Marsha Schearer Appointed to SHE Outdoor Apparel Pro Staff; Number of Women Hunters Surges

ISE is proud to announce that Marsha Schearer, longtime exhibitor, seminar speaker and co-host of ISE's Elk Calling Contest, has been named to the SHE Outdoor Apparel Pro Staff team.

Executive producer and co-host of Shoot Straight TV, Schearer also hosts Team Realtree Foods Real Cookin’ segment.

A licensed Montana Professional Guide, Schearer is an outdoor writer, photographer and videographer. She was the first lady to be appointed to the CVA muzzleloader national pro-staff, and the first woman to harvest an animal with an electronic-ignition muzzleloader. 

Texas-based SHE Outdoor Apparel designs and produces women’s outdoor clothing in safari, upland, camouflage, shooting, adventure and lifestyle collections.

Marsha Schearer's visibility and outstanding reputation in the outdoor media is a perfect example of one reason why the number of female hunters  increased by 5.4 percent between 2008 and 2009, netting 163,000 new participants. The number of hunters in the U.S. decreased slightly (.05 percent) during the same period.

Growth areas for women included muzzleloading (up 134.6 percent), bowhunting (up 30.7 percent) and hunting with firearms (up 3.5 percent).

Data also show women outpaced men among net newcomers to target shooting with a rifle, where female participation grew by 4.1 percent.

"New hunters, shooters and anglers are a good thing for everyone who loves the outdoors," said Denise Wagner of Wonders of Wildlife museum in Springfield, Mo., the official home of National Hunting and Fishing Day.

"Hunting and fishing license sales, combined with special taxes on firearms and ammunition, bows and arrows, and rods and reels generate about $100,000 every 30 minutes, totaling more than $1.75 billion per year, for conservation."

The growth in new participation among women, perhaps counterintuitive to traditionalists, is no surprise to Steve Sanetti, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association for the shooting, hunting and outdoor industry.

He explained, "Over the past several years, our industry has worked hard to help build this segment of our market. We've developed shooting and hunting products especially for women, reached out with welcoming and instructional workshops for women, and encouraged existing hunters and shooters to introduce their spouses, daughters and other newcomers to shooting sports and outdoor lifestyles. I believe these efforts are paying off, which is a bright spot for our industry as well as for conservation."