RSWC #116 Neil Weidner

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#118
Brian Deal
Aero Precision
Vice President of Marketing

Special thanks to Derek LeBlanc from Kids S.A.F.E. Foundation for this interview. He connected me with Brian and let me borrow his truck for the show!

I was able to meet with Brian at the Aero Precision headquarters in Tacoma, WA. We set everything up and headed out to talk about Brian all things Aero Precision. We also talk about the new gun owners the past year and a half has given us.

Brian grew up hunting in eastern Washington, hunting pheasants, deer, and elk, just like many people in Washington and really enjoyed the outdoors growing up. He still hunts with his dad for some family bonding time. He went to college for marketing and graphic designing, wanting to make pretty things and make people see them.

Aero Precision has made some changes to their website so it's easier to find parts that are in stock.

Aero Precision started in the aerospace industry. They're only 25 years old, making parts for airplanes, but switched to rifle parts over the years. They focus on AR parts for the at home AR builders, with their bread and butter is lower and upper receivers. They ship to consumers as well as gun stores and online stores. Of course, the serialized lowers must be shipped to dealers and not direct to consumers. And anything that isn't serialized can go right to consumers.

We also talk about some of the things that are a little specific to Washington state. We were certainly able to commiserate since we live in ‘occupied territory' states. There are some items that Aero Precision cannot ship to, due to the state laws. We also cover why the last year and a half has been important to America as well as gun owners and why we have millions of new gun owners. And as these new gun owners are learning and working through owning and using a firearm, Aero Precision is going to be there, helping and supplying them along the way.

We also talk about some of the newer products that Aero Precision has on the market, notably the EPC, Enhanced Pistol Caliber. Brain tells us that Aero has been planning on a move and putting their HQ, shipping, and manufacturing under one building. Aero has been growing and they're one of the largest employers in the Tacoma area. While moving their 70+ CNC machines from one building to another, they're planning on maintaining manufacturing.

Brian and I also talk about what we've done to help teach our friends and neighbors about firearms. We've both talked to folks and then realized that they were "closet gun owners". We also talk about how important it is to teach our children about firearm safety, which is a great tie in with Derek and Kids S.A.F.E.

There's an earful of information in this episode. Again, thanks to Derek LeBlanc from Kids S.A.F.E. Foundation for the use of his vehicle.

Favorite quotes:

"Put yourself in the customer's shoes, and generally, you'll make the right decisions."

"Anytime there's a disturbance in day to day, just normal life, it affects gun sales."

"There's a massive amount of new gun owners… understood why you might want to own a gun."

"We've seen when legislation goes up and people just don't know better, the way it's written, can sway them to vote on something they have no idea what they're voting on."

"I'm a pretty casual shooter. I love introducing new people to shooting an AR for the first time."

Aero Precision Website

https://www.aeroprecisionusa.com/

Aero Precision Twitter

https://twitter.com/aero_precision

Aero Precision Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/aeroprecisionusa

Aero Precision Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/aero_precision/

Aero Precision reddit

https://www.reddit.com/r/AeroPrecision/

Aero Precision YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/user/Aeroprecision

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Help support RSWC and get some stickers!

http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#118
Dr. John Edeen
Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership

I've been running into Dr. John Edeen since I first went to GRPC in 2016. He's always been a speaker. And he's been brave enough to model for the concealed carry fashion shows that I've emceed as well. He was braver when I asked if we could be roommates for the Florida Carry Speaker event this past March. Since we were riding to the event together, it was the best time to film a show. Last year at the Florida Carry event, Dr. Edeen spoke about what to tell your doctor when they ask about firearms in the home. Here's the link to get the article.

https://drgo.us/position-statements/the-gun-question/

Dr. Edeen came from a family that helped others. His parents worked with the Salvation Army. His father helped psychiatric patients who were released from the hospital and helped them manage their money, help them get food to eat, and brought in psychiatric help as well. He knew from the 7th grade that he wanted to be a doctor.

In order to help pay for medical school, he did the health profession scholarship program which had a military obligation to it. He did an orthopedic internship at Oakland Naval Hospital. He spent 2 years as a medical officer on the USS Peleiu, an amphibious assault ship. After traveling around the world, he ended up back at the USS Peleiu. While on the coast of Mogadishu, he applied for his pediatric orthopedic fellowship which brought him to Springfield, MA. He eventually made it to San Antonio, TX, and has been there since the mid-1990's.

