First-Annual Archery & Bowhunting Supershow Is a Success

The Archery Trade Association hosted the inaugural Archery & Bowhunting Supershow January 9-10 in Indianapolis, Indiana, in conjunction with the NFAA Rushmore Rumble and the S3DA Indoor Open. Archery-loving members of the public were invited to test, touch, feel and build a wish list of the newest archery products before they hit the retail shelves. Thousands of archers attended and were encouraged to visit their local retailers and purchase the products they saw on the Show floor. This new addition to the ATA Show Week was designed to connect archers more deeply with retail shops and allow the everyday archery enthusiast to get in on the fun. 

Supershow Means Super Sneak Peek

Members of the public were invited to walk the ATA Show floor the two days after the annual ATA Trade Show concluded. This means that for the first time ever, the public was able to see and demo the same products and talk with the same brands as ATA members did just days prior. 

"Everybody at my bow shop has been dying for this to be open to the public so that we can see everything that they get to see,” said Scott Schnipke, Supershow attendee.

They got to experience this year’s latest products in person and gather a wish list of products they want to buy in the coming year. The exhibitors, along with the ATA’s Store Locator kiosk, encouraged the attendees to visit their local archery shop to purchase the gear. 

The manufacturers were doing their part to direct attendees to their local archery shops. For example, HHA Sports ran a promotion offering a rebate to anyone who received a card at the HHA booth at the Supershow and then bought an HHA sight from a retailer. All you have to do is email HHA the receipt from the retailer with the card you received onsite, and you’ll receive a check for 15% off the total purchase. HHA reported that as of January 13, they had already received submissions.  

NFAA and S3DA Tournaments

Two national tournaments, the NFAA Rushmore Rumble and the S3DA Indoor Open, were held alongside the Supershow. Archers who entered in the tournament received automatic admission into the Supershow to take a look at the latest and greatest while they waited for their line time.

“We appreciate the ATA holding this event in conjunction with the Rushmore Rumble,” said Cody Kirby, executive director of Scholastic 3-D Archery. “Scholastic 3-D Archery is a youth-driven organization, so to be able to provide an event that’s just for the youth and also utilize the same target faces and format that the Rushmore Rumble is using is a good opportunity. With it being an open-registration event, we hope that anyone registered who is not an S3DA member would consider signing up, hope they enjoyed themselves and check out our other events.”

Bruce Cull, executive director of the National Field Archery Association, noted that he and the ATA’s CEO and President Jeff Poole collaborated to see how they could combine their membership base and create something that benefitted the ATA members, the public, and the tournament organizations all at the same time. “There’s 2,500 people here that all have a connection to the outdoors and archery, so hopefully it works out well for the vendors and the manufacturers,” Cull said.

Some archers, like Wyatt Emmerich, have been practicing archery for years but chose to compete in the tournament for the first time in Indianapolis because it was closer to him there than it usually is in South Dakota, and he liked the bonus of attending the Supershow. 

As this new era dawns for the ATA and tournament organizations, we hope many more archers will be able to capitalize on these opportunities as the Supershow brings more tournaments to the archers’ backyard. 

ATA-member retailers, like Gary Hintz of Bucks and Bulls Archery, took advantage of being able to bring their shop’s archery teams to compete in the tournaments while they attended the ATA Trade Show and Supershow.  

The ATA hopes to continue to bridge relationships between archers and retail shops in the years to come by connecting them through the Supershow. If you’re a tournament archer or an archery enthusiast, keep your eye out for next year’s Supershow dates.

New Product Launch Award Winners Announced

The Archery Trade Association was pleased to present the New Product Launch Showcase award winners. The New Product Launch Showcase highlights products launched at the 2026 ATA Trade Show as part of ATA Show Week, recognizing companies for excellence in new product design, innovation and their ability to meet customer demands.

Award recipients were announced January 7 during the ATA Industry Celebration event, presented by Mossy Oak. 

