Hunter’s Specialties brings out Strut Pouch, Ultimate Waist Pack

Hunter’s Specialties has introduced two new items for hunters who need a way to carry their gear hunting, but may not want to wear a vest.

The new Strut Pouch fits on your belt and has a padded main compartment with a durable zippered closure, external box call holster with silent closure, and an internal organizer which holds one diaphragm call case, one pan call, five shotgun shells, and two strikers.

The Strut Pouch also has a clear zippered internal pocket for your hunting license, driver’s license, money, or other papers.

The H.S. Strut Ultimate Waist Pack has 15 storage compartments including a padded main compartment and individual compartments for diaphragm calls, pan calls, shotgun shells, strikers, license, and other hunting gear. It also has an external box call holster. The padded waist belt is comfortable and easily adjustable.

Both the Strut Pouch and Ultimate Waist Pack are constructed of heavy duty 2-ply Quiet Cloth in Realtree APG HD camouflage.

The suggested retail price of the Strut Pouch is $9.99 and the Ultimate Waist Pack is $24.99.

For more information, log onto the Hunter’s Specialties Web site at www.hunterspec.com, write to 6000 Huntington Court NE, Cedar Rapids, Iowa 52402, or call a Consumer Service Specialist at 319-395-0321.

2010 Sportsmen’s License and prints available

With spring turkey season and warmer fishing weather right around the corner, don’t get caught without a current license. The 2010 Sportsman’s license features a picture of an alligator taken by Brandon photographer Joe Mac Hudsepth.

The license is valid for one year from the date of purchase.

Hudspeth is selling regular edition and artist proofs of the Sportsman’s License picture and a percentage of the proceeds go to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks.

For more information about the regular edition or artist proofs call (601) 992-0742, e-mail joemacjr@bellsouth.net or visit his Web site, www.southernfocus.com

March ‘First Shots Month’ in Texas county

Officials in Colorado County, Texas, have officially declared March “First Shots Month.”

A proclamation was made by the Commissioners Court of Colorado County to recognize the efforts of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the Austin Young Republicans and the Texas Historical Shootist Society.

The three groups teamed up to host a First Shots seminar  in Columbus, Texas. The free seminar provided first-time shooters with an introduction to firearm safety and the shooting sports.

First Shots is an introductory program that provides the public with opportunities to give shooting a try. Developed by the National Shooting Sports Foundation and hosted by independent shooting facilities, First Shots provides participants with a comprehensive introduction to shooting by qualified range operators and instructors that includes firearm safety, local ownership requirements, shooting fundamentals, hands-on instruction and how and where to continue.

First Shots is one of many NSSF programs working to increase awareness of and participation in the shooting sports. For more information on First Shots, visit www.firstshots.org.

NSSF, founded in 1961, is the trade association for the firearms and recreational shooting sports industry and promotes the safe ownership and responsible use of products its members make and sell. For more information, visit www.nssf.org.

Newton angler wins Miss. BFL event

Reid Sanders of Newton won the Walmart Bass Fishing League Mississippi Division tournament on the Ross Barnett Reservoir Saturday with a five-bass catch weighing 19 pounds, 13 ounces.

The victory earned Sanders $5,046 and placed him one step closer to qualifying for the Kentucky/Barkley Lakes Regional Championship in Gilbertsville, Ky., Oct. 15-17, where he could ultimately win a new Ranger boat and a Chevy truck.

He caught his limit using a swim bait and a Terminator spinnerbait fishing stumps and shallow water around lily pads.

Rounding out the top five boaters are Chris Wooten of West Point (five bass, 17-15, $2,523); Keith Shelton of Brandon (five bass, 17-11, $1,682); David Lee of Canton (five bass, 17-8, $1,177) and Will Boatright of Philadelphia (five bass, 16-14, $1,009).

Mark Jones took home the Boater Division Big Bass award, earning $770 for a 7-pound, 10-ounce bass he caught.

Larry Howard of Monroe, La., earned $2,490 as the co-angler winner Saturday thanks to five bass weighing 13 pounds, 12 ounces.

Rounding out the top five co-anglers are Mark Sullivan of Collinsville (five bass, 12-14, $1,245); Wade Wood of Collinsville (five bass, 12-10, $829); Ryan Strait of Brandon (four bass, 11-12, $581); and Joe Wooley of Collierville, Tenn. (four bass, 11-5, $498).

Joe Wooley earned $380 as the co-angler Big Bass winner after catching a 7-pound, 4-ounce bass.

The next Mississippi Division event will be held on the Pickwick Lake in Luka on April 18.

