Shot 2012: Thanks to our Volunteers and our Sponsors!

SHOT Show 2012 was an outstanding event for the Women’s Outdoor Media Association! A passionate (not loud but passionate) THANK YOU to all volunteers who helped at the booth with a big “kudo” to Melita Ellington for being the backbone of the booth through four busy and long days. The WOMA booth hosted sponsor boards as a way to show appreciation for their support. Pictured is the WOMA directors, (bottom – left to right is Jaci Janes, Larry Weeks, Melita Ellington and top – left to right is Cindy Noyes, Marsha Petrie Sue, Deb Ferns and Chris Quam) gathered around the logo of WOMA Platinum sponsor, Bay Flats Lodge.

Speaking of Bay Flats Lodge they are hosting a FEBRUARY FISHING SPECIAL! No matter if you’re hunting for that lifetime trophy trout, or wanting to entertain customers or friends, Bay Flats Lodge is offering a February Fishing Special that includes overnight lodging, wonderful meals by Chef Austin, Grill Master Sherman and includes a hot breakfast served in the morning by Stephanie. For more information or when booking with Angie at Bay Flats Lodge, please call 1-888-677-4868 and use discount code #HD0737 and make sure to tell her that you saw this special in a write up at the WOMA!

Women in Wildlife Breakfast

Ducks Unlimited proudly sponsored the Women in Wildlife breakfast this past fall for the Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies annual meeting. There were around 40 women in attendance, including professionals from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, USGS, and multiple state agency representatives.

Also in attendance were several university graduate students currently studying in the natural resources field, and members of non-profit conservation organizations. I represented Ducks Unlimited at the breakfast, and we all had a great time celebrating the accomplishments of women in wildlife and reminiscing about some of the hurdles we’ve faced.

The Women Behind Ducks Unlimited

By WOMA Member, Andrea “Andi” Cooper of Ducks Unlimited…

I took a photo of a friend of mine, Alicia Wiseman, who is a Regional Biologist with Ducks Unlimited for the last 2 years. She administers the Louisiana Waterfowl Project, which is a partnership program with state and federal agencies. Part of her job is to provide field assistance to private landowners in south Louisiana. Alicia is also helping Ducks Unlimited establish a working relationship within the rice industry of Louisiana.

Alicia received her bachelor’s degree in Wildlife and Fisheries Science in 2006 from Mississippi State University. She also received her Master of Science degree in Wildlife Science (2009; Mississippi State University). Her thesis work, studying waterfowl foods in managed grain sorghum fields, helped her specialize in waterfowl and working wetlands management. Her professional goal is to help farmers and landowners be successful on the land while simultaneously benefiting wildlife. This is right in line with the Ducks Unlimited mission and as Alicia said, “makes working for such a great organization just plain fun.” There are a number of professional women who work for Ducks Unlimited and I hope to highlight others down the road.

GSSF Produces First Head-to-Head Female Champion

This article recently appeared in the Shooting Wire.  The story is by GSSF Rangemaster, Chris Edwards with pictures taken by WOMA member and GSSF Rangemaster, Cindy Noyes:

For the past two decades, Glock has operated the Glock Sport Shooting Foundation (GSSF) as friendly competitions allowing Glock pistol owners to get together, shoot standard courses of fire, learn more about their pistol – and other equipment, and get a basic introduction to competition shooting.

Over the past two decades, the friendly competition that’s the GSSF has grown to become a very large subset of competition shooting. Today the GSSF includes nearly 100,000 members and organizes more than 40 outdoor and 210 indoor matches each year.

The GSSF has grown so large, in fact, that the South River Gun Club near Conyers, Georgia (just outside Atlanta) may have the distinction of having hosted the largest action shooting competition -ever.

The event was the eighteenth annual Glock Annual Shoot and the “Gunny Challenge” with more than a thousand (1,023 to be exact) entrants. Male and female. All ages and abilities.

They moved over the standard GSSF courses of fire with various Glock models and in categories that pitted shooters against each other in comparable-ability civilian classes and law enforcement categories. In these matches “civilians” and “LE” don’t compete head-to-head.

When the largest division, Amateur Civilian, ended, the top shooter from the more than 400 competitors was North Carolina’s Wei Young.

Young became a Matchmeister after having won a “Ladies Only” GSSF match near Charleston, South Carolina earlier in the year, but this was the first time a lady shooter had taken the top prize in Amateur Civilian at the GSSF’s major match.

