Arizona – I’ve written it up every time I go, the Shooting Hunting and Outdoor Trade show, 17 miles of aisles (up from 13), where the firearms and related industries meet annually in Las Vegas to meet, greet and do business for the coming year.
See lots of pictures, flavor and eye candy from a prior show here: http://www.gunlaws.com/Page9Folder100up/PageNine-108.htm
No way to see it all, so you skip the parts that don’t relate directly to you, outdoor clothing, tree stands, police gear, miles of firearms, survival products, the show directory is $75 (but free to participants) and you need proven credentials just to get in.
Exhibitors want to see Buyer badges, everyone else is in the way, sort of. Nikon’s booth is two-stories high (and they’re not alone in that), Perrazi has half-million-dollar shotguns on display, you gun guys would pass out from salivating if you could get in, dealers use wheelbarrows to gather all the literature and swag.
Between meetings and time with editors and other efforts in the press office I saw less on the show floor than usual, and a lot seemed to me to be more of the same, tweaks to guns and gear, subtle distinctions, new lens coatings, more electronics in everything, the crowds were bigger.
Business was so brisk thanks to the Obama attacks on our rights (isn’t he supposed to defend the Constitution?) but that’s not a thematic element of the show.
I do think the Outdoor Channel will be pursuing last year’s effort about combating gun-free zones, using their amazing documentary on the subject to advance the issue and move the liability question forward. Police seemed even more militarized than before, a trend I don’t see subsiding. Tactical firearms are becoming more mainstream at every level.
The women’s market is advancing rapidly, with women’s programs and companies everywhere. Gun media, on the web and traditional outlets seemed more prevalent.
A few items caught my eye:
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