He said that field reports indicate "a lot of turkeys; they are small, due to the late hatch. Deer numbers are holding well, and lots of people have seen triplets." Commissioner Fox enlightened the audience with this information: "80% of twin fawns have different fathers." At that, Mr. Bower interjected, "We have a lot of kids here. There'll be no sex education!"
Mr. Fox said that DCNR is opening roads to improve hunter access, and said that statewide, "the opportunity to hunt is as good as it ever has been."
He encouraged hunters to become involved in Operation Game Thief, which is similar to the Sportsmen Policing Our ranks Together (SPORT) program of a few decades ago.
After Mr. Bower entertained the audience with a few jokes, he introduced Ken Welch, the 2015 "Old Sportsman" from the Troy area. Mr. Bower joked that, as Wildlife Conservation Officer "I checked Ken once but I never arrested him. I must have missed something!" Mr. Bower related the story about the time Mr. Welch repaired a chimney at a hunting cabin. To straighten the chimney, Mr. Welch and his fellow hunters used ratchet straps, and his jack, and poured concrete into a hole to stabilize the chimney once it was straightened up. After the job was finished, Mr. Welch could not find his jack; then he remembered it was encased in the concrete.
Mr. Welch has shot turkeys using .410, 10 gauge, and muzzleloaders.
Cindy Evans is the 2015 Old Sportsman from Canton. A long time hunter and outdoors person, Cindy always accompanied her late father Marshall Hoffa to the Old Sportsman Banquets. He was chosen an Old Sportsman in 1986. Mr. Bower said, "Marshall was a bit hard of hearing so could hear my jokes, and Cindy wouldn't repeat them for him."
"Cindy has been an avid hunter all her life. She had a cabin on Armenia Mountain but, due to repeated vandalism, had to tear it down." He warned other hunters, "She has an outhouse, but don't use it, because she has a camera in the area!" Cindy said she already had a picture of one man .
Mindy Piccotti, from the Laceyville area, is the "Old Sportsman" for Tri-County. She is a founder of "Hunts for Healing," a group that enables combat veteran to do outdoor activities. They do several events each year, and specialize in helping veteran with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder."
Mindy used a .30-30 Marlin to harvest her first buck. She remembers, "Everyone had gone in for lunch except me." Not only did she shoot the deer, but she field-dressed it as well.
In 1996 she helped to start Ringneck Ridge, which hosts pheasant hunts. She is a supporter of the Pheasants Forever organization.
Mr. Bower invited the audience to the State Game Lands tour on October 4 and Apple Butter Day at Mt. Pisgah on October 10.
Darren Rathbun, President of Troy Junior Sportsmen discussed the great achievements of the local program. The group sent 24 shooters to the State Competition, and 18 went on to New Mexico for the national finals. "The Junior Shooters represented our area very well. The Seniors were first in the state and third nationwide; the Juniors were second in the state and second nationally.
"We had five in the top 25 shooters nationwide and four juniors in the top eighteen."
The group does a great job fund-raising. It "costs over $22,000 to get the kids to the national shoot," Mr. Rathbun said.
As far as the "Bower Shoot" there were seven teams, five from the Tri-County area.
Mr. Rathbun and Mr. Bower then announced the winners of the "Old Deadeye" Bower shoot:
Pistol - Senior, Eric Bridgham; Junior, Mitchell Robson.
Archery - Senior, Aaron Campbell; Junior, Nick Martin
.22 Rifle - Senior, Aaron Campbell; Junior, Nick Martin
Shotgun - Senior, Tim Adams; Junior Nick Martin.
Muzzleloader - Senior, Eric Bridgham; Junior, Shane McCarty.
Top Individual - "Old Deadeye" - Junior, Mitchell Robson, 272 points; Senior, Eric Bridgham, 269 points.
Top team - Touchholes, 1,125 points.
Second Place - Beech-Nuts, 1,140 points.
Each year, a "gag trophy" is given to the shooter with the lowest score in shotgun. This year the winner was Bill Bower.
Mr. Bower added that in the archery competition his goal was "not to lose any arrows. I started with four and came away with four, but they weren't mine!"
Mr. Bower also recognized Curt Voorhees, who is instrumental in obtaining support from the National Rifle Association for prizes for the banquet each year.
Many door prizes were presented, courtesy of the NRA.