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T H E O F F I C I A L PU BLIC ATION OF HOUS T ON S AFARI CLUB F OUND AT I ON • CONVENT I O N 2020
Weatherby,Inc BOOTH: 315
www.weatherby.com Firearms
Well Worldwide Energy Logistics, Inc. BOOTH: 215
www.well-usa.com Trophy Shipping
White Peaks Outfitters BOOTH: 913, 915
www.whitepeaksranch.com Outfitter- North America
Whitetail Properties, LLC BOOTH: 605
www.whitetailproperties.com Real Estate/Credit/Property Lending
Wicked River Outfitters BOOTH: 607
wickedriveroutfitters.com Outfitter- North America
Wild Man Outfitters BOOTH: 735
wildmanadventures.com Outfitter- North America
Wild Sheep Foundation BOOTH: 232
www.wildsheepfoundation.org Association/Non-Profit
Wilderness Mule Outfitting
WOW Africa
BOOTH: 951
BOOTH: 1003, 1005
www.wildernessmule.com Outfitter- North America
www.wowafrica.com Outfitter- Africa
Wilderness Quest New Zealand
WSI Manufacturing
BOOTH: 137, 139
wildernessquestnz.com Outfitter- New Zealand
Wildlife Partners, LLC BOOTH: 623, 625, 722, 724
www.wildlifepartners.com Miscellaneous
Wildman Lake Lodge BOOTH: 416, 418
wildmanlodge.com or www.wildalaskahunting.com Outfitter- North America
Wollaston Lake Lodge BOOTH: 217, 219
BOOTH: 643
Wsisports.com Clothing/Jewelry/Footwear
XFactor Whitetails of Indiana BOOTH: 547
Xfactorwhitetails.com Outfitter- North America
Xtreme Whitetail Adventures BOOTH: 500
www.xtremewhitetailadventures.com Outfitter- North America
Y.O. Ranch Headquarters BOOTH: 633
wollastonlakelodge.com Outfitter- North America
yoranchheadquarters.com Outfitter- North America
Woods & Water Taxidermy
Zander Osmers Safaris
BOOTH: 113, 212
BOOTH: 731, 733
www.woodsandwatertaxidermy.com Taxidermy
www.osmers.co.za Outfitter- Africa
When you travel, anything can happen. When it does, Global Rescue gets you home safely. Did you know? 10% of your Global Rescue membership purchase is donated to Houston Safari Club Foundation conservation initiatives. info.globalrescue.com/hscf
CONVENTION 2020 HUNTER'S HORNâ„¢ 47
The Of
Five Habits
Smart Travelers
Know Your Limits, Do Your Research And Have A Back-Up Plan. You’ve always wanted to climb Pikes Peak, but are you ready for a 14,000-foot adventure? You’d like to tour Africa, but should you consider a luxury safari, an overland safari or a guided bush tour? You ride a stationary bike daily, but should you sign up for a bike trail adventure on a 200-foot cliff above the Colorado River? Harding Bush, associate manager of operations at Global Rescue, offers some advice about traveler responsibility. To make sure you are ready for the trip, here are the five habits of smart travelers.
KNOWING YOUR LIMITS
At Global Rescue, the world’s leading membership organization providing medical and security advisory and evacuation services, Bush is a 20-year special operations forces veteran, at the ready to help members who might be in a sticky situation. But he emphasizes that it is far better to plan ahead and not get into that situation in the first place. Smart travelers know their own limits. They also know that their capabilities, or lack thereof, will affect others. “If you’re traveling in a group, are you going to be the weakest link?” Bush asked. “Do the guides have to take care of you instead of doing their job? If you can’t make the climb, everyone else gets jammed. You have to think about what you’re capable of doing and what the consequence would be if you were to fail.” Responsible guides and tour operators will point you in the right direction. A walking safari, for example, might vary the distance and terrain based on the fitness ability and interest of the group. There are also online resources to give you some guidance, like the Mont Blanc Guides Fitness Checker. “It asks things like: how tall are you, how old are you, how long does it take you to walk a mile, how long does it take you to run two miles, can you do 50 pushups? Then it gives you a score based on your answers,” said Bush, a 20-year special operations forces veteran with an additional nine years of experience in international travel security.
WILLINGNESS TO ADJUST
Because you’ll be on your feet for several hours every day on uneven terrain in the heat, you didn’t meet the minimum fitness level for the African walking tour. Or maybe the Mont Blanc Guides fitness checker suggested you work out for a year, then take the test again to see if you are ready for the climb. Smart travelers can accept information that might not be favorable and make adjustments accordingly. “If you can’t climb Mont Blanc, maybe you can go backcountry skiing. Or you might have a better experience climbing a 4,000-foot 62 HUNTER'S HORN™ CONVENTION 2020
Contributed by www.globalrescue.com/hscf
mountain rather than a 13,000-foot mountain,” Bush said. “Ensure the requirements of the trip and your capabilities are consistent — and be open to alternatives that you would enjoy more.”
