Mitchell Johnston

Press Release NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Mitchell Johnston's focus, talent and practice paid off Saturday, Feb. 20, when he won the top turkey calling title during the National Wild Turkey Federation's National Convention and Sport Show in Nashville.
Hailing from Purlear, N.C., Johnston emerged from a preliminary field of 48 callers to win the Senior Division of the Wild Turkey Bourbon/NWTF Grand National Calling Championships.

"It's very surreal. It's obviously a dream come true," said Johnston, who finished fifth in 2009. "The first phone call I made was to my wife because she didn't travel here with me this year. As soon as I heard her voice, we both kind of lost it. It was a special moment. I mean this is the best feeling you can have as a turkey caller. It's hitting a grand slam or winning the Super Bowl."
Every February, callers from all over the nation flock to the NWTF's National Convention and Sport Show to compete in the championships. At this year's convention, sponsored by MidwayUSA , the calling championships had more than $25,000 in cash and prizes going to the top callers. Seats filled up quickly with onlookers wanting see and hear the terrific turkey talk.
In the Senior Division, callers are asked to perform a series of calls that imitate a single wild turkey hen. Some of these calls include the yelp, cluck and purr, kee kee run and tree call. A panel of seven expert judges score each call and the slightest mistake can virtually eliminate a caller from contention.
"Winning a title at the Grand National Turkey Calling Championships is like reaching the summit of a mountain. There is no higher place among the turkey calling's elite," said George Thornton, NWTF CEO. "The atmosphere in the room during the trophy presentation is electric. Raising the first-place trophy at these contests means that you have beaten the best callers in the world."
Each year, thousands of outdoor enthusiasts and NWTF supporters rally at the NWTF National Convention and Sport Show. The event features the Grand National Calling Championships, seminars from hunting pros, more than 550 vendor booths, top entertainers at evening functions and more.
The NWTF is a nonprofit conservation organization that works daily to further its mission of conserving the wild turkey and preserving our hunting heritage.
Through dynamic partnerships with state, federal and provincial wildlife agencies, the NWTF and its members have helped restore wild turkey populations across the country, spending more than $306 million to conserve 14 million acres of habitat for all types of wildlife.