While we were sharing hunting stories she invited me to her Seminar over the weekend at the Blair County Convention Center and Outdoor Times Sports Show. I was also looking forward to going, being that I had various friends and acquaintances who would be working at the show. Plus Shirley wanted me to meet an absolutely extraordinary woman in the outdoors, Joanie Heidel. I was eager to finally hear Shirley talk some more about her strategies in hunting turkeys.
Just some of the many magazines Shirley has written for over the years.
Saturday, Don and I headed out for the show and our first stop was with the owners, Jim and Debbie Faith of East Coast Gun Sales. East Coast was holding a Taser seminar that I wanted to attend. We had some time before the Seminar started so we headed over in hopes of possibly getting a chance to meet or speak with Bob Foulkrod.
East Coast Gun Sales, (LtoR)Scott Henck, Jim Faith, Owner, myself, Debbie Faith Owner.
Bob was at the show holding various seminars over the weekend. Let me say that getting a chance to speak with him was no difficult feat. Bob was very approachable and welcomed the opportunity to talk to fellow Pennsylvanians about whatever it was you wanted to speak about. He was more than happy to snap a few photos with me and was very professional and personable.
Foulkrod is a PA native and still has property up in Troy, Bradford County, PA. There he said he operates a ranch where he holds a bow school and archery camp. This man is one of the most accomplished hunters of all time. Bob started his personal hunting dream. His “Obsession Quest” 5 years ago. This quest includes all 50 big game animals in North America, the African big 5 and the Grand Quest on wild turkey. If you don’t think that is hard enough…he is doing each hunt in front of a camera. Bob has one animal left on his Quest to complete his dream mission. The muskox. He is heading out the end of March to complete the task. Each of the animals Bob has taken will be mounted life size and placed on display at various Bass Pro shops for the public to enjoy.
While sitting in Bob’s seminar later that afternoon, I found while listening to him not only was he inspiring and knowledgeable but his opening was like déjà vu’. He stated some of my exact thoughts that I too tried to portray in a previous journal entry I submitted, “Why I (we) hunt!” Bob said that hunting was more about the memories and reminiscing than the actual kills. Yes, Bob Foulkrod kills animals and a lot of them, but his most memorable times of hunting weren’t of actual kills or world records he took. They were of fun times, practical jokes at deer and bear camps. Bob smallest caribou ever taken is even more memorable than his world record because, as he stated, “Someone will ALWAYS come along that will kill more animals than you, kill a bigger buck or break your record.”
His mission in speaking to people is to spread his knowledge so that others can become better hunters. So what does Bob think we need to do to become better hunters? Well for starters, be more respectful of other hunters. Bob said if you see a guy sitting down near where you want to be and they were there first, move to a different spot and don’t sit 50 yards from them. Just because you find a tree stand in the woods and no one is in it doesn’t mean you can just sit in it. Next, Bob stated “Do I think PA has a problem with the hunting situation? Yes I do.” Bob feels that we are losing both the younger generation and the older generation of hunters. With the younger generation he feels it is hard to expect them to go out and sit in the woods all day long and for a “MAYBE" they will see a deer. They get cold, can’t go as far and it’s hard for them to sit very long. With the competition of sports, video games, and other activities it’s hard for kids to get excited about hunting deer if they don’t see any deer to hunt. Again, it’s not about the kill, but about the excitement of hearing the rustle of leaves and seeing a deer approaching.
The older generation….well, Bob says, “They get cold, can’t go as far, and it’s hard for them to sit as long too.” What is happening is that they aren’t going hunting. Why? Because they, like the children need our help. We as hunters sometimes don’t want to be bothered and they don’t want to BE a bother. Like Bob said, “What we need to remember was that when we were that kid, the now older generation, didn’t give up on us when we maybe couldn’t walk as far. We need to be patient and considerate to their needs.” We as hunters need to stick together and continue the sport with both the younger generation and the older generation who passed that tradition on to us. For that is what hunting is… memories and reminiscing, sharing dreams with family and friends.
