10 MUST-STOCK PRODUCTS FOR THE NEW YEAR, P.8
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SECRETS TO SELLING MARINE ELECTRONICS, P.12
HOW TO SUCCEED WITH SOCIAL MEDIA, P.27
Sportsman
JANUARY 2 0 1 3 VOL.77
AC C E S S M O R E W IT H B I G RO C K S P O RT S
INTRODUCING WINCHESTER TRAACKERTM SEE OUR AD ON PAGE 18 PRST STD U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit #1109 Harrisburg, PA BR_Dec2012_issue.indd 1
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EVERY TARGET. EVERY DISTANCE. EVERY SCENARIO
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A New Animal Dealer Show Dates EAST January 4–6, 2013 Raleigh, NC Raleigh Convention Center Register online at: BigRockSports.com/East WEST January 7–9, 2013 LasVegas, NV Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Register online at: BigRockSports.com/West Or call Customer Service at 800.334.2661
n a recent visit to Big Rock’s Newport office, I found myself thumbing through some old copies of our Sportsman magazine. In the early ‘90s the publication was produced by Avis Sports and titled The Avis Sportsman. It became the Big Rock Sportsman in 1998 and has evolved several times since then. Looking at the early covers that feature attractive outdoor imagery, it struck me how often it’s true that what’s old is new again. The new Big Rock Sportsman is not just a cosmetic makeover, but rather an entirely new animal. The updated front cover is the most obvious difference, but the changes run much deeper. This magazine’s mission is to be an essential retail tool for you. Each issue will provide you with tips and trends from successful dealers across the country. From setting up power aisles and merchandising cash wraps to connecting with customers via Facebook, you can find out what’s working for their stores and apply their knowledge in your own store. We will be bringing you the latest industry news, updates and advice from our advocacy partners, the hottest new products and guidance from retail experts. We also partnered with Weather Trends 360® to bring you detailed, long-range forecasts to help with your planning efforts. I invite you to become a part of the new Big Rock Sportsman. Send us photos and descriptions of your recent trophies and we’ll feature them in the Big Rock Sporting Life (page 34). And, as always, we want to hear from you. Let us know what you think about the new magazine and tell us which topics you would like to see us cover in future issues. We’ll be waiting to hear from you at Magazine@ BigRockSports.com.
O
Editor Shannon Farlow spent his childhood hunting from Maine to Mississippi and fishing the coastal waters of North Carolina with his father. Now a father himself, Shannon is enjoying passing these family traditions on to his son and daughter.
EDITOR
Shannon Farlow 252.808.8274 sfarlow@bigrocksports.com The Big Rock Sportsman is the official publication of Big Rock Sports exclusively for Big Rock Sports Dealers. Free to qualified customers. Comments or questions may be directed to: Big Rock Sports Marketing 173 Hankison Drive Newport, NC 28570 Or email: Mitch Mitchell Director of Marketing mmitchell@bigrocksports.com © 2013 Big Rock Sports, LLC All rights reserved.
BigRockSports.com
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What’s Inside
12SELLING FISHING ELECTRONICS: 20 PROFIT FROM PREDATORS: Anglers are intrigued by marine electronics, but they don’t fully appreciate everything these marvels can do for them. Use these tips to power up your sales.
The increasing popularity of lateseason predator hunting creates an opportunity for dealers to sell more varminthunting accessories.
6 INDUSTRY NEWS:
27 WE ASKED, YOU ANSWERED:
Big Rock Brings Sea Striker Home; New Big Rock Taxidermy Competition Set; And More…
Three dealers explain why your store should be on Facebook.
8HOT PRODUCTS: 28 RECIPE: 10 THE POWER OF POS SYSTEMS: 30 ADVOCACY: WEATHER: HOW POS TRANSFORMED MY 33 16STORE: 10 products that you should be stocking now.
Today’s point-of-sale systems are tailored to small retailers.
Anna Lou’s Squirrel.
34 THE BIG ROCK SPORTING LIFE: Dealers share their recent trophies.
Youth programs and trickle-down policies. Prepare for a snowy
January.
Dave Workman, Jr. of Strike-Zone Fishing explains how his store is profiting from using a point-of-sale system and how yours can, too.
24
A BETTER STEELHEAD HOOK:
Award-winning author Matt Straw shares his success with Lazer TroKar hooks.
25FROM THE MANUFACTURER:
Anglers (and dealers) can benefit from TroKar’s Surgically Sharpened Technology.
Outers® Gun Cleaning Tool Kit 79-Pc 29-piece gun cleaning kit 51-piece screwdriver kit 22–30 cal. Rifles, .38–.45 cal handguns, 20–12 ga. shotguns Screwdriver set has gun-specific bits Order now: 0887-2439 See more Hot Products on page 8.
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Industry News COMPILED BY ROB PHILLIPS
Superstorm Sandy Still Affecting Outdoor Activities At USFW Refuges
Big Rock Brings Sea Striker Home BIG ROCK SPORTS HAS ACQUIRED fishing tackle maker Sea Striker International. The acquisition, which was concluded in October, includes lures and rods that are produced and sold for offshore, inshore and surf fishing under the Sea Striker®, Star Rods, Got-cha®, Krok®, Nungesser® and Billfisher® brands. Dick Henry founded Sea Striker International in 1969 and later launched Henry’s Tackle in Morehead City. Henry’s quickly gained the reputation as the go-to distributor for fresh- and saltwater tackle across the United States and eventually became an important part of Big Rock Sports in 1996. “After many years of providing anglers around the world with quality products, I’m happy to bring Sea
Dick Henry (right) founded Sea Striker and later Henry’sTackle. Striker and Star Rods back home to Big Rock Sports,” said Dick Henry, President and Founder of Sea Striker. The team at Sea Striker and Star Rods will be led by Dave Martin, Vice President at Big Rock Sports. Dave is a long-term veteran of the fishing industry and most recently was the Vice President of Product Development and Manufacturing with Zebco Brands.
New Big Rock Taxidermy Competition Set THE FIRST-EVER BIG Rock Sports Taxidermy Competition will take place during the East Show. There will be more than $10,000 in cash and prizes awarded in four categories: Birds, Fish, Game Heads and Whitetail Shoulder. Some of the top taxidermists in the country will be on hand to judge the event. Entries will be received Friday afternoon Jan. 4 and Saturday morning, Jan. 5. Big Rock Sports recently acquired Head Quarters Taxidermy Supply. They will have a huge display of taxidermy forms and products at the show.
