The four-day Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade Show, sponsored by the National Shooting Sports Federation opened in Las Vegas, NV on Saturday, February 2nd. The 2008 event celebrates the SHOT Shows 30th anniversary. Segmented into General Shooting & Hunting, Firearms & Ammunition, Outfitters, Paintball, Outdoor Wear and Law Enforcement product areas, the show has seen significant growth in the number of exhibitor companies and attendees.
First held in St. Louis, MO in 1979, the first show featured 290 companies across 52,000 square feet of convention hall floor space. Reflecting the strength of the shooting sports industry, the 2008 SHOT Show has expanded to approximately 2,000 companies and 715,000 square feet in three halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center. Additional companies were housed in temporary buildings outside the main convention center. Show organizers honored 80 companies who have attended each of the 30 years.
Traditional companies continue to introduce new apparel designed to address a wide range of hunting environments and weather conditions. Camouflage patterns dominated apparel displays across the show floor. Treestand, Mossy Oaks newest pattern that is designed for whitetail deer-hunting applications, was introduced at the show and is being used by at least 30 companies.
Filson is leveraging the brands heritage and tradition by introducing a comprehensive new womens line. Newcomers like Under Armour Outdoors and three-year-old Sitka Gear are causing a buzz by bringing state-of-the-art fabric technologies to base layers and technical outerwear. Firearms manufacturers used the show to expand product lines, introduce new models and bring back old favorites.
Marlin Firearms added new centerfire bolt-action rifles to its product lineup. The first model in the new series is the XL7, a standard long action rifle available in black synthetic or Realtree APG-HD camouflage and will be available in three different calibers. Under a new name, Winchester Repeating Arms, the company re-introduced and updated the famed Model 70 in four model configurations. The company also announced the return of the Speed Pump shotgun to the companys product line.
Browning made news with the introduction of the X-Bolt rifle. The X-Bolt builds on previous Browning rifles and adds numerous improvements. The most notable new feature on the X-Bolt is the completely new, adjustable, three-lever Feather Trigger system. The new Browning X-Bolt will be offered in Hunter and Medallion models with wood stocks and in Composite Stalker and Stainless Stalker models with composite stocks.
Footwear brands presented many new application specific models. LaCrosse addressed consumer frustrations with existing rubber boot offerings with the introduction of the Alpha II Series. The new boot features OptiCirc Technology that uses performance fibers and an open-air nylon mesh to form the Comfort Control lining that increases airflow for maximum comfort.
Accessories, like lighting, optics and global positioning systems continue to evolve as electronics became smaller and more efficient. The SPOT Satellite Messenger arrived at the SHOT Show after winning the Consumer Electronics Associations 2008 Innovations Design and Engineering Award. Previous honorees in other categories include the Sony Playstation and Intels Dual Core processor. SHOT has arrived.
