This Is Bowhunting & Archery's Big One

New Bowhunting Products For 2003!, by Randy Oitker - From the floor of the ATA show Randy reports on the new gear from Matthews, Toxonics, Badlands, Bushnell, Muzzy and Gorilla. 

(Day #3 - Last Day)
The show floor was busy as the show neared the ending. Dealers placed their last orders and collected product information for future reference. The show Here is the 5th & final gallery of ATA Show Exhibitors. 

Exhibitors reported that while the dealer attendance was down, orders were up from 2002. That's good news for our industry. 

Fred Wins The Robinson Labs ATV

Once the show closed Fred Lutger & I gave Rich Walton and Indian rides to the airport. At the airport Fred got a phone call from his store, Robinson Labs had just phoned and he had won their drawing for a Polarious 4-Wheeler ATV. We rushed back to the Robinson Labs booth and they presented Fred the ATV. (Pretty cool.)

And then we went across the street to Champions the folks from Double Bull.

(Day #3)
The last day of the show is here. There are plenty of sore feet and aching knees and backs. Here is here is the 4th Photo Gallery of ATA Show Exhibitors.

Fred Lutger has owned the archery pro shop Freddie Bear Sports for 25 years. Like the few thousand other dealers at this show Fred comes to buy rather than to sell. I asked him to write an article about his own view about the show. Here it is: The ATA Archery Trade Show - A Dealers Perspective, by Fred Lutger. 

More AMO Archery Trade Show tomorrow ...

(Day #2 More)
Here are some Bowhunting.net chatters at the ATA show: me, Fred Lutger & Tony Dukes, Indian & Tumbleweed, Susieq, as well as columnists Randy Oitker (and family), Michele Crummer (on the right), Rich Walton & Dean Reidt & Karen Cranford.

Tonight was the ATA Banquet. 
Here is our table. An announcement was made that M.R. James was to be inducted into the Archery Hall Of Fame. They had an dinner and auction. Afterward the Realtree band played. They were very good. Dick Kirby of Quaker Boy played a wash bucket bass. 

Plus, here is the 3rd Photo Gallery of ATA Show Exhibitors.

(Day #2)
Today we concentrated on taking pictures of the exhibitors booths at the show. Tony Dukes manned the camera and was busy all day. Here is another picture gallery from the show today.

Why The Name Change?
This show was named the AMO Archery Trade Show for the last 5 years and headed by AMO, the Archery Manufacturers Organization, which has now changed it's name. Rich Walton and I attended a breakfast given for the media and the newly organized organization, the Archery Trade Association. The CEO Jay Mc Aninch explained that the new name more clearly defined what it's organization was about. Also in the past when AMO lobbied in Washington DC on behalf of bowhunting the legislators did not associate AMO with archery. The new name was tested and found to be better in terms of retention. So they made the change.

(Day #1 - Jan 17)
Today is the opening day of the 6th ATA Archery Trade Show (Formerly the AMO Archery Trade Show). It is all about new products for our favorite subjects: bowhunting and archery. This is the archery industry's biggest show and is the only national trade show produced exclusively for our industry. 

The 2003 show utilizes over 275,000 sq. ft. in the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis, Indiana. Over 500 exhibitors are displaying archery and bowhunting products here. The show is not open to the public so you must be a member of the trade to attend: more than 8,000 dealers, retailers and merchants as well as industry media (we're in that category) have registered for the show. 

The weather is chilly but clear  Just fine for a good show.. 

Outdoor writer Tony Dukes and I drove to flew to Chicago on Wednesday and met Fred Lutger of Freddie Bear Sports. The three of us drove to the show on Thursday.

The show is off to a good start. So you can see what's happening here check out these thumbnailed pictures taken on the show floor today.