In fact, there’s a good chance that Young’s performance is the first time in a sanctioned national practical match that a female shooter has actually taken the top prize in open competition.

The other major event at the Annual Shoot was “the Gunny Challenge” a celebrity event that also included some serious head-to-head competition.

Once known for using comely young women to attract attention to their booths at trade shows, Glock has learned that with shooters, there’s just no celebrity with more star power than “The Gunny” – R. Lee Ermey. His movie career has seen him in a mixed bag of movies, but his hosting of shooting shows on History Channel has endeared him to shooters across the sport.

The Glock “Gunny Challenge” pits top GSSF competitors – called Matchmeisters- against each other in head-to-head shoot-offs. Contestants were issued brand-new Gen4 Glock 35s in .40 caliber with Ameriglo fiber optic sights.

In the “Matchmeisters” competition, Butch Barton, a retired policeman from Minnesota took home the $3000 top prize in what was described as an exhibition of “cool, precise, speedy shooting.”

In the celebrity match, it was “Gunny” versus country music star Travis Tritt. As Glock enthusiasts expect- Ermey took Tritt in the head-to-head competition.

The GSSF Matches haven’t really attracted a lot of attention due to their being open only to Glock owners/GSSF members. However, they’re also known as “the gateway drug to competition shooting”.

That, in itself, makes them noteworthy.

Turning Passion Into Action

As I have gotten older, I feel the need to change the world.  Well, maybe not THE world, but perhaps MY world.  I hope that I am doing just that by teaching other women how to defend themselves through the safe ownership and operation of a firearm.  I have come a long way, but I have much farther to go.  Being around some of the most powerful women I have ever known has enstilled in me the passion, compassion, and confidence to continue down roads which I might have otherwise avoided. 

Turning my passion into action is rewarding.  And I’m not alone.  Let me tell you about 3 other women who turned their passion into action.

Wendy Price and I have worked together going on 15 years.  Wendy is a tall, beautiful blonde with striking blue eyes who moved to Georgia from Alaska.  After suffering the tragic loss of her best friend and only sister, Holly Price Tobias, to leukemia at the tender age of 39, Wendy resolved to help in the fight against leukemia and other blood cancers and joined the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society’s Team in Training Program, began training for triathlons, embraced a healthier lifestyle, and raises money in hopes of someday curing these dreaded diseases that cut short her sister’s life.  Wendy has participated in more than 60 endurance events, including running, cycling and triathlons, with many of those raising money for various cancer research funds.  This November, Wendy plans to participate in the biggest event of all so far, the Ironman Arizona, which consists of a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike ride, and 26.2 mile run, a total of 140.6 miles, all in under 17 hours.  Her goal is to raise $10,000, and she’s nearly there, having raised over $6,900 already.  For information on how you can sponsor Wendy, or for more information on starting your own Team in Training, go to http://pages.teamintraining.org/ga/ironaz11/wpricer8db or email Wendy at wendyloowho33@yahoo.com.  Go Wendy!

A new acquaintance was recently introduced to me by one of my best friends Chrissy Canfield.  Chrissy works in an office across the street from my office building, and while she’s not a gun person like me, she appreciates my love of the sport and tolerates my endless “gun chatter.”  Chrissy saw fit to put me in touch with one of her co-workers, Beth Waters, the wife of a Georgia Army National Guardsman and troop “mom”.  I met Beth at lunch after an email introduction and I instantly liked her.  Beth is one of those women who sees a need and does something to fulfill that need.  Recently when her husband’s group deployed to the middle east, she sent every soldier a care package.  Every soldier.  That’s devotion.  That’s passion.  That, my friends, is action.  Beth is on a new quest to raise much needed funding for supplies for our soldiers.  She is selling $5 raffle tickets for a Glock pistol and has also committed her time to sell $5 raffle tickets for a 2011 Jeep.  Dedication to a cause is the name of this military wife’s game, and she goes about it with the focus of a laser beam.  Oh, and did I mention that besides being a full-time military wife, working a full-time job, sending care packages, and raising funds for our troops, she’s also a full-time mom?  She’s my hero.  If you’d like more information on how you can help troops being deployed in your area, how you can volunteer, or how to purchase raffle tickets form Beth, email me at melita@thewoma.com or contact Beth directly at bethwaters10@gmail.com.