A number of National Wildlife Refuges along the eastern seaboard were flooded or received damage due to the high winds and massive rainfall when Hurricane Sandy hit land on October 30. Refuges in Maryland, New York, Virginia, West Virginia and in other eastern states were closed due to damage from fallen trees, eroded and damaged roads that are impassable, and trails that are littered with debris from the storm surge. Many were still assessing damages at press time. These damages and repairs may keep some of the refuges closed to the public for some time, hurting some hunting, fishing and other outdoor opportunities.
Big Rock Sports Dealer Shows Set For January Two of the biggest outdoor dealer shows in the country are set for January when the Big Rock Sports East and Big Rock Sports West Shows get underway right after the first of the year. The 2013 Big Rock Sports East Dealer Show will be held at the Raleigh Convention Center in Raleigh, NC, Friday through Sunday, January 4, 5 and 6. The Big Rock Sports West Dealer Show is in Las Vegas on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, January 7, 8 and 9 at the Mandalay Bay Hotel & Casino. Dealers will find the largest selection of manufacturers and products ever assembled at these two shows. Attending dealers can also participate in the launch of Big Rock’s new retail tools at the Dealer ACCESS booth.
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Hot Products F ISHING A ND M A R INE
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Built-in StructureScan™ HD sonar imaging, plus award-winning Broadband Sounder™ with DownScan Overlay™ andTrackBack™ feature. Personalized or built-in Insight mapping and optional Navionics® charts. View both at once in 3D perspective view, plus StructureMap™, Broadband Radar™ and SIRIUS® weather overlay capability. Brilliant, enhanced SolarMAX™ PLUS display for superior sunlight and wider-angle viewing. Single Ethernet port and one full-sized SD card slot Order now: 0182-0866
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Guest Column CHRIS GIGL E Y
Today’s point-of-sale systems are designed for independent retailers of all sizes.
The Power of POS Systems “BEING ABLE TO SEE EXACTLY HOW MUCH AND WHAT YOU SELL MAKES PREDICTING SALES A LOT BETTER THAN DOING IT JUST BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS.” –VIC MITCHELL
VIRTUALLY EVERY LARGE RETAILER in the world uses a point-of-sale (POS) system that tracks sales, inventory and orders. POS systems can be just as important—if not more—for small retailers who want to grow their businesses. Consider Franklin Outdoors, a single sporting goods store in Rocky Mount, Va. When it opened about five years ago, Shaun Purdue says one of the first things he did was purchase a POS System. He had extensive experience in retail and knew how vital that expense was. “There’s no doubt it was a significant investment for us,” he says now. “But it was still worth it because we could track our inventory, sales, sales history and profit margin much better than we could without it.” Purdue says he and his staff didn’t take long to get comfortable using the system when it was new. He hasn’t needed to update the system, either, so he is still getting returns on his initial investment. Vic Mitchell, co-owner of Gulf Breeze
Bait and Tackle near Pensacola, Fla., installed his POS System in 1997. Before, sales clerks there tracked everything on paper, making inventory checks a long and agonizing process. Sales tracking was imprecise at best. The impact of the POS system, recalls Mitchell, was almost immediate. “Being able to see exactly how much and what you sell makes predicting sales a lot better than doing it just by the seat of your pants,” he says. “When the system creates reorder reports, you can see how many you sold month-to-month, week-to-week and year-to-date. We began buying much more efficiently and saw increases in our inventory turns.” Now that Mitchell has been using a POS System for the last 15 years, he compares it to the Internet and cell phones. He wonders how he lived without it for so long. “I think it’s very hard to grow your business now without a POS system, at least past the point where you can keep inventory in your head and always know what you need,” he says. “There are a
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More Knives in Less Space with the Kershaw Alaskan Blade Trader. Three interchangeable blades and one sure-grip handle fit in a sturdy leather belt sheath.
Best Sellers
whole lot of things we’ve been able to add to our inventory that I never would have carried if I hadn’t been able to track sales.” Mitchell says his POS system has capabilities he still hasn’t tapped into yet, such as crunching the numbers to predict seasonal sales. Newer systems can do even more. Big Rock Sports has partnered with several POS system providers, including Cervelle Software and EPICOR, both of which offer POS solutions that can completely automate sales and inventory control. Cervelle, for instance, offers ATFcompliant POS software with embedded inventory tracking that streamlines the process of buying, selling, repairing, consigning and transferring guns. Its Merchant Magic™ POS software further simplifies these processes with barcode scanners that allow users to scan items rather than inputting item numbers on a keyboard. The barcode scanners and credit card swipers are programmed to read the customer name and address information from driver’s licenses and instantly import them into the customer database. This dramatically cuts
down on typing errors or the need for typing at all. EPICOR, meanwhile, offers the Retail Store POS solution with features that include central customer relationship management lookup, cross-channel selling, return/exchange management and store central management. Its Eagle POS System includes the Mobile POS wireless handheld checkout solution that allows sales staff to take the cash register to the customer, whether shopping a sidewalk sale or browsing in another remote location. Other companies offer excellent POS systems as well, including CAP and Merchant OS. Gun dealers should also consider the firearms-friendly POS system from Celerant. Regardless of the system, the latest technology can elevate the smallest retail operation to the same level as the fastest-growing multi-store chains, where accurate and detailed sales information is used to make sound buying decisions. For more information, contact EPICOR at 800.992.9160 or retailinfo@epicor.com. Contact Cervelle at 407.673.4898 or info@CervelleSoftware.com. BR
Alaskan Blade Trader 1098AK
Other Kershaw Top Sellers 1028 ANTELOPE HUNTER II 1029 BEAR HUNTER II 1620C CAMO SCALLION 1560 AND 1560ST WHIRLWIND PLAIN EDGE OR PARTIALLY SERRATED
See your Big Rock Representative for these and Seeother yourKershaw Big Rockhunting Representative for knives. these and and outdoor other Kershaw hunting and outdoor knives.
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This crappie boat is set up for spider rigging. Note the LCG on the bow.
Selling Fishing Electronics BY M A R K HICK S IN THIS AGE OF COMPACT COMPUTERS, capacious flat-screen TVs and smart phones, we’re addicted to looking at electronic displays for work and play. The same applies to fishing electronics. Many anglers and boaters are intrigued by marine electronics, but they don’t fully appreciate everything these marvels can do for them. If you can explain the many benefits that electronics present to potential buyers, your sales in this department will increase dramatically.
