Yes, the new season of outdoor shows is open, as thousands of people flooded the spacious premises of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center for the Dallas Safari Club Annual Convention that took place on January 4-7, 2018. With 800,000 square feet of space, 1,800 booths and just under a 1,000 exhibitors, throwbacks to the old days and the newest developments, hunting and wildlife management seminars, gear giveaways, auctions and raffles, chances to see and hear outdoor celebrities including Jim Shockey, awe-inspiring wildlife art and taxidermy, and tons of world’s best outfitters presenting their offers, the DSC convention is the first of the year’s outdoor shows in more ways than one.
One of the key parts of the show are the awards, granted by Dallas Safari Club and their partners to game changers in various aspects of hunting. BookYourHunt.com offers our warmest congratulations to this year’s winners.
Melanie Peterson became the Extreme Huntress for 2018, and Sally Maxwell was recognized as Artist of the Year. Cooper Ribman, of Dallas, Texas, got the Colin Caruthers Young Hunter Award. The Dave Baxter Literary Award was given to Monty Hudson. The Outstanding Hunting Achievement Award was dedicated to its founder, Dr. Bob Speegle, the 92-year-old, still-active hunter who has been a part of DSC since the very beginning of the club. Craig Boddington received his Weatherby award, and the Conklin award went to Alexander Egorov of Moscow, Russia.
While all awards handed out at the DSC convention are important and well-deserved, we have to confess some hold a special value for BookYourHunt.com. One of those is the Outfitter of the Year award, received by our partners Aru Game Lodges, Namibia. Our congratulations to Danene, her operation sets a high standard in sustainability of both client relation and the environment, fair chase and comfort. We’re proud to be working with an outfitter of such standing.
And last but not the least was the Peter Hathaway Capstick Hunting Heritage award, given this year to Khalil Karimov and Hunting and Conservation Alliance Tajikistan. In the words of Fiona Capstick, widow of Peter Hathaway Capstick, Khalil Karimov “is the epitome of the hunter/conservationist ethic”, who “boldly and transparently involves local communities in Tajikistan’s sustainable hunting programs. The major consequences of this policy are the consistent development of those communities and the dynamic, scientifically supported conservation of habitat and wildlife. This message of courage, common sense and mutual respect transcends all borders, all time zones and all language differences.”
Our blog is proud to be one of the first hunting media to cover Hunting & Conservation Alliance of Tajikistan. Hunting for conservation, as done by H&CAT, is very important for BookYourHunt.com. This is the kind of a project we’ll never grow tired of supporting, and may it not be the last!
And our congratulations to the Dallas Safari Club itself, who received the Sporting Classics Magazine’s Award of Excellence for Hunting Heritage “in recognition of all the work Dallas Safari Club has done and the millions they raised to fund conservation projects around the world”!
However, the outdoor show season is only just beginning. Here’s BookYourHunt.com attendance schedule:
The Wild Sheep Foundation Annual Convention and Sporting Expo, a.k.a. “The Sheep Show®”, Reno-Sparks Convention Center, Reno, NV, January 18-20 – Booth 573
The Safari Club International Annual Convention, Las Vegas Convention Center, January 31 – February 3 – Booth 3434.
If you be one of the fortunate many to visit these great outdoor shows, come and visit BookYourHunt.com! Our North American Support Manager Catherine McConnell can answer any questions you might have about our operation, and so can James Reed, our Managing Director for North America, who’s also great fun to talk hunting with. The co-founders Aleksei Agafonov and Jim Shockey are likely to drop by at the SCI show, and, well, you never know who you’re going to meet there, what important announcements you may hear, and what conversations you can participate in.
Follow our social media pages – Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+ – and don’t miss the announcements!
2018 was a remarkable year for the DSC awards program – across the board. Every recipient is a wonderful example of what each award stands for. Sally Maxwell – i was surprised she hadn’t won the Artist of the Year already. I had the pleasure of counting Dave Baxter as a friend for over 20 years and he would be very pleased with the selection of Monty Hudson for the literary award. Aru Game Lodges, Cooper Ribman, Melanie Peterson – most deserving of the recognition. And while they aren’t DSC awards, The Weatherby Foundation and the Conklin Foundation continue their incredible streak of picking the perfect recipients in Craig Boddington and Alexander Egorov respectively. The OHAA winners – Dr. Bradford Black and Dr. Bob Speegle – what can one say? Finally – the Peter Hathaway Capstick Hunting Heritage Award. Khalil Karimov joins the rarified company of Ian Player, Harry Tennison, Dr. Red Duke and many others. DSC got it right on every award, as did WFI and the Conklin Foundation.
Thank you. We couldn’t agree more!