hunt? 

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

Michelle: Like many Western hunts, lion hunting can require a week or more of hunting, so we planned my mountain lion hunt over my winter break. We met Miles Fedinec at the Denver airport on Christmas day, and drove the three and half hours to Craig, Colo.

Miles is a top-notch big game guide; however, he does not guide mountain lion hunts, and had enlisted help from several of his long time buddies/mountain lion guides to help put me on a cat.

When you think of Colorado in the wintertime, you probably picture an abundance of snow. That wasn’t the case on this trip. While there was snow of the ground, it wasn’t fresh snow, which is key to cutting a hot track. The hunting was slow, really slow.  For four days we drove nearly 500 square miles of country looking for any sign of a cat. We had found several kills and day-old tracks, but nothing that the dogs struck out on.

On the fifth day, Russ Behrman, a guide we had met the night before, called saying he had cut a fresh track. We joined Russ and his 16-year-old son, Talin. When we spotted the cat, it was climbing into a den on the side of a rock face. Knowing that getting up to the cat was going to be tricky, Miles talked me into leaving my bow in the truck and taking the AR instead. In order to get to the cat, we had to climb up about 300 feet and then weave our way across the rock to the base of the den. The passageway across was barely big enough for two people so my Will, Talin and Kyle had to hang back with the dogs.

It was just Miles and me … and the cat.

After we got into position, we peered over a small juniper, and there was the cat looking down at us about 15 yards away and getting nervous. Taking the only shot I had, I placed the crosshairs at the base of its neck, and gently squeezed the trigger … except, the gun didn’t go off. It misfired. Not hesitating, Miles grabbed the gun from my hands and cycled another round. As he handed me the gun, the cat bolted out of the cave at a dead run. I threw the gun up on my shoulder, and fired. A red mist filled the air, and the cat turned and clawed its way straight up the rocks.

Miles and I rushed forward, while Will, Kyle and Talin unleashed the dogs and headed up the mountain. As Miles and I neared the top, Talin told us that we needed to go back down because the dogs were after the cat on the next mountain over. The cat had climbed out the cave, down the backside of the mountain, across a flat and up another mountain in a matter of minutes. After rushing off the mountain, jumping in a truck and driving the near two miles around, I opened the truck door to the sounds of hounds baying in the distance. In all of the commotion, Will and I had been separated.

This time instead of rocks to climb, I had shin deep snow. The dogs had the cat treed in a juniper, which made it difficult to get a clear shot at its vitals. But after hitting the cat again, it went to jump trees and for the first time I had a clear shot at its vitals, and it was over. It was without a doubt the most physically and mentally changeling thing that I had ever done.

Babbs: What’s next? Are you planning another hunt soon? 

Michelle: Well, immediately turkey hunting in April. Ninety-five percent of my hunting is done with Will around home, and I will probably spend 10 days or more hunting turkeys in Tennesse and Kentucky. After that, we will be fishing, bowfishing and noodling, and getting ready for bow season in September. As far as other hunts, hopefully, we will be going on an alligator hunt this summer. I am planning to take my bow.

Like most, I have a “Bucket List” or “My Top Five.” Before this year, they were alligator, mountain lion, buck in velvet, Peacock bass, and a Harlequin duck. This year I was lucky enough to take a 12-point buck in full velvet with my bow and a mountain lion. If I had to add anything to replace the velvet buck and mountain lion, it would be an elk in my home state of Kentucky or a wolf (where hunting is legal).

Photo courtesy of Will Brantley

Babbs: Oh and this noodling thing? You actually do that?  

Michelle: Sounds strange I know, but I am a noodler as well. And, I have only missed two trips since we started. When Will went to Greenwood, Miss., to fish with Bob Henderson on the Yazoo River for the first time in 2005 for a Field and Stream assignment, I did not go.

I have caught several fish over the years, but I am not as gung-ho as the boys are. Some people are naturals at noodling, but I don’t consider myself one of them. I prefer to only grab fish in shallow holes, and some of the holes that the boys check are 10 or 12 feet deep and that is not for me. Although, I am not scared of the fish, I still don’t like the surprise of unknown as you are reaching into a hole. When I am not blocking holes or helping wrangle one to the bank, I am snapping pictures and taking videos. The biggest fish I have caught was a 20-pounds-plus flathead, and have helped bring in many 40- and 50-pounders.

Babbs: Anything else? 

Michelle: I don’t hunt because my husband does nor to make a statement, I hunt because it is something that I am truly passionate about—it is in my nature.

On our one-year anniversary, Will bought me “a new set of jugs!” Catfish jugs—for jugging for catfish!

Michelle is featured often in Will Brantley’s blogposts at Realtree.com.

The Brantleys ... at home ... in the woods! Photo courtesy of Michelle Brantley

Photo courtesy of Taurus USA

Jessie’s first match of the 2012 season was the US Steel Challenge Nationals. She competed in three divisions: .22 Optic Rimfire, Limited and Open. All three divisions qualify her for the Steel Master title, an aggregate score of all three divisions. After the match Jessie commented, “This match was the first match of the year for me, and I wanted to kick the season off with a victory, especially with my new relationship with Taurus. I was very proud to come home with three national titles!”

Jessie mentioned that she struggled with a few stages in both divisions, but fought through it and carried on to the next. “Each day seemed to start about the same, with the first few stages going well, and then I would have a few I struggled on. But, when that happens, instead of thinking that I have to make up time on the next stage, I just pull back slightly and get a little more deliberate.” Knowing when to push and when not to worked very well for Jessie, and brought her to the winner’s podium once again.

Jessie defended her 2011 titles in Ladies Limited, Open and Steel Master, making this her 6th year in a row to win the Ladies Steel Master title. “Competing for Steel Master is a lot more difficult than you would think,” Duff says. ” You have to be just as proficient with all three guns, as someone would be with one. A lot of time goes into training for it, and thankfully it paid off this weekend!”

Mark Kresser, President and CEO of Taurus USA comments, “We are very pleased with Jessie’s performance and couldn’t be happier for her. Jessie is well on her way of taking Taurus to a new level and breaking open the door of the competition world. I was happy to have had the opportunity to see Jessie shoot her first match of the season. We are looking forward to Jessie having many more wins this year.”

Jessie mentioned that Mark driving up to see her shoot was a wonderful surprise. “It meant a lot that Mark took the time to come see me compete, it just adds to the wonderful welcome I’ve received from Taurus!”

Beyond Jessie’s commitment to the 2012 competition season, she will be traveling to Brazil this summer to share shooting tactics, training and techniques with the Brazilian law enforcement agencies.

About Jessie Duff:

Jessie Duff (formerly Jessie Harrison) has taken her shooting career of a beginner, all the way to a top ranked professional, earning multiple World and National Champion shooting titles, in five different shooting disciplines. Among these are the prestigious Bianchi Cup and the World Speed Shooting Championships. Jessie has also ranked in numerous regional and state champion matches as well. Outside of shooting, Jessie is a TV personality on the hit series Friends of NRA, on the Outdoor Channel. Reaching this level of shooting performance in her career, defines a well-disciplined competitor and role model for the Taurus Shooting Team.

About Taurus:

Taurus International Manufacturing, Inc. is proud to be the U.S. importer of all Taurus brand firearms manufactured in Brazil and to be the manufacturer of the model PT-22, PT-25, PT-732 and PT-738 pistols made here in the US. Taurus International services all Taurus brand firearms under the LIFETIME REPAIR POLICY™ as well. For additional information about Taurus, visit www.taurususa.com. High-resolution images are available at www.taurusdownloads.com.

Contact:

KIM CAHALAN KIM@MEDIADIRECTCREATIVE.COM or 309.944.5341

My second husband and I had a friend who was a doubting Thomas about my shooting skills. He wouldn’t take my husband’s word that I could shoot, and there really had never been a reason to show him. Finally one day he got on my husband’s nerves. As we were out on the farm, we both were wearing our sidearms. Suddenly my husband said, “Show him.” And threw a pop can up and off the porch, I pulled my 9mm out, kicked the slide back and began shooting. All six shots hit true and I had that can dancing all over the place. The doubting Thomas was standing with his chin down about his knees somewhere. Everywhere we all went after that his words were always, “Don’t mess with her, she’ll have you full of holes before you know she even drew on you.” We thought it was funny.

Brenda Valentine and Jessica Hall. Photo courtesy of Brenda Valentine

*A special thank you to Brenda Valentine for all she does to promote women and youth participation in the outdoors!

Brenda Valentine. Photo courtesy of Brenda Valentine.

Women from all walks of life are invited to experience the thrill of horseback riding, shooting, hiking, crafts, and great company. The setting is beautiful Camp Ondessonk, nestled in the forests and bluffs of the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois. Dates are May 4 through May 6. Brenda Valentine, host of the NWTF’s Turkey Call TV show will be there to give instruction in archery.

Registration includes two nights lodging, 4 meals— Saturday breakfast, lunch, dinner and Sunday breakfast, evening programs, 4 sessions, equipment use, program materials, plus a one-year Women in the Outdoors membership & subscription to Turkey Country magazine. Girls ages 14-17 welcome with adult chaperone (both pay).

Registration

COST: DEADLINE:

Early Bird Discount: *Pay only $160 if postmarked by April 14th

For more information:

Gay Hayes Phone: (618) 924-4836 E-mail: ghayes1809@yahoo.com

Denise Glennon Phone: (618) 201-0140 E-mail: dglennon@live.com

www.womenintheoutdoors.org

The Women’s Fishing University is scheduled for April 20-22, 2012 at the I.T. Parker Community Center in Dania Beach, FL. Women will have the chance to learn, practice and participate in this wholesome sport, while enjoying the waters surrounding South Florida.

Activities launch Friday night with a networking meet & greet starting at 6 pm.

On Saturday, classroom presentations begin at 8 a.m., with beginner and advanced sessions on topics including fishing basics and conservation including a presentation by the FWC and lunch provided by Pollo Tropical. Other fishing classes include Offshore/Captains Tony Digiulian, Inshore/Capt. Lou Volpe, Basics/Lee Lavery and Fly/Jim Anson. A “Dress for Fishing Success” fashion show is held at lunch, followed by hands-on skill practice where ladies learn the art of fishing directly from the Pros.

Sunday, the ladies board charter boats at approximately 7 a.m. for an optional half day fishing trip followed by a filet demonstration. In prior years some ladies experienced releasing sailfish on their first fishing endeavor – the equivalent of a getting a hole in one on the first swing.

Featured on national network television and more, the series is held in conjunction with the FWC through the Sport Fish Restoration Program, with major partners including Mercury Outboards, Ranger, Silver Airways, Minn Kota, Humminbird, FishHound.com and Magic Tilt Trailers. There will be opportunities for local businesses and area anglers to take an active role in the seminar. I.T. Parker is at 901 NE 3rd St., Dania Beach, FL 33004.

Registration starts at $99 for the first 20 to sign up, then $135 after. Registration includes instruction, use of equipment, hands-on training, networking reception and fundraisers, meals, goody bags and more. The Sunday Fishing Adventure, with tackle and bait provided, is additional. No equipment or experience is necessary, women and teens age 16 and up invited. Membership is not required however there is a South Florida chapter available to continue the fishing fun.

