Random Sights From The 2014 Minnesota State High School Clay Target League Championship

Wow!  Surprised to see it has been over two months since I last posted to this blog.   Sorry about that.   Life has pulled me in some different directions, which I will explain sometime soon.   In the meantime, I have a little photo display from last Friday up at the 2014 Minnesota State High School Clay Target League Championship at Alexandria, Minnesota.

As one of the fastest-growing high school sports in Minnesota, a total of 3,948 high school athletes participated in this 5–day shooting event.   In fact, it has grown rapidly to have such significance that even Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton showed up last Friday to visit.   Governor Dayton said, “… this place is just filled with parents and coaches and kids who are learning something they can do for the rest of their life and do responsibly.”   Indeed they are, Governor!

I was not able to attend this fun event, but my close friend, Todd Rost, was one of the team coaches for Faribault Bethleham Academy and wanted to share these images with the blog’s readers.   Check out the fun and competition:

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RANT: How SHOT Show Industry Day At The Range Lost Me

This year I made special plans to attend the SHOT Show Industry Day at the Range (also referred to as Media Day) only to be greatly disappointed.   Let me begin by saying how this is a rant about something I have to get off my chest.   I understand and appreciate how many readers of this blog might feel lucky to have the opportunity just to be part of this day.   To that I say become a writer and report on industry happenings.

Here’s the deal.   Normally I fly into Vegas on Monday (the day before the SHOT Show exhibit floor opens) and prepare for a good night’s sleep before hitting the trade show hard for the next four days.   This year I decided to change up plans.   I had not been to Media Day for a few years and decided I would check it out once again in 2014.   This decision was largely because of this e-mail received in 2012 from one of the event organizers:


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Okay, I thought to myself this is rather special.   They followed up with me to see if I was going to take advantage of my invite.   Well, as luck would have it I could not attend in January of 2013 because I had already booked a flight and lodging plans that would not allow that invitation acceptance…so I responded with this e-mail:


(click on graphic to enlarge)

After this correspondence I thought maybe it’s time to re-think my annual SHOT Show travel plans and include Media Day once again.   So, when plane tickets were purchased and lodging was reserved this year, I planned to come in on Sunday afternoon so I could spend a full day at Media Day and then attend the show when it opens the next day.   Problem is when doing this my budget only allows a 4 nights stay so it meant coming home early on Thursday (and missing two regular show days because of it).

I made the decision to attend Media Day and all went well until registration.   It was a confusing mess and the upshot is this year I apparently wasn’t one of the privileged few to get an all-day invite.   Nope, I was told I could not go to the range until the afternoon session despite the fact all my media colleagues left bright and early in the morning for a full day.

Now, keep in mind I made plans to attend based on what I had been offered in the past with an all-day invite.   I would certainly expect that a media person who was attending his 24th  SHOT would have at least earned that privilege…but apparently not.   I was duped.   I relied on what had been customary all previous years to go out to the Media Day when it opened early and make a full day of it, if that’s what I intended to do.   I most certainly would not have cut my SHOT Show experience short had I known that was the opportunity cost to attend HALF A DAY AT MEDIA DAY!!!

So, I’m done with SHOT Media Day.   That Monday will once again forever become a travel day for me to the main show.   I know some of my colleagues are enamored with getting to do some hands-on shooting and testing.   Good for you.   A lot can be written about a gun when you get to shoot 5 test shots on some uncontrolled desert range.   I find the entire pre-SHOT event to be nothing more than a bunch of hype combined with photo ops in an outdoors setting.

And here’s what really gets me.   I had made these travel plans and was committed to attend Media Day, but I lost out on that opportunity thanks to organizer incompetence.   You see, on Thursday night when my return flight got home I found this package at the top of the mail pile on my desk.

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Yup, it was the package of my credentials to attend Media Day.   They were so disorganized this year apparently they could not mail them out in time for some of us to have them in Las Vegas.   What a bummer.   Essentially, I feel like I wasted a day of my SHOT Show experience because of this process and the rather poor way it was handled.

Nope, never again in this blog’s pages will you read me making plans to attend SHOT Media Day at the Range.   In my opinion it is an unorganized joke and I will not allot time in the future, in my schedule, for this event.

I remember the good old days when SHOT only had 300–400 media attend to report on it.   I understand that it has exploded into nearly 2,500 media annually and it gets more difficult to manage all those people.   Still, I refuse to be relegated to a half day access only when on that Monday I could be on a plane sipping a cocktail on my way to THE REAL SHOT SHOW EVENT!!!

©2014 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.

Enjoying The SHOT Show After Hours Is Also Important

I belly up to the bar just to give my aching feet a much needed break.  The SHOT Show will do that to ya, you know!   Okay, maybe the rest of me needed some relaxation in the form of an adult beverage, but the point is I started a conversation with the bartender.   It went something like this…

“I bet you’re happy the gun folks are in town for business, huh?”  I casually broke the communication ice with the barkeep.Manbar

“Oh, you bet!” was his quick reply.   “Heck of a lot better than last week here when the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) was in town.”

Puzzled, I asked, “How could that be?   The CES is the largest trade show probably three times the size of SHOT?”

“No doubt,” was his quick reply,  “…but those high-tech geeks come into town, go to their show, maybe catch a bite to eat in a restaurant afterwards, yet they are more likely to hole up in their hotel room playing with their electronic toys ordering in room service.   They don’t sit in a bar to unwind.”

Shaking a cocktail in his hand, he continued on, “You probably think the gun folks like to drink and have a good time (after hours), hell, you should see the cement guys when they come in for their trade show in a few weeks.   Now, those guys know how to have a great time!”

As I brought my beverage to my lips, I pondered the possibility of how different trade shows attract different personality characteristics.   I had no clue the nice folks in the hospitality industry profile all of us patrons quite that way.   As for party animals, it appears SHOT Attendees are merely “middle of the road” when it comes to knowing how to have a good time when the floor hours end.

And that’s okay!   The daytime hours might be very business-oriented, but the after hours can combine a bit of fun along with business, in many circumstances.   It used to be finding a party to attend after the show each night was somewhat of a challenge without certain “connections.”   Well, no more.   Finding places to go or people to mingle with is as easy as joining social media.

In recent days I have seen more than a dozen different invites to private parties extended to folks who dare to venture on Twitter, Google+, Facebook and other similar social mediums.   Still at a loss for how to have some fun when the SHOT Show is not currently experiencing business hours?

Come to the Tweet-up below:

I’ll be there and I’d love to meet you in person.   Besides, if that isn’t enough…my understanding is the Sportsman Channel will be giving away some SWAG and you might even find a free beverage or two.   No promises on the last statement, but past experiences has proven that it pays to get out of your hotel room and rub elbows with your SHOT Show peers during the nighttime hours.

©2014 Jim Braaten. All Rights Reserved. No Reproduction without Prior Permission.