I had the pleasure of meeting a lady who really put her money (and time, energy and resources) where her mouth is.  She had to.  Eddie Warren (along with her husband) live near St. Petersburg, Florida and are the owners of Skyway Trap and Skeet Club.  A few years back, their passion was under fire, literally, by anti-gun groups that wanted to shut them down.  Long story short, four years and $350,000 in legal bills later, the club is still open, with a few caveats, including using only steel shot and specially-designed clays that disentegrate in water.  The club is nice, is well-staffed and is a joy to shoot.  And I will tell you that for its location, it is very reasonably priced.  Eddie is quick to make sure you are met with a smile and is especially welcoming to women shooters.  “I love to see girls come out and shoot.  There are just not enough of us lady shooters, and we need more!” she told me.  I’m in total agreement.  Her passion runs deep.  So deep, in fact, that she lives in a motor home on the property and goes home to mow the grass and check the mail.  Now that’s passion.  See for yourself — the next time you’re in St. Pete, look them up and bust a few targets — www.skywaytrapandskeetclub.com.

Now it’s your turn.  What’s your passion?  Email me, or comment below, about your passion and how you’ve turned that passion into action!  Your story could be the catalyst that fuels another person’s passion into action.  As my new friend Beth told me today, together we can move mountains, and I agree!

Judy Rhodes Top Lady at Hollywood Celebrity Shoot

Team DIVA Women Outdoors Worldwide Founder and WOMA member, Judy Rhodes took top honors at last weekend’s Hollywood Celebrity Shoot in Los Angeles, California.  Judy and her fellow team members finished 1st , 2nd, and 3rd at the event.

With over 89 Teams of 5…we are proud to brag!  Judy Rhodes was Ladies High Over All,  Angela Schwedeman was runner-up and Annie Taylor placed 3rd.

Morgan Craft Earns Position on Junior World Team for Team USA

Photos and article courtesy of The Sullivan Review

Morgan Craft, a senior at Sullivan County High School, in Pennsylvania, earned a position on the Junior World Team for Team USA in international skeet and will travel to Belgrade, Serbia in September 2011 to compete at the ISSF World Championships!  Morgan placed second for the junior women based on a combined score from the national Shotgun Championships held in July in Colorado Springs, CO and the Fall Selection match held in September in Kerrville, TX.  Craft also competed at the NSSA World Skeet Championship in Tulsa, OK in October where she finished first in the ladies division.

She has received a four-year Shooting Sport Scholarship to Lindenwood University in Missouri  where she is planning to study Exercise Science and afterwards pursue her doctorate in Physical Therapy.  Besides her many high school activities she is President of the National Honor Society, Co-Captain of the Shooting Sports Club, Vice Chairperson of the PA Governors Youth Council on Fishing, Hunting, and Conservation.  She received the PIAA Female Sportsmanship Award.  Morgan also volunteers for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Ducks Unlimited, NWTF, Women in the Outdoors and the North Mountain Sportsmen’s Association.  She served as chairperson for the Tiadaghton Chapter of the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation committee for three years and was named the youngest chairperson for the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation in the nation.

I had the chance to speak with Morgan this morning and congratulate her on her outstanding achievements.  Her grandparents started her in shooting around 10-11 years old through the 4H programs.  From there she had attended several NRA Camps and about her second year she really got involved in competitive shooting.

In addition to her shotgun competion shooting sports she is also an avid hunter.  Archery season is her favorite.

Morgan is very excited to travel to Serbia in September for the ISSF World Championships!  Her shooting has taken her nationwide so far, but this will be her first international travel for competition.  What an accomplished young lady so far…and so much more for her to experience and enjoy!  We are very excited for Morgan and look forward to following her career!

“They Support Us”

For the past 2011 Spring Turkey Season I was very fortunate to be on assignment for Game & Fish Magazine and on set for the production for the new season of Benelli on Assignment beginning July 1 on Outdoor Channel.  Although I am excited about every opportunity for a spring turkey hunt, this event will be one of my favorites and will always give me that warm and fuzzy feeling. Joe Coogan (Benelli Brand Marketing Manager and Host of BOA) and Cristie Gates, (Benelli Media & Exhibit Mgr) worked hard to bring several women from across the nation together for a hunt on the beautiful privately owned Sarco Creek Ranch, Goliad Texas. I don’t use that word lightly, the ranch was gorgeous and the people were just as beautiful. Milton Greeson was our gracious host, and John Welder was his right hand man and were very successful at making all the girls feel like a Princess!

