Chasing Spring: Ultimate Sports Show

By Ray Eye
March 25, 2011
After a late flight in from North Carolina I finally made it to the Ultimate sports show in Grand Rapids Michigan. My first "Chasing Spring" seminar of the show was scheduled for that Friday afternoon. It was great to visit with old friends, make new friends and spread the gospel of Chasing Spring. My next stop will be hunting with youth Blake Carpenter in Northwest Tennessee with Kids Hunting For a Cure and ST. Jude's Children's Hospital.
I visited with hundreds of turkey hunters in three days from my booth display.
This is Seth McCullough of Bully's game calls, we had a great visit in the seminar room.
The future of hunting is in good hands. Eleven-year-old Kameron Dombrowski of Kent city Michigan (camo shirt) is a bow hunter and runs coon dogs and bear dogs. This year he is after turkeys. Ten-year-old Caden Mathieu, also of Kent city Michigan is quite the bow hunter and has plans of carrying a gobbler home this spring.
Hotel night shift front desk worker, Alana Magniant and I visited at 4 a.m. each morning while I checked e-mails on the hotel computer. Alana has hunted turkeys with NWTF women in the Outdoors.
Many turkey hunters brought books, calls and an assortment of items for me to sign. This is Jim McNeil of Kalamazoo Michigan with me in the seminar room.
Saturday was the best day at the Ultimate sports shows as Isles filled with hunters and fisherman.
This is the Saturday morning line to get into the sports show just as the gates opened.
Just out the back door of the convention center was a great barbecue pork sandwich.
The Grand Rapids NWTF Turkey Boys.
It seems like I can never get away from Clowns. This is a portrait of the king himself, Bozo the clown.
Jim McNeil of Tom Foolery Turkey calls brought some beautiful calls to the seminar.
Old friend and hunting buddy Denny Geurink and I with his 10-foot Russian bear.
DVDs and books sold well during the show, but the March issue of Outdoor life was the items hunters wanted me to sign more than anything else.
There was a taxidermy contest at the show and some of the mounts were really life like.

It was great to visit with old friends, make new friends and spread the gospel of Chasing Spring.

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