COMMITTED TO COLLECTING INFORMATION FROM MULTIPLES SOURCES
It doesn’t matter whether you’re going to climb a nearby mountain or if you’re going to climb Mount Everest. Bush notes preparation is always necessary for traveling smart. “You have to know how to get there, how to look at a trail map and how to access the trailhead,” he said. “The same thing with a big trip like Mount Everest. What do I need? Am I going to use a guide service, am I going to need any permits, what kind of air travel and how is this all going to work out?” He suggests that part of your traveler responsibility is talking to people who have taken the trip you are planning, whether it is climbing in high elevations or walking the African wilderness. “I always like to ask: what are the three things that went really well, what are the three things that didn’t go so well and why?” he said. “It makes them think about it and clean up the information they give you.” Add your own internet research to the personal stories you’ve gathered. Look at TripAdvisor, Yelp, trade publications and other independent entities and organizations to see what kind of recommendations and reviews are available for the trip you’re planning. Remember that destination country information is just as important. “The key is to evaluate different sources of information. When I travel, I talk to people that have been there. I talk to people who have done what I plan to do. I look at U.S. news reports, foreign news reports and local news reports,” Bush said. “I get a balance.”
CAREFUL GUIDE SELECTION
You know your limits, you’ve done your research, so what’s next? Finding a guide that matches your needs and abilities. “Figure out what a guide can do for you,” Bush said. He suggests asking these questions to start: What is included? Do they provide gear, or do you bring your own? • Do they handle the logistics of travel, such as permits and visas? • Where does the tour pick up and drop off ? Are they going to meet you at the airport? • Do they bring you back to the airport after the trip? • What happens if someone is ill or injured? • Is the tour tailored to beginners or experts?
“Most guides won’t take you down a Class 5 rapid if you can’t canoe down a Class 5 rapid. But then there are some that won’t ask you anything,” Bush said. “Match your abilities with the requirements of the trip and choose your guide wisely.” There are some places where you might not legally need a guide but having one can make the trip easier and more enjoyable. “There’s less worry when you have a guide,” Bush said. “It depends on where you are going, your experience, your comfort level and things like that. If other people have done the trip without a guide, talk to them to see how it went.”
PRACTICE NONSTOP AWARENESS, HAVE BACKUP
If you want to be a smart traveler, Bush suggests thought, preparation and planning before you go. “Remember, you don’t want to get into trouble or have issues. Awareness gives you the confidence to do that. If you’re prepared, you can concentrate on the trip and have a good time,” Bush said. When it comes to traveling smart, awareness allows avoidance. “The way you manage a threat, an avalanche for example, is avoidance,” Bush said. “Some travelers have the avalanche life jacket that inflates, or other gadgets and they think that allows them to go into more high-risk avalanche areas. That’s irresponsible. The best way to avoid an avalanche is to have training and awareness.” Even if you have back up, like a professional guide or a Global Rescue membership, it should never be a reason to put yourself in danger. “Say you get two-thirds of the way up a mountain and you can see weather coming in and it’s getting dark,” Bush said. “Do you walk back down the mountain and call it a nice hike, or do you keep going? It’s definitely responsible to have a Global Rescue membership, but it doesn’t make you any more capable. Global Rescue doesn’t make you a better skier, it doesn’t make you a better climber and it doesn’t make you any more fit, so don’t take on extra risk.”
INTRODUCING GLOBAL RESCUE
In an unpredictable world, illness and unexpected injury can happen anywhere and at any time. Even the most seemingly small situations can quickly become serious, especially if you’re in a remote location or a foreign country where you don’t speak the language. While on safari with his wife in Namibia, Scott Garrett was feeling fatigued and frequently coughing. Only two days into his trip, he was quick to dismiss his symptoms — completely unaware he
Smart travelers know their own limits. They also know that their capabilities, or lack thereof, will affect others.
had inhaled mysterious airborne bacteria. While in the bush in British Columbia, Canada, Louis Cairo and his horse rolled down the side of a steep incline, catapulting him 15 feet and tearing ligaments in his knee. Camp was six hours away and medical help was even further away in Dease Lake. On safari in the Eastern Cape Karoo region of South Africa, Missy and Geoffrey Corn were having the time of their lives. Little did they know that Missy was about to suffer a potentially life-threatening stroke on the first day of their trip, thousands of miles from home. These are just a few of Global Rescue’s recent rescues. To date, Global Rescue has conducted more than 20,000 operations across the world. Members like Scott Garrett, Louis Cairo and Missy Corn have all been able to access potentially lifesaving services through Global Rescue.
WE MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Whether you’re planning small trip or a big adventure, Global Rescue memberships include evacuation, field rescue and advisory services suitable for the smart traveler. Global Rescue operations centers are staffed 24/7/365 by in-house teams of experienced nurses, paramedics and military operations veterans. In fact, our security operations team has years of experience evacuating from some of the toughest environments in the world. These are the experts you want at the other end of the telephone line when you have an injury or illness far away from home. Global Rescue’s intelligence team monitors 500-plus news outlets around the clock to provide real-time alerts for health and security events worldwide. Detailed destination reports provide risk ratings, assessments and advice for more than 200 countries and principalities. Beyond evacuation services, Global Rescue memberships include a variety of travel assistance services including assistance with translation and visa/passport issues. Houston Safari Club Foundation highly recommends that you purchase a Global Rescue membership prior to your next trip. Single trip, annual and family options are available. In support of conservation efforts, 10% of your purchase is donated to Houston Safari Club Foundation. For more information call 617-459-4200 and tell them you’re a Houston Safari Club Foundation member. ★ CONVENTION 2020 HUNTER'S HORN™ 63