Know Your Stuff You need salespeople that can explain and demonstrate the many ways the latest Liquid Crystal Graphs (LCGs) can help customers find and catch fish. The best a salesperson can do initially is to point out some of the more remarkable functions that any given unit can perform. At this point, many customers lack confidence that they can get through the
maze of menus and commands on their own. If they believe your salespeople can answer any technical questions they may have after their purchase, you’re likely to clinch the sale in your store. When customers learn they can get face-to-face technical advice in your store, it will become the place to buy marine electronics in your area. The best salespeople in this department are usually avid fishermen that use the electronics they are selling. They’ve learned the intricacies of these units and can speak confidently to potential buyers from experience. Offer these angler-salespeople deep discounts on the electronics you sell, below your cost, if necessary.
Big Impact Have one or more of the LCGs you’re selling on a countertop running in simulator mode. Many models come with an internal simulator that displays images typical
of what you would see on the water. It is an invaluable teaching and selling aid. You can buy converters that let you plug the units into a wall outlet. You’ll have little trouble selling discounted display units when it’s time for newer models. If you have space for only one working display unit, opt for a large model, such as Lowrance’s HDS-10. It features a spacious 10.4-inch diagonal display that will attract customers the way kids are drawn to Saturday morning cartoon shows. The advantage of a large, high-resolution display is that customers can see the images more clearly. Also, you can run up to four functions simultaneously with multiple screen views. This makes obvious the advantages of buying the largest unit a customer can afford. A simulator displays the bottom in the conventional 2D mode where fish are seen as arches. It also shows what contour lake maps look like in the chartplotter mode and how to use waypoints. When custom-
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The 10.4-inch display HDS-10 Gen2 from Lowrance retails for $3,218.99 with StructureScan. Bass fishing superstar Edwin Evers relies on Lowrance’s StructureScan to find bass. He is at the forefront of promoting this technology.
Lowrance’s HDS-5m Gen2 LCG has a 5-inch diagonal display. With chartplotting and StructureScan capabilities it retails for $1,436.99.
ers see how easy it is to find and go directly to underwater points, ledges and other offshore sweet spots, they’ll be hooked. Be sure the unit also displays side viewing and down viewing. Since many anglers have yet to take advantage of these technologies, they are the features most likely to generate sales.
Side & Down Viewing Side viewing was introduced in 2005. Lowrance calls this technology StructureScan. Side viewing caught on slowly because fishermen were doubtful that it actually worked. That skepticism has largely vanished. Professional bass, walleye and crappie anglers have proven beyond a doubt that side viewing is an invaluable fishing tool. Not only does side viewing show what is beneath the surface on either side of the boat, the display is a realistic 3D mono-
chrome image. A tree looks like a tree, a stump like a stump. There are no arches or confusing clouds of colors as with a conventional 2D LCG display. Side viewing paved the way for 3D down viewing. Down viewing reveals more details than traditional 2D images. Many anglers use both simultaneously. Lowrance is only one of two companies to currently offer side and down viewing. They are also one of the biggest players in freshwater marine electronics.
Know Your Market Which types of marine electronics should you stock? That depends on who your customers are. There is always a market for low-cost LCGs. These customers typically own an aluminum johnboat or V-bottom. They may even fish from a canoe or kayak.
Low-cost color LCGs, such as Lowrance’s Elite-4X Color Fishfinder ($169.99), appeal to introductory buyers. Instrument photos courtesy of Lowrance
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The 6.4-inch display HDS-7 Gen2 from Lowrance retails for $1,723.00 with StructureScan. Instrument photos courtesy of Lowrance
Small-screen monochrome LCGs that carry a retail price tag of $100 or less appeal to these introductory customers. For a few dollars more, they can step up to a color display, which is far superior to monochrome. An example is Lowrance’s Elite-4X Color Fishfinder ($169.99). The primary market for pricier electronics is comprised of serious fishermen. They have a boat equipped with one or more LCGs that do not have GPS chartplotting and side and down viewing capabilities. They are dying to have these technologies. Since money is usually the obstacle, most of them will opt for the smaller or midsize Lowrance LCGs that feature chartplotting and side and down viewing. Retail prices start at around $1,400 and can exceed $3,000 for the larger display units. Once you determine who your buyers are, be sure to have the units you’re promoting in stock. If you convince a customer to buy a particular LCG and he can’t walk out the door with it, he will likely buy it elsewhere. BR Ohioan Mark Hicks has been a noted fishing writer for more than 30 years. His articles appear regularly in major publications, including Field & Stream, Bassmaster Magazine, and North American Fisherman.
Serious fishermen want an LCG on the bow and the console so they can view them while driving the boat or casting.
MULTIPLE SALES Most freshwater fishermen want an LCG on the console and another on the bow so they can view them while driving the boat or casting off the front deck. Chartplotting LCGs that network increase the potential to double a sale to a given customer.When you punch in a waypoint on one unit, it automatically places it in the other. Any serious fisherman will quickly grasp this as a huge advantage. The buyer is also likely to need lake
maps for his new chartplotters, such as those on SD/MicroSD media cards from Navionics and other companies. Be sure you have media cards that include maps of all the fishing waters in your region. Mounting devices, such as the popular RAM mounting systems will also increase your point-of-purchase sales. Other possibilities are instructional DVDs that teach fishermen how to use the latest LCG technologies.
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HATS LINE VISORS APPAREL TACKLE BAGS
AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY THROUGH YOUR BIG ROCK SPORTS DISTRIBUTOR. LOG IN TO BIGROCKSPORTS.COM TO ORDER TODAY! Untitled-1 1
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Dealer INSIGHTS
How POS Transformed My Store DAVE WORKMAN, JR. STRIKE-ZONE FISHING, JACKSONVILLE, FL. BY SHANNON FARLOW
AS RETAIL TECHNOLOGY CONTINUES to evolve, tools that were once practical only for big boxes are making their way into smaller retail stores. Arguably the most valuable of these is the point-ofsale system. Independent retailers across the country are finding success with the latest POS packages that are tailored to small businesses. Dave Workman, Jr. of Strike-Zone Fishing explains how his store benefits from using a point-of-sale system and how yours can, too. BR: How does your point-of-sale system affect day-to-day operations at Strike-Zone Fishing? DW: The retail UPC code system that we’re using right now at our point of purchase is invaluable for us—between retail prices that we charge, the margins that we make, the costs that we have to check to make sure it’s there. The only time we use a price gun is on tackle boxes and rod and reels that the consumer has to hold and look at. All of our product has the bar code above it. When a customer comes to the register, we scan it, the price is on the receipt and they know what they bought. We can change our prices. We know what our margins are and everything when it’s put into the computer. When the product comes in for the very first time, we put it into a classification so that we know what we’ve sold in line, or sinkers, or hooks, rods, reels. Everything is put into the computer so at the end of the day you know what we’re selling. We know our margins and we know what we have on hand.
