11.30.2008

Shock and Awe in Outdoor World




















I stopped at a Starbucks in Hanover, MD. I noticed a big store called "Outdoor World" across the road. I'd never heard of "Outdoor World" and decided to check it out.















"Outdoor World" is an outdoors superstore. Hunting, camping, backpacking, fishing, and riflery are its main themes. But it's more than just a superstore....




















The first thing you notice are the elaborate dioramas. Meticulously detailed, illuminated dramatically, and towering over you at every shirt rack, these stuffed-animal displays are on par with The Museum of Natural History.




















Below is a diorama I couldn't really figure out. While most of the dioramas depicted animals in the wild or hunters stalking these animals, this one is just of some poor schmoe plunging through a crappy bridge. ("Outdoor World" doesn't sell bridges. Maybe that's the point.)




















There was also this airplane.














In the marine section there was an enormous aquarium where you could watch employees feed the fish.














In the children's section I found this awesome toy set. I'd have loved this as a kid. The Jeep, ATV, hunter, rifle, and buck are mediocre, but there's a CLOTH TENT! That tent would have been a real jewel. It would have become a mainstay in every action figure set-up, from He-Man to GI Joe. Oh well.














There was a target range kind of like what you'd see at a carnival.














In the camping area there was the most comprehensive cooler selection I've ever seen.














Dead center in "Outdoor World" is a functional climbing wall. Well, one side is functional; the other is a diorama of a moose getting sprayed in the face by a skunk (while standing on a waterfall with real flowing water).




















Last but not least, there were many displays of the "Butt Out" tool. This barbed, plastic anchor extracts the rectum of a deer, as the instructions explain. There were many "Butt Out" displays, not just one, spread out around the store. Maybe it's considered a good stocking stuffer.




















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