2024 Dallas Safari Club Convention Archives -

January 2024 Will Be Busy

January 2024 will be a busy month.

Earlier this week, the Complementary Spouse and I received confirmation that we had been approved for media credentials at the 2024 Dallas Safari Club Convention. That event is being held January 11th through 14th in Dallas. It will be the last time in Dallas as the event will move to Atlanta for a five year period while the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center is being totally rebuilt. We plan to drive to Texas as it will give us more freedom to get around once we arrive in Dallas.

Next up on the agenda will be the 2024 SHOT Show in Las Vegas which begins on January 23rd with Industry Day at the Range on the preceding day. This will mark my 9th SHOT Show if you count attending the 1996 show in Dallas when I was working part-time for the original Paragon Cutlery. The difference in size and scope between 1996 is like night and day. In 1996, anything tactical including knives and modern sporting rifles was segregated from the rest of the show. Now they are an integral part of the show. As to size, the show has expanded to include the Caesars Forum in addition to its location in the Sands Expo Center.

The Complementary Spouse won’t be attending the SHOT Show and I will be cutting my visit short as I will be flying home on Friday, January 26th. The major reason for cutting it a little short is that we take off the next Wednesday for Nashville.

Rounding out the month will be the Safari Club International Convention in Nashville for which both the Complementary Spouse and I have media credentials. It starts on Wednesday, January 31st and runs through Saturday, February 3rd. This will mark the second year the convention has been held in Nashville. From everything I saw earlier this year, the move to Nashville from Las Vegas and Reno has attracted even more attendees.

As to why we are doing both the DSC Convention and the SCI Convention, while there is considerable overlap in exhibitors, they are just different from one another. While the former attracts a more Texas-centric crowd, the latter has a more international flavor. In years gone by, the Dallas Safari Club Convention was always seen as the more family friendly event but I think from what I saw in Nashville that this may be changing.

As an aside, I will be going on my first African hunt in 2024. It will be to the Eastern Cape of South Africa in June with my brother-in-law Larry. Podcaster Jono McHugh of Round The Fire hooked me up with Juan and Lauren Stander of LJ Hunting Safaris. They are a family-run outfitter with a great reputation.

If there is something you want us to check out at any of these events, either leave a comment above or send an email to me at gunsandmoneyblog AT gmail DOT com. We will do our best to fulfill your requests.

Enablers!

I must have quite a number of enablers among my friends and acquaintances.

First, I was pondering whether to renew my Curios and Relics FFL. I’ve held the license since 1996 and it due for renewal. The pro’s and the con’s made renewing it a toss-up.

On the plus side, while the flood of milsurps from the 90s and early 2000s has dried up, more and more sporting rifles are becoming eligible. The FFL allows me to have eligible firearms shipped directly to my home and I don’t have to pay a transfer fee to an 01 FFL. Further, if I decide to thin out the herd, it will facilitate shipping the firearm to a new owner. Finally, as the Complementary Spouse reminded me, it is only $30 for three years. One argument against renewal meant I could destroy my A&D Bound Book. Unlike a regular dealer, I don’t have to submit my records to the ATF. The other was that I just don’t use it that much anymore.

I put a note up on the C&R FFL mailing list and did get some good advice. The first argument for renewal was that the cost of just one transfer fee paid for the license. The second, from someone who had let his license lapse and then reapplied for it, was that it was harder for the ATF to deny a renewal than to deny a new application. I think this given the Biden Administration’s hold on the ATF is what really convinced me. Thus, my renewal application as well as my notification letter to my local chief LEO went in the mail this morning.

Second, I was undecided if I could make the SHOT Show work in my schedule. While I am now retired from day job and don’t have to worry about missing work, the schedule can still get crowded. I have already planned to attend the Dallas Safari Club Convention and the Safari Club International Convention. The former is being held January 11th-14th while the latter is January 31st- February 3rd. The Complementary Spouse and I had planned to drive to Dallas for the DSC Convention which is a 2-day drive each way. The SHOT Show, if you include Industry Day at the Range, runs from January 22nd through January 26th. I would barely be back from Las Vegas before we hit the road for Nashville and the SCI Convention.

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I’m not sure my next move was the smartest thing to do but I posted a query on Facebook asking for advice. And advice I got!

Yehuda reminded me that Southwest was having a sale on airfares. Amanda said I’d have FOMO (fear of missing out) if I didn’t come. Ace asked if I was kidding. Rob said it was the social event of the season. Kat wondered why anyone would want to go to Industry Day (it can be a zoo). And Michael was more interested in the fact that I was going to South Africa next June.

The bottom line is that I booked my flight on Southwest (which will disappoint my brother-in-law who is a retired Delta captain) and it was the cheapest I’ve ever seen it. I booked a room at the Flamingo at what seemed an Off the Strip price.

Going or not going was never an issue of cost but getting these bargains certainly helped make my decision. I think missing the Gun Rights Policy Conference this fall and having to miss the NRA Annual Meeting next May also weighed on me. I’ve made a lot of great friends over the years in the gun culture and I like seeing them face to face at events.

All I can say now is that January 2024 is going to be one busy month but it will be worth it.