The Rodney King incident happened while he was in Oakland, and that seems like it might be a good time to learn about firearms. Like many out of the military, he pursued getting a Beretta 92, or the M9 as the military calls it, because that's what he's familiar with. Then he started acquiring handguns much quicker. Dr. Edeen really enjoys training and learning. He's done most of the classes with the Massad Ayoob Group, MAG 30. 40. 60, 80, 120, & 180, with Mas himself. He's become good friends with Mas and Gail, and has helped Mas with some cases that involve needing some medical opinions.

After taking lots of training and getting his carry permit in Texas, the absurdity of not allowing doctors to carry inside hospitals hit him. This is the kind of thing that got Dr. Edeen involved in Second Amendment activism. It's kind of cool that Dr. Edeen was asked by Mark Walters to attend the GRPC and Mark is also responsible for getting me to GRPC, too. At GRPC, Dr. Edeen talked with Dr. Timothy Wheeler, DRGO founder, and asked what he can do to help DRGO.

When Dr. Edeen proposed a resolution for his area doctors to carry at the hospital, it was voted down. But after a family member of another doctor had their life threatened, this doctor decided it was time to consult Dr. Edeen on some firearm training. This is how the group started to grow and increase in numbers.

Besides the great articles about healthcare and firearms, you'll find the 2adoc website helpful to find doctors who are Second Amendment friendly. There are some good articles by Dr. Edeen on the DRGO website that you'll be interested in reading.

Favorite quotes:

"You can refuse to answer or just lie. It's none of his business."

"A lot of these people have been brainwashed by establishment medicine to think that they're actually helping. And they're not."

"The lawyers say no, no, no, no. That would be dangerous. Being massacred, that's not dangerous. But a doctor carrying a gun? " (Where is the sarcasm font?!)

"The signs work right up until the time the don't work."

"We're the anti-Bloomberg school of public health."

Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership Website

https://drgo.us/

Doctors for Responsible Gun Ownership Facebook

www.facebook.com/DoctorsForResponsibleGunOwnership

2A Doc List

https://www.2adoc.com/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Help support RSWC and get some stickers!

http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#117
Gabby Franco
The DC Project
Top Shot, Season 4 & 5
Cartel Crew on VH1

Gabby Franco and several other members of The DC Project were going to be speaking at an event in New Jersey. With some simple coercion from a friend, I was talked into going. All of the women speaking have been on RSWC except Gabby Franco. I sent her a message, explaining who I am and what I do, and who else has done the show, and asked if she would be able to film a show. Of course, she agreed. Gun people are the best people!

Gabby grew up in Venezuela, in a family full of women. Venezuela was very different at the time when Gabby's dad went to get a concealed carry license and saw the range had a junior shooting team. Her name, Franco, translates to ‘sniper' in Spanish, which kind of set the tone for her life. By the time she was a teenager, she was shooting pistols competitively. At 16 years old, she found herself shooting to be on the Venezuelan Olympic shooting team.

While at a fair in Miami, she ran into another Olympian she knew from Australia 2000. They talked about how Gabby could get a visa to come to the United States. After a year, she took a suitcase and moved to the US. She got a call from the Venezuelan Shooting Federation to go to Finland for the World Cup and Brazil for the South American Games. She took this opportunity to go to Brazil, where she has always wanted to go. She won 3 Gold Medals in Brazil and then retired.

After she got to America, she worked in some firearms stores in Miami and her firearm education continued. For a while she was working at an office supply store and teaching firearm classes. Her brother sent her a notice that it was the last week to send in an audition for The History Channel's Top Shot, Season 4. She was still selected despite not having everything they wanted. She had to quit working at an office supply store and take the chance to be on the show. Despite being eliminated from Top Shot on a 1500 yard shot, she came back for Season 5. But she loved the experience of being on the show.

After Top Shot, she was asked to teach firearms courses to women around the country. During this time, she took time to visit the area and get to know the local people across the country. Eventually she was asked by Para Ordnance and Remington to be a sponsored shooter and instructor. When Walther asked her to be one of her sponsors, she jumped at the chance because she used a Walther at the Olympics.