Strike-Zone Fishing in Jacksonville, FL is reaping the benefits of a bar-code scanning system.
THE ONLY WAY WE’RE GOING TO STAY IN BUSINESS IS IF WE MAKE THE PROPER MARGINS. THAT SYSTEM OF CHECKS AND BALANCES TO WHAT THE COST IS TO OUR MARGINS MAKES A BIG DIFFERENCE.
BR: How long has your store been relying on a POS system?
system from day one. We actually set the whole store, went down the aisles with a computer on a cart, and actually scanned product and put it in. When you go to the UPC code system, you’re able to put your cost factor in and then it’ll go to the margin you want to make and you can put your retail price on it. It’s a very simple process once you get the information uploaded. With Big Rock, we were able to go with our system and Big Rock’s system and merge them together to watch our margins and all. It’s been a big deal for us to have Big Rock help us with our system.
DW: We started using the UPC scan
BR: Why should other dealers consider
using a bar code system in their store? DW: The whole retail system, if you’re in business and doing any volume, you can’t do without it. Prices change from manufacturers or distributors and you have to be able to change the price. You have to know what your margins are. If you’re using a price gun, where are you getting the prices from? Is it the same price as last time? Are the margins correct on it? So, it’s the only way to do it. You can check the product when it comes in. Scan it to make sure that the price is the same as on your purchase order or your invoice. If it’s not, you can adjust it and move the price up to make the proper margins. The retail system we have in place, is a money saver and a money maker for us. When our product comes in, my staff isn’t going to have to use a price gun to price each product, number one. Number two, we can check each product’s margin, and make sure that there hasn’t been a price increase on certain products. My staff knows that at certain times before they put product out, they check to see what the purchase order has on it,
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and what we have in the computer on it. The only way we’re going to stay in business is if we make the proper margins. That system of checks and balances to what the cost is to our margins makes a big difference. It also pays at the register. When the consumer gets the receipt, it shows the product on it, it shows the price. It’s not handwritten or typed in just showing you a receipt with no product on it. Our system has the UPC code on the receipt. We’re just like a major chain store. At the end of day it’s part of doing business, and if you don’t have a bar code system in place, you’re way behind. BR: Some dealers will say that they’re too small for a POS system. Or they’re not experienced enough. What would you tell them?
DW: The retail bar code, I don’t really feel like you could be too small to have it. What’s real nice about Big Rock is you can walk right in and get with their IT department and they can help you upload all the information you need from them, with the margins and all. It makes it too simple. Except for the investment of the hardware, there’s not a reason as to why you should not have it. BR: Are there any additional benefits that you’d like to share with dealers? DW: When you go back and all the data comes in, I can see what my sales peaks are for the day. For example, a holiday is coming up, I can see is it worth opening for the holiday, do I need more staff this particular week of the year? With the retail barcode system, that data is all there on my sales by hour, and all reflects into the
products that we sold. Another thing that happens too is the usage report is big. I can tell the staff, “Hey, these worms…we need to get rid of them.” And the staff can say, “Oh no, Mr. Workman. They sell. They really sell.” The computer doesn’t lie. You can pull the usage report, and we’ve sold three packs of those worms in the last six months. As I said earlier, I don’t care what size shop you have, you need the point of purchase in place from day one, and it’s too easy to get set up. When we started you had to put every item in the computer, the cost, the description and all. It’s too easy with Big Rock. They can provide you with all of that information. Your biggest decision is what kind of margins you want to make. BR Visit the Dealer INSIGHTS archive at BigRockSports.com/DealerINSIGHTS
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Profit From Predators THE INCREASING POPULARITY OF LATE-SEASON PREDATOR HUNTING CREATES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR DEALERS BY C HRIS C HRIST IA N
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The .22 Magnum rifle is a popular varmint gun with many hunters, farmers and ranchers. Keep .22 Magnum ammo and accessories visible in your display cases.
WHEN THE GENERAL HUNTING SEASON ENDS, A LOT OF HUNTERS exit the woods for the year and don’t think about hunting equipment until the next season. But there are some who don’t want to leave the woods just yet. These are among the growing number of hunters who simply shift their sights to predators, and there are plenty of opportunities for them to succeed. That also creates sales opportunities for shops that understand the game. The most popular predators are coyotes and bobcats. Both are well distributed through the lower 48 states. In fact, coyotes have so rapidly increased their range that they are even showing up in major metropolitan areas. Calling them into gun range is a challenge that will test a hunter’s skill, and the late winter season is one of the most productive times to do it. Not only are these predators wearing a prime winter pelt that makes an impressive trophy, but their food supplies are reduced. The Young Of The Year (YOY) deer, turkey, quail, rabbits, squirrels and other forage species have grown to the point where they are no longer easy prey. That makes coyotes and bobcats more active, and further ranging, in search of a meal. And, far more likely to investigate any potential food source than they might have been during the easy days of the summer and fall.
Although predators may be hungry, they haven’t lost their innate caution. Nor, have they gone blind. Both the coyote and bobcat have excellent vision and depend upon it heavily. That makes effective camouflage critical for success, and what worked well during deer season may not be the best choice now. Unlike hunting deer from an elevated stand, a predator caller is going to be right on the ground, mixed in with whatever vegetation is available. In addition, the simple act of calling is going to pretty much pinpoint the caller’s location. Becoming “invisible” is a major asset, and that means matching your camo pattern to the existing background. However, during the late season, that background can be quite a bit different than it was a couple of months ago. Winter die-off will replace a lot of
CALLING THEM INTO GUN RANGE IS A CHALLENGE THAT WILL TEST A HUNTER’S SKILL.