The top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers in each of the BFL’s 28 divisions at the end of the season advance to a no-entry-fee Regional Championship where boaters fish for a new Ranger boat and a Chevy truck and co-anglers fish for a new Ranger boat. Seven regional championships will each send six boaters and six co-anglers to the no-entry-fee Walmart BFL All-American presented by Chevy, which features a $1 million purse and a top award of $140,000 in the Boater Division and $70,000 in the Co-angler Division. Anglers who compete in all five regular-season events within a division but do not advance to a Regional Championship are eligible to compete in the Chevy Wild Card, which will also send six boaters and six co-anglers to the All-American for a total of 48 boaters and 48 co-anglers advancing through BFL competition.

The winning boater and winning co-angler at the All-American will advance to the no-entry-fee $2.5 million Forrest Wood Cup in Atlanta in 2010. This event, featuring a top award of $1 million, is the most lucrative tournament in all of competitive bass fishing. In all, the BFL offers weekend anglers the opportunity to qualify for three no-entry-fee championships with total cash awards exceeding $3.5 million. Plus, the top 40 boaters and 40 co-anglers from each BFL division may move up to the Stren Series™ for 2010 while All-American champions have the option to advance directly to the Walmart FLW Tour®.

In BFL competition, boaters supply the boat and compete from the front deck against other boaters. Co-anglers compete from the back deck against other co-anglers.

As the nation’s leading provider of affordable, close-to-home weekend tournaments, the BFL is widely credited with opening competitive bass fishing to the masses. It also serves as a steppingstone for anglers who wish to advance to the Stren Series and ultimately the FLW Tour – bass fishing’s most lucrative tournament circuit.

Total awards are based on a full field of 200 boats in every tournament.

FLW Outdoors, named after Forrest L. Wood, the legendary founder of Ranger Boats, is the largest fishing tournament organization in the world. FLW Outdoors also is taking fishing mainstream with FLW Fantasy Fishing, offering the largest awards possible in the history of fantasy sports, $10 million in cash and prizes. Sign up for Player’s Advantage for only $10 to get your edge and win.

For more information about FLW Outdoors and its tournaments, visit FLWOutdoors.com or call (270) 252-1000. For more information about FLW Fantasy Fishing and Player’s Advantage, visit FantasyFishing.com.

Rapala goes shallow with the X-Rap Shad

When Rapala introduced the X-Rap Shad last year, it was a winner. This year, X-Rap Shad goes shallow.

With the X-Rap Shad Shallow, the X-Rap family moves from the deep and into the shallows with the new X-Rap Shad Shallow size 06 and 08, featuring SureSet hooks.

With the success of the X-Rap Shad in 2008, the shallow version will prove to be even more enticing for Mr. Bucketmouth.Suggested retail price: $8.99

Supreme Court throws out N.Y. gun suit

From National Shooting Sports Foundation:

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear New York City’s request to continue a lawsuit that sought to hold firearms manufacturers responsible for the criminal misuse of firearms.

“We are very pleased by today’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to not review lower appellate court rulings that dismissed cases based on the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act,” said Steve Sanetti, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, trade association for the firearms industry.

The city’s lawsuit was filed in 2000 by Mayor Rudolph Giuliani and was continued by Mayor Michael Bloomberg. After the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act was passed by Congress in 2005, a federal judge threw out the New York lawsuit. Then in April 2008, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that decision, saying the new law was constitutional.

New York’s final recourse was to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but the court refused the case.

Among the companies sued were Beretta USA Corp., Smith & Wesson Holding Corp, Colt’s Manufacturing Co. LLC, Sturm, Ruger & Co. and Glock GmbH.

Rage seeks stories of hunting experiences

Since the initial introduction of the Rage broadheads in January 2006, the company has been receiving letters and emails about phenomenal experiences that hunters around the world have had with the Rage broadheads. As the popularity of the Rage broadheads has increased over the years, so have the number of stories and pictures from fans. The company would like to share these stories with everyone.

If you have a “I Shot it with a Rage” tale to tell, Rage invites you to submit the story and photo(s) or video clip(s). You need to be as descriptive as possible. The more details you provide the more likely your picture and story is to appear on the Web site. Submissions are taken directly on the web site at www.ragebroadheads.com. Visitors to the site can also read the other stories and see photos and videos.

“We have been receiving the most amazing images and letters from consumers and industry pro’s telling us ‘I Shot it with a Rage!’” stated Mike Weinkauf, senior executive. “We decided that we needed to display these stories so everyone could enjoy them and see how the Rage is truly performing out in the field.”