For years, she was paying attention to politics due to what was happening in Venezuela. She became very vocal about the Second Amendment and was asked by Dianna Muller (RSWC #059) to be a member of The DC Project. The DC Project goes to Washington DC to speak to our legislators about how the firearms laws affect women.

Most recently, she filmed part of a show with VH1's Cartel Crew, teaching some of the cast members what firearms are really about and that they're safe if you use them properly.

Gabby has been an influence to everyone in many ways. After watching this episode, you'll be inspired to. To get others shooting. To get involved with calling legislators. And to do more for the Second Amendment.

Favorite quotes:

"It turned into loving the discipline, loving the personal growth."

"I remember falling in love with the activity. And everything that entitled."

"I know that, from my heart, I'm going to leave everything out there."

"Society is so easy to be manipulated."

"The pattern isn't for more freedom. The pattern nowadays is for more restrictions."

Gabby Franco Website

https://gabbyfranco.com/

Gabby Franco Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/gabbyfrancotopshot

Gabby Franco Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/gabbyfrancots4/

Gabby Franco Twitter

https://twitter.com/gabbyfrancots4

The DC Project

https://www.dcproject.info/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Help support RSWC and get some stickers!

http://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.com/rswc-shop/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#114
Ben DeWalt
OnSight Firearms Training

One of my friends, Mark, asked if I was going to be taking a course called Defense Pistol - Accuracy and Accountability with Ben DeWalt of OnSight Firearms Training. I decided that I was going to do some training for myself this year and said only if Mark was taking the class, too. He also told me that Ben would be a great person to have in the passenger's seat. So I signed up for the class and messaged Ben about being on the show!

Having grown up around firearms and shooting .22 rifles as a kid, he was carrying Guns & Ammo magazine in 3rd grade. About the time he was in 8th grade, he got into martial arts and karate. After high school, he found himself DJ'ing, doing security, and managing night clubs in NYC. That led to being a booking agent and calling clubs to set up tours for bands. Which came in handy years later as a firearm instructor.

Growing tired of the musicians and rockstar attitudes, he decided to make a career shift and decided to become a firearm instructor. In the meantime, he was working at ranges as an instructor and range safety officer. After working with another instructor, he learned he didn't know everything and took more classes. He took a position as a customer service/ product service test firing repair guns. He was gunsmithing 1911s at Kimber and testing the repair firearms.

Meanwhile, Ben was also teaching courses and taking more courses. After consulting with his wife, they decided it would be better to focus on teaching courses and making a go of it as a full time, self employed instructor. Ben and his wife, who is also an instructor, took as many classes from as many teachers as possible, notably the Tom Givens' Rangemaster and SIG Academy. They've done over 75 classes at SIG Academy. And he scored 100's on all the Rangemaster qualifications.

Knowing that with firearms courses, there's a possibility of injuries, they both became certified to teach some medical and trauma courses, which they also offer. Since many of us carry firearms and knives to protect ourselves, we should also have some medical trauma and first aid training. And maybe even carry some of that gear around with us and in our cars.

One of the things I really enjoyed with talking to Ben is that he's got an ongoing desire to educate himself and improve himself. It's not just his shooting skills, but it's his teaching skills as well. He likes to retake classes to see what he can pick up from new instructors. And he encourages his clients to take classes from other instructors as well.

Personally, I enjoyed listening to his story about getting out from working for someone else and going it on his own. And hearing how he took his skills and knowledge from his DJ'ing days and applied them to his gun instructor days. I'm sure you'll enjoy that as well.

We did take a few minutes off to get a selfie at the Old North Bridge in Concord, MA, in front of the Massachusetts Minuteman statue. The statue is a farmer taking up his rifle and leaving his plough behind to help start a new nation.

Favorite quotes

"Sounds like a cool job on the outside. But every Monday morning, you're someone else's bitch."

"What could I possibly do if I had more time to focus on my own company?"

"The gun stuff is cool. The certifications are cool. But the knowledge and the ability is probably much cooler."

"I constantly want to train. I constantly either want to teach or I want to train. There's no point in this thing where I say "I'm done, I've learned it all."

"The reason I love doing is this is you have a lot of freedom."

