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How To Make The Most of Winter Sports Shows Make The Most Of Winter Sports Shows Sport Show season is upon us. Prep before you go! Winter is sports show season across most of North America, bringing the chance to learn about the latest rods, reels, baits and electronics, get some great deals on gear, book your next fly-in trip and learn from some of the best anglers in the world.

Most shows are a hubbub of activity though, and it's very easy to get distracted once you step through the door. We've often heard the expression that what you get out of life is directly related to what you put into it, and that definitely applies to many aspects of fishing - including sports shows. To get the most out of what these shows have to offer, you have to figure out what it is you want to get out of it, and arrive with a plan.

It's amazing how few anglers begin their trip to a sports show by considering what it is they want out of the day. That's super critical, because it determines your whole approach.

If You're There to Buy Tackle

Many of us go to sports shows looking for deals on gear, and if that's my main focus, then I'll always start by doing some homework on the internet before I even leave the house. I don't ever go to a sports show looking to see what they have on sale - instead, I always arrive with a carefully thought-out shopping list in hand. I'll do a bit of research ahead of time to figure out which specific graph, rod, reel or floater coat I want, with perhaps a second choice as well. Then I'll look at the show website to see who the exhibitors are. Looking at their websites confirms whether or not they carry the brands I'm interested in, and might give some idea of their general pricing. Taking a few minutes to do this lets me eliminate about half the exhibitors right from the start, simply because they don't carry the items I want. It makes my time on the show floor that much more efficient, and leaves me less prone to distraction.

Once I arrive at the show, I'll visit the dealers on my list and see who has the best deals on the items I want to buy. Sometimes there are no deals, but more often than not I return home having saved money on at least a couple of items I had been planning to buy anyway. That makes the show worthwhile.

If You're There to Book a Trip

I follow exactly the same approach when I'm looking to book a summer trip, starting off on the internet by looking at fishing sites, travel sites, and outfitter sites to narrow things down a bit. Then I'll check the show's exhibitor list to see which outfitters at the show offer the kind of trip I want - fly-in or drive-to, housekeeping or American plan, and of course what species there are to catch. Is their camp all about trophies? Or is it about catching numbers of smaller but still nice fish? How remote is it, and what kinds of services do they have?

There are literally thousands of options out there, and narrowing it down to a short list of perhaps five or six camps is critical. The whole point of going to the show - rather than just booking online and being done with it - is to talk to the outfitter, get your questions answered, and get a better sense of exactly what type of experience awaits. The reality is, it's tough to have meaningful conversations with more than a half-dozen outfitters in any given show visit, so I narrow things as much as I can beforehand.

By doing some prep work before leaving the house, you can show up focused and quickly figure out which trip is right for you. And, because you did your homework ahead of time you can book it right at the show and save a few bucks in the process. That definitely makes coming to the event worthwhile.

If You're There to Learn

One of the greatest things about sports shows is the opportunity to learn.

Most shows offer a range of how-to seminars, and the speakers range from local guides to national tournament pros. Both represent huge learning opportunities for even the most experienced anglers. After all, its not every day you get to hear big-name pros talk about their experiences, while local guides with their tremendous local knowledge can answer questions about detailed specifics that the national guys usually can't help you with. They bring different kinds of knowledge, equally valuable.

The opportunity to learn things isn't confined to the seminar stage. Shows are a terrific opportunity to talk directly to manufacturer reps and learn about new gear that hasn't yet made it to the stores, to get service answers, and to see more unusual items that local stores may not carry in stock. Perusing their booths and talking to the reps is always time well spent.

I've often gone to sports shows for no other reason than to listen to the seminars and talk with the tackle companies, and have never once come home without learning a few things. That too makes my visit to the show worthwhile.

So it's true what they say - the more you put into something, the more you get out of it. Taking a bit of time to do basic research before you head off to a sports show guarantees you'll come away happy you went - because you saved a few bucks and learned a few cool things.

How do you beat that?