All Rage broadheads offer the proprietary rear-deploying SlipCam that are fully deployed by the time the blades make impact with no loss of kinetic energy. The exclusive Shocklock System holds each blade in place without the need for rubber bands. Simply push the blades into place and they will automatically “lock” down.

The Rage is available in 100-grain in either a two-blade design with either the new 1.5-inch or the giant 2-inch cutting diameter or three-blade design with a 1.5-inch cutting diameter. All models retail for $44.99 for a package of three with a practice head. For an in-depth look at The Rage and the revolutionary new patented designs, check out the interactive Web site www.ragebroadheads.com Be sure to spend some time looking at the High Speed Footage comparing the impacts of fixed, traditional expandables, and both models of Rage. For more information about The Rage, please write: The Rage, 101 Main St., Superior, Wisc. 54880, or call (715) 395-0020.

Hunters, target shooters and Industry provide $336 million for wildlife and education

From the National Shooting Sports Foundation:

NEWTOWN, Conn. — When a target shooter buys a box of ammunition or a hunter gets a new deer rifle, wildlife in America benefits.

Every sportsman and woman contributes to a system that has been responsible for supporting healthy wildlife populations of both game and non-game species for the last 70 years

The contributions, in the form of excise taxes paid on sporting firearms, ammunition and archery equipment, benefit every state and have generated about $5.6 billion for wildlife conservation since 1939. The contribution for 2009 is a record — nearly $336 million, according to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, which recently announced the Wildlife Restoration apportionment.

In Mississippi, the final allocation for fiscal year 2009 is $4,976,572

Species such as the white-tailed deer, Rocky Mountain elk, pronghorn, wild turkey and black bears have made significant population gains because of research and improved habitat funded by the Wildlife Restoration program.

Of the $336 million total, $64.7 million benefits hunter education and firearms and archery range programs.

These contributions are the result of the Pittman-Robertson Wildlife Restoration Act, passed in 1937, which directs funds to states based on land area and paid hunting license holders, among other criteria. And legislative safeguards prevent these Wildlife Restoration monies from being diverted away from state wildlife agencies.

Browning X-Bolt wins 2009 Rifle of the Year

Browning’s X-Bolt bolt-action rifle has been selected as the 2009 NRA Publications Golden Bullseye award winner from American Rifleman for Rifle of the Year.

“The Golden Bullseye Awards are an acknowledgement of the finest products available in the shooting sports, and are voted on by a seven-member committed consisting of editors, art staff and veteran publications staff, representing more than a century of collective experience in the firearm industry,” said Joe H. Graham, executive director of NRA Publications.

The X-Bolt was introduced a year ago and has been the subject of testing by members of the NRA Publications staff during the past year.

The Browning X-Bolt’s most notable features include the Feather™ Trigger that is screw adjustable, provides a clean, crisp pull with no take-up or creep and minimal overtravel. Browning’s ultra soft Inflex Technology Recoil Pad is standard on every X-Bolt rifle.

Other features found on Browning’s X-Bolt rifle include a detachable rotary magazine, short 60-degree bolt lift, unique bolt unlock button and X-Lock™ Scope Mounting System.

For more information on the X-Bolt and all of Browning’s products visit www.browning.com.

Mimic Minnow Fry fakes out fish, fishermen

I’ve bought enough fishing lures to realize that two types of lures are hanging on peg hooks — ones that catch fish, and ones that catch fishermen.

Northland Tackle’s newest lure goes both ways. The new Mimic Minnow Fry has the same lifelike features of the original Mimic Minnow, Mimic Minnow Spin and Mimic Minnow Shiner. The difference is size.

The Mimic Minnow Fry is hand sculpted, and duplicates what panfish like. It is designed with a lifelike holographic Baitfish-Image body, and has a flat dolphin-shaped glider tail that darts and swims like a crippled minnow.

“The Mimic Minnow Fry looks like it should be swimming around in a bait bucket — it’s that realistic,” said Brian “Bro” Brosdahl, a Team Northland panfish expert. “It is deadly for open water jigging around weeds, brush, docks, and bridge pilings, or vertically fished below a slip bobber for perch, crappie,bluegill, trout and all fish that eat. It mimics a minnow fry and fools ‘em.”

The Mimic Minnow Fry is available in 1 1/2-inch and 2-inch sizes, and in 6 Baitfish-Image color patterns.

For information and a 2009 catalog, contact Northland Fishing Tackle Inc., 1001 Naylor Drive SE, Bemidji, MN 56601. Phone is (218) 751-6723 or e-mail us at norfish@northlandtackle.com. Web site is www.northlandtackle.com.