2013 Grand Forks Men's Show

Last weekend I went to the Grand Forks Men's show.  I had fun as I always do when I go.  The show was filled with basically everything outdoors related.  That included campers, live whitetail deer, docks, boats, hunting dogs, and 4 wheelers just to name a few.  Of course they had Patty's favorite thing, free beer tasting from Hugo's.  Apparently Mike's Hard is coming out with an orange soda flavored drink that tastes so much like orange soda they should put it in 2 liter bottles.  Anyway onto the outdoor stuff.  A lot of the things they had at the Men's show I have seen before in the ATV and docks department.  Nothing to exciting to talk about there.  The boats they had at the show were all big expensive Walleye boats that you really couldn't put in a shallow landing or have fun with in a small lake.  The had Bennington Pontoons which are basically the Lincoln of pontoons.  They are ridic and have things like sea legs, crazy sound systems, and crazy lighting.
There are 3 things I found interesting at the Men's show.  The first one was the SnoBear.  I've seen these on T.V., but never in real live.  I know they are ridic expensive for only the richest of the outdoors-people, but it was really neat to look at.  If you don't know what that is, basically it is a snowmobile/ice shack.  You drive your giant snowmobile out to your spot on the ice, hit a button, it lowers itself, and is ready for ice fishing.  The distributor who had it there didn't really feel like talking to me much more about it, and it is probably because I don't look like someone who could afford it.
The second thing I found interested and liked was the combo toy hauler/ice shack/camper they had on display.  I have a blurry picture of it below that doesn't do it justice.  It seemed like the perfect thing for my friends and I even though we can't afford it.  It would kill 3 birds with one stone for us.  It's got flip down bunk beds, a toilet, holes for ice fishing out of, and a extremely tiny kitchen.  These things are amazing, I just wish they weren't priced around actual campers.  It's like a bare bones mobile man cave/deer camp.
The third thing I found more interesting than anything is the "sport utility bike" from The Grand Forks Ski and Bike Shop.  I've seen this bike everywhere in town, but not with these accessories on it.  Somehow they put a fly fishing rod holder on it and a holder for your bow.  I don't know how easily that would be to take into the wilderness except maybe in North Dakota where trees and hills are few and far between, but it still seems impractical to me.  If anyone has used a setup like this or sees how this could be useful please feel free to comment on this post.  In conclusion even though there weren't to many things there that were exciting or that I hadn't seen before, I still had fun at the Men's Show and appreciate it every year. Below are some pictures I took of the event.

The SnoBear

The camper/ice shack/toy hauler sorry it's blurry

Shot of everything

A wheeled deer stand that raises up once you get to the spot.  Probably something that would only work in North dakota

The confusing "Sport Utility Bike"

What I have been up to lately (Jared)

Well between massive amounts of homework, tests, and papers I have found a little spare time to go fishing.  I've fished mostly the Red River here in Grand Forks.  As you can see from the pictures below I have not been to successful at all in catching fish.  Patty caught a bullhead, but that's it.  I think it is because I have no idea how to fish catfish and have hardly any experience fishing a river.  The only information I have about catching catfish is what I find online.  I have herd there are a decent amount of walleye to catch in the Red River as well so I might try to figure out how to catch those as well.  Patty and I also tried fishing Ryan Park pond in Grand Forks about 3 weeks ago and didn't catch anything.  I was hoping for a nice trout to eat for supper, but I guess they haven't stocked the trout pond yet. It is really nice North Dakota's fishing season doesn't close when the ice goes out, so if the weather is nice early you can go fishing early which I am doing.

I still have two videos I need to put up on YouTube, but between my computer acting up and having to have Windows reinstalled and massive amounts of schoolwork I haven't gotten around to it.  Hopefully I will be able to this weekend.  Anyway here are the pictures of fishing.

The Red River Of The North

Ryan Park Pond

My Red River fishing setup

The only fish we have caught so far

A few weekends ago I went to the last day of the Grand Forks Gun Show.  It was $5 to get in well worth it in my opinion to check our current firearm prices along with other firearm related stuff.  After I paid I walked in and made a B line to the conceal and carry booth.  The company was permittocarry.org.  I spoke to Rusty about what I would have to do to get a Wisconsin, North Dakota and Minnesota conceal carry permit.  He was super knowledgeable and super helpful.  I really enjoyed talking to him and if his classes are anything like he was that day I would recommend him to anyone.  After talking to him I realized the classes were quite expensive for my cheap self at the time so I put that on the back burner.  Once I was done talking to Rusty I went out to see the prices of guns and if I could find any deals on them.  Holy piss were gun prices high at the gun show.  I seriously think the vendors were out of their minds.  Their brand new guns were on average $60 to $80 more than I what I could get if I just drove across town to Scheels and purchased them there.  The biggest offenders in that department were rifles.  The used pistols cost around as much as you would pay for a new one.  The craziest thing I found though was a Traditions 1851 black powder revolver you know the one you can find at Cabela's for around $180. Well this one booth had it sitting there with a sign that said "sale $320."  I damn  near shit myself when I saw that price.  Seriously these vendors were just either crazy or leaving hundreds of dollars to dicker with on the initial price they were selling it for.  Either way it was crazy in my mind.  Being there on the last day I expected to see deals and lots of empty tables I saw neither.  I know in a gun show you usually negotiate the price, but seriously seeing prices like that made me not even wanna talk to the vendors.  So in the end I found no gun deals and that the prices for used guns are quite high.  I still don't like how expensive firearms have gotten, but I don't think there is much I can do about it.

My trip did not go in vain though I was able to purchase one thing.  It was a cheap knife.  I was looking for a cheap beat around knife at the gun show, and I noticed my options were quite limited.  Some guy had Helle knives for a really good price that made me drool, but they were still out of what I limited myself I would spend.  I had my purchase narrowed down to two knives both of which I was going to try to talk down the price to get, because thanks to my trusty smart phone I knew what they were really worth.  The first guy I dickered with gave me a price so good I ended up purchasing that knife and not even trying with the other one. The knife I got was a Timber Wolf model 103 skinning knife that came in a leather sheath.  The guy had it on the table for $15, I offered him $6 and he took it.  I was amazed by that especially knowing the knife was around $12 to purchase online.  I really got a deal and am quite proud of it.  Once I got back from the gun show I took the knife out played with it a little then made the review you see below.  I hope you enjoy it.

Some new toys I got (Jared)

So I am attempting to give trapping a try to see if I like it.  Due to this I have purchased myself two new toys.  They are a Duke #1 Foot Hold Trap and a #110 Conibear trap.  Combined they cost me under 10 bucks.  I'm not sure if I am going to spray them or dip them to get them ready.  AS of right now I am tempted to set them up in random places around the apartment and see who gets caught.

I learned that in North Dakota you do not need trappers safety before you can trap unlike Wisconsin.  Also in the city of Grand Forks you can trap inside city limits if you use a trap that is not designed to mame or kill.  This means a live trap and possibly that foot hold trap I have but it may not be what they meant in that law.  Either way here are some pictures of my new toys and hopefully I'll be able to update you some more about them.