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Keep predator hunters coming back by offering the right combination of ammo and accessories.
green with browns, grays and blacks. A bright green camo pattern against that background will silhouette the hunter. Savvy hunters will adjust their camo to that new background, and that doesn’t always mean a completely new outfit. Often, just matching the upper garment to the bare limb, late-season colors will suffice. As well, don’t neglect a face mask and gloves. They can be very important and their omission can ruin a hunt. The mere act of blowing a call, shifting a gun or scanning the terrain for the quarry generates movement. A bright face or unshielded hands moving against even the best camo background will be quickly spotted. Many experienced hunters will go a step further and bring a section of camo netting with them. There are a number of companies that offer them, and they are not expensive. They can quickly be stretched between nearby limbs or brush, and with the hunter crouched behind it their movements are hidden. Once the hunter is hidden, it’s time to get the critter into range by pretending to be an easy food source. It doesn’t take a lot of calls to accomplish that. A dying rabbit call is effective on both coyotes and bobcats, but where you hunt can dictate the model you use. East of the Mississippi the higher pitched cottontail version is best. In the western states, the coarser jackrabbit pitch is often more effective.
Another call hunters will want is a woodpecker in distress. Again, it’s effective on both, but bobcats sometimes find it more appealing. If coyotes are the quarry and there are any red fox within that geographical area, a red fox pup in distress call should also be on hand. Coyotes and red fox are predators competing for the same resource—and sworn enemies. Red fox will kill coyote pups any chance they get, and coyotes will enthusiastically eliminate any red fox they can find. Although both predators respond to the same calls, they do it a bit differently. Coyotes are normally quicker to come to a call, and will circle down wind before coming in. Veteran coyote hunters seldom spend more than 20 minutes at one stand, on the theory that if one was around they’d be there by now. Bobcats take their own sweet time, and most hunters figure an hour at a stand is minimum. Bobcats also prefer continuous busy sounds, and many experts will tape a mouse squeaker to their gun’s forearm so they can continue to call as they bring the gun to bear. While the proper camo and calls can be critical for success, the choice of firearm is less so. It doesn’t take much to drop a critter that seldom tips the scales beyond 35 pounds. The .22 Magnum rifle is a favorite with farmers and ranchers, and many hunters (more concerned with eliminating predators than collecting a pristine pelt) find their deer rifles more
WHILE THE PROPER CAMO AND CALLS CAN BE CRITICAL FOR SUCCESS, THE CHOICE OF FIREARM IS LESS SO. IT DOESN’T TAKE MUCH TO DROP A CRITTER THAT SELDOM TIPS THE SCALES BEYOND 35 POUNDS. than adequate. If pelt damage is a concern, the .22 centerfires are a perfect choice, with the ubiquitous .223 Rem the most popular. Virtually any 55-grain soft-point or polymer-tipped bullet will drop a coyote or bobcat quickly, and with little damage to the trophy. Handgun enthusiasts can also get in on the action. A .357 Magnum launching a 125-grain jacketed hollow point has plenty of power beyond 50-yards, and the .41 and .44 Magnums will reach a lot further! Most modern revolvers have provisions for mounting an optical sight, and a low-power handgun scope or LED sight will significantly improve field accuracy. Shotguns are an overlooked option, but if the terrain is thick and the ranges under 40-yards, they can be deadly. And, with the right load, your customer’s existing turkey gun is a perfect choice. A 12-gauge, three-inch Magnum load of #4 buckshot holds 41 pellets, each about the same size as a .22LR bullet, and launches them at a higher velocity. A little experimenting with choke tubes (Mod and Imp Mod often pattern heavy shot better than a Full choke) should find one that will keep eight to 10 pellets on a 9-inch paper plate at 40 yards, and that’s plenty of power with minimal pelt damage. It doesn’t take a lot to get into predator hunting. And, for those that relish a challenge in the woods, it makes the end of the general season a bit easier to take. BR
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THE BEST-SELLING IN-SHORE LURE IN 2012
S NEW OR COL
Award-winning writer and In-Fisherman editor Matt Straw relies on LazerTroKar hooks.
New Penny Gold Flake
THE CRYSTAL 3D SHRIMP The In-Shore Lethal Weapon! The 3D Shrimp’s looks and action are so realistic, fish find it irresistible! Slow falling, swims like a real shrimp. There are color schemes for any water condition, including UV & Glow Patterns. Save time and money – one Crystal 3D Shrimp will out perform buckets of shrimp and outlasts soft baits!
A Better Steelhead Hook BY MATT STRAW
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SNOW MELT DRIPS FROM PINES INTO crystal water. Line extends across the surface, drifting with the current. It stops. The rod lifts. The astonishing rise, the mesmerizing twist in mid air, the mind-numbing spit. Few fish can spit a hook faster than a steelhead or goliath brown trout. The best protection against that ability is the sharpest hook possible. Extremely sharp hooks penetrate skin or bone just enough to grip, like the talon of an eagle, giving the angler precious time. The interior of the mouth of any trout is covered with skin. When a sharp hook touches that skin, it pierces, holds on and increases your chances of setting it deeper. Probably no hook is sharper than a Lazer TroKar, which is created by the same procedures used to create surgical needle points. The result is a patented, three-sided hook point almost too hard to blunt and sharp enough to penetrate other metals. Testing reveals TroKar hooks penetrate with half the force required by other trusted, premium hooks on the market. The Lazer TroKar TK400 Octopus
Hook in sizes #6 and #4 covers most needs for presenting bait and plastics to spooky trout in low, clear water. Larger sizes and the TK150 Drop-Shot Hook cover everything else on big rivers from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Northwest. Either hook can be secured with an egg-loop knot, facilitating the use of yarn or “skein,” which are salmon or trout eggs left in membrane, toughened with various cures. Some cures, like Pautzke Bait Company Fire Cure, are commercially available. Cinch a small cluster of eggs into the loop and drift it ahead of a dropper weight below a swivel. Leader length could be 2 to 5 feet, and 6- to 12-pound fluorocarbon is a good idea, because trout have excellent visual acuity. And they know how to spit a hook. TroKar makes surgically sharpened hooks applicable for bass, walleyes, striper, salmon, pike and all manner of saltwater species. The advantage for big trout is clear: If they mouth the hook, they’re yours. But how sharp does a hook really have to be, in most cases? A better question might be: In most cases, does a duller hook provide the answer? BR
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From The Manufacturer
The TroKar Brand THE TROKAR BRAND HAS BEEN changing the rules of bass fishing ever since its debut in 2009. Most recently, TroKar pro Brent Chapman took home the 2012 Toyota Angler of The Year award, arguably the most coveted prize in bass fishing, and he did it with Lazer TroKar hooks. TroKar has also collected an FLW Championship and numerous BASS Elite Series and Open wins on the way to the top of the fishhook world. Rarely does the fishing industry see a new brand emerge as the category leader in such a short period of time, however the TroKar brand has been able to dominate the world of bass fishing and change the perception and value of the fishhook in the minds of today’s discerning anglers. Bringing together two industries that were previously worlds apart, the medical and fishing industries, TroKar emerged with its Surgically Sharpened Technology and stunned it’s competitors, all while keeping it’s manufacturing in the United States of America. Surgically Sharpened Technology, or SST, is the term used to describe the one-of-a-kind machinery and patented manufacturing techniques used to make the TroKar hook. SST comes from
SURGICALLY SHARPENED TECHNOLOGY, OR SST, IS THE TERM USED TO DESCRIBE THE ONE-OF-AKIND MACHINERY AND PATENTED MANUFACTURING TECHNIQUES USED TO MAKE THE TROKAR HOOK. the medical field, where the sharpest instruments in the world are developed for all types of medical and veterinary medicine. Lazer TroKar worked handin-hand with one of the world’s leading manufacturers of surgical grade needles
to develop and engineer a point specifically designed for fishing. It all starts with quality components and materials, and the TroKar brand spares no expense when manufacturing their uber sharp instruments. The base for their Surgically Sharpened fishhooks is an ultra clean high carbon steel with reduced impurities and increased carbon content that acts to amplify tensile strength and durability. Dubbed Q741, this superlative wire is then formed and cold forged, providing consistent grain flow and resulting in an increased strength-to-weight ratio…all very good things when an AOY title is at stake! With the development and improvements made to fishing line in recent years, the strength is increasing and the diameter is decreasing, making the need for a completely sealed and welded eye a must when seriously fishing in tournaments and for bragging rights. The TroKar TK130 and a host of the TroKar Saltwater hooks, including the TK4 and TK5 circle hooks all feature a completely brazed and sealed eye. This brazed eye ensures the structural reliability of the hook and prevents the scoring and cutting of monofilaments as well as line-slip when using braided lines.
