WSF: As Drought Mounts, So Does Dollars for Wild Sheep

Bozeman, Montana. July 21, 2021— At the Wild Sheep Foundation’s (WSF) 13th Chapter and Affiliate Summit in Lewistown, Idaho (June 25 & 26), a hat was passed to raise money to bring water to drought-inflicted bighorn sheep herds in southern Nevada and elsewhere in the southern Rockies. By the end of the Summit, eighty-two thousand dollars was raised. This number is now up to an incredible $180,000 from generous WSF chapters, affiliates, and individual WSF members.

“With all the negative banter these days about hunters and hunting by self-proclaimed and media-appointed conservation groups, I say get out your checkbook if you want to do something real for wildlife,” said Gray N. Thornton, president and CEO of the Wild Sheep Foundation. “That’s what sportsmen have been doing for more than a century, and that’s what is happening here again for our wild sheep.”

More than 70 delegates attended the annual Summit from throughout WSF’s Chapter and Affiliate network, encompassing North America, Africa, Europe, and Central Asia. When presented with the dire situation in Nevada, without hesitation, pledges started rolling in.

“We see this time and again,” Thornton explained. “If there is a more giving group ready to make things happen than sheep hunters and those that just love seeing wild sheep, I’d like to meet them.” Read more

Wildlife

USCCA, Vortex Optics Giveaway

BARNEVELD, Wis. – We teamed up with the U.S. Concealed Carry Association and several other great partners to assemble a prize package valued at more than $25,000. In addition to the ultimate gear loadout, you could also win a fully customizable, one-on-one training experience for you and a friend with our instructors at Vortex Edge™ in 2022.

Entry is easy – simply follow this link to throw your name in the hat.

Our state-of-the-art facilities

Vortex Edge™, our 55,000-square foot state-of-the-art training facility, was built to accommodate shooters of all skill levels. Now, you and a friend have an opportunity to experience it your own way with help from our talented team of instructors. Read more

Optics

Primary Arms “Summer Sticker” Photo Contest

HOUSTON, TEXAS – Primary Arms has announced the ‘Summer Sticker’ Instagram photo contest, offering participants a chance to win exciting weekly prizes—as well as a custom grand prize, worth up to $1,700.

Starting July 12th, every order from primaryarms.com will include a limited decal: a sunset-themed sticker with the Primary Arms logo. These stickers come with entry instructions, plus a QR code that will show all the prizes available to weekly winners.

Once you’ve received your sticker, follow @primaryarmsonline on Instagram, post a picture with your most creative use/placement of the summer sticker with the ‘#primaryarms’ hashtag, and tag your range buddies. Every Friday, Primary Arms will announce a new weekly winner, who will receive a special care package full of range day gear and necessities. At the end of August, Primary Arms will name a grand champion from the weekly winners, awarding a custom optics and gear package worth up to $1,700. To view prize list and more details, visit the giveaway landing page. Read more

Firearms

SAF Files Amicus Brief In New York Right-To-Carry Supreme Court Case

BELLEVUE, WA – The Second Amendment Foundation today filed an important amicus brief with the U.S. Supreme Court supporting a challenge of New York State’s restrictive concealed carry permitting scheme by the New York State Rifle & Pistol Association.

SAF is joined in this “friend of the court” brief by several organizations including the New Jersey Second Amendment Society, Buckeye Firearms Foundation, Connecticut Citizens Defense League, Illinois State Rifle Association, Florida Carry, Inc., Grass Roots North Carolina, Louisiana Shooting Association, Tennessee Firearms Association, Maryland Shall Issue, Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, Sportsmen’s Association for Firearms Education, and Virginia Citizens Defense League.

“This case has been a long time coming and it would not be an overstatement that SAF has an intense interest because of our many members in New York and elsewhere that so-called ‘proper cause’ requirements are routinely used to deny law-abiding citizens the ability to carrying firearms for personal protection outside their homes,” said SAF founder and Executive Vice President Alan M. Gottlieb. “Such laws are arbitrary in nature and they place an absurd level of authority in the hands of local officials and their subordinates to deny citizens their constitutional right to bear arms.”

