The Orvis Game Fair & Orvis Cup shoot this past weekend was really a fantastic event in every way and it really grew this year. Both Saturday & Sunday, the parking lot was completely full even with people constantly coming and going. There were more cars and people than I recall in the last years of the Vintage Cup there.
The vendor tents were buzzing with people from 9 AM Saturday until they closed at 5pm Sunday. It was especially good to see lots of families and young people there. The "novice" shooting instruction stations next to the entrance were continiously busy the whole weekend with families and new shooters, and we ran into lots of new shooters using Orvis rental guns on the sporting clays course Saturday. I talked to some people who said they were buying their first gun that weekend or getting their first shooting lessons.
Targets were really good on the course, five stand and flurry stations. - and on many stations they were really challenging. They offered a shooting package that included 100 targets (but you could shoot extra's at the stations on Saturday if you wanted to try figure it out) and your choice of 3 rounds of flurry, skeet or five stand for $135, or you could shoot 100 rounds of clays for $75. No admission charge.
The event still offered lots of freebies: Davidoff Cigars, Single Malt Tastings, shooting & fly fishing lessons, game cooking lessons with a Culinary Institute chef, Land Rover driving course and several wine and food vendors offered samples as well. Lots of good food options for breakfast & lunch - with the ice cream stand being extremely popular even for breakfast!
Lots of good guns and vendors. You could see everything from a rare pair of Asprey over unders, to lovely old hammer guns to new over-unders from Connecticut Shotgun, Perrazi and others. There was something for everyone.
Definately looking forward to going back again next year. It was really fun -- and it was really encouraging to see so many new people getting involved in the shooting sports.
Only disappointment was hearing that the Vintagers had declined Orvis' offer to sponsor a SXS event at the shoot at no cost to the group and with no work required. It was a great opportunity missed for putting another quality SXS shooting event on the calendar - and to introduce hundreds of a new people to our side of the sport.
Hopefully, one of the other SXS clubs will take up Orvis' offer next year. This would be a great opportunity.