The 2012 schedule also includes Treasure Coast/Stuart: May 18-20 and Keys/Islamorada: Nov. 9-11. Contact: LLGF, phone 954-475-9068, fax 954-474-7299, email: fish@ladiesletsgofishing.com , website: www.ladiesletsgofishing.com , Facebook: www.facebook.com/ladiesletsgofishing

# # #

Calendar information: “Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!’ South Florida Seminar, April 20-22, 2012

”Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing!”® saltwater fishing seminar for women, April 20-22 at I.T. Parker Community Center, Dania Beach, FL Registration begins at $99/advance and includes networking reception and silent auction, classes at beginner/advanced levels, lunch, hands-on skill stations, goody bag and more. Individual charter fishing fees for Sunday are additional. Other 2012 dates: Treasure Coast/Stuart: May 18-20 and Keys/Islamorada: Nov. 9-11. Contact information is: phone: (954) 475-9068; email: fish@ladiesletsgofishing.com ; website: www.ladiesletsgofishing.com, www.facebook.com/ladiesletsgofishing.

Media Contact
Betty Bauman 
(954) 475-9068 

So, somewhere I read that adding gaiters to the mix can really help. The fine folks at Outdoor Research offered to send me a pair to review, and I just received them this week. Made of breathable eight-ounce packcloth, the khaki colored gaiters will go with me outdoors this turkey season. And that’s not all, these gaiters have been treated with Insect Shield, which is fabric treated with Inset Shield Permethrin. I can see wearing these hiking and hunting all year. I checked on the website, and it looks like the Bugout Gaiters come in a variety of lengths and in children’s sizes, too.

If you’d like to get a pair and try them out and of course, let us know what you think, check Outdoor Research’s lineup of gaiters.

These gaiters retail for $38.

It’s April, spring is spring, turkeys are gobbling, and legions of morel mushroom hunters are headed to the forests and the creek bottoms, the bluffs and berms all in search of the mystical, ethereal, magical morels. Grab your ’shroom sack, walking stick, camera and head on out. It’s the perfect time to get out in the spring woods and capture those “Morel Moments.”

Previously I’ve talked about how to photograph mushrooms in general here. But morels – oh morels, special, succulent and sought after; they require a little extra effort.

Photo by Gretchen Steele

The key with morels is to find them. There are many myths, stories, suggestions about how and where will one find morels, but the simple truth is; morels can appear most anywhere; seemingly overnight or between a lunch and breakfast foray. One moment – it’s bare forest floor; the next there’s a stand of “Big Yellas” as far as the eye can see.

When and Where

Morels generally appear through most regions of the United States in the early spring. Here are some signs that you should observe:

• Trees are beginning to bud
• A quick finger poke into the rich forest humus reveals that the soil is beginning to warm
• Flagship wildflowers begin to make an appearance: trillium, phlox, trout lily, Dutchman’s breeches, violets, May apples, wild strawberries and many more.

Photo by Gretchen Steele

When the weather has warm rainy days and nights, with temperatures ranging between high 50s at night to high 70s in the daytime,  it’s time to gather up your stick and sack and set out.

Dandelions and lilacs, apple blossoms and spawning crappie are all good indicators that it’s time to hit the woods. Spring turkey season also coincides with morel season in many areas.

The “where” isn’t quite as simple. Where the spores fall, cross pollinate and germinate is basically where morels will grow — and that can be virtually anywhere from an old apple orchard to a compost pile.   Black morels (which appear first) tend to be more exclusively in hardwood forests, but not around any particular type of tree. Finding them is often like a connect-the-dots game. When you find one, be still and look nearby. Mark that first morel you spy with your stick.  SIT DOWN, look around at ground level, you will most likely be rewarded with masses scattered all the way around you. Follow the trail of mushrooms up or down hill. Blacks will generally lead you along waterways, creek banks, and hillsides. Envision the way the spring rain water would flow on the ground and that will help you connect the black morel dots. Black morels are much more pattern related in their appearance than the other varieties.

The lineup. Photo by Gretchen Steele

White and yellow morels, which appear later than the blacks are frequently found in forests, fields, orchards, fence rows, hedgerows, islands, railroad tracks, floodplains and grown-over strip mines. Disturbed ground such as old home sites and junk piles are notorious for producing the white giants.

Unlike the blacks, the whites sometimes tend to congregate around certain types of tree, often a tree that is in a death throe – bark peeling, limbs dropping, rotting down at the base. Look for bigger, older, fading away elm, ash, sycamore, cottonwood, and silver maple.  If you find a great “morel tree” that is producing; mark the spot. It’s not unusual for the same tree to provide you with spongy sweetness for as long five years!

What to wear – What to carry

When you head out to the woods, it’s prudent to wear long pants and a long-sleeved shirt for protection. There can be brambles and poison ivy, the occasional spider web and weather elements to consider. Make sure your clothes and your walking shoes are comfortable. Be sure to liberally apply insect repellent as ticks, mosquitoes, chiggers and morels thrive in same places. Don’t forget your camera! The spring forest floor is filled with photo opportunities! A compass, whistle (for hailing), drinking water and snack are all good things to also have along on your foray. If you will be traversing ditches and creeks a good pair of waterproof knee boots is a must.

Photo by Gretchen Steele

The most important item, however, is your collection bag. NEVER use paper or plastic bags, regardless of handy they may seem. Plastic is fungi’s mortal enemy. After a long foray you will return home to find sludge of soggy broken, slimy yuckiness in the bottom of that plastic grocery or bread sack. JUST SAY NO to plastic mushroom collection bags, please!

These types of bags don’t allow mushroom spores to return to their natural habitat. A mesh bag will keep your mushrooms fresh and let those thousands of spores fall back to the ground. The spores are microscopic. The cap of each morel contains 250,000 to 500,000 spores. These spores must become airborne and then find adequate nutrients, soil and moisture. The odds of successful reproduction are slim, but people can help the process by using mesh bags for their “catches.”

So use mesh and tell other people why it’s important.

Recycled orange and onion bags are quite usable and adequate, but can abrade the edges of your mushrooms. Some people use well-vented baskets. What I’ve found works best for me is a simple lingerie bag found for less than a dollar in the laundry department of many stores. I usually pack three or four along, they fold up flat when not in use and can easy be stuffed in a pocket. It doesn’t matter which type of collection vessel you use, as long as the spore gets spread.

Let’s fast forward to the woods – you’ve found yourself smack dab in big patch of morels – now what? First of all, never pull the morel out of the ground. That method breaks the mycelium trial and can destroy future harvests. Pinch off at ground level, or use a sharp knife to slice through stem. Give the morel a little shake and toss it the bag. When arriving home with your bounty, slice in half, rinse under cool running water, and place wrapped in damp dishtowels or paper towels in refrigerator. Forget the folk method of leaving them soak in salt water – that will only net you a slimy, salty, mess. If you are particularly concerned about the little bugs that might be living in the nooks and crannies, a short 15 minute soak in lightly salted water helps to remove them. Rinse well then store as suggested above.

Morels can be used sautéed, deep fried, grilled, most anyway that you can imagine! A quick internet search will offer up hundreds of delectable morel recipes.

Photo by Gretchen Steele

Because the season is so short lived, so fleeting, and so steeped in tradition and history, photos of your mushroom madness are a must.  There’s nothing more uplifting, inspiring and cheering during a cold winter evening than looking back at memories from that warm spring day when you “found the biggest mushroom ever!”

I suggest focusing on three specific types of morel photos;

Capture the day; these include images of my foray partners, people actively hunting, and scenes from the general area.

Close up/Macros – Each morel in incredibly unique in its shape, coloring, and setting. Get down and dirty, up close and personal and capture the unique beauty that each morel displays.

Trophy Photos – Yes, trophy photos; coolers overflowing on the tailgate, mounds of full sacks piled on a picnic table and of course – a true trophy image with a particularly large single specimen.  Morel stories can be a bit like fish stories and that trophy image that includes an item that can be used to scale the morel subject will prove that indeed, “That big yella was bigger than a quart jar!”

Now, that you have a guide for the when, where and how; take to the forest, take to the fields and start snapping those “morel moments” of your own!

Here's Gretchen Steele ... Getting down and dirty for a great shot. Photo by Barbara Baird

Visit Gretchen Steele’s very fine blog, Walkin’ with the Wild Woman!

Teamwork was the key to success for the ATU anglers — by the second day of competition they were all committed to the same area, where some of the best fish to cross the scales were concentrated.

Reagan Moore used a "slow and methodical approach" to catch this lunker. Photo courtesy of Boat U.S. Foundation

Ultimately the team approach was the key for the competition’s only female angler, Reagan Moore, who took a slow and methodical approach to coaxing the big bass to bite. As a result, she landed the largest bass of the competition on Saturday, a 7.84 lbs. lunker, along with several other Texas-sized trophies.

“When I first set the hook on the biggest one, it just sat there and I told Evan I was hung up,” said the ATU junior. “Then all of the sudden the line took off and we knew immediately that it was huge.

Read the rest of the story at Boat U.S. Foundation.

This is an excellent opportunity to become part of the Female Pistol Instructor cadre and help train the thousands of women who are learning to shoot every year. With more women turning to the NRA annually for firearms training, female instructors play a crucial role in introducing them to the shooting sports.

“The NRA Women On Target® Instructional Shooting Clinic Program is incredibly successful and reached nearly 10,000 new women shooters in 2011,” said Diane Danielson, Women On Target® Program Coordinator. “We are fully committed to training more women instructors, not only helping meet the demand for NRA Certified Instructors, but showing women additional opportunities for developing and sharing their skills.”

The 17-hour training is conducted over three days. Range pre-qualification will be held Friday, April 13th from 8:00 a.m. to noon at the Ultimate Defense Firing Range and Training Center in St. Peters, Missouri, followed by the classroom portion of the course at the America’s Center in St. Louis from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Classroom training will continue at the America’s Center on Saturday, April 14th from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. On Sunday, April 15th, the course will return to the Ultimate Defense Firing Range and Training Center for the range practical exercises and course completion from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The cost of the course is $300 and includes course materials, use of firearms, range equipment and a one-year instructor certification fee. Space is limited and the deadline to register for the course is Friday April 2, 2012.

More information about the NRA Women’s Pistol Instructor Course and registration materials are available online. Please contact Diane Danielson at 703-267-1398 or femaleinstructors@nrahq.org for any questions. For additional information on the 2012 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits, please visit www.nraam.org.

I itch.

Badly.

Already.

And I haven’t even been out in the woods for hours upon hours turkey hunting yet. I’ve just been out in the woods, walking trails, looking for turkey signs, busting flocks of them and setting blinds. And already I’m as itchy as all get out, with chigger bites and briar scratches and a touch of poison ivy. Even though I wear long sleeves and long pants, I am starting to look like a scabbed-over junkie.

I always spray my clothes and boots with Permethrin, and I’m really thinking of wearing pantyhose in the woods this spring – courtesy of a tip from Brenda Valentine at the National Wild Turkey Federation’s last convention. I thought I’d given up the pantyhose regimen, but thankfully, I hadn’t thrown them all out.

