Association of Collegiate Anglers Announces Cabela's School of the Year Sponsorship

If I would've known the future of fishing and competitive angling (I just dig saying competitive angling), my college life would've seemed normal...beer and fishing in the land of 10,000 lakes. I'm sure it's just a matter of time before bass fishing is an Olympic sport. I put odds on the 2024 Summer Games. Any thoughts?

San Antonio, Texas 

Already a long-term supporter of competitive collegiate bass fishing, Cabela's, the World's Foremost Outfitter® of hunting, fishing and outdoor gear, has expanded its commitment to the Association of Collegiate Anglers (ACA). As part of the commitment, Cabela's is now Title Sponsor of the ACA School of the Year Program. As part of the multi-year partnership, more than $35,000 in Cabela's gift cards will be awarded annually at ACA collegiate events nationwide, and collegiate anglers will have additional opportunities to earn Cabela's Angler Cash bonuses, among other unique opportunities.

"Cabela's has a long tradition of supporting youth and next-generation outdoor programs," said Scott Williams, Cabela's Chief Marketing Officer. "We consider Collegiate Bass Fishing the premier event of its kind. College anglers are important as ambassadors of all that is good about outdoor sports. They are at the forefront of a new generation of sportsmen and women who share our passion for the outdoors."

The 2013 Cabela's School of the Year race is underway and more than 175 collegiate bass fishing programs are expected to earn points through sanctioned events. Indiana University currently leads the pack, but only 34 points separate the Top 5. With the race and points based on the number of teams beat in competition, the Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series events are the most critical in shaping the final outcome.
The Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series will consist of the following stops in 2013:

Cabela's Collegiate Big Bass Bash - March 21-23 - Table Rock Lake - Branson, Mo.
Collegiate Bass Fishing Open - April 18-20 - Kentucky Lake - Paris, Tenn.
BoatUS Collegiate Bass Fishing Championship - May 23-25-- Pickwick Lake - Florence, Ala.

"Cabela's has been behind our collegiate series since our first event on Lake Lewisville in 2006. Their continued long-term support and dedication to college bass fishing at this level is a primary reason our events are the largest in college bass fishing year in and year out," said Wade Middleton, President of CarecoTV and Co-founder of the ACA. "We are honored to have Cabela's continued support and excited to see it expand into title sponsorship of the School of the Year program. It should be a great race in 2013. The students will be hitting premiere fisheries at perfect times to catch a lot of fish."

A list of current sanctioned events and program details are located on www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com, along with 2013 Tournament Rules. Additional information, including detailed Angler Packets, will be released in the coming weeks on www.CollegiateBassChampionship. Students and fans may also get up to date Cabela's School of the Year rankings here.

About the ACA
The Association of Collegiate Anglers, a division of Careco TV and The Bass Federation, is a sanctioning body developed to facilitate growth, development, and structure within competitive collegiate bass fishing. The ACA provides support to dozens of regional events nationwide and owns the Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, the largest collegiate tournament circuit in the country. With dedicated programming on NBC Sports Outdoors, three nationally televised collegiate bass fishing events, and thousands of members, the ACA is the leader in competitive collegiate bass fishing. For more information on the ACA, or the Cabela's Collegiate Bass Fishing Series, visit www.CollegiateBassChampionship.com. For more information on CarecoTV, visitwww.carecotv.com. For more information on The Bass Federation, visit www.bassfederation.com

About Cabela's Incorporated
Cabela's Incorporated, headquartered in Sidney, Nebraska, is the world's largest direct marketer, and a leading specialty retailer, of hunting, fishing, camping and related outdoor merchandise. Since the Company's founding in 1961, Cabela's® has grown to become one of the most well-known outdoor recreation brands in the world, and has long been recognized as the World's Foremost Outfitter®. Through Cabela's well-established direct business and its growing number of destination retail stores, it offers a wide and distinctive selection of high-quality outdoor products at competitive prices while providing superior customer service. Cabela's also issues the Cabela's Club® VISA credit card, which serves as its primary customer-loyalty rewards program.

