The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
SPORTSMEN UNITE
11th annual CNY Sportsman Show brings outdoor enthusiasts to Oneida
Hunters, fishers, trappers and other outdoor enthusiasts converged on Oneida Saturday for the 11th annual CNY Sportsman Show at the Kallet Civic Center.
Featuring more than 45 outdoor businesses and clubs from around Central New York, the event centered on hunting, fishing, and other outdoor activities. The annual event is hosted by Holy Cross Academy.
Teri Maciag, principal at Holy Cross, said the showis the school’s biggest fundraiser every year, and proceeds help defray operating costs. School officials said there was a steady stream of visitors throughout the day and there were easily more than 1,000 people who came. One of those people was Jeremy Eastman of Oneida.
Eastman said he liked the show and “it was nice to see all the sportsmen” present.
Among first time exhibitors were Cynthia Page of Manlius-based Page Wildlife Center. The center specializes in wildlife rehabilitation and education. Helping her teach eventgoers about birds of prey was a barred owl, which has been with Page for five years after it was hit by a car and broke its shoulders. She also had a turkey vulture.
Page said she emphasizes the impact birds of prey have on the environment, “Barred owls are great mousers,” she noted as one example.
Madison County Tourism Director Scott Flaherty thought the show was a great opportunity to showcase attributes of Madison County that are attractive for outdoor enthusiasts. Flaherty pointed to ice fishing on DeRuyter Lake and to the many acres of state land available for hunting as examples.
For wildlife watchers, Flaherty noted that spots such as the Great Swamp Conservancy in Canastota and Chittenango Falls State Park in Cazenovia host many opportunities.
Flaherty said watchable wildlife opportunities in the county can be seen here: http://madisontourism.com/wildlife/index.html
Among other exhibitors were crossbow enthusiast groups, which had a steady A kestrel on display during the annual Sportsman Show at the Kallet Civic Center in Oneida on Saturday. stream of interest throughout the day.
Denise Simmons, of the Onondaga County Federation of Sportsmen’s Clubs (http://www.federationofsportsmen.com/wp/) was on hand touting a Women in Nature initiative for 2015, which will be geared toward encouraging women to enjoy outdoor sporting activities.
Simmons said one trend she is now seeing is many outdoors women opting to hunt with crossbows. There is no recoil when shooting with a crossbow and they are quiet.
While she talked, representatives from the New York Crossbow Coalition demonstrated to those interested in crossbows how to sight the bow.
At the end of the show, the Sportsman of the Year Award was presented to Blossvale resident Paul Miller, who is active in local conservation clubs and sportsmen’s causes.
He was inducted into the New York State Outdoors- men Hall of Fame in 2014, and has been the president of the Fish Creek Atlantic Salmon Club.
The Fish Creek Atlantic Salmon Club annually organizes stocking efforts in branches of Fish Creek and its tributaries.
After accepting the award he said it was not just his award, but belonged to all those who supported the efforts of groups such as the Fish Creek Atlantic Salmon Club.