Finally back from what has become an annual trip to the NWTF convention in Nashville with my son Peter (doall hunter). This thing has gotten to be such a huge event it is staggering.

First I want to say I met our own Kim Dunlap and her husband there - she is such a delightful person. The four of us had a nice lunch and talked about turkey hunting. This will be Kim's first turkey season and she is really fired up, which is always exciting for me to see. Thanks Kim for taking the time - Peter also enjoyed meeting you and Shaun and said that you guys were "really nice" and he hoped you get your first bird this spring.

I attended my first NWTF convention "way back" in 1982 because my good friend and turkey hunting mentor was a contestant in the Grand National Final that year. It was held at at Fairfield Glade Resort in Crossville, Tennessee in a room no bigger than about 1/2 of a basketball court. There was a side room with 4-5 venders like Dick Kirby (Quaker Boy) and Harold Knight (Knight and Hale) selling calls. That was it. Now the exibit hall at the convention takes up the entire space at the Opryland Convention center with 550 booths selling everything imaginable. Taxidermy contests, custom call silent auctions, outfitters - the list goes on and on. Got to speak with several old friends and meet some new ones.

We had a great time and picked up some good stuff. I finally found some HeviShot Magnum Blend in 3.5" and 3" and got a pack of each from Mid South Shooters Supply. They were sold out of straight 7s but have them in inventory for on-line orders. I also bought a few Southland diaphrams and another Lon Trice Custom friction call, anodized aluminum surface in a beautiful osage orange pot. Sounds terrific too. Easy to kee kee after some practice and it does get high frequency loud but also makes great soft yelps too. Very nice call. The last thing I needed was another friction call, but that is my weakness and I just couldn't walk away without one. I'm a sucker for custome pot calls.

The highlight of the trip for me was meeting Tom Kelly, the famous author of countless turkey hunting books including The Tenth Legion. The man is a true legend. What a great experience for Peter and I. Mr Kelly is in his 80s and started turkey hunting well before most of us "experienced" hunters were ever born. We chatted for several minutes and I bought a signed copy of his lastest book, Infirmed Opinions. A terrific Southern gentleman and a true legend in the turkey hunting world. IF you enjoy being entertained while reading about turkey hunting then I highly suggest getting one or more of his books.

Pictures below:

Lon Trice custom calls. Tempered glass in Bocote wood (R) and anodized aluminum in Osage Orange (L). Custom turned laminated strikers by Lonzo.



Back of calls. I used the one on the right last season


Southland Jim Pollard series diaphrams and Hevishot Magnum Blend 3.5", 2.25 oz of 5-6-7 of Hevi-13. The batwing calls are incredibly versatile. You can make every call on the Batwing III - purr, yelp, cutting, and kee kee. Great call. Southland is a smaller company out of Talladaga, AL. Jim Pollard won the Grand National last year using the Batwing III and Ghost 2.5.