We don't think they're jumping into the water because they itch. Photo courtesy of ExOfficio

I’m taking an antihistamine to help control the outbreak and of course, hayfever, since Mother Nature decided to “spring” spring upon us early this year. My doc told me to look for Permethrin-based laundry detergent, but I can’t find it anywhere online. I guess I’ll just douse my hunting clothes, pack, boots and vest liberally with Permethrin outside, the day before I set out, and let it dry. Then, I’ll wash those clothes gently and separately and ….

Anything else?

What do you do to keep the lil’ critters off your body in the woods?

This bandana from Insect Shield will last through 70 washings and retails for $9,95.

Just tell me what you do that works for you afield and you might win a very handy hanky – specifically, an Insect Shield bandana – made with repellent technology that provides invisible and odorless protection against mosquitoes, ticks, ants, flies, chiggers, and midges (no-see-ums) through 70 launderings. According to the company, “Insect Shield® Repellent Gear technology is proven to repel mosquitoes, ticks, flies, and fleas through six months of constant exposure to weathering (sun/rain). In partnership with a number of agencies and international relief organizations, Insect Shield technology is being used for apparel and other items that people use daily to aid in protection against insects.”

Winners will be chosen randomly. By the end of this week, Friday, April 6. Leave your comment here, or hey, do us a huge favor please (if you haven’t already) and pop over to our Facebook page and comment there! Thanks!

Discover more about this event here.

Katherine Grand is a Colorado fly-fishing guide and writes a blog for The WON titled "DamselFly Fisher." Photo by Eric Grand -- the fly rod dragger.

Otis Technology's Doreen Garrett, Denise Miller and Cara Peebles at Media Day at the Range, SHOT Show 2012, with one of the few kits available. Photo by Barbara Baird

-8” and 30″ Memory Flex® Cables for effective and correct Breech-to-Muzzle® cleaning

-Five (5) bronze bore brushes remove copper deposits and other fouling

-Rubberized patch saver® for complete 360° cleaning of shotgun barrel

-Specialized precision tools for complete breakdown and fine cleaning of all critical and hard to reach areas of your firearm

-Lightweight soft pack with belt loop for convenient carrying

Our WON Gun, Sara Ahrens, will be reviewing this item in the near future.

Cara Peebles, Corporate Public Relations Coordinator, Otis Technology, and the way cool Zombie Cleaning System. Photo by Barbara Baird

The event, sponsored by the Delaware Chapters of the National Wild Turkey Federation in partnership with the Delaware Division of Fish & Wildlife and the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service, enables women ages 14 and older to learn outdoor skills, meet new people and spend time with friends and family interested in the outdoors. Event courses focus on:

archery

fishing

camping

pond ecology

gardening

birding

fly tying

and more.

Registration is $45.00 for new members or $25.00 for current members and includes:

Choice of 3 Women in the Outdoors Courses

Use of all equipment

One-Year subscription to the Turkey Country magazine

Light breakfast (muffins, etc.)

Lunch

Beverages (coffee, water, soda)

Wine & Cheese Social

"Well-behaved women rarely make history!"

The casing is available as a pendant on a chain length of your choice, or as a keychain, and is one of many custom jewelry pieces offered at GunGoddess.com: necklaces, earrings, bracelets and rings, all made with recycled handgun and rifle casings.

You customize it!

Many pieces allow you to select your choice of crystal colors, brass or nickel finish, and don’t forget – the all-important caliber. Personalized engraving is also offered.

Imagine this ring on your finger!

Just added: “The Gun Collection”: gun silhouettes in sterling silver or gold vermeil, including an AK-74 shape specially designed for Stephanie Hayden of Sons of Guns fame.

AK-74 among other beautiful statements that you like the shooting sports!

Prize: Well Behaved Women pendant plus a $25 GunGoddess.com gift certificate. Visit GunGodess.com for more fantabulous “fun and feminine” shooting accessories.

To Enter: Share a favorite slogan, quote, or words of wisdom regarding the shooting sports that inspire, encourage or entertain! Deadline: Midnight (your time), Friday, April 6!

“I had a great weekend, winning my 11th title in a row at Superstition Mystery Mountain 3 Gun Championship,” said Butler. “Without Benelli’s support I wouldn’t have been able to achieve what I’ve done.”

Benelli is a world leader in manufacturing quality semiautomatic shotguns and rifles that are known for their ultra-reliability and high-performance standards.

Infographics offer an easy way to share match results so you can tweet, pin and post to all your friends. Just what is an infographic? According to Wikipedia: “Information graphics or infographics are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge. These graphics present complex information quickly and clearly.” Read more at Wikipedia.

Julie Golob. Photo courtesy of Paul Hyland

Julie Golob 'Twitterized!'

Enter Visual.ly, a website where you can create your own infographics. Ever wonder what type of Facebook monster you are? Interested in twitterizing yourself? After all, you are what you tweet. I happen to be a book reading/writing foodie who wears a geeky grin while trail blazing on Twitter. Yes, I was a bit disappointed I wasn’t holding a Smith & Wesson M&P and Benelli M2 instead of a fork and book, but I did score a full 100% on “interestingness” so that made up for it a bit. Click on the pic to the right to see me fully twitterized.

While touring Visual.ly I found this little gem of an infographic – Are Guns & Ammo the New Gold? I love how the stats are presented so clearly. It got me thinking. Wouldn’t it be cool to have an infographic for personal results in shooting competitions?

So easy to understand!

For anyone who has ever tried to explain what a hit factor is in USPSA or has tried to determine stage performances in IDPA results you know that digging through results in the action shooting sports almost requires a cryptex. It’s one thing for you to decipher it all, but what happens when your mom asks how you did at your latest competition? With an infographic, you can share your latest shooting performances and fun little tidbits with the important people in your life in a way that they can actually understand.

I decided to take a stab at it for the first match of the year, the Smith & Wesson IDPA Indoor Nationals. The goal was to supply basic match info by the numbers, like location, number of stages, competitors and round count. I wanted to include the obvious stats: my overall time and penalties, ladies stage wins, placement in the women’s category and in my division. I added an interesting fun fact, my percentage of the all the competitors’ total points down in the match – .25%, then put it all together in one image. Drumroll please … am pretty happy with my first stab at an infographic. It’s a fun way to share shooting sports with so many people.

Julie's Match Report. Easy for Mom and the rest of us to understand!

What do you think?

Visit JulieGolob.com for more shooting news and updates about Julie’s exciting world!

Also, be sure to check out more of Paul Hyland’s photography.

Cindy Flannigan. Photo courtesy of Leupold & Stevens, Inc.

Changes within the sales division include:

• Kevin Trepa will assume responsibility as vice president of global sales and business development for both the tactical optics and commercial markets.  His team will include several key personnel:

–    Cyndi Flannigan, an industry veteran with over 35 years of experience, has been promoted to the new role of director of sales for North America, with responsibility for managing the sales organization, customer relationships and business development efforts for all of the company’s hunting, shooting and golf sales channels in the U.S. and Canada. 

–    Chris Estadt will continue to lead Leupold Tactical Optics’ business development efforts with the U.S. military services.  A dedicated team of product engineers as well as marketing and support personnel will continue to help build upon Leupold’s leadership position.

–    A new director of international business development role has been established to lead the company’s international business development efforts for both the commercial and tactical markets.  The company is currently recruiting for this position.

Within the marketing department, the following changes are being implemented:

• The new role of vice president of marketing has been created to lead global branding and product development efforts.  This position is being recruited at this time and is expected to be filled in the coming months.  Several of the team reporting to this position include:

–    Michael Slack, senior advertising and communications manager, will continue to manage the company’s creative development, media advertising, web and brand communication initiatives, as well as consumer shows.

–    Pat Mundy is promoted to the new role of senior marketing manager, responsible for supporting the Leupold & Stevens sales team in working with key national retailers, independent dealers and the distribution network through the effective use of sales promotions, in-store merchandising and packaging.

–    Eric Uppiano will assume the new role of senior manager – product and category management.  He will lead the team responsible for development of product category strategic plans and new product development.

“I am excited about these changes to both the marketing and sales divisions,” said Calvin Johnston, president and CEO of Leupold & Stevens, Inc.  “They give us the ability to use our greatest asset—our people—to work more closely with our industry partners and customers as we move the business forward in today’s dynamic marketplace.”

Leupold & Stevens, Inc., the preeminent American-owned optics company, employs hundreds of people in its state-of-the-art manufacturing facility near Beaverton, Ore.  Family owned and operated, Leupold offers products that are sold worldwide to hunters, competitive shooters, American military warfighters, law enforcement personnel and wildlife observers.  The product line includes rifle, handgun and spotting scopes; binoculars; rangefinders; trail cameras; mounting systems; and optical tools and accessories.

The WON welcomes freelance writer Ellen Benitz to its ranks of Gear Court reviewers. Trust Ellen to tell you the truth about gear and what works for her …

As soon as the weather started warming up, I got into “gear mode” for turkey season.  I usually start out  by lining up all the gear I will take … and most of it, I will remove later in the season because my vest will get too heavy to lug around.  But these tried and true things will remain a constant in my vest:

1)    A really true fitting pair or two of camo gloves made specifically for women.  I usually carry two, one a little heavier in weight than the other for those cool mornings when my hands get cold.  The light weight ones are Red Head brand by Bass Pro.  They are called Red Head Strut Zone gloves for women.  They are a moisture wicking polyester/spandex material in either Real Tree AP or Mossy Oak camo patterns.  But what I like the best about them, besides the fit, is the silicone palms.  I like to ensure I have a good grip on either my friction calls or my gun!  Did I mention they fit?  I have small hands, short fingers and have a hard time finding gloves to fit, and NO man’s glove or “one-size-fits-most” gloves ever fit me.  I usually end up with too much material at the ends of my fingers.  The other pair I really like, the heavier pair is by She Outdoor Apparel.  It’s a heavy cotton blend but with a low pile interior for a little added warmth.  They, too, have some silicone on the palm and finger tips for gripping.  The camo patterns are all Realtree patterns.  These gloves will set you back $20 plus shipping, where the ones from Bass Pro are only $12.  But for me, I’ll pay just about anything to have a pair of camo gloves that FIT my small hands!

2)    A Gerber pruner.  The one I have I have had for a very long time and honestly don’t remember how or where I got them.  They could’ve been a gift but I don’t remember.  I DO remember to put them in my vest at the beginning of turkey season and that is where they stay for the duration! I checked the website and these particular pruners are no longer listed, but they have some others that are reasonably priced.  Besides being great pruners for cutting back brush or removing poison ivy from a tree you want to sit against, they carry a lifetime warranty and are made in the U.S.A. ! Need I say more?  Gotta have ‘em, wouldn’t do without ‘em and definitely worth the price.

