Nature-based fun abounds for Texas families, from diverse and outstanding state parks to programs and workshops that teach fishing, camping, paddling and much more. But alongside this good news, a growing body of books and studies reveals a serious issue: today’s kids are losing touch with nature and that’s taking a toll.

On March 31, 2009, the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) issued a recall on all Yamaha Rhino 450 and 660 model vehicles. This recall affects approximately 120,000 off-road recreational vehicles and was issued because of alleged design flaws that make these ATVs unstable and susceptible to rollover accidents.

Browning will introduce its largest ever safe model for 2009 in its Gold Series line to give consumers storage of up to 66 long guns with a total of 65 cubic feet of space for ultimate capacity storage of firearms and valuables.

Eddy V. Pleasant, 52, of Sheridan, Texas, a former firearms dealer, has been ordered to surrender to a federal correctional institute to begin serving a prison sentence for making false statements during the purchase of firearms, acting United States Attorney Tim Johnson announced today.

As an added incentive to teams participating in multiple divisions - and teams planning to do so - the IFA Redfish Tour announces the "Ultra 6" Award, a $5,000 cash prize awarded to the qualifying team with the highest finish in the IFA Redfish Tour Championship.

Three previous Bassmaster Classic champions are separated by 11 ounces of each other after the opening day of the Evan Williams Bourbon Dixie Duel on Wheeler Lake. 2008 Classic champ Alton Jones of Waco, Texas, bagged 17 pounds, 12 ounces, to lead the field of 100 anglers on the third stop of the 2009 Bassmaster Elite Series.

Say goodbye to the patch job look the next time a non-skid fiberglass deck needs to be repaired. The Flex-Mold™ Non-Skid Repair System from MAS Products matches most original non-skid patterns for a near-perfect repair every time.

Snap Tail Lures has announced a new sales and promotion program to put its patented plastic worm with changing tail snaps on the shelves of tackle stores nationally.

There is more to see and do than ever before at Texas’ largest and wildest state park, Big Bend Ranch State Park. The public is invited to learn first-hand about the many wonders of the 300,000-acre during a free, daylong Fiesta on Saturday, May 2 at the park’s Sauceda Ranger Station.

Despite welcome rains in late March, much of Texas remains parched by prolonged drought of historic proportions, and wildlife die-offs of whooping cranes and deer have been reported. However, experts say native wildlife evolved to bounce back from drought, and a bigger issue is how human water use is changing the equation, and how drought underscores the need for water planning and conservation.