Press Release found at the Outdoor Wire

Help Give Georgia's Wildlife A Chance

SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga.- Are you grateful for Georgia's wildlife and wild places?

During this season of thanks, you can help conserve our most endangered animals, plants and habitats.

From bald eagles to longleaf pine savannas, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources' Nongame Conservation Section is charged with conserving animals that are not legally fished for or hunted, as well as rare plants and natural habitats. The list includes more than 1,000 species of conservation concern!

Yet the Nongame Conservation Section receives no state appropriations for its vital work. Instead, the section depends on grants, fundraisers and public contributions.

That means the future of creatures such as gopher tortoises and goldline darters and the habitats they need to survive depends largely on the public.

Nongame Conservation Section Chief Mike Harris said that while Thanksgiving has roots in celebrating the sustaining harvest of natural resources, that thankfulness also extends to the nongame wildlife in Georgia "that we like to see and that enrich our quality of life."

"Conservation of these species," said Harris, "depends on giving."

Here are four ways you can help give Georgia wildlife a chance:

• Contribute to the Georgia Nongame Wildlife Conservation Fund. Created by state law, this fund is dedicated to conserving our most vulnerable animals, plants and habitats.

• When preparing your 2012 taxes, give to the Wildlife Conservation Fund state income tax checkoff. Donations are deductible to the extent allowed by law.

• Join TERN, friends group of the Nongame Conservation Section. The Environmental Resources Network is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that provides significant support for nongame statewide.

• Buy a bald eagle or hummingbird license plate, or renew your current Give Wildlife a Chance plate! For each sale or renewal, $10 goes to the Wildlife Conservation Fund.

You can learn more about these options, as well as estate, memorial and other gifts, atwww.georgiawildlife.com/conservation/support . Or call the Nongame Conservation Section, part of DNR's Wildlife Resources Division, at (770) 761-3035 or (478) 994-1438.

Details on TERN are available at www.tern.homestead.com .

YOUR SUPPORT MAKES A DIFFERENCE

DNR and its conservation partners have made strides in conserving Georgia's nongame wildlife.

Examples include:

• Loggerhead sea turtles are nesting at a 25-year high.

• Bald eagle nests in the state have soared from fewer than 10 to more than 160.

• Thousands of acres of wildlife habitat have been acquired for conservation, including 37,000 acres along the Altamaha River, all of it open for other recreation such as hunting.

Contributions to the Wildlife Conservation Fund also help attract and match grants. The Nongame Conservation Section gains about $1 for every 25 cents spent from the fund.

Public support made these conservation achievements possible.

And that is something to give thanks for.

Contact:
Rick Lavender, communications/outreach specialist - (706) 557-3327;
rick.lavender@dnr.state.ga.us

Press Release found at the Outdoor Wire

USA Shooting President Receives Olympic Order

USA Shooting President and two-time Olympic gold medalist Gary Anderson(Oak Harbor, Ohio) was awarded the International Olympic Committee's (IOC) Olympic Order on Thursday.

International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) President and IOC member Olegario Vazquez Raña had the honor to award the IOC Olympic Order to Anderson during ISSF Meetings taking place in Alcapulco, Mexico, on behalf of IOC President Jacques Rogge.

The Olympic Order is the highest award of the IOC and was created in May 1975 as a successor to the Olympic Certificate. The Olympic Order is awarded to individuals for distinguished contributions to the Olympic Movement. The Olympic Order insignia resembles a collar with the five Olympic rings framed by olive branches.

"Gary Anderson has devoted his life to sport, both as an athlete and as a sports administrator in the USA and at the International Shooting Sport Federation," said Raña. "He has placed his knowledge and experience as an elite athlete at the service of sports administration."

