ESCANABA, Mich. (WZMQ) – On Sunday, the Daily Press wrapped up another successful U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo at the U.P. State Fairgrounds.
“It’s pretty comparable to last year for attendance,” said Daily Press Publisher Sarah Greenlund. “The rain I don’t think helped us too much [Sunday], but overall, it went well!”
In its third year, the three-day event drew a lineup of new vendors, including Hardcore Outfitters of Iron Mountain.
“It’s a good time of year for selling hunting and fishing equipment, so we brought mostly hunting equipment here to the show—bows, crossbows, and a bunch of accessories,” said owner Jeremy Mortl.
Mortl says he was able to reach a new base of customers at the expo.
“Traffic was pretty good Friday night,” he said. “[Saturday] morning was really busy. People from Delta County may not know about us, so we’re just trying to reach out further and get people to come down and see us in Iron Mountain.”
Castle X Racewear came from Green Bay to make its U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo debut.
“We started in the motorsports industry in the late ’90s, creating solutions for snowmobile enthusiasts, motorcycle, ATV, UTV,” said President Jess Farr. “Now, we’re expanding into the hunt, fish, outdoor lifestyle segment, so this is our ice fishing range of product covering jackets, bibs, boots, mid layers, base layers, gloves, hats, and things like that.”
Mortl says expos like these are great opportunities for Castle X to keep existing customers up-to-date on the latest gear.
“We do a lot of different shows,” he said. “Whether it’s the ice fishing-focused ones or if it’s the snowmobile ones, there’s stuff happening all year long. A lot of people we were able to talk to this weekend have used our brand in the powersports side of things and were excited that we have new solutions so they can use our products in the other things that they enjoy.”
The expo also featured food vendors, a fishing pond and minnow races for children, and demonstrations by Delta County Search & Rescue. Experts also held seminars on hunting and fishing.
Greenlund says in addition to preparing hunters, fishermen, and trappers for the coming season, the expo supported worthy causes. The only cost to attend was a donation to a local food pantry or the Delta Animal Shelter. The weekend brought in six shopping carts full of food for St. Vincent de Paul, as well as one cart of supplies and $558 for Delta Animal Shelter.
“We figured this year, let’s give back to the community more than what we have,” said Greenlund. “The people coming in responded very well to that. They actually loved the idea. A lot of people were putting $20s in, $50s in. It was awesome.”
Before the event officially came to a close, the Daily Press had begun looking ahead to the 4th annual U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo in 2025.
“We’re already thinking about some things that we’re going to change and work on and do,” Greenlund said. “I definitely want to work on a little bit more kid things so that way parents can shop and the kids can play, do more fishing stuff and maybe have a little archery setup. It’ll be fun and more family-friendly.”
For more information on Hardcore Outfitters, visit hardcoreoutfittersup.com or the Hardcore Outfitters Facebook page. To learn more about Castle X Racewear, visit castlesales.com.
WZMQ 19 was proud to be a sponsor of the 3rd annual U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo. Click here for another story from the weekend. Follow the U.P. Ice Fishing and Hunting Expo Facebook page for updates on next year’s event.
