Toronto Sportsmen Show

[nathan.barnard]

I work in Toronto so I have the opportunity to go this year although my expectations are low.

Anyone else going this year? I'm mostly going to look at the boats for an upcoming purchase and wander through the tackle vendors.

I imagine it is a bit of a stretch for most people but I was curious if anyone else makes it out to this event.

[freadomjp]

Was thinking of going ... Why the low expectations ?

[drake691]

I'm not going, It's kind of expensive to get in too. There's no deals with the limited amount of vendors at the show.

[StarTzar]

I keep away from those "Sportsmen" shows. Admission and parking fees make it almost prohibitive.
Never did find the sales to be all that good.

For the past four or five years, I've been attending the best fishing show in the region.
It's held at Paddletales Tackle in Winchester. It's a three day event and usually held at end of February.
Admission and parking is free.
Excellent sales and you get to talk with numerous Pro Staff Members.
Representatives from Shimano, Loomis, Lowrance, Humminbird, Ranger boats ...

And as an added bonus, they serve deep fried chicken.
Some people go there just for the chicken. It is that good.

[drake691]

This is what I'm waiting for

For the past four or five years, I've been attending the best fishing show in the region.
It's held at Paddletales Tackle in Winchester. It's a three day event and usually held at end of February.
Admission and parking is free.
Excellent sales and you get to talk with numerous Pro Staff Members.
Representatives from Shimano, Loomis, Lowrance, Humminbird, Ranger boats ...

And as an added bonus, they serve deep fried chicken.
Some people go there just for the chicken. It is that good.

[lape0019]

The paddletales doo is usually held the same weekend as the outdoors show in ottawa.

I tend to go to both as I go to the outdoor show as a boat show and Paddletales as a sport show...

There are always helpful pro staff on hand to help out and the free food is just a bonus!

[Doug]

When I lived closer, I hit the Toronto Sportsmen's Show every year. In those years, there were OODLES of fabulous deals to be had from some pretty big retailers. In my recollection, D&R Sporting Goods from Thunder Bay had unbeatable prices on rods and reels, and there was an incredible selection of lures, soft plastics, etc from dozens of retailers. I have not attended now for a number of years, and it saddens me to hear that the retail element sounds like it is gone.

But there were ALWAYS interesting people to meet and speak with, including for many years Dick Swann, the inventor of the noodle rod, fishing legend John Slade, the always-entertaining Darryl Choronzey, Mike Dorey from Berkley, Lorne Greene from LG Custom Tackle who (if memory serves me) introduced Loomis rods to Ontario, and tons of interesting stuff and people. It was a GREAT show!

Doug

[nathan.barnard]

My expectations are low because I went a few years ago and there was a very limited number of vendors with few deals to speak of. I didnt think I would go back but now that I"m in the market for a boat, it will probably be worth a gander.

I will keep my eye open for the Paddle Tales event. Might be hard to convince the wife that I need to spend a Saturday browsing tackle but stranger things have happened.

[toddc]

I used to go for years and get great deals for cheap, plastics hardware etc.. but now its so commercialized and a money grab that it has been a waste of time,. You will get better deals at cabelas all day long then you will there. I remember talking to outfitters that would not book you if you werent american because of the dollar. Ive seen these so called sportsman show deals happen all year long. I know they need to make a living and hope they do. But for me in theses less then perfect economic times I would only go for the sights and not the deals

[drake691]

With the exchange rate and shipping you can still find better deals then at the Sportsmen show. Or call Ed

[toddc]

With the exchange rate and shipping you can still find better deals then at the Sportsmen show. Or call Ed

i beg to differ, cabelas in alberta is tax free and im sure if you check you can do fairly good