| Q. Tell us a little
bit about Crooked Horn Outfitters and how it began? A. We began our business in 1988 and designed our company around
specialized equipment that other companies were overlooking, mostly due to prices of
products. Many people have good intentions but the market will only allow a certain price
point, so they stop with some of the features and so forth to hit this price point. I
really feel that the hunting industry is no place to cut corners. Our products are more
expensive than some, but we put a lot more in each unit than one person can really
appreciate.
How I got started was I grew up on a 270,000-acre cattle
ranch and loved the outdoors and hunting. I kind of wanted a niche in the hunting
industry, one way or the other, whether it was guiding or something else. I found some
equipment and some packs that I was using were missing some key
features such as comfort. I started designing my own
products and then got with a tent maker. The next thing I knew, the Forest Service and a
few stores wanted it. Now we are designing equipment for Cabela’s and Bass Pro Shops.
It’s a very unique industry to be a part of.
Q. You mentioned equipment or parts of
equipment that were lacking. What makes your packs and gear different from the rest?
A. Well, our goal is to help you be a good hunter
and design great equipment. Money is secondary with us really. A pat on the back means
more to us than almost anything, and getting a pat on the back is hard. How we went about
finding out what the consumer’s needs were, was going to our outfitters in the west.
Outfitters in the west will put more wear and tear on a product in one season than an
average hunter will put on a product in 10 years to a lifetime. These guys see hunters
struggle everyday with different items they bring to the field. As far as outfitters, they
really need to have their act together in regards to their equipment being dialed in,
tough, and waterproof. They have a real key role in our success because we test products
for two years with outfitters before we market anything.
Q. What are one or two top things you look
for when you are making your products?
A. The main thing is probably comfortability,
because you are using those products the entire day. If you are not comfortable when you
are in the field, with whatever you have with you, you will either cut your trip short or
leave that particular item behind because it is not comfortable.
Another thing we look at is that it must be efficient and
handy. Everything is right at your fingertips with very little motion. A real killer in
the woods is your movement and sound. If you are fumbling to find your range finder. For
example, you might spook something that you wouldn’t have done had you been standing
still. It is one thing to make something that is pretty on the shelf, but it is another to
make something look good on the shelf plus efficient and really comfortable. That is where
our products really shine. They don’t shine when the guy first gets it, but when he
is out in a heavy down pour, and it’s midnight when he comes in to camp and his gear
is totally dry and he was comfortable and not sore all over from his pack.
Q. You have some great gear that is
specialized and fills a void in certain areas. What is one of the best items that you have
designed?
A. We have designed several items that are highly
sought after, but one that has kind of stolen the market is the Bino System. Everybody
uses binoculars. Whether a bird watcher or a hunter, they are heavy swinging around your
neck and are uncomfortable.
We now make our Bino System for Swarovski, Leica, and many
other binocular companies, as well as Bass Pro Shops and Cabela’s. However, the
excitement and enthusiasm that this product has brought on is by the hunters. First they
may say "what does that do", and by the end of the day, they say, "can I
try that on". From there it is all word of mouth advertising. I would say our whole
business is about 80 percent word of mouth advertising, and that is very difficult to
accomplish in this industry. You have to have something very unique and want to share it
with others, and that is where the pat on the back and word of mouth advertising is so
instrumental.
Q. You have some well respected people in
the industry that have some good things to say about your products. What can we look
forward to in the future?
A. You mentioned that we have a lot of good
outdoorsmen, and one thing I do is try to earn everything I get in the industry. I will
not "buy" an outdoorsman for an endorsement. Guys like Jim Zumbo used my
equipment for five years straight before he would give an endorsement, and that is what I
want and expect from a writer or anybody like that, to earn my endorsements.
As far as new products, I have been hounded for many years
to design a turkey vest. Being in an area where we don’t have a lot of turkeys, you
can’t be an expert unless you get out and do it. I feel our biggest key to success is
whatever I am working on I will go and do that sport over and over until I understand how
it works. I am now on the inside looking at the problem or situation. I have been turkey
hunting a lot the last few years, and I have associated myself with all the top turkey
hunters in the country.
You talk about one of the funniest products I have ever
designed; it would be this one. The vest has a retractable seat, and nobody has ever
accomplished this before. What it does is: it has a pad that is against your back that
will slide down and you can sit on it. When you want to pull it up, it has the curve
shoulder straps like our back packs, and it has a pull strap that goes over the shoulder
straps. On the front end you grab the tail end of the strap and pull on it, and that pulls
your seat cushion right up your back. I get more chuckles out of that than any other
design I have made. It just fascinates people how it works. The vest will be available the
first of 2002. I am also designing some things for Bass Pro, as well as doing some
consultations with other companies.
I want to design a big sheep hunters backpack now. I will
do a lot of hunting in Alaska trying to accomplish this and working with the individuals
up there because one pack will not do everything. People need them for the geographics of
the country or the area they are in and that is why we research the serious hunters
situation for that area of the country.
Like my turkey vest, I have sent them to all four corners
of the United States and into Mexico, and I am getting feedback from the each portion of
the country. I feel this is real important.
There are cheap items that may fail on you in the field,
then there are expensive items that you count on because you paid a lot for it. Most of us
own a cheap pair of binoculars and an expensive pair. If we hadn’t bought all those
cheap ones in between, we could have just started with an expensive pair, and still saved
money! That is what we have done with our products. There are a whole lot of inexpensive
products out there, because people are trying to hit the middle or low range products. My
philosophy is they still sell Cadillacs, so why not have a cadillac of hunting.
I am really big about making things here in the United
States. I don’t feel that Taiwan knows anything about turkey hunting so why build
your products there. Here in America, I can relate with the manufacturer on an American
sport where I can show him pictures of our success, which in turn interests him in making
more things.
Q. What are your feelings about the hunting
industry and what do you foresee in the next 4-5 years?
A. That is a good question. What I see in the
hunting industry right now is a lot of enthusiasm. It is somewhat trying to be a higher
end industry. There is some expense to it, but the consumer interest is there due to Bush
getting elected. I really feel that was instrumental in the success of our business and
most of the hunting industry in general. Hunters right now feel pretty unstoppable and
their enthusiasm is at a peak. Having the right president in office makes a big difference
in this industry.
Q. Last question, what would be your dream
hunt?
A. Well, I am going on it this year. I am going on a
brown bear hunt, and it is being filmed by Majestics’ Outdoor. It’s going to air
in 2002. It is a rifle hunt, to be filmed off a boat in Sitka Alaska and hopefully
I’ll survive my dream hunt.
Q. What gun are you going to be taking with
you?
A. 375 Remington Ultra, the biggest one I can get!  |
