Off the main floor of the ATA show was a section they called the “Innovation Zone”. This area consisted of smaller booths that were much more affordable for those newer companies that wanted to be there. Most shows have a section like this and it is one of my favorite places to go “trolling”. Here you will find the next great thing to come into the archery or hunting world before they get big and successful. I have also found that this section is full of inventive people that put their minds towards solving a problem and have come up with a product or idea as the solution. Again, this is a fun area to walk through…

One of the first products to catch my eye was a unique chair. I am always looking for different seating options and this one was simple yet effective. The “Stick Up Seat” is a fanny pack that contains a seat that attaches to a tree. It is feather light, compact and comfortable enough for long sits, plus it has a spacious fanny pack. When the seat is deployed, the pack conveniently hangs under the seat. The custom designed seat also allows for 'reach thru' access to your gear below. The seat fits in the top, zippered compartment while not in use still leaving room for your gear. The large lower compartment has plenty of room for all your other gear. They have two models. One model comes with its own legs for the seat and the other one requires you cut your own seat legs from sticks in the woods. I prefer the one with its own legs so that I don’t have to find my own when I am ready to use it.

I spoke with Greg, the creator of this product, at length. I asked him why he came up with this particular design. He said “As an avid turkey and deer hunter, I find myself wanting to hunt from the ground a lot but there never seems to be anywhere comfortable to sit exactly where I want to be. I wanted a chair I could carry with me but the options out there required me to carry a bulky chair that had no easy way of carrying. That’s when I came up with the fanny pack design.”.

I liked it and think it fills a void for those of us who like to hunt from the ground. Visit them at www.stickaflage.com to order or get more information.

Another product in the Innovations Zone that blew me away was the standing bow case by Bow Anchor Products. This product was amazing in its simplicity and made you slap your forehead and say “Why didn’t I think of that?”

The Bow Anchor Bow Case is a top notch, high quality bow case yet it has attachable legs so you can stand it up for easy use. The bow case itself is awesome. It’s strong, lockable, has lots of bells and whistles and is 100% airline approved. Now, attach the legs and it becomes a bow table that is great for working on your bow or just having a safe place to put your bow down while practicing. Simple yet very effective. Keep an eye on this product as I can see it moving up the chain on the “Must Have” lists of products. Visit them at www.bowanchor.com for more info.

By Robert Householder

Robert was introduced to hunting by his uncle, Jeff Hendricks, at a very young age. He grew up in the outdoors, hunting and fishing at every opportunity. He started, as most boys do, with hunting squirrels and rabbits but was soon deer hunting with his uncle and thus started a true love for deer hunting. Jeff and Robert were two of a kind and stayed in the woods or on the water as much as possible until his uncles death in 2007.

Robert was introduced to turkey hunting by a close friend, Jerry Golden, and soon developed a passion for hunting this elusive bird. It remains one of his favorite game to hunt.

Robert has branched out of just hunting in Alabama to include states like Iowa, Mississippi and Georgia. He hopes to continue to hunt game in other states in the future. Robert is a veteran of the first Gulf war and served in the USAF for a total of 7 years, including assignments in Germany, Nebraska, Texas and Illinois.

Robert is the owner of an IT Managed Services company (www.gtinow.com) in Greenville, Alabama and is the founder of TalkHunting. He has been married to his wonderful wife, Annette, since 1985 and has 3 grown children, 2 sons and a daughter. He also has one grand daughter, (Katie) and one Grandson (Jake). Robert is also a hobbyist beekeeper.

God, Family and the outdoors are his life.....