Ellen Benitz

3)    The day or night before I go into the turkey woods I treat EVERYTHING I plan on wearing with a spray that contains Permethrin.  Repel makes one and it is available at Bass Pro and Wal-Mart called Mosquito Stop for Clothing and Gear.  You should NOT put this on your skin!  Spray your clothing and boots liberally with this and allow to dry.  This will not only kill ticks and mosquitoes that come in contact with it, but it will stay on your clothing, even through washings, for up to two weeks.  The kind I use is a military grade my brother gave me and it is suppose to stay on up to six weeks.  This year, with our mild winter, you can bet on the tick population being extreme!  I’ve already picked one of the tiny blood suckers off me just from being in the yard! I would also recommend that you spray your hunting vehicle’s seats.  It won’t stain and it could keep the little buggers out of your car or truck as well!

4)    Last, but most certainly not least, is the Hunter’s Specialties knee gun rest.  I call it my knee sponge. Mark my words, you will never catch me turkey hunting without one of these little miracle wonders!  Sometimes I carry two, just in case the person I’m hunting with starts complaining about how her knee hurts from propping her shotgun on it for long periods of time.  You know what I’m talking about, when those toms hang up about 50 yards out and commence to putting on a show for what seems like hours, while you sit there with your gun up daring not to move, while he takes his sweet time! I have terribly bad knees anyway and any weight resting on them hurts.  These little camo gun rests are cheap, usually under $5 at just about any store that sells sporting goods and are worth their weight in gold.  I can rest my shotgun propped on the sponge and wedged in my shoulder and still use both hands on my friction call.  The HS gun rest also has an adjustable strap for securing around your knee; it will even stay on when a last minute change of venue is needed.  I’ve walked around with mine on most of the day.

Well those are the four things you won’t catch me in the turkey woods without.  Of course, I carry much more, but these items are extremely important to me and for my comfort as well.  If you don’t have one of these items I would suggest giving them a try.  I can make it through the day without my turkey lounge chair, or fanny cushion, even a knife, but if I’m missing one of these other items … I would consider going back for them!

Ellen Benitz is retired field staff from the National Wild Turkey Federation.  She has hunted both with a bow and firearm for more than 30 years.  In that time she has taken different types of fowl and mammals, including being the first woman to take a bison with a Knight muzzleloader.  Ellen has written for the Sho-Me Gobbler, the NWTF’s state newsletter, for more than 10 years, been a contributor to The Outdoor Guide and to Buckmaster’s web edition.  She is a past youth guide for the Kansas Governor’s One Shot turkey hunt and has planned various Women in the Outdoors hunts, along with also instructing Turkey and or Deer hunting at WITO events.  She is a collaborating author for two Dutch Oven cookbooks and often instructs Dutch Oven, Outdoor Cooking or Wild Game cooking at Women in the Outdoors’ events.  Ellen has hunted mule deer in Idaho, bison in Montana, elk in Colorado, black bear in Canada, turkey in four different states (so far) and deer in Kansas and Missouri – taking two Pope and Young bucks in the last three years. She admittedly “lives to hunt” and loves any outdoor activity. 

I was gifted this past November by a spiritual place called Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. It contains more than 57,000 acres along the Rio Grande River near Socorro, New Mexico — only about 90 minutes from Albuquerque. I suggest going if you have never been.

Bosque offers an indulgence of walking in beauty. From landscapes to wildlife, there was no shortage of amazement. Breathtaking experiences and soul-filling magical light like no other I have seen and I know now why the great Apache people did not want to let go of it and died to defend it. I was honored to walk upon this land.

If you go, I suggest driving the full marsh loop as many times as possible for you never know what may be around the next bend. The first two crane ponds on the right before you enter the preserve border are spectacular for Sandhill Cranes before sunrise.

Also, the flight deck at sunset is a must! I chose to show some of the amazing light I photographed and how to absorb its colors as closely as possible and bring in the blacks around it by something called “silhouetting.”

It can be a tricky thing to do. You may get one out of 10 to 20 shots that look as close to what you are actually seeing with your eyes. It is difficult, and take a few exposures in manual setting to get it right, but when you do – you will know it.

Photo by Katherine Dow

For my first photo, we start with the most amazing sunrise I have ever witnessed. Thousands of snow geese will all take off at sunrise and you have to be ready for this and the light is changing and morphing … meaning you have to be on top of your test shots. It was shot with my Olympus E5 and 12-60mm lens. At F3.7 and 1/40 second. 36mm focal length at ISO 400. I did a slower shutter to blur the birds a bit and it was handheld.

Photo by Katherine Dow

My second shot  was also taken at flight, but at sunset, when all the Sandhill cranes start to come in and roost for the night. It was taken with my E5 and 150mm F2 lens which is used in conjunction with a 2x teleconverter to achieve a 600mm fixed focal length. With Olympus the sensor doubles everything automatically. It was taken at F4 and 1/400 second. They were flying, so faster shutter speed is needed if you want them to be sharper in the outlines. 600mm focal length at ISO 400.

Photo by Katherine Dow

My third shot is also at night with almost no light left, which brought in the blue hue nicely. It was my last night and my last ride around my favorite drive there on the marsh loop. It was my goodbye shot. I first noticed this Great Horned owl one morning when no one else could spot it in the salt cedar during the day they can really blend in great. This shot was not easy. I shot it at F4 and 1/10 second 600mm focal length at ISO  640. The light was gone and had to balance lens on the car window. Higher ISO, maximum aperture and slowest shutter possible to work in that light. The owl was hunting and could have flown at any second. They were all coming out blurry except this one I got one great one out of 20!

Photo by Katherine Dow

My fourth shot was a sunset that was setting behind this pyramid-like mountain and reminds me of Egypt. It was shot at F4 and 1/60second at 600mm focal length at ISO 200. I really wanted to absorb the light and make the blacks rich.

Photo by Katherine Dow

My last shot to share is also a sunset that was the most gold sunset I saw out there. It was shot at F11 and 1/2000 second at 600mm focal length at ISO 800. This sunset was still very bright, compared to the last one, which is why I shot it with faster shutter speed and smaller aperture to let less light in for a shorter amount of time.

It is much easier with digital to achieve these silhouette looks for we can test shot and make sure we are reproducing similar to what we are seeing.

Kathryn Dow

You see, it’s all about making your exposure sing!

Visit Katherine Dow’s photography website.

Defensive shooting is not just about making noise and generating empty brass. Anyone considering the use of a firearm for personal protection must understand target discrimination. In the real world there are more things that shoot not be shot versus those that should. During a crisis situation you must be able to think with a gun in hand.

Learn more here.

Student of the Gun airs every Sunday, Monday, and Thursday on the Sportsman Channel. Please check your local service provider for dates and times.

The app — available for free in the iTunes App Store — puts North America’s most comprehensive directory of shooting ranges in the palm of your hand. It also includes video tips for shooters, news and firearm safety information.

Where2Shoot gives users the ability to search for ranges near their current location as well as by zip code and state. It also provides specifics about each range, including shooting activities offered, accessibility and contact information.

The app is modeled after NSSF’s popular WhereToShoot.org website and is updated frequently with range information in every U.S. state and Canadian province. New tips for hunters and shooters are also added regularly.

Through her blog, NorCal Cazadora, she took us along with her on her journey to becoming a stellar huntress. When she writes about her angst, she means it. She is one of the few outdoor writers I’ve met who sound like and act like and are — just as they are in real person. No false persona there. No grandiose huntress, rubbing blood on her face and high-fivin’ everyone after the hunt. Just a passionate California hunter who works with the God-awful system they have out there, and who analyzes not only every step in this journey, but also in her daily life.

And I figured out why I like her so much. She was in band in high school and she was proud of that …

Not a lot of people say that out loud. But I knew what she was talking about when she said she would learn a difficult passage or master a marching maneuver. I knew.

And when she said that she looked up in the sky and saw geese reflecting the sun and it sent shivers through her system — I remembered that when I saw a similar flight of geese, on the way home from South Dakota and our time together.

Holly Heyser loves duck hunting, we think, more than any other type!

But, she’s not going away.

Maybe she’ll write a book.

Maybe she’ll start another blog.

Whatever she does, she’ll do it with thought and care and excellently. Because, that’s Holly and NorCal — the same chica. Check out NorCal Cazadora.

And, she’s still blogging over at Irwin Greenstein’s fine online publication, ShotGun Life.

So, I was talking to Stacey Huston last week, and mentioned that I was going to start reading the first book of the trilogy by Suzanne Collins, titled “The Hunger Games.” Stacey said, “The Hunger Games? That’s what I’ve played all my life!” Meaning, she has been trapping and killing her own food for most of her life.

And not because she was (or nowadays is) forced to, but because she — like Katniss Everdeen, the heroine — chooses to feed her family using wild game available. Granted the settings are very different: Katniss lives in apocalyptic North America, in District 12 while Stacey lives in Wyoming. (Somedays, though, with 80-mile-per-hour wind- and dust-storms, Stacey’s neck of the woods sounds a bit apocalyptic to me!)

Stacey Huston hunts only with primitive bows. Photo courtesy of StaceyHuston.com

I think, though, that one of the reasons my pals in the outdoor world like the book — OK, love the book — is because of Katniss’s approach to hunting and how she takes home food to her single mom’s table. She is the type of huntress we strive to be.

• Hunt hard.
• Eat what you kill.
• Respect what you do.
• Just do it, with no frills or fru-frus or girly attachments or disclaimers or apologies.

So, have you read “The Hunger Games?” If so, what is one thing you’ve discovered about yourself since reading the book?

Register Early! The registration fee increases $40 after April 20.

Workshop information and the registration form are attached. They will also be available soon on the BOW page of the DEC web site at http://www.dec.ny.gov/education/68.html

Meals and lodging are included in the registration fee. There is no discount for those who can only attend one day or for those who want to day trip.

In order to open the attached you will need to have Adobe Acrobat Reader. Adobe Acrobat is available as a free download from

Kim Rhode. Photo courtesy USA Shooting Sports

The fireworks began well before half the finals field was donning USA on their shooting vests, with four-time Olympic medalist Kim Rhode (El Monte, Calif.) proving to everyone that she’s on her game this Olympic year with a perfect 75 targets hit in match competition in the first World Cup of the season.  Rhode beat the previous World Record of 74/75 set by Elena Little (GBR) at the 2005 ISSF Shotgun World Cup in Belgrade (SRB). The 74/75 record had been equaled 13 times since then including Rhode, who equaled the mark twice in 2010 at the ISSF World Cup in Beijing (CHN) and at the ISSF World Cup Final in Izmir (TUR).

Entering the final with an almost insurmountable five target advantage on her competitors, the only thing in question was whether Rhode would be the first to reach perfection in the event.  But Rhode would miss oneclay on the second station and instead had to settle for a 99, equaling the Finals World Record.

“It’s great to start the season in this way, on my home turf, especially as we are getting closer to the Olympics,” Rhode said.

Rhode, already qualified for the 2012 Olympic Games in London after winning the 2010 World Championships, is trying to make Olympic history by becoming the first U.S. athlete competing in an individual sport to win five medals in five consecutive Olympic Games.

About the missed target ending a World Record run, Rhode said: “I was so close. People tend to find a million excuses for their mistakes, but no excuses, I just missed that target.”

