The last few weeks have been busy for Nick Buls, who is helping organize the Montana Sportsman’s Expo held in Kalispell this weekend.
The three-day event begins on March 30 at the Flathead County Fairgrounds and will feature outdoor vendors from around the region and Northwest Montana. Buls said one of the primary goals is to showcase the work of locals at an expo he hopes will become an annual tradition.
Buls, who helps run The Party Store in Columbia Falls, said while Northwest Montana has hosted sportsman’s expos before, he was never satisfied with what he saw. He said the events were often centered on just hunting and fishing, leaving out other outdoors activities such as golf, skiing, hiking and boating.
“When you limit yourself like that, you’re only going to alienate one group of people and we want to be inclusive,” he said.
Buls said organizers only found out in early January that they would be able to put on the expo, so the last couple of months have been chaotic. Organizers have been selling booths to vendors and booking live entertainment, including a group of black bears from California that will be on display.
Zane Levengood, one of the other organizers who works at Scotty’s Bar in Kalispell, said there will be a lot to see for $5.
“We want people to say, ‘Wow, that was a good five bucks I just spent,’” Levengood said. “Come on down – you won’t regret it.”
Buls said organizing the event was a complex proposition, but his experience in event planning has helped. The fact that all of the organizers are avid outdoorsmen with contacts throughout the region has also helped. Because they had such a limited amount of time to plan the entire event, Buls said some of the big name outdoors suppliers were unable to attend, but that came with a silver lining. Fewer big vendors meant more room for locals, some of whom rarely get the opportunity to showcase their work in the area.
Local vendors will also be raffling off items like kayaks, golf passes and camping and dirt bike gear. Levengood hopes the event will be successful and builds a solid base for the future.
“We’ve got our goals set and we’re laying the groundwork for next year’s event,” Levengood said.
The Montana Sportsman’s Expo is taking place at the Flathead County Fairgrounds in Kalispell on March 30 through April 1 and admission is $5 for each day. For more information visit www.montanasportsmansexpo.com