Recreation sales are up in the economy - KFVS12 News & Weather Cape Girardeau, Carbondale, Poplar Bluff

There are a lot of indicators used to gauge how the economy is doing. And recreation sales seem to be up.

Each year thousands of people attend the Southern Illinois Hunting and Fishing Days in Carterville, Illinois.

Duck and goose hunting still leads the way when it comes to outdoor activities and sales.

"We try to make a good product. We keep an affordable price for people in today's time, you've got to do a little of that," said Benny Marney with Hayes Calls. "People have still got to put food on the table. And we're in a rough economy."

Boats may seem like a luxury item for some families. But for the fisherman, they're a vital tool to finding fish out on the water.

And there's a lot to choice from when it comes to price and performance.

"They're going with a little smaller. They're looking at the aluminum line," said Bill Gottschalk with Harrison's Sport Shop. "Fiberglass boat sales have just not been there across the United States this year. Where aluminum boats are up. And cost factor is one thing. You can get just as much out of an aluminum boat as you can a glass boat."

"The glass is for a specific bass fisherman that's looking for something that will meet his needs," Gottschalk said.

One of the items that does seems to be a must for the outdoors man, or anyone who owns some land are ATV's.

"Actually, Polaris sales have been up thirty percent a year for the last three years," said Jeff Bennett with Weeks Polaris. "So we're actually increasing our sales as the economy gets weaker. But no one's really buying ATV's much anymore. They're buying the side by side, they're just a lot more functional."

This marks the 25th year for the Southern Illinois Hunting and Fishing Days.

And organizers say attendance this year could end up being the best ever.

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