I got a call on Wednesday from John “cookin” Thibodaux.  “Did you know the Louisiana Sportsman’s Show was this weekend?”  No, I didn’t.  I didn’t even know what the “show” was about.  He was so excited about it that I consented to try and go with him to it on Saturday.  As soon as I got home I looked it up on-line.  “Welcome to the 31st annual Louisiana Sportsman’s Show,” exclaimed a voice from within the screen.  How did I miss 31 years of Sportsman’s Shows?  I’m 31 too.  I was beginning to feel an affinity for this thing, even more so as I read of all the hundreds of vendors that will be attending.  The Show started on Friday, March 12 and continued through the weekend.  It looked to me like an event worth attending.  

“31st Anniversary of Louisiana’s ORIGINAL hunting, fishing, and boating show including hundreds of fishing and hunting booths, boat areas and more…”  I still can’t get over the “hundreds” part.  There were vendors from all over the world.  The first thing you would encounter when you enter the gate was a lot full of boats; fishing boats, ski boats, duck boats, party barges, and more.  Two warehouse buildings beyond the boats boasted the hundreds of vendor booths.  Here were many names I knew and many, many more that I didn’t.  I first searched for Bowie Outfitters, a sponsor and friend of Talkhunting.com.  They had quite a layout.  If you turned your back to the flow of people traversing the isle, you could almost believe you were in the store on Perkins Dr. in Baton Rouge.  I also found Hunter Cam Systems, a former and, hopefully, future sponsor of Talkhunting.com.  He had some new improvements to the old system.  Some other favorites of mine were Chef Kenny with his spices and potato peeler, Cajun Injector, a favorite of us southerners, Chem Spray South Inc., a company that specializes in chemical applications, Scale Damage Bowfishing, and Dunk’em, the creators of the better mouse trap.  I talked to countless outfitters and local vendors who had great products and services at reasonable prices.  More than that though, I spoke with fellow outdoorsmen and women.  These people had a passion for the outdoor world and were working to further the dream.
  
Also available were shows, programs, demonstrations, and rides.  A new addition for this year was the Purina INCREDIBLE DOG CHALLENGE.  They had the dogs “performing amazing acts of acrobatic skill.”  You could also meet the Trout Masters; anglers featured in the book, Trout Masters: How Louisiana’s Best Anglers Catch the Lunkers.  There were tons of activities like the Outdoor Food Festival, monster truck rides, carnival rides, skeet shooting, hunting and fishing demonstrations, duck calling with The Duck Commander, archery shooting, and live rainbow trout fishing for the kids.  There were so many things to do that it took a whole day just to see everything.
  
Cookin and I brought some Talkhunting.com information cards with us to pass out.  On my way to the Show I was contemplating how I would approach the subject of Talkhunting.com and keep my explanation short and simple.  I was reminded of something my Pastor says almost every week in church.  “We all need an elevator speech, a short two to three minute spiel about your church and how it affects your life and your faith.”  I think Talkhunting.com is the same.  We should be able to tell people what the site is and what it means to us in a crisp, clear way that takes no more than a minute or two.  People are leery of sales ploys and scams.  They don’t want us to “sell” Talkhunting.com to them; we need to share it with them.  So I came up with my speech.  

Cookin and I talked later about how each of us shared our stories differently but were both effective in creating an interest in others. Talkhunting.com is a site for all of us.  Our daughters and grandmothers can feel comfortable with us.  We have a place that provides an atmosphere of belonging; a place where friendships thrive.  We didn’t attend the Louisiana Sportsman’s Show to convert people; we went to expand our community of friends.

By Brent Sawyer

TalkHunting Pro Staffer, Brent "Cobrican" Sawyer, was born into a sporting family.  His first couple years of life were spent on the banks of Lake Arthur and around his grandfather's farm in Jennings, La.  Even when his family moved to the city, they visited the farm often.  Brent's parents and Pawpaw spent as many hours as they could find taking him outside to learn how to care for and survive on the land around him.  They camped and hiked.  They gardened.  Brent joined the Boy Scouts as a Bobcat and continued to be involved through his High School days.  There, he learned many new skills to help him belong out of doors.  Brent and his cousins would often sleep out under the stars with only a blanket.  

At the age of 8 he was given his first BB gun.  At 10 he was allowed to hunt with a shotgun.  The family had a lease where they hunted, predominantly, Speckle-belly geese with the occasional snow or duck.  They also hunted doves and rabbits.  Brent learned how to call specks well enough to hunt on his own in only a short time.  About the time Brent went to college, his grandfather dropped the hunting lease.  Fortunately, North Louisiana offers some great opportunities for hunting on public lands.  He spent many hours duck hunting as well as hunting small game.  In 2000 Brent was invited to his first deer hunt.  Since then he has been fully involved in the deer hunting experience.  He also loves to fish.  Lately he has made more opportunities to fish salt water than freshwater but he enjoys both.

Brent Graduated with a degree in Forest Technology and has used his degree as a basis for hunting and recreation properties management.  He joined Talkhunting.com in 2008 and has attended gatherings in Louisiana and Alabama.  He also works for Breathe Safe Environmental Services as a third party monitor for lead and asbestos abatement.  He loves his job but hopes to be able to one day move exclusively to property management and consulting.