Did you know that over 38 million Americans hunt and fish? Being the oldest practiced sport on earth, hunting has nestled itself in American culture and the number of participants continues to grow. One of the largest booms in participation has been in archery. From 2012 to 2015, the number of archers in the United States grew by about 20%, bringing the merry band of archers to 23.8 million! Many of them are hunters. You know what’s inseparable from hunting? Food and friendly competition. Enter the wild game potluck/post-season feast. Sharing the fruits of a successful hunting season is an essential part of the camaraderie. Here’s how to nail it:
Pick the Right Spot
The term “banquet hall” conjures up images of Medieval feasts, roaring fires, and the sharing of meat and mead from a fresh hunt. It’s nostalgic and appropriate when nodding at one of the oldest practices in human history. A rustic setting, with natural woodland colors takes you right to the forest and connects the senses to
Have Some Activities
Before Medieval feasts, there would usually be a hunting party. The hunting party would patrol the woods, hunting their trophy to be prepared at the feast. It was a point of pride to be the one to spear the proverbial boar. While we’re not quite doing that now, nothing makes a huge spread of food taste better than a little friendly competition beforehand. Try arranging and archery tournament among your guests. Organize a sporting clay tournament. Do both, if you want. Make a day of it! Get your group moving around and interacting with each other in celebration of the sports that brought them to the potluck in the first place!
Feast!
After a day of sporting clays, shooting on the archery course, or just relaxing in nature, get to that banquet hall and chow. You deserve it. Whether you’re a bowhunter, clay pigeon enthusiast, or just foodie there for the feast, the combination of a banquet hall with seriously rustic vibes and a day full of hunting activities is the perfect mix to include in your next potluck.
Take it in
You deserve the break. If we crunch the number of combined days Americans hunt, it amounts to 282 million days. That’s 21 days for each individual hunter. Three weeks worth of hunting per hunter. Wipe the sweat off your brow, gather your group and get some delicious dishes together. While you’re at it, tell ’em to bring their best shots, because this potluck isn’t all about the best dish, there are games to be played and game to be eaten. It all starts with the right spot. Ace your space, do it right, do it proud.
