SHOT Show chance to see new products; meet new friends
Troy and Jacob Landry were signing autographs at a booth during the show and asked Garnet to pose with them. This father and son team is on the History Channel’s show “Swamp People,” where they fill a lot of alligator tags.
This is the last of a two-part series about the 2014 SHOT Show.
The numbers tell the sheer size and enormity of the show:
Buyers from all 50 states and more than 100 countries...67,000 attendees...more than 1,600 exhibitors with booth space of 630,000 square feet...walking each isle of the show would cover 12.5 miles.
Yes, this is the annual Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade Show held during four days, usually in Las Vegas.
As stated by the National Shooting Sports Foundation, owner of the show, "It is the largest and most comprehensive trade show for all professionals involved with the shooting sports, hunting and law enforcement industries.
"It is the world's premier exposition of combined firearms, ammunition, law enforcement, cutlery, outdoor apparel, optics, and related products and services.
"The largest trade show of its kind in the world and the fifth largest trade show in Las Vegas, the show is a trade-only event. Attendance at the SHOT Show is restricted to the shooting, hunting and outdoor trade and commercial buyers and sellers of military, law enforcement, and tactical products and services, plus accredited press. It is not open to the public and no one under age 16 shall be admitted."
So my wife, Garnet, and I attend the show every year as a way of finding out what is new and the direction of the shooting sports industry. An example is ATK Sporting, a company which owns Federal Premium ammunition, CCI, Speer, RCBS Alliant Powder and Weaver. During this past year they also purchased Bushnell, which includes Uncle Mike's, Butler Creek, Hoppe's, Primos and several other brands.
The big news from Bushnell this year is the new trail camera, which allows the owner to view the images as they occur by text or e-mail message. What's more, the transmission of the images becomes affordable through a plan from the Bushnell Company.
Buck Knives celebrated 50 years of the Model 110, Folding Hunter, which was the knife responsible for helping the company to survive an economic crisis in 1964.
Sponsored meals of the show include the breakfasts, lunches and evening parties. We attend the Mississippi Tourism breakfast two mornings to learn about Mississippi outdoor opportunities. Bushnell hosts a breakfast to discuss new products. The Outdoor Life and Field and Stream lunches are enlightening with guest speakers discussing specific hunting-related topics.
The highlight of the week for us is the Outdoor Channel's VIP reception and Golden Moose Awards ceremony. The reception was held at the Tao Restaurant and Nightclub at the Venetian. We next headed to the Venetian Theater for the ceremony, which imitates the Academy Awards.
The public is asked to vote for the winner in several categories of the various Outdoor Channel programs.
When the ceremony was over Garnet and I headed to the front of the theater to visit with and congratulate the show hosts. We had a great time, making contact with old friends and making new ones.
We spent the last day of the show following up on initial contacts and making future plans for product articles and radio shows. We flew out of Las Vegas at noon on Saturday, arriving in Moses Lake in the early evening.
We were tired, but fulfilled with the energy of visiting with old friends and meeting new ones, plus creating memories which will last a lifetime.