Rhode isn’t done competing yet as she’ll be shooting for a Minimum Qualifying Score (MQS) later this week in Women’s Trap.

The silver medal went to Italy’s Diana Bacosi, ranked 58th in the world before today’s match, who had made it to the final with a qualification score of 70 hits in second place. Hitting 22 targets in the final, the Italian met the second U.S finalist, 18-year-old Brandy Drozd (Bryan, Texas), in a shoot-off for the silver medal, beating her 92+6 to 92+5 hits.

“I’m excited about being in this position to start the year,” said Drozd, who earned her first World Cup podium.  “The conditions (gusty) were similar to the elements I practice in at home, so you can say I was comfortable with it.”

Competing in her first World Cup, Morgan Craft (Hughesville, Pa.), 18, finished fourth overall with a 91, entering as the third American finals qualifier with a score of 69 hits.  The Lindenwood College (Mo.) student won a Junior Bronze medal at the 2011 ISSF Shotgun World Championships.

“For my first World Cup, this feels pretty good,” said Craft afterwards. “I’m happy I put myself in position to make finals and it’s a great boost of confidence for the rest of the year.”

“Kim reassured her dominance in this sport with a great performance to begin the year,” said USA Shooting National Team Coach Bret Erikson.  “It was just as nice to see the younger girls battling with some of the best in the world and showcasing the depth we’re building in women’s skeet.”

This year after fishing with Larysa in December, the two of them formed a team to compete seriously at this year’s World Catfish Classic. This year she plans to win the competition competing for Team USA. 

Larysa is no stranger to competitive fishing having experienced tournaments and successfully competing in the IFA Redfish Tournament, El Cheapo Sheepshead Tournament, The Women’s Professional Tarpon Tournament Series and numerous small inshore fishing tournaments. Larysa is also no stranger to world class fishing in places like Hawaii for marlin, Australia for barramundi, Alaska for salmon, Florida for tarpon as well as Thailand for Mekong and red-tailed catfish.

Larysa Switlyk's "catch of the day" on the Ebro. Photo courtesy of LarysaUnleashed.com

Wels catfish offers Larysa a challenge because all of the fishing is from the shore and the size of the fish can range from 100 pounds to absolute monsters as big as 300 pounds.

”Not only will I get the chance to fish the famous Ebro River again for Wels catfish against some of the top anglers in the world but also the chance to represent the United States of America as well as female anglers throughout the world is pretty exciting to me,” stated Larysa Switlyk. “I will most definitely keep up with these boys, and I am sure to shock quite a few of them when I beat them in this tournament. I will compete seriously and I hope in doing so I can encourage more women to come out and try fishing for themselves, I know it will all be worth it. I promise to fish my heart out and show the rest of the world what the USA is made of.” 

Larysa will be filming the entire competition for her television show and sharing her journey throughout the tournament via her website and through social media on her fan page and twitter account. Come join the excitement and follow along as Larysa battles it out for a world title.

About Berkeley World Catfish Tournament: 56 teams of competitors from around the world will converge on Chiprana, Spain this year to fish the famous Ebro River for Wels catfish for the opportunity to raise their national flag above all others as the world’s best fishermen compete for top honors in this competition. Follow along and support your countrymen. 
http://www.worldcatfishclassic.com

About Larysa Switlyk: Larysa caught her first flounder at the age of 11 with just a line and a hook from a dock in Southern Florida and has been hooked ever since. After leaving New York City where she worked as a CPA, Larysa took time off from her busy professional career and discovered her passion for hunting and fishing. Never backing down from a challenge, Larysa has traveled the world seeking out new experiences from bungee jumping in New Zealand, hunting in Africa, fishing in Thailand on the Mekong River, and pursuing Wels catfish on the Ebro River. Unleash your wild side with Larysa Unleashed as she chases adventure and the pursuit of her passions. Follow along on Larysa’s website at http://www.larysaunleashed.com as well as her twitter account (www.twitter.com/LSwitlyk) and her Facebook Fan Page.

Media Contact
Kevin Paulson
(202) 744-5806
kevin@larysaunleashed.com
larysaunleashed@gmail.com

I remember like it was yesterday, our youngest son (whom I call “Baby Boy” in this blog) and his intense look as he told his friends about his new puppy. He said, “We just had to get her because she was going to get ‘gassed’ at the pound.” To this day, I do not know where Baby Boy heard that animals were exterminated in this manner at the local pet society. Gassed or euthanized by injection – it didn’t really matter. Her time was limited, and so we brought her home. Because we fell in love with her on the spot. She came to us while in the pen and her siblings ran around like crazy puppies. But, she wanted us.

We were told she was a Dalmatian and Blue heeler mix. I always thought she looked like an English setter with something else, and once, I think I saw her on point.

She lived with us for more than 15 years. Baby Boy left home five years ago, and of course, as children do, or don’t, he didn’t take her with him. So, let’s just say, we’ve taken a lot of walks together.

Baby Boy and Lucy.

Lucy – the only dog I ever knew that picked – or maybe I should say, licked – blackberries right off the bush. Now, that’s talent. We’d go blackberry picking along country roads where the berries grew in the ditches wild, and she’d work the bottom parts, while I collected berries in a bucket. She never shared.

Aw ... how can you not love this face?

But, we still loved her, because she was a good dog. She never bit anyone. She always wagged her tail, and even at the end, when her joints started creaking and she started leaking and a bit of dementia set in and she could not hear any more, she still wagged her tail. On her last day, last Monday, she was wagging her tail as she took her final walk into the woods with my husband. And we didn’t gas her, but we didn’t take her to the vet either. She would shake so terribly on annual trips to the vet that we could not do that to her one more time.

At one time, our home was filled with four children and three dogs. Here's our daughter, the Designer, with Lucy in the middle, P.J. on the left and Arnie on the right.

Lucy Baird, 1996-2012

Let’s just say she had a good afternoon, with wieners and good drugs and sunshine and her human caretakers spending time with her.

And now, she lies in the little pet cemetery in Possum Holler, along with P.J. and Prissy – our other kid pets. I don’t know if it’s the fact that we’ll miss her terribly, or that whole empty nest syndrome thing that I thought I’d beat is now hitting me again. She was the last “kid pet.”

Will we get another? Not so soon. You can never replace people or pets. Maybe another dog will find us someday.

How about you? Do you have a memory of a dog you’d care to share?

Ladies, Let's Go Fishing! Founder Betty Bauman demonstrates how to battle a fish from a boat with stand-up tackle. LLGF photo

Their reasons for attending were diverse. One widowed woman had a boat and yearned to participate in the sport she had enjoyed with her husband. Pamela Poland from Oklahoma and Michelle Nietz from Minnesota had just moved to Florida and wanted to learn specific techniques for saltwater fishing in Florida.

Known as the “No-Yelling School of Fishing,” the award-winning Fishing University series for women, held in conjunction and with support from Florida’s Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), kicked off with the Harbor Financial Services networking reception at the Naples Harbour Yacht Club on Friday evening. On Saturday morning, local captains took a day off the water to help the women achieve their objectives. Presentations were made by Capt. Peter Root (fly fishing), Capt. Will Geraghty (offshore bottom fishing), Capt. Jon Fetter (inshore and backcountry fishing) and Capt. Kevin Merritt (fishing basics).

Capt. Pete Root helps Barbara Perch of Estero, FL, master fly casting for saltwater gamefish. LLGF photo

Heather Sneed from the FWC discussed conservation and de-hooking. At lunch there was a speech by T.J. Marshall from Ocean Conservancy and the Dress for Fishing Success fashion show, detailing specific fabrics and designs for fishing comfort. The seminar included tips on how to make fishing buddies.

“If you have a boat, raise your hand!” said LLGF Founder Betty Bauman during the class. “See who they are and go talk with them!”

During his fishing basics presentation, Capt. Kevin Merritt asked, “Should you go fishing when people say the wind is wrong or it’s too cold? Just go! Stick with the basics . . . shrimp with a small sinker. You never know . . . Dropping a live shrimp into a school of fish can be like throwing a Twinkie into a Weight Watchers meeting!”

Local captains Paul Nocifora of Capt. Pete’s Bait & Tackle and Chris McCubbin joined the speakers to work with the ladies for hands-on skill practice, including conservation techniques and de-hooking, spin casting, net casting with a Calusa cast net, proper fish release techniques, knot tying, hook and lure selection, how to properly gaff a fish (practiced on grapefruits), boat handling with Ranger Boats and Mercury outboards, trailer backing with a Magic Tilt trailer, trolling motor instruction with Minn Kota, Bob’s jack plate, Power-Pole and how to reel in a fighting fish. There was even a Harbor Financial Services table to help organize finances to purchase a boat.

To complete the experience, the fishing adventure trips offered on Sunday gave the women a chance to apply their newly learned skills on the water. Every charter boat returned with exciting reports of ladies catching or releasing snook, trout, grouper, pompano, ladyfish, sheepshead, mackerel and more. An incredible range of inshore and bottom fish were caught during each of the five-hour trips. Filleting demonstration followed, as many women exchanged phone numbers with their new friends.

Kay Stenger of Mentor, OH, caught her first fish ever, a grouper.”I so enjoyed being with positive people and learning about fishing and conservation!” said Kay.

Featured on national network television and more, the series is held in conjunction with the FWC through the Sport Fish Restoration Program and supported by major partners such as Ranger Boats represented by Calusa Island Marina, Mercury Marine, Silver Airways, Fishhound.com, Minn Kota, Magic Tilt, and Humminbird. Annual partners included Bob’s Machine Shop, Harbor Financial Services, Power-Pole, Hook & Tackle, Eagle Claw, Tigress Outriggers, Pompanette, West Marine, Treasure Cay Resort & Marina, and Bimini Big Game Club, a Guy Harvey Outpost Resort. Patron sponsors included Aylesworth’s Fish & Bait, Mary Kay, Sea Striker, Star Rods, Star Brite, Ventafish and Ocean Tamer. The Naples local sponsors were Ocean Conservancy, Kodiak Sportsman’s Lodge, Naples Harbour Yacht Club and Calusa Cast Nets. Local businesses also contributed.

The 2012 seminar schedule includes:

South Florida/Ft. Lauderdale April 20-22

Treasure Coast/Stuart May 18-20

Florida Keys/Islamorada Nov. 9-11

Contact: Ladies, Let’s Go Fishing! at 954-475-9068; 954-474-7299 (fax); email: fish@ladiesletsgofishing.com, or visit the website: www.ladiesletsgofishing.com, or on Facebook: www.facebook.com/ladiesletsgofishing

Jana Waller's new turkey leather wallet

Tennessee Turkey Hunting sells these Canadian-crafted turkey leather products, where “no two skins are alike.”

Check out Tennessee Turkey Hunting’s website. Check out Skull Bound on the Sportsman Channel.

Jana Waller. Photo courtesy of Jim Kinsey

Legendary professional angler and Bainbridge, Georgia resident Pam Martin-Wells has literally had every type of award given, and walked down many a red carpet in her storied and illustrious career.  Martin-Wells has not only won the coveted LBAA AOY  award (2011) but she has won the 2006 Women’s Bassmaster Championship, a 2005 Women’s Bassmaster Tour Preview event, has been inducted into the Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame, and recently inducted into the Decatur Sports Hall of Fame – just to mention a few.