OnSight Firearms Training Website

https://oftllc.us/

OnSight Firearms Training Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/onsight.firearmstraining.5

OnSight Firearms Training Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/onsightfirearmstraining/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#114
Daniel Schmutter, Esq.
Hartman & Winnicki

Daniel Schmutter is an attorney in New Jersey. We ran into each other at NJSAFECON back in 2017. And certainly at GRPC over the last few years. I've heard Daniel on the Gun For Hire podcast for years and I finally had a chance to have him in the passenger's seat. But I do have to thank John Petrolino (Bearing Arms, Ammoland/ Decoding Firearms) as he made the connection to get Daniel and I together. We covered many topics, from him getting into the 2A as a lawyer, to bringing a knife into court, and talking about liberty, which came up often.

Daniel grew up in the Bronx, NYC, in an anti-gun family. He didn't have a chance to go shooting until he was in law school and took a course with the rifle & pistol team with a law school roommate He became a firearm owner in 1993 in New Jersey. In 2002, he wrote an op/ed for the Star Ledger, New Jersey's largest newspaper, against the ‘smart guns' then was contacted by Scott Bach, who is the current executive director of the Association New Jersey Rifle & Pistol Clubs (ANJRPC), wondering why Scott didn't know Daniel. That was his introduction into the gun rights movement.

Daniel got involved in Second Amendment law during 2003 with the Silveira v Lockyer case, which predates Heller. It was out of California and was a challenge to the state's ‘assault weapon law'. The case didn't make it to the SCOTUS (Supreme Court of the United States). It's a good thing because it wasn't a good vehicle so it might not have brought out the right outcome from the case.

We really get into how the SCOTUS decides how to accept cases and what makes a good SCOTUS case. He does a great job explaining some of the terms used. And he shares that he's written a number of briefs and friends of the court arguments all the way up to the Heller case. He's also worked with just about every 2A group from ANJRPC, NRA, SAF, FPC, and others.

We get into some work that Daniel did with Knife Rights and Doug Ritter. He's got a fun story about bringing knives into court as an exhibit and how he and Doug were trying to prove that "gravity knives" are subjective to whomever owns them and there isn't a standard for those style knives. He also points out some of the knife laws in NYC.

We also get into why it's beneficial for us to take our non-gun friends to the range and teach them about firearms and safety. It's an eye opening experience for someone to see that the media and the anti-gun groups have been misleading the public with misinformation. Even if a non-gun friend decided that shooting may not be for them, they can still learn that firearms are just tools. And it's even fun to go shooting.

It's always an education talking to someone like Daniel. Much of the show, I was absorbing his wisdom and stories. The word I think he used the most was "liberty". It came up several times during the conversation. I'm sure you're going to listen a few times to get everything that he talked about.

Favorite quotes

"The vehicle that brings the issue before the court, it's actually very important, that it's the right vehicle."

"The Second Amendment is so fundamental to liberty."

"This movement both political, social, legal, is incredibly important to push back on these infringements on liberty."

"...bring a friend to the range. ...it's so valuable just to get people to understand what firearms ownership is about. What it is and what it isn't."

"Fundamentally, us versus them is not left versus right, red versus blue. Us versus them is people versus politicians."

"The best time to clamp down on personal liberty is during an emergency."

Hartman & Winnicki Website

http://www.hartmanwinnicki.com/

John Petrolino

https://johnpetrolino.com/

Association of New Jersey Association of Rifle and Pistol Clubs

https://www.anjrpc.org/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#113
Tanisha Moner
NRA Instructor
Chief Range Safety Officer, Legally Armed In Detroit

Tanisha Moner and I met this past March at the Florida Carry Speaker Event. I was there to play the Star Spangled Banner and she was there with Rick Ector (RSWC #032) to find more instructors who want to be involved with Rick's event. Rick has been doing a free event for women in the Detroit area for 10 years. His goal is to train as many women as possible. Tanisha is the person who organizes the event for Rick.

Tanisha grew up in a household around firearms. Her father always had them around and in every room. She was kidnapped and robbed then sexually assaulted at gunpoint when she was a teenager. The men who did this to her were serial rapists, who were eventually caught and went to prison. After that, she was afraid of firearms and rightfully so.

