By W. Laird Hamberlin, CEO of Safari Club International
Get ready for the most exciting Convention SCI ever had! Excitement already is beginning to build, even though we’re months away, for the club’s biggest annual fundraising event.
I recently returned from Nashville, Tennessee where the SCI staff conducted what is called a site visit as we prepare for the 2023 SCI Convention, which will be held in the Music City next Feb. 22-25.
Without hesitation, I can assure all members that this will be a Convention to remember. And it is important that you plan now, even book rooms and register, if you want to be able to enjoy the full Nashville experience.
The seven preferred hotels already are half sold out — nine months ahead of the Convention. Book your hotel now! I can’t emphasize that enough. Don’t wait until the last minute. If you delay, you will be staying in one of the suburbs, with no hotels available downtown and close to the Convention.
Once you’ve registered for Convention and booked a hotel room, it is time to go hunting. Wild turkey hunting is still open in some states around the U.S., so this is a great opportunity to get out into the woods before the sea-sons close and the weather turns hot.
And, of course, this is safari season in the southern hemisphere. Whether it is your first or your 50th safari, we all know there is always something calling us back for another — especially for those of us who have postponed safaris over the past couple of years, due to the COVID pandemic.
At least this year, many of the restrictions from the pandemic either have been lifted or loosened enough to make international hunting a viable proposition.
So, whether it is wild turkeys in North America or African or South American game, hunt well and be safe. And don’t forget to put the final touches on plans for upcoming hunts this fall. There are still nine months of good hunting around the world between now and the SCI Convention.
Meanwhile, accompanying this message is a map that shows where the SCI Convention will be in Nashville and what hotels are within easy walking distance. Also, to learn the latest information about the convention, go to showsci.org.