The Supreme Court has not heard a Second Amendment case in more than a decade, Gottlieb recalled, “and it is high time to consider another.” The last time the high court took on a Second Amendment case was in 2010, which resulted in the victory known as McDonald v. City of Chicago, a case brought by SAF that nullified Chicago’s unconstitutional handgun ban and incorporated the Second Amendment to the states via the 14th Amendment and made this New York case possible. The 35-page brief is submitted by attorneys David H. Thompson and Peter A. Patterson, Cooper & Kirk PLLC, Washington, D.C.

“The Second Amendment should no longer be treated like the ugly stepchild of the Bill of Rights,” Gottlieb observed. “Its language is clear, that the amendment protects not only the right of the individual citizen to keep arms, but to bear them, and that right extends beyond the confines of one’s home. A right limited to someone’s home is no right at all, and the court now has an opportunity to make that abundantly clear, settling an important constitutional issue once and for all.”

Gun Control

Wildlife Conservation Month: The Wood Duck

With their exquisite, bright coloration, male wood ducks are considered one of the most beautiful birds in the world. In fact, their scientific name, Aix sponsa, is Latin for “promised bride,” alluding to how the drakes look dressed to attend a wedding.

Wood ducks are medium-sized ducks that frequent wooded ponds, streams and marshes. Both hens and drakes have colorful blue, maroon and silver-accented wings. The hens are much more plainly colored, with grey-brown upperparts, mottled brown and white breasts, white bellies and a white, teardrop-shaped eye patch.

Wood duck pairs nest in tree cavities that are 15-30 feet above the ground or in man-made nest boxes. The hens lay nine to 14 eggs at a time. Wood duck hens sometimes lay their eggs in the nests of other wood duck hens. This leaves one hen with more than her share of ducklings to raise. Nests have been documented with up to 40 eggs in them!

Only a few days after hatching, young wood ducks are ready to leave the nest. The mother flies to the ground and then calls to her youngsters to encourage them. The young then jump the long distance from the tree cavity to the ground. The fluffy, downy chicks bounce when they land and toddle off after their mothers without a scratch. Read more

Wildlife

Trash and trees don’t mix – help protect Michigan’s forests

Record numbers of people are heading to Michigan’s outdoors this summer, exploring forests to enjoy the beauty of wildflowers, bright songbirds and splashing waterways. This captivating scenery is, unfortunately, sometimes marred by something less beautiful: dumpsites.

Trash in the forest isn’t just ugly – it’s hazardous to people, wildlife and the environment. If you want to help care for the wild places you love, join Adopt-a-Forest, a volunteer-driven cleanup program bringing people together to protect the outdoors. Because of this program, more than half of illegally dumped trash removed from public lands in the last 10 years has been recycled. Read more

Wildlife

Auto-Ordnance Makes the 20’s Roar with the Bootlegger Thompson, 1911

Greeley, PA: The Thompson is often called the “gun that made the 20’s roar”, but it was not the only reason for that saying. In fast cars with loads of moonshine, 1920’s bootleggers roared down country roads, evading the law and delivering white lightning to speakeasies. Lawmen raced after the motor bandits, wielding Tommy Guns and 1911s. It was not long before Hollywood depicted these duels on the big screen. The Roaring 20’s blazed a trail into American pop culture and history. Auto-Ordnance’s latest custom guns are produced in collaboration with Outlaw Ordnance, and commemorate the era with the “Bootlegger” Thompson and 1911. Jodi DePorter, Director of Marketing for Kahr Firearms Group, commented on them saying, “Auto-Ordnance is devoted to preserving American History, and the Bootlegger series invokes images of the roaring 20’s–a time people find fascinating! Owning one of these guns is truly owning a piece of American history.”

