This is deviating from talking about shooting to talking about football but I am finally paying up on a three week old debt to a friend in the shooting fraternity. It is shooting related because I am promoting one of the finest shooting programs in the media.

A few days before the 2010 Super Bowl featuring the New Orleans Saints and the talented and fantastic Indianapolis Colts, Tom Gresham e-mailed me and talked about the game. Now first I have to set the stage; most of you know Tom Gresham who hosts the extremely popular GunTalk radio show that is broadcast weekly all over the country including Sirius (channel 108) and XM Radio (channel 139). Tom has been a great friend to Sinclair International and Brownells over the years and he knew I was a long-time Indianapolis Colts fan and season ticket holder. It also just happens that Tom resides in Northwestern Louisiana and is naturally a Saints supporter. What follows is a re-cap of Tom’s e-mail:

Bill,
I thought it might be a good idea to have a little wager on the upcoming Saints/Colts game this Sunday, you know, kind of like the governors do!

If the Colts win, we’ll send you a supply of good Cajun food to chomp down on and if the Saints win you can send us ………..well, wait just a minute – there’s no such thing as fine Midwest Cuisine! You’ll figure something out.

Tom

Obviously Tom knows how to bait a guy into a bet. First, he knew I would take a bet against the Colts, second he questioned Indiana’s contribution to the culinary world (in fact I think he challenged the entire Midwest), and third he knew I couldn’t resist the Cajun food offer.

Well, it was a sucker bet right from the start because I was pretty certain my Colts would post a “W”, Tom knew I had lived in Louisiana about a quarter of my life during a portion of the Archie Manning era, and knew I really like Cajun food. I saw this bet as “easy money” and was already envisioning platters of crawfish etouffe, some deep bowls of fine gumbo, and maybe some Gulf shrimp stuffed with crabmeat. My wife and I had been longing for a good Louisiana meal so the timing was perfect.

We all know the outcome of the big game, congratulations to the Saints and their fans but finally its time to pay the piper. I searched high and low for some Indiana delicacies to send to Tom. The staff at Sinclair International suggested rounding up some fried tenderloins, Indiana State Fair corn dogs, or maybe some sweet corn (out of season). All of these items figured out to be too hard to ship and remain fresh (read non-soggy) so I had to start beating the bush for Indiana notables in the food category. I hate to admit it but after a weeks search I was beginning to think Tom was “on target” with his Midwest cuisine comment.

My package to Tom ended up with the following:

- A bottle of wine from Oliver Winery, a nationally recognized winery in southern Indiana outside of Bloomington (next to Indiana University and very convenient for the students)
- Some sweet bread and butter cucumber slices from Sechler’s Pickles in St. Joe, Indiana (right next to the trap and skeet club I shoot at)
- Cousin Willie’s Kettle Corn located in Ramsey, Indiana (Orville Redenbacher was my first choice but this Indiana brand moved their headquarters to Nebraska)
- A big bottle of Red Gold Ketchup out of Elwood, Indiana. Inside joke: Tom, ask Jason Hornady from Hornady Manufacturing about Red Gold.
- A five-pack of Old Fort Porter from Mad Anthony Brewery located in Fort Wayne, Indiana (I swear Tom, it’s an Indiana bottling tradition to leave an empty chamber in the box – like carrying a six-gun).
- Some of the finest truffles in the world from DeBrand’s Chocolatier in Fort Wayne, Indiana (very close to the home of Sinclair’s). Tom, I would suggest sharing this item with your lovely wife.
- Finally, some special sugar cookies made just for Tom by the Cookie Cottage located in Fort Wayne, IN (a nationally know cookie bakery). See photo.

Tom, your package is going out by air today. Thenext time you are in town I’ll buy you the biggest tenderloin I can find you. If the Saints and Colts play again in the big game, don’t e-mail me!

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International

Okay folks, this wasn’t part of the bet but since we are on the subject this is a great time to give you some info about GunTalk Radio., Tom’s radio show GunTalk is a great program and one of the biggest advocates of gun rights in our country plus its packed full of interesting guests from throughout the shooting industry (competitors, hunters, manufacturer spokespersons, etc.). There is a lot of good information shared on Tom’s program by Tom, his guests, and our fellow shooters that call in. A wonderful way to spend a Sunday night is to be sitting in your reloading room doing some case prep work while listening to Tom’s show. You can find out more about GunTalk at www.guntalk.com and find the radio stations that offer the broadcast in your area. The GunTalk website has a state by state listing that makes it easy to find your local station. Don’t worry, if you don’t get coverage in your area you can always download the show each week from the website. In addition, let your local station know you want them to pick up the show.

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 25th, 2010 at 2:34 pm and is filed under Letters from the President. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.