It was 2:00 am on Wednesday when Jenn and I got in the truck and began the 8.5 hour drive to Columbus, OH for the 2012 ATA Trade Show.

As an archery gear junkie, the ATA Trade Show is an event I look forward to all year long. All the major manufacturers have booths set up and several unveil new products for the first time. Although it's a dealer show and not open to the public, there are several members of the media in attendance to get the inside scoop on what's new in the archery industry.

We arrived at the Greater Columbus Convention Center just in time for Nikon's 5th Annual Monarch Awards. All of Nikon's television partners were at the luncheon including Lee and Tiffany Lakosky from The Crush, Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo from Archer's Choice, Pat Reeve and Nicole Jones from Driven TV and the Keefer brothers from Dropped in Alaska, just to name a few.

Archer's Choice with Ralph and Vicki Cianciarulo took home the ID Tech Award for this year's "how -to" video. Pat Reeve and Nicole Jones of Driven TV won the PROSTAFF Award for their commitment to using Nikon optics. Last but not least, the winner of Nikon's most prestigious award is Tim Herald and James Brion of Nosler's Magnum TV.

Following the Monarch Awards, we made our way to the showroom floor and began our tour of the showroom floor starting with the QAD booth and ending our day at the Sitka booth where they unveiled some new products and previewed a trailer for an upcoming project that everyone at the booth was excited for.

This week I'll be posting photos and write ups on some of the best looking new products for 2012. There's a lot to be excited for!