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From The Manufacturer LAZER TROKAR HOOKS FEATURE A SPECIALLY FORMULATED BLACK CHROME FINISH WHICH USES FERROMAGNETIC ELEMENTS AND AN AUTO-CATALYTIC CHEMICAL PLATING TECHNIQUE TO HELP PREVENT BOTH SEVERE CORROSION AND PREMATURE WEAR. The innovation and quality American workmanship continues with the TroKar B.A.R.B. The TroKar BARB design features a hard-shelled co-polymer that is more durable, offers the utmost holding power and reduces damage to soft plastics. The TroKar BARB not only has a larger barb on the top of the shank, but a smaller dual barb on the bottom of the shank, which acts to increase bait retention and prevent baits from rotating as well. This one-of-a-kind and industry-leading postmanufacturing retention device utilizes space-age polymers and adhesives to marry itself to the hook, resulting in hours of casting without replacement. The TroKar B.A.R.B. is available on the TK130,
TK190 and TK180 fishhooks. Lazer TroKar hooks feature a specially formulated Black Chrome finish which uses ferromagnetic elements and an autocatalytic chemical plating technique to help prevent both severe corrosion and premature wear. This sultry and sexy Black Chrome finish is both eye appealing and durable, proving ample corrosion resistance for both fresh and saltwater environments. The Lazer TroKar hooks are just another example of what happens when a professional tournament angler and a brain surgeon are locked in a room and left to design a fishhook‌the result is a dominating weapon that demands respect and instills fear in all those who cross its path. BR
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Whether it’s Facebook,Twitter or LinkedIn, everybody and their grandma is using social media these days.We spoke with three dealers and asked them, “How is social media benefitting your store?”
We Asked, You Answered Brooks Smith SportingBids OutDoors Vidalia, GA
WE HAVE FRIENDS and acquaintances in the community, and everybody’s on Facebook, or the mobile app and you say we’ve got such and such on sale today, or the bargain of the day, we’ve got this in stock,
Dave Wallace Squirmin’ Worm Farm Plymouth, WI
WITH FACEBOOK WE generate more traffic if you’re looking at your website versus Facebook. When someone “likes” your comment or posts something on there, it shows
Sebe Yarbrough Spankey’s Outdoors Americus, GA
WE CREATED A business site on Facebook. Now from that, you can do advertisements on Facebook, which is really cheap, and you can do what is called Geo Location. So let’s say I wanted to tap into the area where you live. I can choose that geo location. Now I’m a little bitty shop, my town has 24,000 people in it. But I’ve started running those Geo Locations in Albany, Georgia; Macon,
etc. You might not know me from Adam, but I might know somebody that knows you, it just kind of links you together. It’s at your fingertips, you need to use it. It’s an investment [in time], but in the long run I see it as having a return on driving business to your store, especially for the younger generation. A lot of people don’t want to necessarily have to call [the store].
If you can advertise and put something out there to drive people to your store and to advertise—it’s just an inexpensive way of advertising. We’re going to continue to grow with it and do more with it. I mean you’re going to have to, the world’s spinning and everybody is going to social media and that’s what it’s about.
up on your [Facebook] wall obviously and theirs, so their friends can follow it. You get the viral aspect of it. We’ve been using Facebook for probably two years or so and I’d say just the last six months, I’ve noticed more traffic that I can link right to Facebook. We do a Facebook Friday special. Every Friday our
Facebook fans get a discount that no one else gets. We post our other events or seminars that we have going on. And then we also have the ability to forecast for next season. You can check out pre-season stuff, you can have a little more discussion back and forth. It gives you an ability to create sort of a forum. You can create discussions.
Georgia; Columbus, Georgia and I’m pulling those guys to me now. They’re driving to me. They’re leaving their towns and coming to me and it’s awesome! It will absolutely blow your mind. We’ll go in and we’ll grab a hold of that [Big Rock Sports] sales flyer. So if they have ammunition on sale, we’ll post that on our page at the percentages that we think we need to make, and we’ll start booking orders. That don’t cost you a dime. We have a lot of people that want to trade their weapon in when they buy guns from us. We bring it in,
we run the numbers through our local law enforcement, we clean that gun up, we take a picture of it, we put it on Facebook and my used guns live maybe 10 minutes, and they’re gone. That’s free, that doesn’t cost you a dime. So for every time that you put a product online, and someone “likes” that product, then you can pretty much guarantee that five of their friends will see it. If one of them like it, then five more of his friends are going to see it, and before you know it, you have thousands of people looking at the same thing.
