Move over Justice League, because Napier of London have announced the formation of a new group of industry professionals dedicated to the pursuit of excellence in field sports.
For some time Napier has benefited from feedback from a number of shooters around the world, and has always sought consumer comments to aid the development and improvement of its products.
The Apex Hunting range has particularly benefited from this process. Now the Napier Field Masters group has been assembled specifically to gather invaluable hands-on feedback on all Napier products but in particular the prototypes of new lines as they are developed.
All regions have specific needs and challenges, and with this in mind the Field Masters group is drawn from around the world.
Apart from working closely with Napier, each Field Master will present an informative article regularly that will be hosted on Napier’s sites in the UK USA and New Zealand. Or visit www.napierfieldmasters.net.
So without further ado, why don’t we meet the team?
Niall Rowantree
Location: Argyll Scotland
Day Job: Sporting Manager
Experience: 35 Years Industry Professional
Passions & Hobbies: Deer management
Niall leads West Highland Hunting’s sporting and land management services and is passionate about deer. He developed the concept of WHH after more than 20 years of providing wildlife and deer management services in both the public and private sector.
He has over 35 years’ experience in the industry and has led deer management for the Forestry Commission in Loch Lomond and the Trossachs and Across Argyll and Lochaber. He has also managed the renown Ardnamurchan deer herd for over 20 years.
A former board member of the Deer Commission for Scotland and Scottish Natural Heritage Transitional Deer Panel, he consults and advises on deer management through West Highland Hunting on a number of Scottish and European Estates. He is currently involved in developing the sustainable use of wild deer.
Niall has used Napier products for over 10 years and always tells it like it is. Napier describe him as, “Invaluable to product development.”
Dr Robert Bourgeois, MD, MPH, FACOEM
Location: Cajun County- South Central Louisiana
Day Job: Occupational & Environmental Medicine Physician
Experience: Hunting & fishing for 55 years
Passions and Hobbies: Waterfowl Upland Birds, Deer, Feral Hogs, Saltwater Freshwater and Spearfishing
Bob lives in the heart of Cajun Country, and uses the waterways and swamps like most people use roads. A keen hunter from a family of hunters, in so many ways different to other contributors yet he shares the values and needs of all the team.
Dr Nick Fahey
Location: Southern England
Day Job: Dentist
Experience: Hunting, shooting and fishing since childhood; growing up in
New Zealand, past 22 years in the UK enjoying all field sports, in UK and Europe
Passions & Hobbies: Incredibly enthusiastic about food and wine, wing shooting, stalking and saltwater and fly fishing, extensive travelling for leisure and business.
Nick is out and about as much as possible and is the unofficial UK record holder for the largest fish caught on fly rod, a 198lb Porbeagle Shark in the Irish Sea.
Bob Spain
Location: Hawkes Bay New Zealand
Day Job: Hunter and fisherman
Experience: Keen shotgun shooter, game birds with his Black Lab Jess, and sporting clays, hunted every NZ species of game animal, with top trophies in all species. Bob guides and mentors sportsmen and visitors from around the world on extreme hunts. Bob has developed a reputation for Tanning and preparing all types of skins.
Passions & Hobbies: Spending as much time as possible in the wild parts of NZ, often alone for several days, living off the land and utilising survival skills learnt from a lifetime in the bush.
Bob travels light, even cutting his toothbrush in half to save weight on a walk into the Southern Alps! Equipment is critical and his feedback will be vital.
Chris Dalton
Location: South Ayrshire- SW Scotland
Day Job: Deer Manager and founder of South Ayrshire Stalking. Sporting author and videographer
Experience Lifetime: Involvement in country sports- full time deer manager/ assessor BDS / member UK trophy measuring team for BASC /BDS/ Sporting Rifle
Passions & Hobbies: Chris is a true professional and was recently awarded the title of Professional Stalker of the Year at the 2019 Great British Shooting Awards.
Unofficially Chris has been helping Napier with design of products for many years in very challenging conditions, and is in the field most days training and stalking.
Greg Gibson
Location: Western Australia
Day Job: Sales Manager
Experience: Gibbo has been hunting in the region for most of his life, and has been a commercial Kangaroo harvester for many years. He is also a keen saltwater fisherman and spear fishing diver. He has been involved in the culling of goats, pigs and particularly large herbivores in the arid regions.
Passions & Hobbies: Shooting in every form, fishing and diving anywhere,
avid fan of Australian Rules Football (Go the West Coast Eagles!) Partial to a
cold shandy on a particularly hot day.
Greg brings a huge wealth of no nonsense experience to this group, and needs products that are as tough as the outback he hunts in.
Look out for the first posts in the coming weeks onwww.napierfieldmasters.net
For the best field sports news, reviews, industry and feature content, don’t forget to visit our sister publications Bow International, Clay Shooting Magazine, Airgun Shooter, and Gun Trade News. And our YouTube shows The Shooting Show and The Airgun Shooter. For subscriptions, please visit https://www.myfavouritemagazines.co.uk/
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