I was pumped about being able to shoot the new semi automatic, Stoeger M3500 with the new Federal Premium Mag-Shok #7. I believe that all our guns were new on the market, and to us, which is sometimes a little intimidating, but with no delay, we were off to the gun range.  Ergo with expert instruction from Joe and Cristie, we patterned our guns and gained confidence! As with all hunts, the times between the hunts are where lots of memories are made. Bunking with the girls, talking til the wee hours of the morning, and then RISING in the wee hours of the morning, we all kept up the pace and it was somewhat exhilarating to be exhausted!

Joe, our gracious host for the show, had scheduled and organized for months to ensure the timely execution of the production and the turkey! It all worked out great, (although not always on cue, the turkey‘s did not realize they were the “stars“ of the show). The patience and perseverance of the girls, the guides, Joe, and the camera crew are all to be commended, and proved that with the right camo clothing and gear, you can hide up to 6 people from several turkey only a short 25-30 yards away!

I could go on about the hunt, and you can be sure I will another time, but I would really like to take this opportunity to praise the sponsors. It is very promising to see the industry support and encourage women to hunt. With Benelli taking the initiative, there were several companies that stood with them to make this hunt possible, and that is what truly gives me that warm and fuzzy feeling.

As Glen Beck might say, “They support us”, so I say, lets support them.   Please check out their websites and please remember them when you, or someone you love needs gear for the field:

www.BenelliUSA.com for the guns, the hunt, and the new found friends. Only the best for us! Thanx Joe & Cristie for all of your efforts. A job extremely well done!

www.HuntersSpecialties.com for supplying turkey gear for the hunt, with various calls, seats, vests, you name it they sent it.

www.FederalPremium.com for all the ammunition and also for Jason Nash who called in my Tom & Melissa Juneske who gets the “Roommate of the Year” award!

www.SHESafari.com for all the great camo clothing! We were Invisible and Cute! (As I always say, “Camo can be Classy”TM )

www.BurrisOptics.com for the awesome FastFire scopes attached to our shotguns! It is an amazingly helpful tool when aiming at that turkey’s small head down that big barrel!

www.HazelCreekTaxidermyInc.com for the realistic decoys that brought them in close, and also the expert calling lesson!

www.RealTree.com and http://www.underarmour.com for providing camo for the men and guides who led us to victory! (I will have to add, they were also Invisible and cute!)

“Thanx for the Memories……”

10 Year Old’s First Steel Challenge Regional Match

Pueblo, Colorado held a Regional Steel Challenge match over Memorial Day weekend.

The match consists of eight all steel stages, shooting five strings each on most stages and throwing out your worst score on each stage.

There were close to 150 shooters in the match, mostly men.  When I was changing stages I came across a mother and 10 year old daughter shooting their first match!  Aletha and Catherine Chambers were out enjoying the match with Dad this weekend.  Catherine is 10 years old and was shooting a .22 rimfire in the match.  I was impressed that this was her first match.  She was moving on the range under the guidance of the Range Officer with her mom and dad in the background…but she handled it like a pro, kept the gun down range, finger off the trigger while transitioning from one shooting box to another.

She shot the .22 quite well and had a fantastic time!  A big kudos goes to mom and dad for involving her in their pastime and making it an enjoyable experience for her.  I think Catherine has a definite future in the sport….and she is already dialed in to those hot pink earmuffs!

Spiritwood, Saskatchewan Spring Black Bear Hunt

I had the wonderful opportunity to go on a bear hunt recently in Canada.  This was another first for me and only my second time hunting.  Had I not been prodded by my younger brother from Pennsylvania, who suggested we look for a bear hunt, I may never have done this.  In hind sight I am so glad I did!

My brother had suggested this in early January and while attending SHOT Show a few weeks later one of our HIVIZ Pro Staff members, Marty Fischer, also co-host of TNT Outdoor Explosion, mentioned they were hosting a bear hunt in May in Saskatchewan.  Not knowing which outfitter to go with, or even where to go, this was perfect!

