30th Annual Virginia Outdoor Sportsman Show August 9-11

For the 30th year, Hugh Crittenden and the Virginia Deer Hunter's Association will hold present the Virginia Outdoor Sportsman Show.  As it has in the last two years, will again be held at the Richmond Raceway Complex.  The evening before the show opens, the Richmond Friends of NRA will hold their 2nd Annual Banquet.  Partnering with the VOSS paid dividends last year and this year's event should also be a success. Doors open at the FNRA event Thursday at 5:30.  The VOSS opens Friday at 4PM.

Busy Weekend for Sportsmen in Virginia

Hunters and Sportsmen of all stripes have plenty to choose from this weekend when it comes to preparing for the coming hunting seasons. First and foremost is the 26th Annual Virginia Outdoor Sportsman Show. This show is put on by Hugh Crittenden in association with the Virginia Deer Hunters Association. This is the longest running outdoor show in the Commonwealth and it attracts upwards of 20,000 people every year. This is a show not to be missed. Also, while you are at the show, be sure to stop by the NRA-ILA booth and sign up to be a Frontlines Volunteer for this year's election.

Also starting this weekend is Bass Pro Shops 2009 Fall Hunting Classic in both the Hampton and Richmond stores. This event runs from August 7-23 and will include sales on hunting supplies and seminars on various topics.

Two of Richmond's local retailers are also holding big sales this weekend to take advantage of the influx of sportsmen. First is Dance's Sporting Goods located in Colonial Heights. This is Dance's 2nd Annual Outdoor Sportsman's Show event and runs from August 8 - 16th.

Greentop Sporting Goods, in Hanover County just down the interstate from Bass Pro Shops, has their annual Summer Sale which began August 5th and runs through August 9th.

In short, there are a lot of activities that sportsmen can take advantage of this weekend.

VDGIF Hunting with Hounds Study Getting More Attention

I posted on this earlier and since that time, discussion on the Internet among hunters as well as a couple of comments on the earlier post merits another mention. Those who hunt with dogs are very concerned about the process DGIF has created for this debate. The Virginia Deer Hunters Association has a vested interest in this and they sent a letter to their membership in mid 2007 pointing out that a small hand full of unethical individuals are partly to blame for this situation. The vast majority of hunters using hounds are ethical and respect the private property of others. Unfortunately, they are caught up in this and will suffer from any ill effects. But hunters using hounds are also experiencing something that gun owners have been feeling the effects of for the last several years - people new to rural life, complaining about noise - in this case noisy hounds. This article ran on Christmas Eve in the Richmond Times Dispatch and is pretty balanced. This editorial ran on News Years Eve in the Roanoke Times and as usual, has the Times anti-slant with a swipe at hunters, calling them a "paranoid bunch."