Although she may have walked down quite a few red carpets, the remainder of the competitors in this week’s Lake Ray Hubbard event this week are not going to roll out any red carpet, nor give Martin-Wells a cakewalk to another LBAA tournament title, much less another LBAA AOY crown.

“It will be very difficult to defend the AOY title,” Martin-Wells commented.  “With the caliber of anglers fishing these events, each event is a huge challenge. You have to be on your p’s and Q’s 100% of the time.”

What is Martin-Wells expecting at Lake Ray Hubbard this week?  “I really don’t have any expectations because I have never fished Hubbard before, but I am sure it will be a blast because anytime we get an opportunity to fish Texas lakes it’s always good.”

With the advent of the Ray Hubbard event, the LBAA is heading out in their second full year of operations.  “The LBAA beginning our second year is a testament to the fact that we are totally dedicated as an organization to make this succeed for not only today’s anglers, but the up and coming anglers,” she stated.

“I am really looking forward to another great year. Everyone should come out and experience the excitement and camaraderie of this sport and organization,” Martin-Wells concluded.

Speaking of rolling out the red carpet, even the mayor of the City of Garland has gotten involved in this big welcome of the LBAA to the Garland area as he has officially made them welcome.

“We are excited to be hosting the Lady Bass Angler Association tournament in Garland at the Bass Pro Shops on Lake Ray Hubbard.  ,” the Honorable Ronald E. Jones Mayor of the City of Garland stated.

Mayor Jones was also quick to add,  “The LBAA is an outstanding group of professional women with a dedication to their sport and we are glad to welcome them to our community The LBAA is also giving back to our community by hosting a charity event on Saturday for our own New Beginning Center which assists women in need.”

Lake Guntersville ProAm Pro Division Champion Pam Martin-Wells. Photo courtesy of Larry Morris, LBAA Media Specialist

The LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard ProAm runs Thursday, March 22 and Friday, March 23.  Anglers in the pro division can bring five legal bass to the scales at each day’s weigh-in.  Co-anglers may bring only three legal bass to the scales daily.  The first place in the pro division will take home a $5,000 check.

Then on Saturday, March 24, the LBAA will hold the LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard New Beginning Center Charity Tournament. Entry fee for this tournament is $100 per team with a guaranteed $1,000 first place prize.  At the conclusion of the LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard New Beginning Center Charity Tournament, there will be a raffle of items donated by local and national sponsors, in which the proceeds will also go toward The New Beginning Center.

The New Beginning Center assists women and children who have been victims of domestic violence with temporary transitional housing.  The New Beginning Center is located at 218 N 10^th Street Garland, TX.  75040.  Phone 1-972-276-0057.  http://www.newbeginningcenter.org/

All LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard Tournament days (including charity tournament) will launch at “local safe light” and weigh-in at 3:00 PM local (CDT) time.  All launches and weigh-ins will take place at the Bass Pro Shops docks in Garland.

Hosting the LBAA’s first tour stop of the year is the City of Garland, Texas.  The City of Garland offices are located at 200 N. Fifth Street Garland, Texas 75040.  You can reach the city offices by calling 1-972-205-2000, and they have a presence on the World Wide Web at http://www.ci.garland.tx.us/

Host lodging for the 2012 LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard event is the Best Western Lakeview Inn located at 1635 East I-30 at Bass Pro Drive, Garland, Texas 75043-4454 Phone: 972/303-1601 | Fax: 972/303-1466.  You can find the Best Western Lakeview Inn on the World Wide Web at http://bestwesterntexas.com/hotels/best-western-lakeview-inn/

Sponsors of the 2012 Lady Bass Anglers Association Tour are:

Bass Angler Magazine, Red Dirt Baits, Reaction Innovations, All Pro Rods, Legend Boats, Bass Kandi Baits, Integrity Insurance, Progressive Insurance, Reel Girls Fish, Vickie’s Threadworks, Minn Kota, Hummingbird, River Runner Baits, Castaway, Rayjus, Save Phace, Deka Batteries, Fish Guardian, West Kentucky LED, ATF, Eco Pro Tungsten, and Sure Life.

Jessie and Matt Duff, hosts of the “Friends of the NRA” TV show, visited with the huge crowd of Friends of the NRA at the Mid-Missouri FNRA banquet this past weekend in Columbia, Mo. What a spectacular event, with featured speaker Wayne LaPierre, Executive Vice President and Chief Executive Officer of the National Rifle Association, and several other NRA VIPs.

During the silent auction and bucket raffle segment, I was able to have a short visit with Jessie. She’s such a down-to-earth, easy person to talk to, I felt like I could talk for hours. But knowing she had a busy evening in store, I wanted to keep my interview short.

I had been thinking for several days what I would ask her if I had the opportunity.

I thought it would be interesting to find out what has been the most defining accomplishment in her career. When I posed the question to her, she wanted to know if I meant in her shooting career or her personally. I told her it didn’t matter, just whatever stood out the most in her mind.

Jessie has won 22 National and 19 World Champion titles, not to mention many regional and state champion titles, so the answer to this could be in any one of these disciplines. But after giving the question some careful consideration, even stating that that was probably the best question she’s ever been asked, Jessie told me that it’s not really a moment, but has been the last couple of years where she has started to stand on her own two feet and find who she is and what she’s all about.

Jessie Duff and Camo Mom at FNRA banquet. Photo courtesy Tammy Ballew.

I, for one, idolize the professional women shooters and always think that everything is grand for them, but it was heartening to realize that they have some of the same struggles as any of us when trying to achieve goals.

Jessie has recently signed on with Taurus as their Shooting Team Captain. She’s very excited about this endeavor and knows that it will be a win-win situation for them both.

The champion shooter will be back in the Mid-Missouri area in a few months at the world renowned Bianchi Cup. I’m looking forward to another occasion to visit with this very special lady in the shooting industry, and to watch her in action with her new Taurus.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!! Yes, in fact I do wear a lucky charm. It happens to be a necklace my son made me when he was younger. It’s a leather cord with a hanging bird on it. When I asked him why he chose a bird he said “because you are like a bird mom. You are always traveling on business”. He said it would keep me safe when I was away. Now, I wear it for every hunt. My lucky bird keeps me safe so that I can fly home to Matt.

Stacey Breeden wore her lucky charm bird necklace on a Blackbuck hunt in March 2012. Submitted photo

Random.org chose her winning number. Thanks for telling us about your lucky charms. We enjoyed reading about you.

Stacey's gift will arrive soon -- a bag, zebra rug and shooting glasses.

Visit Kimberly Bortz at Bang Bang Boutique, and get yourself a nice little lucky range bag or other shooting accessory.

Anna with her Bear. Photo courtesy of the host outfitter.

And you don’t have to wait until this fall or next spring to do it; there are three spots left for April 17, 2012 through April 24, 2012, for $3,500. That price includes the guide, lodging and meals. If you’ve checked around on prices for a Black Bear Hunt, that is a great price for that many days of hunting.

Also you will have the opportunity to join Frank Miniter, NY Times best seller and outdoor writer for American Hunter on this hunt. He will be writing an article that will be published in the magazine upon returning from the hunt.

Hunters will spend the first and last night of the hunt at the main lodge at the ranch headquarters. The other nights will be at the backcountry camp. You get to choose your weapon; firearm or archery equipment.

Using both spot/stalk and baiting methods of hunting, your guide will lead you into North Central Idaho’s greatest concentration of bears where a two bear harvest is allowed. Colors of the bears range from blond, cinnamon, reddish chocolate and traditional black.

As a sales agent for Outdoor Connection, let me help you to fulfill this dream hunt. Please contact me at Tammy@tammysoutdoorconnection.com.  Outdoor Connection also has available most any hunting exposition or fishing adventure you could possibly want world-wide, so please contact me and I’ll be happy to set you up with your next hunting or fishing adventure.

It’s been called a meditation. It’s been called an unflinching account. I’m going to call it real life, a thing that happens when someone comes to terms with his mortality, his need to sustain himself and perhaps, a realization that he is genetically wired to hunt.

In his book, “The Mindful Carnivore,” Tovar Cerulli – former logger, carpenter, now a graduate student and published author – brings us quickly into his life as a child, on a stream fishing for trout with his father. He slowly shows us how he disconnects from eating animal protein, including fish and eggs.

He finds his soul mate, Cathy, and falls in love and together, he and his wife tend to their garden and live a lifestyle that sounds a lot like something you might find in Harmony, Indiana. Or maybe the setting in one of Nicholas Sparks’ books.

After about 10 years of veganism, Tovar, who is very good at describing his thought processes, begins to feel physically drained. He and Cathy start eating eggs, then fish and chicken. And then, he does something remarkable. He taps into something deep inside that pushes him to hunt. He writes, “Having concluded that I needed some animal protein in my diet and that some harm to animals was inevitable in even the gentlest forms of agriculture, integrity and alignment could only come from taking responsibility for at least a portion of the killing.”

Photo courtesy of Open Road Integrated Media

He finds incredible mentors in his Uncle Mark and friend Richard. He learns to hunt by not only taking hunter education seriously, but also by spending what seems like thousands of hours in the woods. (This is probably where his meditation skills kick in.)

Again and again, he takes us out into the woods, and tells us where we’re going to sit and why. We see signs of deer. We can hear them as he describes their breath, their hooves, their rustlings through leaves.

After a few years, he finally tags his own deer. And then, he does something for which I have utmost respect – he finishes what he began – by processing the deer in his own kitchen. He also cooks it and presents to friends and family in what appears to be strong appreciation for the gift of game.

Tovar Cerulli. Photo courtesy of Open Road Integrated Media

He also finds a kinship to people he knew and people he met and quickly bonded with, and perhaps this surprised him a bit.

Why read this book? Because it’s the type of book will take you out of yourself. And it challenges you to defend that which is probably wired within – the feeling that when you’re in the woods, with a bow or gun in hand, and you’ve prepared and done everything right and by that, I mean respectful, then it is time to hunt. If you’re not wired to be a hunter, maybe you’ll have more respect for what a lot of us feel … after spending some time in the woods with Tovar.

Please visit TovarCerulli.com to order the book. Also, check out his blog, The Mindful Carnivore.

Photo courtesy of LBAA/Larry Morris

Ridgle soared high in her first year of professional fishing competition earning several high finishes on her way to the coveted LBAA Rookie of the Year Award.  Ridgle says you have not seen anything yet!

“My next stepping stone will be to actually win an event and be in contention for the coveted Angler of the Year (AOY) Award,” Ridgle said enthusiastically.

“I am really excited about the new LBAA season,” Ridgle went on to say, “I have gained a lot of friends and I am looking forward to seeing everyone again.  I am expecting a great turn out in Texas at our Ray Hubbard event.”

Speaking of Lake Ray Hubbard, the LBAA’s first tournament of the 2012 season is at Texas’s Lake Ray Hubbard March 22-24.  Hubbard is a 22,745-acre reservoir that is located within the confines of Dallas, Texas that lies on the east fork of the Trinity River.  Water started damning up in Hubbard in 1968 and the lake has a maximum depth of 40 feet.