I told Marty we’d take the last two spots they had available for the camp.  I was soon to learn all the ins and outs of traveling with a rifle into Canada.  The outfitter hosting the hunt was helpful but I also researched and was able to get the firearms forms online.  There are only a few ports in Canada where they actually allow you to pre-register your firearm.  Saskatoon Airport was one of those.  I filed the proper paperwork and faxed it to Canadian Customs about 6 weeks prior to the trip.  Receipt of approval was returned via fax about 3 weeks later.  I’m thinking this is a “cake walk” so far!  There is, however, a US Customs form, which I found out upon my return to the US, that I should’ve filled out for getting my rifle back into the US.  There is a registration form with the Homeland Security for firearms. This needs to be filled out and signed by a US Customs official prior to leaving the US….and apparently before arriving at the airport, in other words at the local Customs Office, which for me was in Denver.  I was able to get it back in, but was a little rattled by the Customs Officer and at the same time trying to tow a cooler with the bear hide, gun case and large suitcase all by myself.  So check and be aware of ALL the requirements prior to hunting in Canada.  Makes for less stressful travels!

We stayed at Larson Lake Lodge in Spiritwood.  The first day we took our rifles out one at a time to make sure they were still sighted in before the guides would take anyone out.  At about 3:00 PM we broke into groups of two and three per guide to drive to the various stands.  Larson Lake Outfitters hunt over 6600 acres in the area.  With trucks parked we loaded up the quads and headed the rest of the way on small paths through the woods to our tree stands.  Marty went up the tree stand before me and attached his portable stand above where I would be sitting so he could film.  The stand was about 20 feet up.  Marty now settled and camera secured, I headed up and affixed my rifle rest and settled in.  As the guide was readying to leave on his quad, he whispered up for me to load my rifle now, before he left, as bears have been known to come in to the bait even a few minutes after they leave.

Well almost four silent hours and many squirrels later, suddenly there is crashing from behind us.  My adrenaline starts and I think here we go…get ready.  At the same time, I’m thinking that crashing is way too loud and fast for any bear!  A huge moose came crashing through the stand area and ran up the other side of the hill.  Beautiful!!!

Back to silence again, except for thousands of tree frogs and one duck that didn’t quit the entire time…for two more hours and no bear sightings.  It is now about 9:15 PM, starting to get dark and I’m getting a little chilled.  Marty breaks the silence from above and behind me and asks if I still have light in my scope.  Checking, I could still see fine.  No sooner had we stopped whispering, I heard foot steps on the leaves coming in behind us.  I knew immediately we had a bear coming in finally!  I couldn’t believe it!  Two minutes ago I was ready to pack it in for the night!  I got down on my scope and sighted on the bait area, continuing to hear him walking in from behind.  I don’t think Marty heard the footsteps until the bear reached the base of our tree stand.  He stopped just below the stand, sniffed and snorted around the ladder at our foot steps.  I was afraid to move off my rifle to look down at him, thinking I might startle him with too much movement.  It is getting darker out.  I hear him starting to move towards the bait barrel and I finally peek over my rifle and see he is a cinnamon colored bear!  I’m whispering to Marty to make sure he is a big enough bear and Marty is whispering back, “YES!”  Now I have the bear in my scope and this uncontrollable adrenaline hits.  Thank goodness for the rifle rest!  The bear is at the barrel and standing up making his way around the entire barrel.  Before hand, Marty had told me to not shoot right away because he wanted to get as much bear footage on the camera as possible.  So I am waiting a bit…it’s getting darker, …with head down on the scope I’m whispering to Marty, do you have enough footage?  He’s whispering back and both of us being shooters, neither one of us can hear what the other is whispering!  Ok, time for my lone executive decision now as it is getting darker.  I have the perfect shot and a good solid hold, despite the adrenaline rushing through my body still.  I pulled the trigger and will never forget the view through the scope, almost dark with red muzzle flash and the bear going down!  I was elated!  He went down, struggled to get up and ran a bit.  He made a semi-circle back towards the tree stand…..I’m reloading now just in case, and he drops about 15 feet from where he started.

WOW!  I can’t tell you what a satisfying feeling it was to know I did this on my own.  I was apprehensive prior to the trip, traveling to Canada by myself with firearms and never having shot from a tree stand and at a bear nonetheless.  I am definitely hooked on hunting now!  The people at the lodge were fantastic and I hope to return later next year for an elk hunt with my daughter in tow this time.

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