Zepp's Eagle Squaller

This Squaller is LOUD A Sunburst!  Flying like an Eagle in Those Early Years! I thought about my coon hunting journey the other day while reminising of days gone bye.  It began in the mid 1970's and was an unbelievably special time in my life and for the sport of coon hunting. Fur prices were at record highs with averages between $20 - $50 a hide, factoring inflation over the years that would be like a $100 - $300 average in today's world. I tell folks all of the time if we had averages like that today we would see a resurgence in our sport, or maybe, with todays technological advances, guys would simply buy a thermal imaging device and not worry about feeding a dog year round.   One of the many things I loved about the onset of fall and the Ohio coon hunting season opener were trips to The Sunburst Light Company in Bellville, Ohio. I started coon hunting with a kerosene lantern and moved up to a Bill Boatman Dynalite before buying my first Sunburst light which ran off of a motorcycle battery and then, for a Christmas present, Pop bought me a Sunburst Eagle, their top best light at the time. I was on top of the world!  Belleville was a charming little town with a "Norman Rockwell" feel to it and I'm sure a great place to raise a family.  I always looked forward to driving over the bridge covering Clear Fork Creek and taking 97 East to visit with the late Jim Gatton, who passed away at 90 in 2020, and his son Mark. I was in my early and mid teen years then and the thing I remember the most was just how kind and respectful they were to me. A decade later, after graduating from college, I would move to Missouri to go to work for John and Linda Wick and the WOW crew and the Gatton's couldn't have been happier for me as they'd literally watched me grow up over the years and realized how much the sport meant to me. For me, there was nothing "cooler" than turning on that Sunburst spotlight and seeing the raccoon head outline on the back of it....the option for the Ohio law light....the old greenbriar hunting jackets and Coonhunter brand boots of the 70's.  John and Linda Wick would revolutionize the clothing and gear worn by dog men just a few short years later and my life would just continue to get better and better. To honor both Jim and Mark Gatton, I have named our latest squaller, the "Eagle".  We even used yellow paint for the lettering in this squaller like the old Sunburst logo had in it and also, the black and yellow matches a couple other favorites, the Waffle House and Dollar General logo colors. How can you go wrong with that!?  Decades from now, I hope our new Eagle squaller gives you some of the same kind of special memories that the Gatton's Sunburst Eagle and light company gave me so many years ago.  Good Hunting Friends - Big Mark