 The colossal world of archery came together in one building in Indianapolis, Indiana, for one short weekend in January. My job was to cover the ATA show for WomenHunters. It was my responsibility to report on the industry's new products, meet the sponsors of WomenHunters, and let them know that they are appreciated. I personally had no idea what to expect, so my expectations were not very high. Add to that, there was pending winter storm that was forecasted for Indianapolis.I was looking forward to meeting some of the Pro Staff of our WomenHunters Organization. Until now, I had only traded emails with Sue Burch, the Executive Director of WomenHunters. I hadn't had the chance to meet the other ladies. As I made my way thru downtown Indianapolis, I found a spot in a parking garage three blocks away and found the registration desk for media. Finally, I was registered and had my trusty badge, which is the ONLY way into this show. I walked through the doors to a wonderland of eye-popping exhibits, sounds of turkeys gobbling and elks bugling. Every direction that I looked, I was blown away by what I was seeing. I started the task of trying to find the WomenHunter's booth, as I walked past one explosive exhibit after another, my mind started thinking that this is not your ordinary trade show. The archery business' pulse was beating loud and clear and it was immediately obvious to me that this industry is alive and well.  I found my way to the WomenHunter's booth, meet Sue, and I finally got to meet Alyssa Haukom, Linda Burch, and Linda Thompson. I instantly realized that I was not properly dressed. What was I thinking? This was a hunting industry trade show and everyone was in camo, but me. I stuck out like a sore thumb, but Sue and the girls quickly made me feel like part of the team. Alyssa and I seemed to hit it off immediately and as soon as the worker bee Linda slowed down, I realized that this lady was the real thing and knew that I wanted to talk with her further. But there was no time to stop and chat. The WomenHunters booth was a constant flurry of activity. A steady stream of dealers, exhibitors, buyers, and industry giants would flow past the booth. The WomenHunter's booth was part of a small minority of exhibitors that was not selling any products nor were we competing with each other. The booth was simply there to promote, WOMEN IN HUNTING. There was no pressure to buy anything, no pressure to convince the crowd that our product was better than the others were. No pressure except to show that women can be and are a major part of the outdoors. The industry sat up and took notice of WomenHunters.  The products to try out were endless, the "celebrities" were plentiful, and the crowds were friendly and interesting. The exhibits were exciting and fun and WomenHunters was right there, smack dab in the middle of all this excitement. The WomenHunter's booth was directly across from Renegade Archery's booth, whose top celebrity is Ted Nugent. Now unless you have been living under a rock somewhere, chances are that you have heard of "The Nuge." Love him or hate him, he is one of archery's most loyal supporters. He lives to bow hunt. Not only is he a gifted guitarist, but an awesome shot as well. "The Nuge" visited the WomenHunter's booth and posed for pictures with us all. Hey, it was a little tough to not be star struck. The industry celebrities were numerous. Brenda Valentine also stopped by the booth to pledge her support for WomenHunter's promotion of women in hunting. Brenda's a classy lady and she made me proud to be a woman hunter. I personally have followed Brenda's career for years now. And there I was, finally standing inches from her and all I could muster up was the word "HI." After all, she is not called the "First Lady of Hunting" for nothing. Maybe next year, I will find the nerve to talk with her. Jay and Tammy Gregory, hosts of their own TV show, and members of Mathews Pro Staff, also stopped by the booth to pose for pictures. Tammy was a delight to talk with, and very down to earth and friendly. She too was very excited at the future for Women in Hunting. Country music star Aaron Tippon also stopped by for a photo opt, so did country music's newest rising star, Craig Morgan. Both of these gentlemen congratulated the WomenHunters on their fine booth and their commitment to women in the outdoors.I also had the opportunity to talk to get my photo taken with and, get the autographs of the legendary Chuck Adams, trick shooter Bryon Ferguson, Phil Phillips, Babe Winkleman, Tom Miranda, Myles Keller, and TV's hottest young gun, Michael Waddell from Realtree Roadtrips. All of these gentlemen were so down to earth and so passionate about archery. Every one of them was interested in hearing more about WomenHunters.
However, the "star" that made the biggest impression on me was, " T-Bone," aka Travis Turner. He is the often over looked member of Team Realtree. He is featured in many of the Realtree Monster Buck videos, normally cutting up with Jeff Foxworthy and sporting a false set of bad teeth. It was difficult to recognize him without the rotten teeth and tattered flannel shirt that makes up part of his TV personality, but this man was one of the softest, most well-spoken men I met there. He is simply an archery genius. He went out of his way to talk to me and encourage me into the world of archery. He made sure that I met all of the Team Realtree Pro Staffers. What a day, from finally putting a face with the women from WH, to meeting the in your face rocker Ted Nugent, to the quite down home demeanor of T-Bone. I think the archer industry covered all its bases.
 WomenHunters' Editor Wanda Garner and her husband Tommy arrived later with a special surprise that Sue had been telling to me about. With the TV set and attention focused, WomenHunters made possibly its biggest announcement ever. WomenHunters Outdoors TV. What a frenzy of attention this attracted from bystanders and from other companies! Even the eyes of the ladies of WomenHunters were misty as they watched themselves on the show's promotional video. This was a monumental moment for WomenHunters. A moment that I was honored to witness. Tommy and Wanda beamed with excitement at their work of producing and editing the promotional video. This husband and wife team was probably two of the nicest people I have ever met. I had the opportunity to shoot several bows. All of the bow manufactures had "shooting lanes" where you could actually get your hands on a bow and shoot it. The fine gentlemen from Browning, Mr. Darrell Kelsey and Mr. Rob Halsey, invited me to take a serious look at the Browning Micro Adrenaline. It was a fine piece of equipment and it shot beautifully. But what impressed me even more than the bow, was the expertise of these men, and their willingness to share that knowledge. They kindly offered me numerous tips on shooting better. They were so interested in WomenHunters that they told their boss about WomenHunters. A Brownings executive visited the booth to see what our group was really all about. By now, the third day was wrapping up and the winter storm was still hours away.  Finally, the closing day of the ATA show was upon us and the crowds were a little thinner, but that was possibly due to the weather forecast. The attention for the WomenHunters booth was still steady and strong. Numerous contacts stopped in and wanted to know more about WomenHunters. The Pro Staff would tell of the mission of WomenHunters and reveal the facts that over a million hits had come to the WomenHunters website in the months of October and November 2003. A million hits, that is nothing to take lightly and no one did! As quickly as the show started, it was time for it to come to an end. Pro Staffer Linda Thompson and her camo powered drill went to work like a busy beaver in a forest of tender trees. In no time, she had the booth disassembled and packed. By then, the storm was starting and everyone was making a frantic attempt to get out of Indianapolis before it got too bad. It was time for me to say good-bye to my new friends. I vowed I would be back next year, this time in camo. Due to an error in travel arrangements, our Executive Director Sue Burch was to travel home with me and stay at our place, then catch her flight the next day. Sue and I made it only about five miles in the storm. With no choice except to get a hotel room and ride out the storm, I felt certain that this would be a show that Sue would not soon forget. It turned out to be a show that I would not forget either. |
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