New Product Launch Award winners: 

• First Place: Stack It Peep from Specialty Archery 
• Second Place: Bowtech Alliance from Pure Archery Group
• Third Place: Stick for Bear from Extreme Hunting 365

 

The ATA also had six category-specific awards for the New Product Launch Showcase. This year’s award winners included:

• Best New Bow: Bowtech Alliance from Pure Archery Group
• Best New Broadhead: Tyrant 3 Blade from Rage Broadheads
• Best New Release: Alt Zero from T.R.U. Ball & AXCEL Archery
• Best New Technology: Y2 Wide Lens Cellular Trail Camera from Yellowstone.ai
• Best New Gear: Stick for Bear from Extreme Hunting 365
• Best New Accessory: Stack It Peep from Specialty Archery

“New product innovation is the key to driving sales and propelling the archery industry forward,” said ATA President and CEO Jeff Poole. “I’m proud to recognize this year’s New Product of the Year award winners from the hundreds of new products released at this year’s ATA Show.” 

The ATA awards program was created in 2020 to recognize individuals and companies that make significant contributions to the future of archery. For more information about the ATA’s awards program, contact Jennifer Mazur, ATA's senior director of outreach and education, at jennifermazur@archerytrade.org or (507) 233-8139.

2026 Industry Icon Award Recipient: Rob Kaufhold

The Archery Trade Association announced Rob Kaufhold, founder of Lancaster Archery Supply, as the 2026 ATA Industry Icon Award recipient. This award was given during the ATA Industry Celebration, presented by Mossy Oak.

The ATA Industry Icon Award honors individuals who have founded industry-leading companies, developed industry-changing products or made lasting contributions to significantly increase participation in archery and bowhunting.  

“Among the worthy accomplishments of many individuals and organizations, we are proud to recognize this year’s Industry Icon Award recipient for his long and meaningful contributions to the archery and bowhunting industry,” said ATA President and CEO Jeff Poole. 

Kaufhold is a nationally recognized competitive archer and four-time All-American at James Madison University. His achievements include a U.S. National Outdoor Championship, multiple USA Archery World Field Team selections, four U.S. Olympic Festival appearances, and numerous national, Eastern and Pennsylvania records. 

In 1983, Kaufhold founded Lancaster Archery Supply in a garage on the property of his father’s machine shop in Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Alongside the business, Kaufhold and his father launched Full-Adjust Archery Products, manufacturing archery sights, stabilizers, arrow straighteners and accessories sold to dealers across the U.S. and internationally. That operation laid the foundation for Lancaster Archery Supply’s wholesale distribution business. 

Lancaster Archery Supply began with just two employees and steadily grew into one of the world’s leading archery retailers and distributors. In 1988, the LAS Pro Shop was built above the Kaufhold Machine Shop. Soon after, Kaufhold began traveling to tournaments selling products directly to archers from a Ford truck with a sign on the tailgate that said, “Follow Me to Lancaster Archery Supply.” In 1992, the company launched the first LAS Express mobile pro shop and published its first dealer catalog, further expanding its support of archery retailers. 

The Lancaster Archery Academy opened in 2014 to introduce new participants to the sport and support archers at every level of development. Thousands of archers now train and compete on the Academy’s ranges each year.  

In 2018, Kaufhold launched Competition Archery Media to expand archery’s reach through digital and television broadcasts. In 2021, CAM delivered the first live archery broadcasts in Outdoor Group history, with coverage of the Delta McKenzie Pro/Am Tour reaching more than 1.1 million viewers over five seasons. 

Kaufhold further advanced the sport with the formation of the Lancaster Archery Foundation in 2019. The foundation supports grassroots archery programs, collegiate scholarships and international competition for Team USA athletes. To date, it has awarded 195 grants, more than $150,000 in scholarships, and over $125,000 to archers competing internationally. 