Anderson was a member of the USA Shooting Team for 10 years (1959-1969) and earned two Olympic gold medals in Tokyo (1964) and Mexico City (1968). He also claimed seven World Championship medals, two Pan American Games titles and 16 National Championship titles to go along with six individual World Records in his career.

Anderson has served USA Shooting as President since 2009. At the international level, he joined the international shooting family in 1978 as member of the ISSF Administrative Council, and is now serving the international federation in his role as Vice President.

Anderson served as the Director of the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) from 1999 to 2009. In addition to promoting firearms safety training and rifle practice for all shooters, Anderson's primary focus at CMP was to develop and sustain successful youth shooting programs at both regional and national levels.

A former Nebraska state senator, Anderson previously worked at the NRA where he served as Executive Director of General Operations. Gary was responsible for the development of safety, training and competition programs. Among hundreds of other honors, Gary was awarded the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice (NBPRP) Distinguished International Shooting Badge (Serial number one) in April 1963 by President John F. Kennedy. While at the NRA, Anderson served on the NBPRP board, and was one of the first people to advocate and pioneer a shift in priorities to youth and junior shooting. As a result of this shift, Anderson became the founding and administrative director of the U. S. Shooting Team Foundation.

In 1993, he moved to Atlanta to become the Shooting Competitions Manager for the 1996 Olympic Games. In 1996, Anderson accepted a position with Fulton County Georgia, to manage the Wolf Creek Shooting Venue, a facility destined to become a premier national and international center for the shooting sports.

Anderson's influence on shooting sports extends well beyond the United States. He has traveled extensively throughout his career in shooting, serving as a genuine ambassador for shooting sports, attending 12 Olympic Games, three as a competitor and nine as technical delegate or a jury member. He is also the recipient of one of only five prestigious honorary memberships to the historic and renowned shooting club, Hauptschutzengesellschaft, in Munich, Germany.

*Release compiled with assistance from the ISSF and Civilian Marksmanship Program.
ELEY is a Proud Sponsor of the USA Shooting Rifle and Pistol Teams: ELEY Limited, manufacturer of the world's most consistently accurate rimfire ammunition, has been the Official Sponsor and Official Supplier of .22 rimfire ammunition of the USA Shooting rifle and pistol teams since 2000. For more information on ELEY and their products, please visit www.eley.co.uk.

Winchester Ammunition is a Proud Sponsor of the USA Shooting Shotgun Team: Winchester® Ammunition has been the exclusive ammunition sponsor and supplier of the USAShooting Shotgun Team since 1999. Members of the 2008 shotgun team brought home four medals from Beijing using Winchester AA International Target loads. Winchester is an industry leader in advancing and supporting conservation, hunter education and our country's proud shooting sports heritage. For more information about Winchester and its complete line of products, visitwww.winchester.com.


About USA Shooting:
USA Shooting, a 501c3 non-profit corporation, was chartered by the United States Olympic Committee as the National Governing Body for the sport of shooting in April 1995. USA Shooting's mission is to prepare American athletes to win Olympic medals, promote the shooting sports throughout the U.S. and govern the conduct of international shooting in the country. Check us out on the web at www.usashooting.org and on Twitter attwitter.com/USAShooting.

Contact:
Kevin Neuendorf
719-866-4605
kevin.neuendorf@usashooting.org
USA Shooting

Press Release found at the Outdoor Wire

Current Deer Rut Activity at a Glance - Oklahoma

Deer rifle season kicks off Saturday, Nov. 17, and promises as usual to be the biggest day of the year for hunting in Oklahoma.

Last year, rifle hunters accounted for 61 percent of the total deer harvest. Surveys indicate that last year, almost 153,000 hunters took part in the 16-day regular deer gun season alone. When taking into account the youth deer gun and holiday antlerless deer seasons, that number jumps to nearly 196,000.

According to Erik Bartholomew, big game biologist for the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, the overall deer harvest this year is down slightly from last year, but antlerless deer harvest is up from where it was this time last year.