Range Worthy Art

The Bootlegger Thompson and 1911 are works of art, and refined shooting implements. Each gun is artfully engraved with depictions of 1920s autos, newspaper print, wanted posters, and historical images from the time. The Thompson barrel is marked “Speakeasy”. The 1911 slide and Thompson receiver are engraved “Bootlegger Prohibition Edition”, and “150 Proof Tennessee Moonshine”. Beautiful scrollwork covers the American Walnut wood furniture, and sections of the steel. The finish is distressed Bronze Cerakote with a clear coating overlayed. The wood furniture is also distressed and then stained. Both guns are completely American made firearms, chambered in .45 ACP. The Thompson features a 16.5” barrel, 20 round stick, and 50 round drum magazine. MSRP for the Bootlegger Thompson is $2,883 (T1-14C3). The 1911 comes with one 7 round magazine. MSRP for the Bootlegger 1911 is $1,496 (1911BKOC9). Read more

Firearms

Hobie to Light-Up ICAST with Mirage Lynx

Low-profile watercraft teams Hobie’s famous MirageDrive® 180 propulsion system with a versatile featherweight fishing and touring platform that turns on a dime.

OCEANSIDE, Calif. – Anglers and outdoors enthusiasts who relish a grab-and-go lifestyle are going to absolutely love Hobie’s new Mirage Lynx. A sleek, lightweight, stable and rugged platform, it’s intelligently designed to provide the flexibility and versatility necessary to load and launch with minimal effort at a moment’s notice. Coupled with the power of Hobie’s one of a kind, patented MirageDrive propulsion system, its low-profile, flat-bottom design really drives to the heart of the matter with powerful performance, superior speed, amazing maneuverability and ease of transport unmatched in its class.

Hobie, the leading manufacturer of premium kayaks and watersport products, aimed to minimize weight while maximizing transport and fishing efficiency with the Lynx’s unique design…and they nailed the bullseye. With a hull weight of just 45 pounds, the 11-foot long by 36-inch-wide Lynx boasts a 350-pound capacity and is light enough to easily take anywhere. A hard-shell evolution of Hobie’s proven and popular inflatable 11 design, it features Hobie’s ACE-TEC construction for rigidity and durability, a removeable rudder system for optimal steering control, and a premium MirageDrive 180 propulsion system with Kick-Up Fin technology that affords maximum control with forward and reverse pedaling, even in shallow water. A V-hull entry, wide bow, and innovative waterflow tunnel system combine to ensure a smooth ride, ultimate maneuverability, and stability that allows kayakers to push back into lilies, stick-ups, reeds, mangroves and shallow pockets inaccessible to others, all while keeping hands free to execute that perfect cast or frame the ideal photograph.

The new Mirage Lynx platform also includes molded-in tracks for mounting accessories, EVA standing traction pads, and ample bow and cargo room with bungee tie downs that can be utilized for a variety of applications. The Hobie H-Bar standing support can easily be added for maximum stability. For the ultimate package, effortlessly position more accessories by upgrading to a Hobie H-Rail mounting platform with integrated, patented RAM® Hand-Track™. Hobie’s optional Sail Kit and Bimini Sunshade can also be added using the accessory mount. Aside from its feathery weight, additional features like ergonomic handles and loading pads make transporting the Lynx hassle free. It even comes with a two-piece paddle for back-up propulsion or squeezing in a little upper body exercise.

“Lynx owners enjoy the versatility and flexibility of this addition to the Hobie fleet,” says Morgan Promnitz, Hobie’s Director of Fishing Development. “Whether you want to portage it between remote fishing and touring waters or simply drop it in a lake or river close to home, you can just grab it and go. From a fishing perspective, it’s an exceptional choice for pursuing smallmouth bass or trout in river conditions where maneuverability is key to success, on backwaters where poking silently onto the flats reveals tailing fish, and bays, harbors or even the open ocean due to its impressive ability to stay on schools of feeding lunkers despite wind and current. I also love the transducer cavity included on the Lynx that allows for quick installation of a fish-finder despite the low-profile design. This really is a fun and practical watercraft.”

For a lightweight platform, the Lynx features some serious technology and is easily accessorized. It’s ACE-TEC construction, for example, sees a foam core coated in fiberglass and then finished in plastic, which makes it super tough, nearly unsinkable and easy to repair if necessary. Intelligently designed for both user comfort and battling the elements, its elevated and breathable mono-mesh fabric seat improves visibility while keeping kayakers cool, comfortable and above the spray in a moderate chop. A seatback storage pouch makes it easy to stash items such as sunscreen or a jacket so they’re always within reach.

