I just returned from the 2012 Shooting, Hunting and Outdoor Trade (S.H.O.T.) Show in Las Vegas, NV. The Shot Show is largely a industry focused B2B, (business to business) convention which makes it different from the National Rifle Association’s event that looks similar but is open to the public.
This was only my third time attending I think. I went as a internet media representative for the second time though. I went to meet professionals in media and learn how to be better in this business. I went to see other bloggers, writers and what was shiny and new.
I am not a fan of Las Vegas but understand why the National Sport Shooting Foundation chose it. It’s industry, and convention friendly for a group this size. Unfortunately you have to put on the whole armor of God if you want to keep yourself in perfect peace in this town. Demons don’t have to attack you there, they own the place. Las Vegas is probably at the gates of hell.
I am a witness that you can go and not participate in any of the bacchanalia. The crew I dined and hung out with were just like too. I know my limits though. I kinda felt like a werewolf on a full moon. I made sure I locked myself in at night so I wouldn’t transform into the old Kenn.
On Tuesday night, I did venture outside the hotel after dinner for some fresh air but stayed at the door of the hotel as I watched the drunks come and go. Had a nice conversation with a security officer from Chile that hooked me up with some heat from a gas apparatus. He told me stories about the domestic violence that they have to deal with regularly when couples lose all their money gambling or one gets so drunk they are doing things that even Las Vegas doesn’t allow. And then there were the prostitutes that they chase out of these zones between the bars and elevators near the rooms in the hotels where hookers seek out their prey.
I didn’t see any of that but aside from having dinner with friends both nights, I enjoyed the safety and security from myself in the Luxor.
Media Day was actually Monday, the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Holiday. That was where exhibitors allowed members of the media and guest to shoot all types of stuff. It was spectacular. It was held at the Boulder City Outdoor Range out in the desert. I got the chance to meet Urban Shooter contributor and friend, Barbara Baird and her husband “Dr. Bomb,” a professor of explosives and pyrotechnics.
I almost didn’t make it in. I screwed up with registration but with Barbs encouragement, got in. Once inside I continued to hear the new argument of “Us Vs. Them.” Seems that no matter where I go I am one of Them. The “Us,” where the established journalist, publishers and editors of printed media that did not like “any Joe with a WordPress blog” to be considered one of them. I heard this said more than once over the course of the day. There were probably 1000 plus people at this event.
I can understand where they are coming from I guess. After someone works hard and long, following a paradigm, pays his dues, “eats crow,” and sucks up to someone they hate but begin to emulate, you can be sore now. It would make me mad too, if someone younger came along and had more viewership than you in a few months. I probably wouldn’t want to share the spotlight, or my place in line to shoot the shiny new gun, to someone like me.
But tough noogies!
This dynamic played itself out all day and over the entire time I was at the Show. New companies were placed in the basement or in cubby holes while more established and richer companies got better real estate. I am afraid where I would be if I tried. I’d probably have a booth on the loading dock somewhere.
When I talked to a company or stood in line to learn about a product, I also paid attention to the customer service I received. When a company left me hanging for a long time, ignored me or blatantly waved me off, I took note. I wore a fire engine red jacket and had a hat that said Black Man With A Gun on it that made me pretty hard to miss. I figured that anyone that did sleight me would do the same to women, and other minorities.
I represent a growing community of listeners that are not in the Old Guard. If you disrespect me, you will probably do it to others. So I won’t promote, or even mention your name on my show, this blog or anywhere I go and actually hope your company goes the way of the Pet Rock.
Podcasters and fellow bloggers, if you didn’t go to SHOT show, I am not going to make you feel bad for it. Just remember you can see the same stuff at the NRA Annual Meeting in May 2012.
I tried my hand at video blogging so stay tuned to my YouTube channel and this blog for upcoming videos.
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