Registration Open for 2011 OWAA Annual Conference

MISSOULA, Mont. – Outdoors communicators: Mark your calendars for July 9-11. It’s time to “Elevate your adventure, elevate your career!” Outdoor Writers Association of America officially opened registration for the 2011 OWAA Annual Conference at Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort near Salt Lake City, Utah.

The 84th annual conference will provide opportunities to network with peers, enhance skills, add resources and increase your income potential through seminars and workshops.This year’s conference will feature more workshop-oriented hands-on sessions, as well as long-time favorites such as the one-on-one opportunity to “Meet the Editors” and the free outdoor careers workshop, “Becoming an Outdoors Communicator.”Other currently scheduled workshops include: “Macro Photography,”“iMovie Video Editing” and “Shooting on the Go:  Better action photos.”

A welcome BBQ, hosted by OWAA’s Board of Directors, kicks off the start of the conference the evening of Friday, July 8.Sessions begin first thing Saturday, July 9,with a keynote by self-proclaimed “Hunter Angler Gardner Cook” Hank Shaw. The action-packed conference wraps up the night of Monday, July 11, with the Excellence in Craft and Honorary Awards Dinner.

The Demo Day program (formerly called Breakout Day) will be hosted by OWAA industry supporters at Snowbird Resort, giving attendees the chance to test out the latest outdoor hard goods. The Shooting Day program will be held at the Lee Kay Shooting Range in Salt Lake City with handgun, rifle, shotgun and archery lanes available as well as auto test drives.

Registration is available for OWAA members and supporters as well as local Utah press and all other outdoor journalists and outdoor businesses, groups and agencies.

Information on the full agenda, all pre- and post-conference trip opportunities, online registration and more are available at http://www.owaa-oldsite.birchbarkmedia.com/2011conference.

The 1,200 member Outdoor Writers Association America is the oldest and largest association of professional outdoor communicators in the United States. It was organized in 1927 by members of the Izaak Walton League of America and includes professional communicators dedicated to sharing the outdoor experience. OWAA’s professionals include writers, photographers, outdoors radio- and television show hosts, book authors, videographers, lecturers and artists. The association is headquartered in Missoula, Mont. Visit http://www.owaa-oldsite.birchbarkmedia.com for more info.