“This kayak is like a stand-up paddle board with a MirageDrive and a seat that you can customize to fit your specific fishing needs,” says professional kayak angler Kristine Fischer. “It’s super stable, lightweight and at home anywhere from small creeks to big water. Just throw it in the back of your truck or secure it to your car roof and head off to fish a remote river, take it down to the coast, or hit your favorite reservoir. I love that for anglers it’s a blank canvas you can really make your own. Rig it however you want and head on out. Hobie couldn’t have done this any better.” Read more

Fishing

Michigan: second year-class of Arctic grayling eggs arrives from Alaska

A striking fish with a sail-like dorsal fin and slate-blue coloration, the Arctic grayling was virtually the only native stream salmonid (a fish of the salmon family) in the northern Lower Peninsula until the population died off nearly a century ago. Three factors contributed to the grayling’s demise in Michigan: habitat destruction, unregulated harvest and predation/competition from nonnative fish species.

Since 2016, the Michigan Arctic Grayling Initiative – comprised of the Michigan DNR, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and more than 40 other partners – has worked to bring this locally extinct species back to Michigan.

Late this past spring, the DNR received the 2021 year-class of brood eggs from Alaska. A year-class is a group of fish raised from the same year’s egg-take – in other words, fish that are the same age. The eggs from this year-class will help establish a brood population in Michigan.

How do fish eggs get from Alaska to Michigan? Very carefully. They were transported to Michigan by plane as the carry-on luggage of a Michigan State University researcher. Upon arrival, they were kept at the MSU lab in East Lansing before the final leg of their journey to Oden State Fish Hatchery in Emmet County. The fish are growing well after hatching, and mortalities in this group have been remarkably low.

The 2021 year-class is not the first to make the trip from Alaska to Michigan. In 2019, the DNR received another class of Arctic grayling, and they continue to thrive at Marquette State Fish Hatchery. The fish are growing well with very few mortalities. The next class is planned for May 2022, when the DNR and the Alaska Department of Fish and Game will collect eggs from Alaska’s Chena River.

The initiative to return Arctic grayling to Michigan waters could not have been possible without help from local and state partners. The DNR has received incredible support from the Alaska Department of Fish and Game; even though the agency temporarily paused its Arctic graying rearing program, staff there organized and executed the 2021 egg take, collecting eggs from wild stock in the Chena River specifically for Michigan’s reintroduction efforts.

When will you see Arctic grayling in Michigan waters? The first fish from Michigan’s Arctic grayling broodstock are expected to be available for reintroduction in 2024 or 2025. Read more

Fishing

Get More Distance with Easton 4MM Axis Long Range

Salt Lake City, Utah – When 5MM AXIS came on the scene it revolutionized hunting arrows. The small shaft innovation offered better accuracy and mitigated friction to retain velocity and add penetration. Now the concept has gone forward to the next level with the introduction of the new 4MM AXIS Long Range.

The Long Rang AXIS will offer bowhunters even more of what they want in a micro diameter arrow. 4mm AXIS uses a lighter weight carbon for more speed to the target in order to drive broadheads deeper upon impact. “Additionally it adds penetration as the shaft passes through with less friction behind the broadhead channel” said Gary Cornum, Easton Director of Marketing. “Millions of successful hunts testify to the awesome effectiveness of a simple concept that equates to more downed big game—it’s like getting magnum ammunition made for a bow.”

Made in Easton’s Utah factory, the AXIS Long Range is engineered with specialized carbon-fiber to increase arrow velocity. Easton 4mm nocks and front-of-center boosting 8-32 half-outs are included to help tighten arrow grouping. 4MM AXIS Long Range is available in four sizes, 250, 300, 340, and 400 in both standard straightness and in the ultra-precise ±.001 Match Grade.

  • High-strength, lighter weight carbon adds velocity for longer range
  • Includes 8-32-point half-outs
  • Pre-installed 4mm nocks
  • Four sizes: 250, 300, 340, & 400
  • Available in standard straightness and in the ±.001” Match Grade
  • Made in USA

MSRP: $105.99 6-pack fletched (standard straightness) Read more

Archery
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