Bob said that our legacy as hunters will not be determined by the amount of racks we have hanging on the wall or records we have had. But by the memories we leave behind to our hunting companions of good times shared with us during those hunts. Will they remember a laugh or joke? Perhaps a memory shared of a difficult hunt that took longer than normal to harvest an animal, and the victory being shared with a loved one. That is our legacy as hunters. That is what makes you a successful hunter. After speaking, Bob took questions and signed pictures. There is not enough to be said about this man’s passion and love of the sport. It was obvious his roots were from Pennsylvania and he is a fine representative of our State.
Next we stopped to see my friends at Barnes Puppy Love Kennels.
Denise and Dave are great people and produce AWESOME retrievers. This is where my dog, Drake, who I am sure you all saw maybe once or twice on the site, came from. I always welcome the chance to talk to Denise and Dave and see their new puppies and resident dogs work their hunting skill magic.
Dave working “Gauge” their chocolate lab during a dog retrieving seminar.
Above C2 personal Taser
The East Coast Gun Sale Taser seminar began with Scott Henck, Sales Consultant, Law Enforcement Division and Taser Instructor introducing East Coast Gun Sales for those that were not familiar with the Company. East Coast Gun Sales is a full service gun shop that believes in 3 things; Give the Customer what they want, at the right price and provide new and innovative products. East Coast carries a full range of firearms and products for both hunters and law enforcement. After only 2 years in existence they will be opening a new 40,000 square foot gun shop, distribution center with an underground shooting range. Scott then began talking about the C2 Personal Taser from Taser International. The C2 shoots 50,000 volts from up to 15 feet away through 2 inches of clothing. The C2 will incapacitate an assailant for at least 30 seconds. More activation can be used if needed. The Taser once activated can help the victim to either run to get away from the assailant or call the police. If the assailant isn’t completely incapacitated you can reactivate the unit by depressing the trigger. The Taser has an anti-felon id system. Tiny coded discs are emitted once the cartridge is activated.
Taser prongs that are shot into the assailant.
Coded discs.
These discs are individually coded for each cartridge and allows the police to identify where the cartridge was purchased and by whom. Taser International will replace the cartridges if utilized and an official police report is filed. The C2 is an excellent personal defense weapon that can end a frightful or dangerous situation without deadly force. It is very lightweight and compact. I was volunteered to demonstrate the ease of operation of the C2. The ease and operation would be perfect for those who are not comfortable or familiar in carrying a firearm.
Above, me shooting the C2 at the Taser target.
Scott Henck, East Coast Gun Sales explaining in detail how the C2 works on an assailant.
The end of the day was spent listening and learning from a very knowledgeable, accomplished yet humble woman, Shirley Grenoble. Shirley introduced me to her good friend, and in Shirley’s words, another “powerful woman the great outdoors”, Joanie Heidel. Joanie is from Dayton, Pennsylvania and not only is she a skillful woman in the outdoors, she also makes her own turkey calls called Joanie’s Beard Bustin’ Turkey Calls. This girl can call a turkey like I have never heard before. She is amazing. I was in awe! Matter of fact the whole audience was in awe!
Joanie Heidel demonstrating various turkey sounds with one of her Beard Bustin calls. Shirley is watching on.
Shirley as always, captivated her audience with her casual humble self. This is a woman whom I admire for her courage that got her where she is today. Shirley has been hunting for about 55 years.
Just a few of the gobbler remnants that have fallen to Shirley’s hunting skills.
She hunted when it was “forbidden” or taboo for woman to hunt. Not that it bothered her, she was hooked the day her husband took her along rabbit hunting. And it’s been a blessing to all of us that she has remain so dedicated to hunting. Shirley was able to help with some tough turkey scenarios and strategies she has used over the years in bagging those challenging gobblers in PA. She can recall stories from many years ago like it was yesterday and all those there agreed, Shirley knew what she was talking about. I was grateful to have learned some of her tricks of the trade. In Shirley’s words, “It never hurts to have a few tricks in your hat to pull out on those smart old birds." Any time I have spent with Shirley I leave with a smile on my face for she is truly a mentor to all of us outdoors women. I look forward to keeping in touch with her and sharing our stories of the upcoming spring gobbler season.
Joanie Heidel, Shirley Grenoble and myself after the Seminar.
Dad and I at he United Bowhunter’s booth talking with the Singer’s of Hollidaysburg.
“Bob” one of the Barnes’ puppies, is the new mascot for the Altoona Curve this year.
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