She wanted to change that. She had a talk with herself and realized that guns are inanimate objects and there's no reason to be afraid of them. So she decided to get a Michigan CPL (Concealed Pistol License). After seeing Rick Ector all over the media in Detroit, she decided it was time to take a class with him. Regardless of being scared of firearms, she took a class with Rick. She started hanging out at the range with Rick regularly, like 3 times a week, and eventually got her carry permit.

Tanisha does share that when she started carrying, she carried it unloaded. Which, to me, is fine. New gun owners need to learn to carry and get comfortable with carrying something that hasn't been part of their life. And I did the same thing when I was new to carrying. There's a great responsibility to carrying a firearm. People need to know more than just how to shoot if they're going to be carrying. After she started carrying, she worked her way to be a range safety officer (RSO), then an instructor.

Tanisha started taking lots of classes due to Rick prodding her a bit. She became involved with Rick's Lady Event during the third year of the event. He started the event after a woman's body was found after she was murdered. That led him to start the event, offering women a free gun safety and learn to shoot class. It started with 50 women. The event has been growing to 100, 600, 800 women in one day. In 2020, the event had 1,938 women learning to shoot over 2 days!

There is a woman who has been to the event several times With her daughter. Then she brought her daughter and her other daughter. Then her daughters, her mother, AND her 80 year old grandmother!

The event this year is going to be on August 21 & 22, 2021, in Taylor, MI. It's going to be held in

Here's a Facebook event link https://www.facebook.com/events/438068617516692/

Tanisha is a great example of how someone would be scared of firearms, but took a bad experience and turned it into something good. Then she takes it up a notch by becoming an instructor and teaching and organizing an event for thousands of women.

Favorite quotes

"I didn't place the blame on ‘men'. It was those guys."

"Guns are inanimate objects. They don't do anything unless you make them do something. Why are you afraid of a gun? "

"I just wanted to not be scared of guns anymore."

"These people are doing this on a volunteer basis. They're doing this on their own dime."

"People who come always come back."

"We get more from giving than they get."

Detroit CCW on Twitter

https://twitter.com/detroitccw

Detroit CCW on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/detroitccw

Michigan CCW Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/MichiganCCW/

Legally Armed In Detroit-Gear Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/LegallyArmedInDetroit

Rick Ector Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/Rick.Ector

Legally Armed In Detroit Website

http://www.legallyarmedindetroit.com/

Legally Armed In Detroit YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/user/detroitccw

Detroit CCW on Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/detroitccw/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#112
Stephannie Weidner
CEO, Active Self Protection

Stephannie Weidner has been coming up on my Facebook page as "someone you might know" for a long time. I'm friends with her husband, Neil. She and I also have a lot of friends in common. Finally we got the chance to meet at the end of the MAG40 class in Sioux Falls, SD. Neil and I and a number of us met for drinks and decompression after the classes ended. She was also highly recommended by some of the participants in The Mingle head by Shelley Hill, RSWC #089.

Stephannie skims over the home life and how the Weidner's got into firearms. The backstory is they were new foster parents and took in a child from a large, dysfunctional family. When one of the family members said they were coming to take the child is when Neil & Stephannie decided it was time to learn more about firearms and self defense.

As new gun owners, they turned to the Active Self Protection (ASP) YouTube channel. There's a lot of great info there! Eventually, John Correia, the channel talent & star, reached out asking for someone who can "mom the heck" out of the comments on ASP's social media. Stephannie connected with John about this and took on the volunteer gig. She was a better connection than she could have realized. When ASP was looking to officially hire someone, that someone was Stephannie. At one point, she was answering emails as John since she learned so much from watching the channel. Being good at details and well organized with the ‘biz' part of things, that freed up John to keep being the talent for the channel.

Stephannie tells us about "The Mingle", which is a women only event held by Shelley Hill of The Complete Combatant. She gets into how the gun industry, early on when women were getting into it, did the "pink it and shrink it" philosophy and found out that wasn't good. But also how the industry took the woman's "parts" and made that part of the places to carry.

One of the amazing things about the times we live in is that you can get a whole education on self defense on the ASP channel. Then take that info, process it, and get involved with the people who are out there doing it. Then pass the education and information along as well. Before Stephannie became a firearm instructor, she was working with ASP helping organize and run their programs around the country. She found she has a passion for ‘legal, moral, and ethical self defense', which she has been doing but wouldn't have dreamed of doing.

