Report on 2020 SCI Show

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Oct 19, 2019
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Had a blast at this year’s SCI Show. Been going for many years and really enjoyed getting caught up with old friends and meeting folks from all over the world. There’s really no substitute for face-time with folks to get a real-feel for their hunting operation. This year I had several missions - represent the Mid-Atlantic Bowhunters Chapter, research a few outfitters I‘m interested in, finalize a booking for Bezoar Ibex, and was notified I’d be receiving the SCI World Hunting Award (will likely cover that in a separate thread).

Attendance was clearly up and with a roaring U. S. Economy people were booking hunts. Early Wednesday afternoon I ran into Johnny DuPlooy of Muchinga Adventures who guided me in the Luangwa Valley of Zambia and one of the biggest outfitters in that area. He said he’d never seen anything like it. Folks were lined up at his booth from the opening bell. His consession “sold out” for 2020 by early afternoon on day one. By the end of the show he was half-way booked through 2021 and helping his hunting partners fill their camps. It was the same for many outfitters I spoke to. But the hunting market is “fickle” - some things are hot and some are not.

Our chapter, www.mabc-sci.org is continually growing and we’ve deepened partnerships with exceptional outfitters from all areas of the world. But don’t let the name fool you, although we heavily promote bowhunting we are solidly an “all methods” chapter. These days, I even sneak in a rifle hunt or two myself (but let’s keep that between us). So, whether it’s Moose, Elk, Tahr, Snow Sheep, Cape Buffalo, or Whitetails, with a Bowtech, Remington, or anything inbetween, we’ve got something to offer. Here’s just a couple:

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Professional Russian Outfitters - Max’s booth was very busy with folks looking for everything from Kamchatka Brown Bear to Marco Polo. We’ll be offering one of Max’s Kuban Tur hunts on our upcoming February 22nd auction on https://www.onlinehuntingauctions.com/auctionlist.aspx?ae=1962 Just noticed my Snow Sheep picture right above my head on Max’s wall. It was a spectacular adventure.

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Savage Encounters - Chad Lenz is a fantastic outfitter and an all-around great guy. He has an exemplary record of success hunting just about all species of North American Big Game. He’s also a lucky dude. I was teasing him a bit over recently winning an Altai Ibex Hunt on one of the DSC raffles. A guide/outfitter who’s both lucky and good - what more do you want. We’ll be offering one of Chad’s Elk hunts on our upcoming February 22nd auction as well.

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Now to my own pursuits - next up is Bezoar Ibex in Turkey. After much research I decided to book this hunt with someone who specializes in Turkish hunts. It didn’t take me long to decide on Caprinae Safaris. Their list of satisfied clients reads like a ”who’s who” of the hunting world, and they are really the “go to” folks for many central Asian species. Was an absolute pleasure dealing with Riza and Mehmet at both DSC and SCI, where we consummated the deal. Now I’ll just need to get my gear ready and live in the gym until the hunt.

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As a special treat, at this year’s Night of the Hunter event J. Alain Smith and Jim Shockey drug me up on stage and presented me with the SCI World Hunting Award (Bow) for completing 11 Grand Slams and 17 Inner Circles at the Diamond Level, all via the arrow. It was the culmination of a journey that began almost 40 years ago. The best parts were all of the world-wide adventure, unforgettable experiences, and many life-long friendships that blossomed along the way. (I may post another thread about it, haven’t decided).

All-in-all, it was a blast - very successful and had a fabulous time.
 
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