Olympians Share Gold Medal Strategies for Success with Youth at Minnesota Pheasant Fest
Pheasants Forever 02.12.13
United States Olympians & Team USA Shooting members including Sgt. Vince Hancock, Frank Thompson and Jon Michael McGrath are scheduled to present at National Pheasant Fest and Quail Classic 2013 presented by Cabela’s next weekend in Minneapolis. Speaking within Pheasant Fest as part of the “Youth Village” presented by MidwayUSA, these world class athletes will share their own personal strategies to success with 1,500 young adults.
These 1,500 young adults represent 144 competitive shooting teams traveling from as far away as North Carolina, Texas, Wyoming, Tennessee and Maryland to attend Pheasants Forever’s signature event. Pheasant Fest takes place this February 15, 16 & 17th at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
Featured Speakers and Presenters Include:
Sgt. Vince Hancock – Hancock is a shotgun shooter with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit and is the current Olympic Gold Medalist and National Champion in Men’s Skeet and owns every world record possible in the sport. Hancock joined the Army in June 2006 and completed basic training the same year at Fort Sill, Okla.
Frank Thompson – Thompson’s competitive highlights include 8th place in the 2012 Olympic Games, silver medalist in the 2012 National Championships, participation in the 2011 Pan American Games, the 2011 World Clay Target Championship Team, and was a silver medalist in the 2011 National Championships.
Jon Michael McGrath – McGrath won the Gold Medal for the United States in April, 2011 at the World Cup in Sydney, Australia.
Other presenters include wingshooters Tom Knapp and David Miller of CZ-USA, eight-time world record Xtreme Shooter Patrick Flanigan, Theresa DeWitt of the MidwayUSA Foundation and 1996 Olympian, Hillsdale College Shooting Sports Director Bart Spieth, Scholastic Clay Target Program Director Tom Wondrash, educator and coach Tom Fiumarello of Vernon National Shooting Preserve, and USA Junior Olympian Jordan Hintz.
A part of Pheasants Forever’s National Pheasant Fest & Quail Classic, the Youth Village features a mix of activities for youth and families, including:
- Laser Shot, Air Rifle Range, Archery, and Casting Booth
- Visits from Rudy the Rooster, Pheasants Forever’s youth mascot
- Challenge friends and family to a game of Wildlife Jeopardy
- Variety of crafts and activities – make plaster animal tracks and make a seed ball of prairie flowers to plant in spring
- Game Scene Investigation (GSI) – it’s like CSI, but with animals!
Members of Pheasants Forever’s National Youth Leadership Council will also be on hand running many of the activities. Members of the Council are spokespersons for their age group on hunting and conservation issues and help advise Pheasants Forever.
Pheasant Fest is country’s largest event for upland hunters, sport dog owners and wildlife habitat conservationists, combining a national outdoor tradeshow, wildlife habitat seminar series, and family event complete with puppies, tractors, shotguns, and art. The event is presented by Cabela’s.
For more information please contact Cheryl Riley, Vice-president of Education and Outreach, at (651) 209-4973 or Email Cheryl.
Pheasants Forever launched Quail Forever in August of 2005 to address the continuing loss of habitat suitable for quail and the subsequent quail population decline. Bobwhite population losses over the last 25 years range from 60 to 90 percent across the country. The reason for the quail population plunge is simple - massive losses of habitat suitable for quail. There are five major factors leading to the losses of quail habitat; intensified farming and forestry practices, succession of grassland ecosystems to forests, overwhelming presence of exotic grasses like fescue that choke out wildlife, and urban sprawl.