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Taste the Great Outdoors BY JIM C A SA DA
ANNA LOU’S
SQUICRIPRE EL RE
mine did when I was a ost families living close to the land, as h they pass down from youngster, have time-tested recipes whic Lou of this recipe’s title one generation to the next. The Anna was a rarity, a woman local was my mother, and in turn her mother recipe probably originated folks called “a squirrel-hunting fool.” This sure. At any rate, squirrel was a with her, although Mom never said for my boyhood years, and seldom regular feature on our table throughout of bushytails I had killed formed was I fuller of pride than when a batch the centerpiece of our simple supper.
M
IN GR ED IEN TS 2 squirrels, dressed Water to cover squirrels 1 teaspoon baking soda 1–2 tablespoons of butter
DI RE CT IO NS
and cover with cold water. Place dressed squirrel in a large saucepan from heat and rinse squirrel Add soda and heat to boiling. Remove to remove soda, rubbing gently thoroughly under cold, running water simmer until tender. Place as you do so. Return to cleaned pan and er and bake at 350 degrees until squirrel in a baking dish, dot with butt browned and crusty.
TIP S
to make delicious gravy. Also, Use the broth from cooking the squirrel ner. You can, if the squirrels are rabbit can be prepared in this same man a pressure cooker. old and promise to be rather tough, use t: The Remington Cookbook. Jim Casada is the author of Field to Feas JimCasadaOutdoors.com.
This recipe is available to post on your website through ACCESS Ecommerce. Go to BigRockSports.com/DealerACCESS to learn more. 28 BIGROCKSPORTS.COM JANUARY 2013
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ENGAGE. NEUTRALIZE.
NEXT.
T ACTICAL R IFLE S COPES
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D E S I G N AT E D M ARKSMAN S COPE
11/2/2012 12:30:39 PM
Advocacy
YSSA—The Gun Dealer’s Connection With Youth Programs
BY STEVE MILLER, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS ALLIANCE
HARDLY A WEEK GOES BY WHEN A gun dealer isn’t approached by one organization or another looking for a donation. Guns, ammo, sporting goods…cash. Youth shooting sports programs are certainly included among these groups. We all know that introducing young people to the pleasures and responsibilities of shooting is vital to the future of our treasured shooting sports heritage. A wide array of youth programs such as Boy Scouts of America and 4-H support beginner entry into the shooting sports and expose millions of kids to shooting each year. Because of these challenging economic times, many youth programs are struggling to maintain an active shooting sports experience for the kids while keep-
AS A SERVICE TO THE INDUSTRY, THE YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS ALLIANCE (YSSA) IDENTIFIES YOUTH SHOOTING SPORTS PROGRAMS WITH THE GREATEST RETURN ON INVESTMENT. ing the costs within the limits that their resources allow. Sure, you would like to help these programs as much as you can, but the collective scope of needs of your local groups is likely well beyond your store’s charitable giving ability to support
all of them. How can you be assured that your generous donations will translate into an increase in new young shooters and hunters and ultimately an increase in your customer base? For gun dealers looking to help, finding the right programs to support can be a difficult and time-consuming process. As a service to the industry, the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance (YSSA) identifies youth shooting sports programs with the greatest return on investment and prioritizes them based on criteria such as program quality, potential for growth and participation levels. The YSSA has established a sound foundation in providing product support for priority youth shooting sports programs by working with some of the most respected manufacturers in the industry. As Ron Coburn, Chairman and CEO of Savage Sports Corp. and a longtime supporter of youth programs, said, “It is
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Advocacy extremely important that the individual regional shooting sports programs are properly equipped with current products that are safe, easy to handle and user friendly, so as to encourage youth to participate and enjoy the sport with the best technology available. Our industry has always been supportive of youth programs and we are particularly proud to be a part of YSSA and their proactive shooting initiatives.” The Youth Shooting Sports Alliance (YSSA), in cooperation with the Gander Mountain Company, also makes selected shooting sports equipment items available on loan to qualified youth shooting sports programs. The inventory of firearms available for loan currently stands at nearly 600 and includes rifles, shotguns and pistols. YSSA also loans BB guns and archery equipment to youth programs. Tom Taylor, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Mossberg, states, “We have enjoyed our relationship with the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance and we are particularly excited about their recent partnerships with prominent conservation organizations to support their respective youth program activities with loaner Mossberg shotguns.” The YSSA has partnered with the Mule Deer Foundation, Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and the National Wild Turkey Federation to provide loaner equipment to the expanded youth programs offered by these organizations. When a youth shooting sports program leader requests a donation from your store, you are welcomed and encouraged to tell these program leaders to get in touch with the YSSA to apply for their support for equipment and supplies. Getting in touch with us is easy—our website and contact information is found on YouthShootingSA. com. You can also tell them about the YSSA’s Shooting Sports Equipment Loan Program. If you would like more information about the YSSA, please call Steve Miller, YSSA Executive Director, at 240.347.4351 or email at proud2hunt@aol.com.
Understand How Policy Affects Your Customers— and Your Business Restoration and Boating Trust Fund reauthorized as part of the Transportation Bill. Together these will have a significant IN 2012, KEEPAMERICAFISHING™ impact on fisheries conservation and habiworked long and hard to protect our tat enhancement in the United States. nation’s fishery resources and the rights The RESTORE the Gulf Coast Act of anglers to access those resources. It directs 80 percent of the Clean Water Act is difficult to translate penalties charged to BP sophisticated pieces of as a result of the April legislature to the general 2010 BP Deepwater consumer when they are Horizon oil spill to lengthy, complex multirestoration of the Gulf faceted packages but Coast environment we hope to achieve that and economy. The translation here. In fact, majority of these funds most packages that are will be distributed to passed have very direct the five Gulf Coast implications for the indistates and the newly vidual angler—they just established Gulf Coast —GORDON ROBERTSON may not realize it—and Ecosystem Restoration your business. Council for economic and environmental How can a transportation bill impact restoration projects throughout the Gulf of anglers? Mexico region, such as wetlands restoration, In the summer of 2012, the REconstruction of boat ramps and tourism proSTORE the Gulf Coast Act (RESTORE motion. The RESTORE Act also establishes Act) was passed and the Sport Fish a program that will provide funding for BY KATHRYN POWERS, DIRECTOR, KEEPAMERICAFISHING
“THROUGH THE SPORT FISH RESTORATION PROGRAM,THE SPORTFISHING INDUSTRY PROVIDES THE BACKBONE OF FISHERIES MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION FUNDING IN THIS COUNTRY.”
