Editor's Note

Our sixth annual "safari" issue is a celebration of the finer aspects of the sporting life. As in the past, we've taken the occasion of the Safari Club International Convention (this year in Reno from January 21 to 24) and the fact that we'll be exhibiting and distributing this issue there to focus on some premier elements of wingshooting & fine guns. You'll note that editorial is skewed toward higher-end subjects-both guns and destinations-but that we've tempered this with articles on more "affordable" guns and opportunities. We like to think that stories on the exotic are of interest to everyone, if not as encouragement to partake, then purely as entertainment and food for thought. After all, who among us has never fantasized about being high Gun on a driven shoot or owning a firearm that would turn the heads of the "super collectors"? Although not everyone has the means or desire to buy a "best" gun or shoot on the other side of the globe we all can appreciate quality and respect each other's tastes and wants. So as you go through this issue (and every issue) whether you find yourself learning, wondering, snickering, marveling, drooling or simply enjoying, remember that we all share this common passion for wingshooting & fine guns and that, as Frank Ficocello puts it so succinctly in Letters, "this is supposed to be fun."

In the past couple of issues I've had the pleasure of introducing new members of the Shooting Sportsman staff. This time I'm proud to announce two more. The first is my long-time friend and fellow editor Tom Huggler. I've known Tom for almost 20 years, since my days with Outdoor Life, where Tom was the Michigan Editor. Tom's is pretty much a household name with sportsmen, as he's done and written about almost everything. Through the years Tom and I have shared plenty of laughs and stories and time in hunting camps, including several precious days a few years ago with Tim Leary in New Hampshire. (You can read about them in Tom's book A Fall of Woodcock.) Which is why it made sense to me to fill the void left by Tim's passing by inviting Tom to be our new Field Gear Editor. That and the fact that Tom has hunted and shot all over the world, knows good equipment when he uses it, and isn't afraid to pass judgment.

I asked Tom to give a few words of introduction in his first column (p. 95), but I'll embellish by adding that he's a former high school English teacher and assistant principal, past president of the Outdoor Writers Association of America, a columnist for Pointing Dog Journal, and the author of 17 books on everything from grouse, quail and woodcock to camping, backpacking and conservation for children. He's also a seminar speaker and has produced six videos, including award-winning tapes on grouse, pheasant, quail and woodcock as well as an instructional shooting tape ("The Art of Shooting Flying," with Bryan Bilinski). Tom lives in Sunfield, Michigan, with his wife, daughter, three setters and a shorthair. Oh, and if you're curious, he shoots an AyA No. 2 and a Winchester 101, both in 28 gauge, and a Model 23 in 12. I hope you agree that Tom's a great catch.

The second addition is Editor at Large John Gregson, who joins us from "across the pond" and will serve as our UK connection. John's should be another familiar name, as in the past several years he's written a number of feature articles and news items for SSM. I've spent time with John at several sporting shows, and he strikes me as a genuine sporting gentleman. Also through his articles and correspondence, I've found him to be knowledgeable and personable-just the type of ambassador we like to have at SSM.

As for credentials, John is "a farmer's son who was brought up with hunting, fishing and the outdoors generally." After university and a stint with a commodity analysis company, he served as the Chief Sub Editor, News Editor and then Editor (from 1993 to '98) of the British Shooting Times and Country Magazine. (Anyone who can put together a weekly shooting magazine for five years has my undying respect.) These days he holds down a full-time job as the Editor of a business magazine, is in the process of getting his Master of Science in agriculture, and finds time to write about hunting and guns. John also says he's privileged to call most British gunmakers his friends, and he is a member of the Worshipful Company of Gunmakers of the City of London as well as a Freeman of the City of London. Regarding shooting: "I'm a roughshooter and a waterfowler at heart, as my pockets have never been deep enough to become obsessed with driven birds. My favourite quarry are, without a doubt, woodcock and snipe, but I also love grouse-ruffed grouse, that is, which is odd for an Englishman."

John lives with his wife in Berkshire and his hunting battery consists of a Winchester 101 (12 gauge), an A.A. Brown boxlock (12), a William Powell boxlock (16), a C.S. Rosson boxlock (12), a W.J. Jeffery "wildfowl" gun (12) and a Thomas Bland hammergun 16). Please join me in welcoming him.

Speaking of new recruits, in November/December I introduced Tom Roster as our new Shot Talk Editor. In this issue he's trying to get a better feel for readers' wants through a brief survey (p. 38). We invite you to participate by answering the questions electronically at www.shootingsportsman.com/shotsurvey/php. Your input will help us fine-tune the magazine even more.