That's good news, according to Bartholomew, and hunters also have reason to look forward to the deer gun season opener this weekend.

"Field reports say the rut is ramping up in parts of the state," Bartholomew said. "There's no time like the present. The weather is supposed to be great, so get out there and enjoy the deer woods this weekend."

As Oklahoma moves into what is hopefully another great year for deer gun hunters, personnel with the Wildlife Department are offering information just in time on the most current rutting activity in regions across the state. The rut, or deer breeding season, is a biological process that typically occurs around mid November. Deer activity during the rut picks up, but the amount of activity can be influenced by a host of factors such as day length, temperatures, moon phase and herd condition.


NORTHWEST
The northwest region of Oklahoma is known for big deer and good hunting, and so far Department personnel stationed in the region seem to agree that the rut could be well-timed with gun season.

"The rut should be going good by the opening of gun season," said Thad Potts, wildlife biologist stationed at Canton, Dewey County, Drummond Flats and Major County Wildlife Management Areas (WMAs). Potts as well as others have said that deer rutting behavior in northwest Oklahoma has been slow thus far, with some increased activity in the last few days.

Eddie Wilson, wildlife biologist stationed at Cooper and Ft. Supply WMAs, reports an increase in fresh scrapes, but still little movement during daylight hours.

"Hunter activity will be heavy opening weekend and throughout the week on the WMAs," Wilson said. "If the cool weather holds, bucks will most likely be very active during the entire nine day season, as rut is usually going on strong by the 20th of Nov. in the Woodward area. Hunters can focus on food plots areas and hope a hot doe will bring in a buck."

Wilson's reference to a "nine-day" season is a reminder to hunters that seasons on public lands may vary from the statewide 16-day gun season. For full details and dates for seasons on public lands, including a information on antlerless deer hunting days on both public and private lands, consult the current "Oklahoma Hunting Guide," available free online at wildlifedepartment.com.

Weston Storer, wildlife biologist stationed at Beaver River, Optima, Rita Blanca and Schultz WMAs reports that minimal rutting activity has been noted so far in the Panhandle counties, with a few exceptions of younger bucks "testing the waters." Storer said the majority of corn crops in his part of the region have been harvested and that deer "have been relocating to wheat fields."

"A good direction to start your hunt is to locate well utilized food and water sources to glass," Storer said, adding that if the rut is still not active the bucks may be hitting the wheat fields. "If a cold front starts the rut, the does will be going in the direction of the food sources. And the bucks will be hot after the does."

Larry Wiemers, biologist stationed at Cimarron Bluff and Cimarron Hills WMAs, also has noted a few bucks following does in the past week to two weeks, but heavy rutting activity has not yet been observed.

Northwestern Oklahoma hunters may be in for a treat of heavy deer activity on opening weekend.


NORTHEAST
In the northeast region of Oklahoma, the beginning stages of the rut have been underway, according to Craig Endicott, northeast region wildlife supervisor for the Department.

"Bucks were running hard in early muzzleloader season, but activity appeared to lessen toward the end of muzzleloader season," Endicott said, adding that the rut should peak between muzzleloader and gun season.

Endicott said deer movement has been reported as slow in the mornings and better in the afternoons, with lots of nocturnal activity.

"The weather patterns and moon phase are effecting deer movements but in general, they seem to be feeding on acorns on timbered ridges and benches during the morning and mid day, then moving onto fields/food plots in the late evening," he said. "Deer activity will no doubt pick up with some fronts, rain and cooler temperatures."

Biologists say acorn production was sporadic in the region, but better than anticipated. Some persimmon production occurred as well.

"Hunters need to scout the areas they hunt for deer sign," Endicott said. "Scout for food sources and locate travel lanes, creek crossings or pinch points where bucks may be patrolling to locate a hot doe. Once a good area has been located, hunters must be patient and stay in the woods as long as they can."

