New York, NY - Never attempted before in outdoor television history, Modern Rifle Adventures exists for one reason: to illustrate the versatility, uniqueness and reliability of today's modern AR rifles to America's sportsmen. Hosts Dick Metcalf and J. Guthrie stalk prey from Aoudad in Texas to bear in Alaska to prove to viewers and critics alike that AR-platforms have a home in your gun safe. Modern Rifle Adventures airs Sunday nights at 10:30 p.m. EST with re-airs Mondays at 1:30 p.m., Thursdays at 11:30 a.m. and Saturdays at 12 p.m. exclusively on Sportsman Channel.
Metcalf and Guthrie offer a mix of talent with Metcalf's experience as an Airborne/U.S. Army veteran and more than 30 years of contributions to firearms and hunting publications like Guns & Ammo magazine along with Guthrie's 10-year experience as a gun writer and hunter in the U.S., South America and Africa. The mix of age and experience offers a unique perspective when they arrive with their Remington R-15s or R-25s, DPMs Panthers or Bushmaster Varmint Specials for the day's hunt.
"This is a unique show; no one else is doing a show dedicated to the AR-platform. Our viewers can expect to see us put these rifles through the grinder as we chase big game, predators and varmints from one end of the country to the other," said host J. Guthrie.
"Supremely reliable, supremely accurate and virtually indestructible, the AR-platform rifle is poised to be the primary rifle for the next generation of American hunters," said host Dick Metcalf. "This show seizes this pivotal moment in sporting arms history to show why all hunters and shooters should take a first, or second, look at this platform."
The first episode has the hosts climbing through brush in the Davis Mountains of Fort Davis, Texas. High on their boulder-strewn ridges lives one of the great secrets of American big game hunting. Aoudad, also known as Barbary sheep, range freely here, and Modern Rifle Adventures will be taking AR's chambered in .308 to pursue a very challenging species in an extreme desert mountain environment. Metcalf and Guthrie return to Texas many times this season to pursue Nilgali, an exotic species on the free-range King Ranch, along with Bobcat, Coyote and Pronghorn. All the species pursued put the speed, accuracy and stopping power of the AR to the test.
Another standout episode includes special guest and avid hunter, Jim Smith, a special ops veteran who received a purple heart and a Silver Star for his actions in Somalia. His role as a Delta Force sniper was portrayed by Hollywood in the movie "Blackhawk Down." Today, Smith trains law enforcement and military units through his company, Spartan Tactical. Guthrie and Metcalf not only walk away with a wealth of AR shooting tips, but the group pursues Bobcat in Texas on one of the wildest hunts ever televised.
The AR rifles have many supporters - including the National Shooting Sports Foundation. President, Steve Sanetti stated in a February 2010 column in Guns & Ammo magazine that, "Our community of hunters and shooters must always stand together in mutual respect as we pursue our many different interests. We think it most important that all shooters understand that the firearms market is consumer driver, and consumers today are increasingly selecting the AR-15 platform, in its many configurations and calibers, as their rifles of choice."
Host Dick Metcalf was born and raised on the family's Illinois farm which dates back to the 1840's. He grew up with a .22 behind the kitchen door and began shooting and hunting at a young age. He has been a contributor to Shooting Times magazine for more than thirty years and today serves as the Technical Editor for InterMedia Outdoors Group. Metcalf is a veteran of the U.S. Army and a former faculty member of the history departments at Yale and Cornell Universities. In addition, Metcalf has hunted on five continents and was one of the pioneers of handgun hunting.
Host J. Guthrie grew up hunting and fishing in Georgia, but has hunted in 20 states as well as overseas in Africa and South America. His past includes stints as a writer at the National Rifle Association and the Quality Deer Management Association until he joined InterMedia Outdoors as a Field Editor, Optics Editor and Muzzleloading Editor. Guthrie says he fired his first AR, a Colt H-Bar, 10 years ago and has been hooked ever since. He's a student of the AR platform and is interested in the tactical and hunting applications provided by the AR.
About Sportsman Channel: Launched in 2003, Sportsman Channel is the only television and digital media company fully devoted to the more than 82 million sportsmen in the United States, delivering entertaining and educational programming focused exclusively on hunting, shooting and fishing activities. Sportsman Channel is now available in HD, check with your local cable or satellite provider. Acquired by InterMedia Outdoors Holdings in 2006, Sportsman Channel reaches more than 25 million U.S. television households and is a part of the nation's largest multimedia company targeted exclusively to serving the information and entertainment needs of outdoors enthusiasts. Visit www.thesportsmanchannel.com, follow on Twitter, @SPORTSMANchnl (www.twitter.com/SPORTSMANchnl), or become a Fan on Facebook, www.facebook.com/sportsmanchannel.
