2023 Spring Events Recap
Sarah and Hannah at Mule Deer Days
2023 Western Hunting & Conservation Expo
February 1-5, 2023
Salt Lake City, UT
Sporting Lead-Free decided to kick the New Year off by taking our message on the road to the 2023 Western Hunting & Conservation Expo in Salt Lake City, UT. This trade show was our biggest event yet with four busy days and packed halls of people walking the 544 booths on more than 511,000 square feet of the Salt Palace Convention Center exhibit halls. Hosted by the Mule Deer Foundation and Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, the Western Hunting & Conservation Expo has become one of the most important conservation fundraising and consumer hunting events in the country.
Over the four days of the trade show, Bryan and Hannah talked to over 570 individuals. Many of the attendees had never heard of this issue before and were happy to see our education only approach.
We made connections with many ammunition and firearms companies as well as outfitters and other conservation organizations. We’re looking forward to building on these connections and growing our conservation partnership program and membership!
2023 Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic
February 17-19, 2023
Minneapolis, MN
Oh you betcha, we headed to the Midwest to attend the 2023 Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic!
Hannah quickly rested after the Hunt Expo and was on the road again headed for the “Star of the North” state, Minnesota. This was our first upland focused trade show and we were so excited to be tabling next to our Conservation Partner, HerUpland.
The trade show opened with a bird dog parade, where Hannah begrudgingly did not steal any of them, and the exhibit hall filled with attendees. Over the weekend, over 55,000 people walked through the exhibit hall, a record attendance for the show. Hannah immediately lost track of the number of individuals she spoke with, but needless to say, it was a very popular booth!
During the weekend, Hannah was able to connect with more industry leaders from Orvis, CZ USA, and HEVI-Shot to introduce Sporting Lead-Free and get the ball rolling for building official partnerships. With the ballistic gels aglow, many folks were excited to learn about lead-free shot as well as big game ammunition and tackle. Minnesota’s state bird is the common loon, so many residents were very passionate about going lead-free and were excited to see an initiative like ours.
This was a super successful event for SLF, growing our membership quite a bit, building awareness of the issue, and expanding beyond the West. Find us again next year in Sioux Falls, SD!
2023 Mule Deer Days
March 10-11, 2023
Rock Springs, WY
Our good friends and Conservation Partners at the Muley Fanatic Foundation invited us to the inaugural Mule Deer Days in Rock Springs, Wyoming. Organized to promote and celebrate the icon of the American West, the focus of this event was to showcase the conservation work that has and continues to be done for mule deer, a species that has declined by nearly 40% over the last two decades.
During the event, some of the finest mule deer harvested in Wyoming were on display, which was a sight to see! Wyoming Game and Fish Department Inspire a Kid initiative featured an indoor archery shoot, air rifle shoot, migration obstacle course, wildlife identification station, hunter education ethics trail, mule deer worksheet and the Poach Coach by the Wyoming Game Wardens Association. It was a fantastic event for the whole family!
This was our new Community Outreach Coordinator, Sarah’s, first event with Sporting Lead-Free and she absolutely crushed it! We spoke with over 300 individuals and continued to have great conversations with Wyoming Game and Fish Department and industry companies such as Sportsmans Warehouse and Weatherby. In addition to having a booth at this event, we also had the honor of leading a seminar about lead-free ammunition. It was great to see the curiosity and willingness to learn from the audience. We can’t wait to see how this event grows!
2023 BHA Rendezvous
March 16-18, 2023
Missoula, MT
The 12th Annual BHA Rendezvous was held in Missoula, Montana for the third consecutive year with record breaking attendance. Hannah and Sarah set up in the lower level of the historic commercial building at the Missoula Fairgrounds. They spoke with several BHA members and their families and added lots of new members.
On the second day, Hannah opened up the field skills seminar series. Those in attendance spoke very highly of their experience with lead-free ammunition and were impressed with Sporting Lead-Free’s mission and growth in just two short years. Many audience members had questions about muzzleloading specifically which we plan to build out on our resources page in the future.
During the weekend, Sarah and Hannah made great connections with G&H Decoys, First Lite, and Walton’s and are looking forward to growing those relationships.
Catch us next year at the 13th Annual Rendezvous in Minnesota!
2023 Wild Wings Snow Goose Festival
March 24-25, 2023
Choteau, MT
The arrival of snow geese at Freezeout Lake, located outside of Choteau, MT, is a springtime ritual rivaled by few outdoor experiences. Snow geese stop here to rest and refuel as they migrate from their wintering areas in central California to their nesting colonies in the Canadian arctic. As many as 300,000 snow geese and 10,000 tundra swans gather and rest before flying onward.
Wild Wings Snow Goose Festival is an annual event that coincides with the annual spring migration of snow geese and tundra geese through Montana. During this event, you can spend the weekend watching the Snow Goose migration, join in on guided tours, raffles, an art show, and more festivities. Sporting Lead-Free was invited to have an informational booth alongside our Conservation Partners, Montana Wildlife Federation. Hannah spoke with many attendees and several of them mentioned how great it was to see an organization like SLF attend an event like this. Lead ingestion is still a huge cause of mortality for waterfowl species, and this crowd of bird watchers was very passionate about sharing our educational approach with their hunting and angling counterparts.
Several other community members also attended the weekend, including local ranchers, guides, and outfitters. This was a great opportunity to connect with this local community and explain the impacts that our sporting activities have on wildlife. One guide had first-hand experience with finding a lead poisoned bald eagle just outside their hunting camp. At the time, he did not realize what was wrong with the eagle, and after speaking with Hannah more, it was clear that’s what the eagle had been suffering from. He had no idea about the issue and was very excited to tell his outfitter and other guides about it.
This was a great event to expand our audience beyond just hunters and anglers and showcase how an educational approach and knowledge about hunting as conservation is so important in all crowds!
2023 Wyoming Outfitters and Guides Association Convention
March 30-April 1, 2023
Casper, WY
For the second year in a row, Sporting Lead-Free was invited to attend the Wyoming Outfitters and Guides Association Convention. This is a great opportunity to connect with local outfitters, guides, and Game and Fish. This year, a majority of the seminars were about the harsh winter conditions and what that means for our wildlife. You would be hard pressed to find a group more passionate about ungulate conservation than WYOGA members!
Many WYOGA members who attended last year’s convention made a point to return to the SLF booth to say hello and tell their friends about our initiative. Several new members were excited to see our ballistics gel on display and even more excited to see one available at the silent auction!
As always, the WYOGA leadership team was so welcoming and we look forward to attending again next year!
