Hunting & Heritage  |  11/27/2019

Late Season Longtails – A Preview of Rooster Road Trip 2019


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Kicking off the 10th Annual Rooster Road Trip with a look back to how far the trip has come and so much to look forward to in the 2019 ride.

By Bob St.Pierre

This year marks Pheasants Forever’s 10th annual Rooster Road Trip.  If you’re new here, then let me be the first to officially offer you the shotgun seat and provide the 411 on Rooster Road Trip.  

Pheasants Forever’s Rooster Road Trip was born in 2009 as our organization was navigating the early years of Facebook and social media.  Ten years ago, we had a growing audience of followers lamenting a lack of pheasant hunting success and public access.  This growing online audience was also disconnected from Pheasants Forever’s habitat mission and public lands creation efforts.
 
Bob St. Pierre and Andrew Vavra during the first Rooster Road Trip in 2009

So, in the autumn of 2009, we conceptualized the Rooster Road Trip to provide our organization with a social media pulpit to bring our habitat mission and public lands ethos to the digital masses.  Through our social media content, we shared real-time experiences online with our followers. Our goal was then, and remains today, to demonstrate how Pheasants Forever creates quality habitat AND public access through chapter projects, land purchases, legislative advocacy, and walk-in programs.  The magic of the uplands is simply a road trip away.  

Although the hunters, bird dogs, and states we’ve hunted over the past decade have changed, our purpose remains unchanged. Our goal is to show that with a little ambition and a lot of boot leather, public land birds can be had by you and anyone who’s willing to purchase a license and explore the fantastic upland landscapes our country has to offer.  And our followers and partners have embraced the Rooster Road Trip in a big way.  It now accounts for 500 new Pheasants Forever members and thousands of dollars in sponsorship revenue annually for our habitat mission.
 

It’s also important to note that none of us taking you on the Rooster Road Trip journey are professional hunters or outdoor personalities.  We’re employees of Pheasants Forever with a passion for our organization’s mission and a dedication for telling our organization’s story through blogs, photos, videos and podcasts.  By the end of the week, we hope you’ll have had a few laughs, learned something new about wildlife habitat and public lands, and are inspired to get more involved with Pheasants Forever as a member, volunteer, merchandise buyer, or donor. 

So, grab a cup of coffee, some beef jerky, and get buckled into the shotgun seat.  The uplands, your public uplands await.  The 2019 Rooster Road Trip departs on Monday, December 2nd.  Let’s ride!  

Follow Pheasants Forever’s Rooster Road Trip online at: 

Facebook / Twitter / Instagram / Podcast / Rooster Road Trip web page

Rooster Road Trip 2019 Sponsors:

Sincerest thanks to our partners riding shotgun: Apple Autos, Browning, Federal Premium Ammunition, Garmin, ORCA Coolers, Ruff Land Kennels, CampChef, SoundGear, Irish Setter, and Nebraska Game & Parks Commission.