The 2019 SGA AGM with BushWear will have a European favour this year, with members set to hear management insights from a range of cultural and social perspectives.
On Friday March 1st, SGA Chairman Alex Hogg will welcome members and invited guests to the Centenary Suite at McDiarmid Park, Perth, for the organisation’s biggest membership event of the year.
The SGA is delighted to announce outdoor clothing and equipment specialists, BushWear, https://www.bushwear.co.uk as this year’s headline sponsor and company representatives will be showcasing Pulsar thermal technology at the event.
There will also be special pre-order offers on selected new Pulsar products for SGA members on the day.
Over the past few years, the annual general meetings have been very well attended and, with the industry readying itself for deer and grouse reviews in 2019, a large turnout is again expected.
As well as the traditional Chairman’s address, this year’s event will welcome special guest from Norway, Hans Ulberg, as one of the principal speakers.
Hans is set to fly in prior to the AGM and his talk will focus on interactions and conflicts between large carnivorous species and livestock populations in rural environments and economies.
Now primarily a dairy farmer, Hans has spent years studying predator/prey relationships and sits on the government agency assessing autopsies of dead animals for evidence of predation.
Hans will discuss key species; deer, bears, lynx, wolves and beavers; their differing levels of protection and legal management approaches in Norway.
“We are delighted to have Hans with us. Vice Chairman Peter Fraser has been in regular contact with him, organising for him to come over and, with emerging challenges for everyone when it comes to species management, reintroductions and large predators, I am sure that a perspective from Norway will be of great interest to attendees,” said Chairman, Alex Hogg.
“We have a diverse range of speakers once again, all bringing something different to the day the Committee is certainly looking forward to hearing their views and life experiences and giving members the chance to ask them more about their chosen subjects.”
Also on the speaker list will be Simon Lester, former Head Gamekeeper on the Langholm Moor Demonstration project. http://www.langholmproject.com
Sadly, the ‘Beast from the East’ meant Simon’s flight from England had to be cancelled last year but the SGA is delighted to welcome him this time, weather permitting, and will be interested to hear his views on Langholm’s lessons and valuable insights from his work with DEFRA’s Hen Harrier Recovery programme over the border. https://www.gov.uk/government/news/innovative-licence-issued-to-help-hen-harrier
Author, speaker and ambassador for greater understanding of Lyme Disease, Morven-May MacCallum, will address the floor with her personal experiences of coping with the debilitations of a disease which is becoming a growing public health issue.
Her acclaimed book, Finding Joy, has helped raise awareness of the life-threatening condition whilst her inspiring talks at events and in Parliament have encouraged greater engagement on Lyme Disease and the journey health authorities and others need to travel to combat Lyme Disease in future. https://morven-may.co.uk
Doors will open for registration at 9am and all members must bring their membership numbers for check-in. As well as selected merchandise, new SGA wall-planners will be available for the first time.
AGM sponsors BushWear, established 15 years ago and with stores in Perth and Stirling to cater for central belt country sports enthusiasts and outdoor workers, are delighted to be partnering with the SGA during the course of 2019.
“The gamekeepers the SGA represent are so vital to the rural way of life and preserving the sport we all enjoy. Indeed, gamekeepers are the core of our business, not just as they need the best clothing and equipment but because they are such good product testers,” said Managing Director, Andrew Small.
“There is no other group that will put a product through its paces as quickly as the Scottish gamekeeper!”
BushWear has been at the forefront of changes in technology in the outdoor sector and several new products will be available for demonstration.
“Something that has seen huge changes in the last 5 years and has revolutionised vermin control for keepers is Night Vision and Thermal equipment. We are delighted to be attending the AGM in partnership with our good friends from Thomas Jacks, the importers of market leading Pulsar Night Vision and Thermal equipment.
“We will be showcasing a selection of new Pulsar products, which will give attendees the opportunity to handle them and test their impressive performance. Star of the show will undoubtedly be the state-of-the-art Pulsar Thermion Riflescope. This revolutionary new piece of thermal technology is housed within a compact magnesium alloy bodyshell that is strong and lightweight. With five models in the series, the Thermion Riflescope features a 320x240 12µm thermal sensor on the XM30, XM38 and XM50 units, whilst the XP38 and XP50 units feature a 640x48 17µm thermal sensor, all of which have exceptional image quality and digital zoom.
“Dependent upon the model, the Thermion Riflescopes can reach a detection range of up to 2300m. They are Stream Vision compatible and include built-in video and can record still images.
The redesign of the Thermion Scopes has the appearance of any regular dayscope and feature a 30mm tube that can be attached with standard mounts.”
