Right now, I'm getting ready to head out for the NWTF Convention in Nashville, which kicked off tonight at the Opryland hotel featuring performances from a host of turkey hunting country singers including Rhett Akins, Craig Morgan, Daryle Singletary, Aaron Tippin and others. I'll be there bright and early scouring the exhibit hall for great new products, hitting the calling championships to see who wins (and picking up a few tips to share) and just generally making the rounds to capture bizarre personalities and maybe even some hot raffle girls on film.

In the meantime, check out this hunt I found on YouTube featuring an old friend of mine, Bob Erickson, regional biologist with the NWTF, and former Director of N.J. Game and Fish, Bob McDowell. While I'm not sure that all that talking as the bird strolls to in-your-face range isn't part of an overamped cut-away, the hunt itself is as cool as it gets. Erickson and McDowell really pull that bird in. I know just watching it made me want spring to get here just that much faster. Another cool thing about this hunt is that it takes place in New Jersey, the most densely populated state in the U.S.

Keep checking back throughout the weekend as I will try to do my best to keep posting on the events taking place at the NWTF, including the winners of the calling champs. Last year, you heard the winners announced first right here on the Strut Zone.