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Advocacy
BRS# 1650-0154
1312-00 Field Box
Water Resistant O-Ring Seal Packed 6/Carton Exterior 11.625” x 5.125” x 7.125”
Interior 9.5” x 4.25” x 6.5”
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1110-00 Protector Series Compact Bow Case Crush-Resistant PillarLock® System Packed 1/Carton Exterior 43.25” x 19” x 6.75”
Interior 41.5” x 16.75” x 6.5”
BRS# 1650-0112
1403-00 Protector Series Single Pistol Case Interlocking Foam Packed 4/Carton Exterior 11.5” x 7.5” x 2.75”
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CONTACT YOUR LOCAL BRS REPRESENTATIVE FOR DETAILS ONTACT YOUR LOCAL BRS REPRESENTATIVE FOR DETAILS AND A COMPLETE LIST OF 2012 PRODUCT AND PRICES AND A COMPLETE LIST OF 2012 PRODUCT AND PRICES
needed fisheries stock assessments and data collection in the Gulf of Mexico. Results: BP penalties go to Gulf restoration, critical stock assessments and access improvements, all of which will improve recreational fishing opportunities and revenue The Sport Fish Restoration and Boating Trust Fund (Sport Fish Restoration program) directs hundreds of millions of dollars annually to state fish and wildlife agencies’ fishing and boating programs. Funds for this important program are collected largely from the federal manufacturers excise taxes on fishing equipment and the motorboat fuel tax that every boater pays. “Through the Sport Fish Restoration program, the sportfishing industry provides the backbone of fisheries management and conservation funding in this country,” said American Sportfishing Association (ASA) Vice President Gordon Robertson. Your business and every angler pays into this fund and receives the benefit through state boating and fishing programs. Results: Continuation of the Sport Fishing Restoration program supports resource conservation and access to the resources.
Bills of all kinds come from good legislation On October 5, President Obama signed the Billfish Conservation Act into law. This bill will ban the commercial harvest and sale of Pacific-caught billfish, a measure already in place for Atlanticcaught billfish. Stocks of these magnificent big ocean fish have been greatly depleted in both the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans as a result of commercial overfishing, primarily from foreign countries. According to a study commissioned by the International Game Fish Association, the U.S. is the world’s largest importer of billfish, buying approximately 3 million pounds of marlin in 2006—or between 10,000 and 15,000 fish a year—for sale in restaurants and grocery stores. The Billfish Conservation Act closes
U.S. commercial markets to Pacific billfish, thereby prohibiting the commercial harvest, sale and importation of billfish throughout the U.S. This legislation will have a negligible impact on the commercial fishing industry in the U.S., as billfish represent only 0.1 percent of all seafood sales and many sustainable alternatives exist. The subsequent increase in billfish abundance will add value to the recreational fishery, which annually generates billions of dollars to the economy and has a minimal impact on billfish populations. Results: Billfish numbers will increase thus increasing participation in sustainable recreational fishing and revenue.
Promoting policy issues promotes your business There is a clear connection between what happens on the “Hill” and your bottom line, we all know that. Advocating for policy issues that impact your business will help maintain or improve that bottom line. Here are a few ways that you can engage in policy work for the betterment of our industry: Stay up to date on local and national policy issues. You can do this by visiting KeepAmericaFishing.org to learn about issues that may impact you. Take action on those issues as a retailer by writing your state representatives and letting them know the importance of good legislation. Provide educational information to your customers so they know about policy issues impacting them as anglers. Get your customers involved by promoting action on your website or in your stores. Kathryn Powers is Director for KeepAmericaFishing.org, the online advocacy platform for the American Sportfishing Association. KeepAmericaFishing strives to be the voice of the American angler by bringing anglers together on policy issues impacting sportfishing. To learn more about KeepAmericaFishing or how to get more involved in policy issues email Kathryn at kpowers@asafishing.org.
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Weather TEMPERATURE NATIONAL JANUARY TEMPERATURE INDEX
SNOWFALL NATIONAL JANUARY SNOWFALL INDEX
Plan For More Snow This January LAST YEAR (JANUARY 2012) FELT more like Spring than Winter for much of the U.S. Temperatures trended the third warmest in 21+ years with all four weeks of January trending warmer than normal. Snowfall was lower than normal in the Central and Eastern U.S., however, the West received heavy snow and ice in the mountains and even in Seattle towards the middle of the month. Very warm weather was a negative for ice fishing and deer hunting. Warmer weather will have suppressed migratory activities of waterfowl resulting in hunting season disruptions.
January 2013 will trend colder than last year, but temperatures are expected to remain above normal. A stormier pattern will unfold during the first half of January across the North with the potential for more snowfall than last year. Despite the increased snowfall risk, total accumulations for the month are expected to be at or below normal. The pattern will support snowfall farther south this year with the greatest chance for snowfall during the second half of the month in the South. Colder weather will spur activity among deer and conditions will support a more favorable month for ice fishing.
LEGEND Monthly temperature and snowfall trends Much Colder < -5° Colder -1° to -5° Similar -1° to +1° Warmer +1° to +5° Much Warmer > +5° Much more >200% More 125% to 200% Similar 75% to 125% Less 50% to 75% Much Less <50%
Weather Trends Internationals Jack Grum, vice president 610-807-3586, jgrum@wtrends.com, www.wxtrends.com
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The Big Rock Sporting Life Send photos from your Big Rock Sporting Life to Shannon Farlow at sfarlow@bigrocksports.com
or Sports, Yankton, SD
Bruce Cull, Dakota Archery & Outdo
Capt. David Bacon, Hook, Line and Sinker, Santa Barbara,
CA
Tristan Lobe, age 13, Wisconsin Whitetail Tex Grissom, Texâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Tackle and Bait, Wilmington, NC 34 BIGROCKSPORTS.COM JANUARY 2013
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Introducing, The Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Only Surgically Sharpened Saltwater Hookâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; No other hook in the world has this wicked point. s &ASTER DEEPER SURER PENETRATION WITH EVERY STRIKE s !VAILABLE IN TEN NEW STYLESÂ&#x2C6;ALL DESIGNED BY TOP SALTWATER GUIDES FOR SALTWATER TECHNIQUES s "OLSTERED WIRE DIAMETER GIVING SERIOUS ANGLERS A STRONGER HOOK THAT WILL STAND UP TO BIG GAME lSH AND INTENSE lGHTS s "LACK CHROME PLATING PROVIDES OUTSTANDING CORROSION RESISTANCE IN ANY SALTWATER ENVIRONMENT
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Untitled-3 1
10/26/2012 9:51:40 AM
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10/31/2012 9:29:35 AM