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.

Sara Ahrens, WOMA Member and Top Shot!

Congratulations are in order for WOMA member Sara Ahrens for being accepted as one of the next 16 competitors on the History Channel’s hit show Top Shot!  Sara was a previous “Group Goddess” at the ‘Babes with Bullets’ camp she attended in 2010.  You must shoot the best group out of all your classmates at camp to win that title.  Best of luck Sara!  We are pulling for you.

American Gold at the 2011 ISSF World Cup

As reported by International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF):  USA’s Kim Rhode Won Skeet Women’s Gold at the 2011 ISSF World Cup in Sydney, Australia and HIVIZ Pro Staff member, Jon Michael McGrath won Gold in the Men’s Event.

31 year old Kim Rhode, is an Olympic Silver medalist of Bejing 2008.  I’ve only ever met Kim a few times but know she is quite an accomplished shooter and excellent ambassador for the sport.  Working in the shooting industry, our paths have crossed a few times over the years.  The first time I met Kim was at an International Hunter’s Education Association (IHEA) Fund raising shooting event at the National Shooting Complex in San Antonio.  Of course Kim took first in the Women’s class!  More recently I ran into her at the Bass Pro Media Day prior to SHOT Show and had a few moments to chat with her while on our way back to the hotel.  We are fortunate to have such an exceptional representative for our industry!  Congratulations to Kim and her continued successes!

Jon Michael McGrath, I’m proud to say, is on our HIVIZ Pro Staff!  He is an 18 year old Junior World Champion.   In 2011 alone he has now acheived the Men’s Skeet – Gold Medal  at ISSF World Cup Sydney, Australia; the Men’s Skeet, Team Gold Medal at ISSF World Cup Conception, Chile; and last year the Junior Men’s Gold Medal at ISSF World Champion in Munich, Germany.  Jon Michael has been on the HIVIZ Junior Pro Staff since he was 11 years old.  This kid is amazing!  Now a young man, he also attends college in Colorado Springs where he trains with USA Shooting.  It has been enjoyable to see his shooting career progress from a very talented young shooter to now Junior World Champ!  We are honored to have him be a part of HIVIZ!

Photos of Kim Rhode and Jon Michael by ISSF

Submitted by Chris Quam

HIVIZ Shooting Systems

Katherine Browne talks innovation in women’s camo on Outdoor Channel

Dealer Relations and Pro-Staff Coordinator for Prois Hunting Apparel (and The WOMA member) Katherine Browne tells Jennifer Morgan, of the Outdoor Channel, about the top performance features of the new line of camo in the New Generation X line. See the interview here.

Otis Technology’s Doreen Garrett featured on ABC 50 News

President of Otis Technology, host of the popular TV show Ammo & Attitude and also president of the New York State Zoo at Thompson Park? What doesn’t this woman do? Doreen Garrett was featured recently in an  ABC 50 news story about a donation made by her company to the zoo that will modernize and update office equipment there. See the story here.

The WOMA’s Judy Rhodes source in ABC News about women and hunting

“Women are buying more handguns, rifles, shotguns. We are the market for the future,” said Judy Rhodes, co-founder of Diva — WOW (Women Outdoors Worldwide), a women’s shooting and outdoors sporting organization. Rhodes was quoted in an ABC News story written by Susanna Kim, regarding the increase in the numbers of women hunting in the United States in 2009, according to the National Sporting Goods Association’s survey.

Kudos to Judy for being the go-to-gal for this mainstream market publication. Read it here.

Julie Golob top woman on Team Smith & Wesson

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (February 7, 2011) – Smith & Wesson Corp., announced that Team Smith & Wesson members captured a record-setting 142 title wins during the 2010 competitive shooting season, surpassing the previous year’s record by 51 victories. In total, the 26-team members brought home 60 state/sectional, 36 regional/area, 24 national and 22 world titles. With an average of over 11 victories per month, the shooting team along with their wide array of Smith & Wesson firearms kept the competition at bay throughout the course of the season.

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Barnes’ Twins on podium at German Cup

Jan. 30, 2011 – Oberhof, Germany – Tracy and Lanny Barnes finished a tough weekend of racing in Oberhof, Germany, home of the biggest Biathlon World Cup stadium in Europe. They completed an individual race on Saturday and a sprint race on Sunday against some of the top athletes from Germany. Lanny walked away with a win in the individual race with perfect shooting. She hit 20 of 20 targets and recorded the best and fastest shooting of the day for men and women. Tracy followed up in 3rd place hitting 18 of 20 targets.

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Traci Schauf’s Blog Featured in Whole Living Magazine

Talk about crossing over into mainstream media with the outdoor message! Kudos to The WOMA member Traci Schauf and her blog at Whole Living magazine’s community website. Whole Living is affiliated with Marthastewart.com. But that’s not all she does … this prolific writer also has her own blog, Mom on Vacation, and yet another blog at Women’s Outdoor News, In My Sights. A college instructor and avid outdoorswoman, this outdoor mommy blogger manages two homes in Oklahoma and Kansas, three kids, a husband and of course, at least three blogs that we know of. She also serves on the editorial team here at The WOMA. Whew! And congrats, Traci. Read more

Julie Goloski-Golob on the cover of The Blue Press

The WOMA’s Julie Goloski-Golob, Captain of the Smith & Wesson Shooting Team, is the “cover girl” on the February 2011 issue of The Blue Press, published by Dillon Precision Products. The Blue Press is a combination magazine and catalog, mailed to a sizable subscription base. Read more

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