Kaufhold’s achievements with Lancaster, innovation in bringing archery products to the public with his mobile range, and philanthropic efforts with the foundation make him a worthy recipient of this year’s Industry Icon Award.

ATA Announces Impact Award Recipients

The Archery Trade Association announced Marilyn Bentz and Barb Terry as the 2026 ATA Impact Award recipients. Recipients of this prestigious award were announced during the 2026 ATA Industry Celebration event, presented by Mossy Oak, for using their voice and/or platform to inspire others to enjoy and participate in archery and bowhunting.

“Among the worthy accomplishments of many individuals and organizations, we are proud to recognize this year’s Impact Award recipients for their long and meaningful contributions to the archery and bowhunting industry," said ATA President and CEO Jeff Poole. 

 

Marilyn Bentz — National Bowhunter Education Foundation 

A former two-term board member of the Archery Trade Associations Board of Directors, Bentz currently serves as a Board of Director at the National Bowhunter Education Foundation since 1996 and executive director of the National Bowhunter Education Foundation since 2003, leading the global nonprofit’s mission to promote safe and responsible bowhunting through standardized education. A respected leader in the archery industry, she previously served on the NBEF Board of Directors and has held board positions with the Archery Trade Association, the Archery Hall of Fame, and the Tree Stand Safety Awareness Foundation.  

Bentz is the recipient of numerous industry honors, including the Fred Bear Achievement Award and IHEA’s Gladney Davidson Award. She was inducted into the Legends of the Outdoors Hall of Fame in 2005. Her career began under the mentorship of archery innovator Chuck Saunders and evolved through leadership roles at several major archery and hunting brands. 

Bentz’s business philosophy is profound in its simplicity. She identifies her philosophy as the “Think Factory” mentality; a skill acquired many years ago from her early mentor, Chuck Saunders. It is to provide solutions to existing problems and create niche markets that are economically satisfying to both the manufacturer and the consumer. 

 

Barb Terry — TenPoint Crossbow Technologies 

Terry's archery career began with Hunter’s Manufacturing as a pro staff member in the fall of 1996. She then started attending NWTF Jakes and Women in the Outdoors events teaching kids as young as three, as well as adults, how to safely shoot crossbows.

In 2003, she took a full-time position at TenPoint Crossbow Technologies assembling crossbows and performing warranty repairs. Today, she is their trade show coordinator, a pro staff manager, and is in charge of customer relations, training, education, writing owner’s manuals, catalog copy, accessory instructions, and video scripts. Terry has also authored articles for various magazines such as Horizontal Bowhunter, Woman Hunter and Crossbow Connection and was part of the committee that developed the ATA’s Crossbow Technician Program. 

In the mid-2000’s, Terry started teaching special needs and physically challenged youth to shoot crossbows during deer hunts with Whitetail Heritage of Ohio. Over time, the organization expanded its mission to include first-time hunters and adults with disabilities. Terry has been involved with the group longer than any other member, and the 2025 hunt marked her 20th consecutive year. In 2023, she was awarded the Conservationist of the Year Award. 

Among her achievements, Terry was also the vice president of Ohio Hunt for Hope for eight years. The event includes a two-day deer hunt for special needs and physically challenged youth, ages 10-17. To make sure everyone has equal access to these hunting opportunities, Terry brings most, if not all, of the equipment needed for the hunt. 

As a board member for the National Bowhunter Education Foundation, Terry has prepared and presented specialized International Crossbow Education Program classes to certify instructors. She’s created courses for 4-H instructors in Ohio, treestand manufacturer members, veterans’ groups, and a crossbow education course to meet the Alaska state guidelines for their hunter education instructors. 

Last year, Terry accepted a position with the newly formed nonprofit organization Teaching Our Traditions as an unpaid consultant and trainer. This group’s purpose is to preserve and honor cherished hunting, fishing and conservation traditions while simultaneously embracing their natural evolution to remain relevant and meaningful in a changing world.