Ridgle went on to speak briefly about Hubbard.  “As far as Hubbard, we are going to be at Hubbard at a great time of the year to fish this lake. The only downside is a high blowing wind that will limit your fishing abilities.”

Official practice for the Lake Ray Hubbard event will run from Sunday, March 18 through Wednesday, March 21 at 12 Noon.

The LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard ProAm is Thursday,             March 22 and Friday, March 23.  Anglers in the pro division can bring five legal bass to the scales at each day’s weigh-in.  Co-anglers may bring only three legal bass to the scales daily.  The first place in the pro division will take home a $5,000 check.

Then on Saturday, March 24, the LBAA will hold the LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard New Beginning Center Charity Tournament. Entry fee for this tournament is $100 per team with a guaranteed $1,000 first place prize.  At the conclusion of the LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard New Beginning Center Charity Tournament, there will be a raffle of items donated by local and national sponsors, in which the proceeds will also go toward The New Beginning Center.

The New Beginning Center assists women and children who have been victims of domestic violence with temporary transitional housing.  The New Beginning Center is located at 218 N 10^th Street Garland, TX.  75040.  Phone 1-972-276-0057.

All LBAA Lake Ray Hubbard Tournament days (including charity tournament) will launch at “local safe light” and weigh-in at 3:00 PM local (CDT) time.  All launches and weigh-ins will take place at the Bass Pro Shops docks in Garland.

Sponsors of the 2012 Lady Bass Anglers Association Tour are:

Bass Angler Magazine, Red Dirt Baits, Reaction Innovations, All Pro Rods, Legend Boats, Bass Kandi Baits, Integrity Insurance, Progressive Insurance, Reel Girls Fish, Vickie’s Threadworks, Minn Kota, Hummingbird, River Runner Baits, Castaway, Rayjus, Save Phace, Deka Batteries, Fish Guardian, West Kentucky LED, ATF, Eco Pro Tungsten, and Sure Life.

Contingency Programs:

Legend Advantage Program, BoatUS Weigh-to-Win, Toyota Tundra Bonus Bucks, RayJus Wear It to Win, Skeeter Real Money, Phoenix First Flight, BassCat Quest, Triton Gold and Captain’s Cash.

Local Sponsors for Lake Ray Hubbard:

City of Garland, American Receivable, Bass Pro Shops Garland, Waffle House, Bakers Ribs, Bob LaMarch (Sand Bass’n Guide Service), Millennium Salon & Spa, Rural Electric Service, Wal-Mart of Greenville, Sonic,  Cici’s Pizza, Dallas Bass’n Gals, Backward C Bucking Bulls, and Evans and Horton Roofing.

For more information on the LBAA contact co-founder Cheryl Bowden @ 1-214-738-7518, co-founder Secret York @ 1-270-748-9041, or media specialist Larry Morris @ 1-540-239-7902.  The LBAA has a presence on the World Wide Web, on Facebook, and at http://www.ladybassanglers.com/

774 Sugar Creek Road Grand River, Ky. 42045 •• Phone 1-214-738-7518 •• 1-270-748-9041

Facebook •• Lady Bass Anglers Association

www.ladybassanglers.com

© 2012 Lady Bass Anglers Association

It’s a Must‐attend weekend whether you want to jump start your learning or take your fly fishing to the next level. The school will teach you new techniques and review and solidify the basics.

As a participant, you will develop your fly fishing and fly‐casting skills. Improve your casting distance, accuracy, and presentation while also learning general fly‐fishing techniques, advanced and faster knots, line management, mending your line, reading the water, streamside entomology & overall knowledge of fly fishing for trout on rivers & lakes.

This 2½ day, two night experience will begin Friday evening, May 11th and end during the early afternoon of Sunday, May 13th. Because Sunday is Mother’s Day,we’ll try to have you home with enough time for your spouse and children to spoil you with a nice Mother’s Day Dinner.

As a major fundraising event for Washington’s Casting for Recovery, we want to thank the instructors and cabin owner for donating their time and accommodations for the event. Visit Casting for Recovery online to learn more.

To Be A Victim(r) is a nationally-recognized personal safety program, founded by the NRA to help citizens reduce their chances of being victimized. The program teaches crime prevention and personal safety strategies and devices that may be integrated into attendees’ daily lives. Home, auto, technology, physical and travel security are among the areas covered in a typical seminar.

“This vital information presented in the seminars helps participants lessen their chance of being victimized,” said Ruthann Sprague, NRA Refuse To Be A Victim(r) Program Coordinator. “We are bringing in two of our most experienced and qualified instructors to present a dynamic and entertaining program.”

Seminars will be held Friday, April 13th and Saturday, April 14th from 1:00 – 5:00 in room 132. Both are free and do not require pre-registration. Seating is available on a first-come, first-served basis.

A Refuse To Be A Victim(r) Instructor Development Workshop will be held on Sunday, April 15th, from 9:00 to 5:00 in Room 132. Participants earning certification as a Refuse To Be A Victim(r) Instructor at this workshop will then have authorization to teach Refuse seminars within their communities. Attendance at either the Friday or Saturday Refuse To Be A Victim(r) seminars is required to participate in the workshop.

The cost for the course is $175 and includes all instruction, materials as well as the first year’s certification fee. This Instructor Development Workshop is limited to 50 participants. To register, send an email to refuse@nrahq.org. The deadline to register is 5:00 p.m. on April 2nd.

With almost 4,000 instructors, seminars have been held in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Canada, and Trinidad and Tobago. Over 93,000 men, women, and students have benefited from the program and its life saving message.

For more information about the Refuse To Be A Victim(r) seminar and Instructor Development Workshop, please contact Ruthann Sprague at 703-267-1394 or refuse@nrahq.org. For additional information on the 2012 NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits, please visit www.nraam.org.

CONCORD, NH — Women interested in taking Hunter Education in the company of other women can now sign up for a special Women-only Hunter Education Course offered by the New Hampshire Fish and Game Department. The course involves self-paced online study and an online exam, plus a Field Day on July 21, 2012, in Holderness, NH. Participants must be 15 years of age or older.

“This is an opportunity for women to learn the New Hampshire hunting laws and regulations, firearms handling, how to use a map and compass, and how to enjoy hunting safely so they can challenge themselves in the great outdoors this fall,” said Tom Flynn, manager of Fish and Game’s Owl Brook Hunter Education Center. Women are welcome to participate in traditional Hunter Education courses and field days, Flynn explained; the special course simply offers an alternative.

There are two required parts to the Women-only Hunter Education Course; you must successfully complete both to receive certification:

1. First, take as long as you’d like to study and complete the online Hunter Education Course at http://www.hunter-ed.com/newhampshire/index.html, then take the online exam (there is a $15 fee to take the exam). You must pass the online exam in order to print out the Field Day Qualifier Exam Certificate, which you will need to gain entry to the Women-Only Field Day.

2. After passing the online exam, register for the July 21, 2012, Women-Only Field Day athttp://www.huntnh.com/hunting/hunter_ed.htm. There is no charge for this Field Day. (Remember — you can’t sign up for the Field Day until you pass the online course exam.) The Women-only Field Day will be held at the Owl Brook Hunter Education Center in Holderness, NH, and includes both written and field exams. A New Hampshire Conservation Officer goes over NH hunting laws and regulations, followed by a brief review and written exam. Women also participate in a firearms-handling session, a map and compass lesson and a live-fire course, capped off by a field exam. After the successful completion of the exams, you will be a certified hunter, ready to buy a license and enjoy a great hunting season.

To learn more about Hunter Education in New Hampshire, visit http://www.huntnh.com/Hunting/hunter_ed.htm

Hunter education is made possible by the federal Wildlife Restoration Program, now in its 75th year. Excise taxes are collected from the sales of firearms, ammunition and archery equipment, and these funds are distributed to state agencies to conduct research, manage wildlife populations, protect habitat and conduct hunter education programs. Visit http://www.WSFR75.com.

Contact:
Tom Flynn: (603) 536-1290
Jane Vachon: (603) 271-3211
Lisa Collins: (603) 271-3212

“We’re proud of our continuing partnership with The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® and the way consumers have stepped up to help us help this very important cause,” said Wiley X Co-Owner Myles Freeman, Jr.  “It’s hard to find a family that hasn’t
been effected by this disease in one way or another.   For this reason, all of us in the
Wiley X family are committed to assisting BCRF in its noble effort — to find a cure for breast cancer in our lifetime,” added Freeman.

Designed specifically for women, the Lacey is one of Wiley X’s best-selling models.  Everyone who purchases a pair of stylish Lacey sunglasses receives more than just the most advanced vision protection on the market.  They also receive the positive feeling that comes from supporting research directed towards finding a cure for the leading cause of cancer deaths among women.

Throughout the year, Wiley X’s program and the product itself will help to raise both money and awareness.  The Lacey features an attractive Cotton Candy colored frame matched with either Coral Pink or Polarized Bronze lenses.  The model’s continuing link to the support of breast cancer research is promoted through the company’s catalogs and sales literature, as well as through a signature BCRF Pink Ribbon cling sticker that is attached to each pair.  “In addition to scientific research, one of the biggest weapons against this disease is increased awareness,” added Freeman.

Despite its distinctively feminine style, the Wiley X Lacey offers the same protection that has made Wiley X a leading provider of eyewear to U.S. military and law enforcement worldwide.  In addition to protecting women’s eyes against 100% of harmful UVA/UVB rays, the Lacey has earned stringent ANSI-Z87.1-2003 High Velocity Impact rating, for occupational-grade vision protection against a variety of dangers encountered in the outdoors.  In fact, Wiley X is the only premium performance sunglass brand with this impressive rating on every pair of sunglasses it makes.

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation® was founded in 1993 by Evelyn H. Lauder as an independent, not-for-profit organization dedicated to funding innovative clinical and translational research.  In 2011, BCRF awarded $36.5 million to scientists across the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Australia and China.  Currently, more than 90 cents of every dollar donated is directed to breast cancer research and awareness programs.  With exceptionally low administrative costs, BCRF continues to be one of the most efficient organizations in the country and is designated an “A+” charity by The American Institute of Philanthropy, the only cancer organization to achieve this.  For more information about BCRF, visit www.bcrfcure.org.

To learn more about stylish Wiley X Lacey sunglasses for women, the continuing partnership with BCRF, or the company’s complete line of performance protective eyewear for every outdoor sport and activity — visit Wiley X, Inc. at 7800 Patterson Pass Road, Livermore, CA 94550 • Telephone: (800) 776-7842 • Or visit online at www.wileyx.com.

“Like us” on  for a chance to win a free pair of shades and other cool gear.

I love tracks. I am always on the lookout for tracks and sign. I think survival was engrained in me as a young girl, but I wonder how much of it I picked up out of curiosity and a little fear of the unknown. I don’t recall my parents ever sitting me down and “teaching” me how to recognize and read sign, but there were many little moments that caught my attention and helped me to realize that it is important to always be aware of what is going on around you.

