The Keefe Report: Attend the NRA Carry Guard Expo

by
posted on August 25, 2017
cg_lede.jpg

"And now for something completely different." That was one of my favorite lines from the British comedy series "Monty Python's Flying Circus." It meant a segue from one comedy sketch to the next was coming. It wasn't seamless but told you something new was coming. And something completely different is happening in Milwaukee this weekend. It is the first NRA Carry Guard Expo. Of course, Carry Guard is the new advanced level training and personal defense insurance program rolled out by NRA earlier this year. But that's not what the show is all about. Sure, you can sign up for the program or check out the training while there, but that is only a part of the picture. 

The show is the result of many years of planning and growth NRA has experienced based upon the NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits and also the Great American Outdoor Show run by NRA in Harrisburg, Penn. 

NRA has a Shows & Exhibits department that runs these established shows, and the staff there identified the growing interest in concealed carry and personal protection by NRA's membership. And that's what this show is all about. Of course, there is an exhibit hall with 168 exhibitors, but there are also informational sessions being conducted by some of the foremost experts in the field over the course of the next three days. Some are intensive and tickets and fees are involved, but most of the sessions are free to attendees.

They range from talks about the media and gun myths by Dr. John Lott, Jr., to using a carbine for home defense by NRA's Nathan Judd. The three-day show is free to NRA Carry Guard members as well as NRA Life members. And NRA members get three days of admittance for just $10 ($20 for the general public). There are literally dozens of presentations and seminars that I would like to attend over the next three days. And I'll get to a lot of them. So if you are an NRA member within driving distance of the walk to the convention center, this will be time well spent.

Most of the featured speakers would charge serious money for the presentations they will deliver at no more cost than a show ticket for NRA members and attendees. And I can think of no other organization that could assemble so many experts in so many different fields of personal protection and self-defense all in one place and all at the same time.

The Carry Guard show is unlike any other event NRA has previously done. There are plenty of firearm, ammunition and concealed-carry accessory companies exhibiting at the show, but that's not really the story. The story is the literally dozens of experts NRA has assembled to cover topics ranging from appendix carry to the armed citizen mindset. This will be one not to miss.

Latest

NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits, Atlanta
NRA Annual Meetings & Exhibits, Atlanta

The Rifleman Report: New Developments

Our official coverage of new products for the current year is set for next month, but we included two substantial new developments in this issue that have the potential to make significant ripples in the firearm business even before then.

Arkansas To Begin Mandatory Gun Safety Lessons In Schools

Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders signed into law requiring public and open enrollment public charter schools to provide age-appropriate firearm safety instruction beginning during the 2025-2026 school year.

Adams Arms Set To Relaunch

Alexandria Pro-Fab, a contract machine shop based in Minnesota, announced that it has purchased the assets of Adams Arms, along with all of the company’s intellectual property, and it plans to relaunch the company in the second quarter of 2025.

I Have This Old Gun: Bayard Auto Pistol

The Herstal, Belgium, firm of Anciens Etablissements Pieper was apparently expecting big things when, in 1908, it named its new semi-automatic pocket pistol “Bayard.”

The Armed Citizen® March 31, 2025

Read today's "The Armed Citizen" entry for real stories of law-abiding citizens, past and present, who used their firearms to save lives.

New For 2025: Benelli USA Nova 3 Tactical

This latest update to Benelli’s pump-action shotgun gives users a few upgrades over previous generations, making the new NOVA 3 the most exciting pump-gun yet to come from the Italian maker.

Interests



Get the best of American Rifleman delivered to your inbox.