Head Hunter

Report from the Archery Trade show

Just heading back from Columbus, Ohio the site of the 2010 Archery Trade Association show. The ATA show is the annual gathering of the bowhunting industry where tons of new products are unveiled. If you love bowhunting, it's sort of like Santa's workshop.

Gabe VanWormer and I pounded the pavement and gathered up some video of some of the top new products and talked with a number of Michigan-based companies that were there. It's pretty amazing to think about all of the top companies based in our state -- many of which you may not have even realized were here.

On Monday, Gabe will post a video blog about our visit to the ATA but I wanted to offer a few highlights now.

1. The new Hoyt lineup is very, very impressive. No one expected Hoyt to top its 2009 AlphaMax. But they have -- twice. The Maxxis is a 31-inch bow (also available in a 35-inch model) that looks similar to the AlphaMax but has a redesigned limb that goes way past parallel and new limb pockets. It's awesome. The Carbon Matrix is, in my opinion, the most impressive bow I've seen yet. It features a riser made of carbon fiber in a very unusual design. It's ridiculously lightweight and, apparently, virtually indestructable. They were making cuts in the risers with a bandsaw, driving over them with trucks and then shooting 10 rings. Incredible. Pricy but cool.

2. There's a new Michigan bow company that just might become a household name. Gabe will have more details on them in the video blog. But here's a teaser: The guy responsible for many of the cutting edge designs for BowTech is behind the project.

3. I hate quivers. I hate the way they attach. I wish there was one that just hooked onto bow bow with a powerful magnet so I didn't have to mess with anything to get it on and off. Oh wait, there is one. G5 Outdoors -- another Michigan company -- has one. Gabe will have video of it.

Just a few teasers to get you started. In addition to the video blog, we'll have product features in every pring and digital issue of Michigan OutofDoors Magazine in the Gear section. So stay tuned.

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