Flashback 

I was just a little girl, maybe 9 or 10 years old. It was a beautiful spring day.  My parents had taken me out hiking and fishing along an icy mountain creek for brookies. This was a place we had not explored before and as evening settled in, casting long shadows through the trees, Dad was still headed in the opposite direction of the truck. We had our dog, a small brown dachshund, with us. I looked down at her and noticed that she had her tail tucked. Confused, I looked up at my mom and realized that she had a worried look on her face. Now, feeling uncomfortable myself, I stepped a little closer to her side. A little farther up the draw, Mom took another look around, let out a deep breath, and said, “Honey?”

My dad turned and gruffly asked, “What?” as though he was totally baffled and maybe even slightly annoyed by her tone, but the laughter dancing behind his eyes told a different story. My mom just planted her feet and raised her eyebrow. She checked the position of the setting sun and pointed at a freshly overturned rock, a rather LARGE overturned rock.

Even at such a young age, I didn’t need anyone to explain to me exactly what any of this meant. We had already passed several of these upturned boulders in the last half hour, and that was enough for instinct to kick in and I was starting to get scared. I recall my dad mumbling something about girls being chicken, and something else about what might be just over the next ridge, but he turned around and, reaching out to hold my mother’s hand, led the way back down the game trail that would take us back to the truck.

Not human. Do you know what it is? Photo by Stacey Huston

Lessons learned

As a photographer, the question I get asked the most is, “Where do you go to get all these photos?”  This question never fails to baffle me and I am never quite sure how I should answer. I take them outside. Everywhere. And that question is usually followed with, “How do you know where to look?”

There really is no secret, wildlife is everywhere, but it is helpful to know how to read sign so that you are aware of what creatures ARE around.

Now it is 30 years later. I am a wife and a mother. And, I am oftentimes out in the woods alone or with my own children, and knowing how to read sign isn’t just a skill that can aid in photography, it also is an important skill to have to keep from putting myself or my children in unnecessary danger.

It isn’t just about the animals that you can see. It’s about knowing how to use all of your senses and knowing how to tell what animals are there that you don’t see as well.

Listen. I have located many species just by their calls alone. A startled antelope on a ridgeline, or the call of an eagle or hawk in flight, can reveal its location and might give you just enough time to ready your camera for a photo. Large animals normally travel through thick forest without a whisper of sound. But they can also be surprisingly noisy by breaking branches and dislodging rocks or brush in their play, passing, or in their search for food. Small creatures, like birds and squirrels, are little tattletales and will alert the entire forest of any intruders, human or otherwise that they feel might be a threat. Know the alarm calls, as well as the normal sounds that different species make.

Use your nose. You can often smell wild creatures long before you see or hear them. Most people know what a skunk is just by smell alone, even a faint odor from a distance. But many people don’t realize that elk have a very unique and pungent smell, as do antelope and other big game species. The scent of rotting creatures carries a long ways in the woods and will also draw predators and birds.

Touch.  Some of you will think this is horrible, but often I will reach down and feel scat. A huge pile of bear scat in itself can be an intimidating sight. But, if you place your hand just above and can still feel heat rising, then that ups the potential danger to a whole new level. But beyond the scope of physically touching something, if you are paying attention (as you should be) when you are out, you can sense creatures that are there long before your eyes have actually located them. I can’t count the times that a chill has run up my spine in the woods and to this day wonder if something was really there or if it was just my imagination. Listen to that feeling. Trust your instincts . . . but don’t be paranoid.

At times I have felt something watching me, only to scan the forest and discover a deer, frozen staring straight at me, or the beady eyes of a squirrel observing me from an overhanging branch. I have walked within yards of bedded elk. They knew I was there long before I spotted them, but they stayed put and did not budge because they believed they were hidden, and I kept moving and was careful not to give any physical signs of noticing them.

What does this tell you? Look for the trail below! Photo by Stacey Huston

Sometimes the signs are obvious and sometimes they are harder to detect. Freshly used game trails, paths left by herds of migrating herds of elk, deer, antelope, mountain sheep and other animals are obvious signs. Concentrations of scavenger birds, such as ravens, magpies, or buzzards, can alert you to the location of a carcass. Eagles and predators seizing the opportunity for an easy meal often frequent carcasses.

It’s easy to notice animal tracks in snow and mud, but it’s also important that you know how to tell when those tracks were made. Know how to recognize the not-so-obvious signs.

• A pile of sage grouse scat under a clump of sage
• A single raptor feather tangled in a clump of brush next to a tuft of cottontail fur
• An old deer carcass lying under an overhanging tree on a game trail in the high country
• Rolled rocks, shredded rotten logs and even simply clumps of overturned soil in a clover-strewn spring meadow
• A tuft of fur caught in an old rusty fence, or a scrape on a tree

All are simple signs that can keep you from danger or alert you to potential subject matter for your photos.

Stacey Huston in the wild. Submitted photo

For safety’s sake, it is important to remember that predators are just that. Bears, wolves and mountain lions don’t wander through the woods snarling and growling. They stalk quietly, searching for their next meal. They are hunters.

Trust your instincts and know your skill levels. There is no reason to place yourself or others in danger.

Also be aware that if the woods around you suddenly fall silent, oddly silent, it is usually a telltale sign that the creatures that reside there have detected danger, but this danger may just simply be you.

Visit A Focus in the Wild and tell Stacey you dropped in for a visit!

Randi Rogers

As Comp-Tac’s Marketing and Sales Manager, Rogers will be responsible for seeking new growth opportunities through contact with retail and dealer customers, creating and directing marketing strategies, overseeing website content, management, and design, developing target market areas and coordinating tradeshow activities. Rogers, who is one of the most accomplished competitive shooters with over 30 world and national titles, will also join the Comp-Tac shooting team, making her first Team Comp-Tac appearance at the US Steel Nationals March 30^th- April 1^st, 2012.

“We are extremely excited to welcome Randi to Comp-Tac,” said Gregg Garrett, Comp-Tac’s founder and president. “With her broad and unique industry knowledge, and her unparalleled record in the shooting sports as one of the best in the world, Randi will be a great asset to Comp-Tac as we expand our product line to better serve our personal defense, competition and law enforcement customers.”

“Comp-Tac is a well respected brand with a growing customer base in the competition and concealed carry markets and I am grateful to Gregg and Comp-Tac for giving me this opportunity,” said Rogers.

“With the tremendous growth in the concealed carry segment of the market, and the important role that competition plays within that segment, I see great opportunities for Comp-Tac to better serve their dealers and customers, and I’m looking forward to helping guide those efforts.”

Prior to joining Comp-Tac Rogers, who received a  bachelor’s in Business Marketing from the University of Northern Colorado, worked for GLOCK, Inc., joining the Smyrna, Georgia based firearms maker’s marketing department in 2009 where she handled all aspects of marketing and specialized in event management.

Molly Smith and Randi Rogers. Rogers has been and we imagine, will be, a wonderful role model for Molly Smith, of Smith & Wesson. Photo by Susan Smith.

Rogers began her shooting career in the sport of Cowboy Action Shooting where she traveled with her grandparents and quickly moved up the ranks to become a 9-time world champion. In 2006 Rogers expanded her competitive shooting activities when she joined the Team GLOCK Shooting Squad and quickly rose to national prominence in U.S. Practical Shooting Association and International Defensive Pistol Association competition. In 2011 Rogers claimed a gold medal in international competition at the prestigious 2011 IPSC World Shoot.

For more information on Team Comp-Tac and the full line of Comp-Tac holsters and gear, visit www.Comp-Tac.com or follow Comp-Tac on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CompTac.

Visit Colt’s website to learn more about this sweet little carry gun.

The Celtic knot symbol is also referred to as the mystic knot, or the endless knot. The more esoteric or spiritual meaning of this symbol alludes to beginnings and endings. A less spiritual representation is also related to the knot’s endless nature. Some may use this symbol as a charm of sorts – warding against pistol jams, wind blowing targets away, flying hot brass, no room at the range, or running out of ammo too soon.

For this St. Patrick’s Day give away, Bang Bang Boutique is offering up a range kit that will prepare you for a day of shooting, with all the necessities and a wee bit of good fortune.

A little Celtic bling to make you feel lucky and happy all year long!

First there is a hunter green small range bag, reminiscent of the color of a lucky four-leaf clover.  Atop the bag is a glittering Celtic knot design – only hinting at the treasures found inside.

Comfy all day, so she say!

To protect those ears is a pair of EarPro Sonic Defenders to protect your hearing without interfering with your ability to hear routine sounds or conversations. Providing a NRR of 24 dB, sounds at safe levels are allowed to pass through the ear canal, while potentially harmful noises (above 85 dB) are reduced via a proprietary design.  No luck is needed in trying to guess if these ear plugs will fit in your wee ear holes, since they are available in three sizes and are comfortable enough to wear all day long.

Wowzers! Lookin' at the world through marmalade glasses!

For your eyes, included is a pair of Ruthless Color Safety Glasses with EVA vented foam in orange.  These glasses are designed to make you feel like a winner all day long.  Not only do they look fantastic on, they are perhaps the most comfortable safety glasses you have ever worn.  The EVA foam provides increased protection from airborne debris and gasses.  They are ANSI Z87.1-2003 certified.

Can you find the lucky leopard rug in the mix? It'll be yours if you win!

Finally, to cradle your firearm in the style it deserves when not in use, Bang Bang Boutique is including a Lucky Leopard medium pistol rug.  This pistol rug will fit up to a large frame auto /4” revolver.

Even if you are note fortunate enough to win this give away – there is still treasure to discover at Bang Bang Boutique!  We are committed to providing women firearm accessories that are both stylish and functional both on and off the range.  To get you started on your shopping adventure, use the following coupon code to get 10% off your order this weekend: WON31712

Photo courtesy of Ohio Department of Natural Resources

While a graduate student at Northern Illinois University (NIU), Stanford worked with garter snakes and was asked by her mentor, Richard King, a long-time NIU watersnake researcher, to continue her research and relocate to the Erie Islands. After earning a master’s degree from NIU in the summer of 2002, she remained on staff as a full-time research associate, funded by ODNR’s Division of Wildlife and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). Stanford will soon earn her doctoral degree from NIU in the same area of study.

In 2006 she drew the attention of a national audience when she appeared on Discovery Channel’s Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe.

Last year The Ohio State University (OSU) hired her as an outreach and education coordinator at the Stone Laboratory. She will plan herpetology sessions, which provides students the opportunity to get up close and personal with the lake’s snakes and amphibians.

Stanford is involved in other snake-related efforts, including a review of the status and distribution of the Eastern foxsnake in Ohio; conducting a population viability analysis of the Plains gartersnake; serving on the Division of Wildlife’s conservation team; teaching a one-week field herpetology course at Stone Lab; and annually supervising several students in Stone Lab’s Research Experience for Undergraduates Program.

King and Stanford were among 18 recipients of the 2011 USFWS’s Recovery Champions awards.

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For further information, contact:

Kendra Wecker, ODNR Division of Wildlife

614-265-7043

Bethany McCorkle, ODNR Office of Communications

614-265-6873