As the wife and I made plans for our trip to Nashville for the NWTF, some very good friends in Indiana were making the same plans. Mike (WV) and Susan Snider were going to meet us there and work the show with us. Ron “WKY” Larkins came with them so it was almost like a TalkHunting mini-reunion. While I love attending shows like this and working the floor as a TalkHunting Magazine reporter, it is always a lot more fun with my wife and some good friends along. Later on, we also met up with Dennis Possum” Parker, Joey “Bogo” Bogus and Kerry “Tiller” Speer.

When we arrived at the Opryland Convention Center, the first thing that blew me away wasn’t the NWTF show. It was the Opryland Hotel itself. I had never seen anything like that hotel. I am not going to go into the details about the hotel but I will say just visiting the hotel is worth a weekend trip and yes, it will take a weekend just to see the hotel! You can learn more at http://www.gaylordhotels.com/opryland-home.html.

As we walked onto the show floor, the sounds of hundreds of turkey calls filled the air. I was right at home. As I usually do when first arriving at a show, I go find any sponsors that have booths at the show. We like to visit with these sponsors, help them out with anything they need and see what new items or services they may have on display. We first arrived at the Straight Creek Calls booth and met with Don Saylor and Mike Somers. They were “Talking Turkey” like mad when we walked up but stopped long enough to visit with us and show us all the new calls on hand. Yes, they are a sponsor and yes, we push their calls but I have to say these are the very best sounding calls I have ever used. And I have used a lot of calls over the years…

Justin, one of their callers and an overall great guy, proceeded to show us all of the new mouth calls they had developed. I am one of those turkey hunters that have not been a big user of mouth calls because they tend to gag me. However, Mike Somers turned me on to a youth call last year that was smaller and gave me the ability to add a mouth call to my arsenal. As Justin showed off the new mouth calls, he pointed out a couple of new youth calls that much to my wife’s dismay, I immediately purchased. Working an outdoor show can’t be all work. You have to buy something, right?

Mike Somers then showed us the new friction call that is working so well they had already almost sold out of them by Saturday morning. It’s so new that it isn’t even on their website yet. If you want one, you have to call or email in an order. The friction material looks like slate but is made from anodized aluminum. It had a great look and sound, as all of their calls do, but added a long list of beneficial features.

• The surface never needs sanded, scratched or buffed. Ever!
• Each call is handmade and personally tested by Don himself.
• It will play wet or dry
• It sounds as good loud as it does soft
• It plays a wide range of pitches with different strikers
• Any striker can be used with it but a carbon striker is needed to play it wet.
• It plays and sounds just like a slate call
• It is easy to play. I have struggled with some of the aluminum and glass calls but this one was easy.
• Its light weight
• Did I mention that the surface never needs sanded, scratched or buffed?

This call is a “Must Have” for any turkey caller and will definitely be added to my turkey vest. If you want more info about this call or wish to order one, contact Don Saylor at straightcreekcalls@charter.net.

Our next stop was to the booth of one of our newest sponsors, Treasure Hill Outfitters, out of the great state of Kentucky. Michael Back and I have spoken many times via phone and email but had never met face to face. That was about to change. As we walked up to their booth, they were surrounded by a large group of people and were busy talking about their outfit and their hunts. As soon as there was a break in the crowd, he came over and we finally got to shake hands. Michael is a great guy and runs a top notch outfit for deer and turkey hunting. He talked with WV and myself like we were old friends and gave us the “Verbal” tour of their outfit. I plan on deer and turkey hunting there soon, as I am sure most of the people he talked with that day will as well. It sounded like an awesome place to hunt and the accommodations and atmosphere would probably be worth the trip alone. Add the fact that they film the hunts and it’s a “No brainer”! Affordable hunts, great atmosphere and lots of game. That’s a winning combination.

After leaving there, we proceeded to walk around and look at all there was to see. There was so many turkey call vendors that it boggled the mind. Most of your big name manufacturers were there but there also had to be literally hundreds of smaller companies with their handmade calls. All of them working their calls to make the floor sound like a hen convention with a million attendees.

The following Sunday morning, Mike, Susan, Annette and myself decided to walk around the Opryland hotel and check it out. Sporting our new Mike’s Magic t-shirts, we proceeded to take in the sights of the Opryland hotel which included a boat ride tour, rivers, various waterfalls, massive gardens, water fountain shows, a walk down bourbon street and many restaurants and gift shops, all of which was INSIDE the hotel! There is no way I could describe that hotel in this article so you will just have to plan a trip there for yourself. There is no charge to walk around the hotel and the restaurants and boat tour was affordable.

Overall, the NWTF show in Nashville was well worth the trip and I look forward to attending next year.

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.....

Comments(5):

1. Opryland Hotel

   The hotel is sometrhing you have to see to believe and Oprayland is right accross the street if you are like me and a fan of county music.

   Saturday, March 05, 2011 clyde

2. NWTF SHOW

   wish I was their, sounds like a great show...I am going to try the mouth calls and a box from straight creek and also Mikes T-shirt....turkey season is creeping up on us

   Saturday, March 05, 2011 David

3. Sounds like a worth-while excursion...

   The show sounds like one not to be missed. And the local is just as nice. Seen the hotel form the outside but have never gone in. Will have to change that next time from your description alone.

   Sunday, March 06, 2011 Duane

4. NWTF Convention and Show

   My Brother and I had a Awesome time and look forward at lest 3 days at the show next year... Great coverage guys...

   Monday, March 07, 2011 Dennis

5. NWTF SHOW

   Sounds like it was a great show with some great friends!

   Monday, March 07, 2011 Anthony