On northeast Oklahoma WMAs, successful hunters will need to spend time scouting, but they can find good deer hunting.

"There is good hunting on the WMAs, but with the high usage associated with these areas, hunters need to scout for some less used corners and back areas," Endicott said. "Remember to read up on the specific regulations for any WMA you may be hunting, and be respectful of other hunters."

Endicott also suggests carrying a grunt call to use as a tool for stopping a buck on the move, allowing for a clean shot. Also, be alert for does that are being trailed by bucks.

"Chased does will always act differently, especially looking behind them on several occasions," Endicott said.


SOUTHEAST
Deer gun season hunters may be entering the woods toward the end of the rut in southeast Oklahoma.

"The rut that I'm seeing is in full swing," said Joe Hemphill, southeast region wildlife supervisor for the Wildlife Department. "By the time next week gets here, we probably will be on the backside of the rut."

Still, deer should be on the move.

"They're going to be very active," Hemphill said. "They still have to eat. They're still going to be on the acorns."

Hemphill said lots of bucks are being observed fighting and sparring, and that "there's lots of scraping activity going on."

Hemphill reminds hunters to read the "Oklahoma Hunting Guide" before heading afield, noting any changes that may affect their hunting season. He also notes that that the fall colors in the region are as vibrant as they have been in years.


SOUTHWEST
Forage and water levels are below normal levels in the southwest, and unseasonably warm, dry weather has been dominating the region, according to Rod Smith, southwest region wildlife supervisor for the Wildlife Department. But according to Smith, hunters could see some active rutting on opening weekend.

"Pre-rut activity to date seems to indicate heavy rut activity will likely be in full swing for the opening of rifle season," Smith said. "Younger bucks have made themselves more visible, and hunters in the field report seeing an increased number of scrapes. Bucks have been observed tracking but not yet in full chase mode. Bucks observed mingling with does are showing increased interest, while does remain unreceptive."

Hunters in southwest Oklahoma may want to place greater emphasis on available water and fresh, succulent forage. Food plots on regional WMAs are reportedly in fair condition due to the drought. Wheat is in good enough condition to provide a usable food source. Hunter activity on WMAs has been average or slightly below average, while a number of hunters report they are waiting on cooler weather. Still, Smith said regional businesses such as motels and restaurants have reported normal activity through the muzzleloader season.

With the rut building in intensity, it could be a good time to be a southwest Oklahoma deer hunter.


CENTRAL
"So far, 2012 has been a mixed bag when it comes to rutting activity in the central region," said Jeff Pennington, central region wildlife supervisor for the Wildlife Department. "Most hunters saw higher than normal rutting activity early in the muzzleloader season with the excellent weather conditions. Daytime rutting activity decreased later in the season with warmer weather conditions."

Pennington said the rut picked up again during the first full week of November, with some bucks observed chasing does during the middle of the day. Increased observations of road-killed dear have been observed as well, often a sign of rutting activity.

"The rut will almost always peak in the central region between the tenth and twentieth of November, and this looks like it will be the case in 2012," Pennington said.

Prolonged drought conditions continue in the region. Pennington said the overall deer activity has been higher than normal due to the nutritional stress caused by the drought.

"Despite the dry conditions, patchy portions of the region produced a surprising number of acorns, especially the black oaks along creek drainages (most people will call these red oaks)," Pennington said.

Locations that still have good acorns will be prime hunting spots during gun season as drought stressed deer try to replenish energy reserves. Growth of wheat and other typical cool season foods have been limited by the drought.

"The height of grass and other vegetation is very low again this year, which should make deer highly visible to hunters," Pennington said. "The drought conditions will be tough for the deer, but should make for very good hunting conditions."

Contact:
Michael Bergin or Micah Holmes (405) 521-3856
Website: www.wildlifedepartment.com      E-mail: info@odwc.state.ok.us
Press release found at the Outdoor Wire