We spend some time talking about the great and powerful responsibility it is if you're going to carry a firearm. You need to be able to hit your intended target and not an innocent bystander. Getting extra and more extra training is definitely something concealed carriers need to do.

Stephannie also tells us about the upcoming ASP Bullets and Bibles 2021 event on September 21-23 in Manhattan, Kansas. The link is below, which is where you get info and get registered.

I think this about every show, but you're going to get a lot of info from this episode!

Favorite quotes:

"Something of good quality makes it so much easier to carry concealed and comfortably that you can do it."

"You have the power of life and death in your hands. You have to make the best decisions."

"Mistakes cost a lot. Doing the right thing can cost a lot."

"If something happens to me, I have put my child at risk. He is my highest responsibility."

Active Self Protection Website

https://activeselfprotection.com/

Active Self Protection YouTube Channel

https://www.youtube.com/activeselfprotection

Active Self Protection Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/activeselfprotection/

Active Self Protection Bullets and Bibles 2021 info

https://activeselfprotection.com/asp-national-conference-bullets-and-bibles-2021/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#111
Tom Hall
Instructor
Buckeye Firearms Foundation
FASTER Saves Lives

Tom Hall & I met just last week. He was instructing with the FASTER Saves Lives staff in Ohio. We enjoyed some social time with some of the other students and instructors of the class the night before the class started. What I thought was really cool was finding out that he was working on getting some education from a whiskey university. He said if there was a cigar university, he could be all set with firearms, whiskey and cigars!

Tom has been with FASTER Saves Lives since the second year they were around. He is a firearm instructor in Ohio in his own right, but volunteers with FASTER and teaches their FASTERS Foundations courses. That's a class for school educators who are going to be carrying a firearm in their schools and have a concealed carry permit already. The Foundations class gives them all the vernacular of firearms and fundamentals of shooting. He's also worked at some local gun stores.

FASTER Saves Lives is a non-profit that teaches the teachers what they need to know to help defend their students. As gun folks, we have to know that there's more than having and using a firearm in a defensive situation. The shooting portion of the FASTER Level 1 class is about 2 days of shooting. We shot from various distances, with various stances, one handed/two handed, shooting and moving and more. For newer shooters, there's a lot of ground we covered. FASTER also teaches trauma first aid: when, where, & how to use a tourniquet, chest seals, and other first (& immediate) aid.

But the biggest take away for me wasn't shooting at the paper targets. There were targets that shot back. It was the scenario training we did. We did use scenarios that were from real school shooting incidents. Tom was the ‘bad guy' who donned a padded safety vest, protective mask, and an airsoft gun that fired rubber balls. Other students role played victims and someone was the armed teacher. The teacher knew nothing about the scenario except that there was an ‘active murderer' in the classroom area. Not only did they have to avoid oncoming and running students, they also had to figure out what to do if or after they neutralized the ‘bad guy'. This is why it's important to have some scenario training.

Tom and I reviewed the 3 day course during the show. I did have a FASTER buzz while we were filming. I was also ‘-4' on the scenario training. Yeah...I was shot 4 times by the ‘bad guy' in one scenario. On the last day of the class, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that schools are no longer able to determine which of their staff can carry in the schools. But if a teacher wanted to carry, they needed to go through police training to be able to carry in their school. For the record, passing the qualification from FASTER Saves Lives is a higher standard than what the police in Ohio use for qualifications.

If your school is interested, please reach out to FASTER Saves Lives so that your children can have the option of being protected by armed teachers.

Favorite quotes:

"The more educated, legal, armed citizens there are, the freer I am."

"I know just enough to be dangerous."

"You may have done something good in the process of their death, but you didn't win."

"I don't need you to be a pro. I need you to keep them alive until the pros get there."

"Even a cop does not have the duty to jump into the middle of a mass shooting and stop them."

"We know from past shootings, there's always staff that's willing to give their lives up to protect kids."

FASTER Saves Lives

https://fastersaveslives.org/

FASTER Saves Lives

https://www.facebook.com/FASTERSavesLives

Buckeye Firearm Association

https://www.buckeyefirearms.org/

Buckeye Firearm Association Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/BuckeyeFirearmsAssociation

Apex Shooting and Tactics

https://www.facebook.com/ApexShootingTactics

Michelle Cerino-Princess Gunslinger

https://www.facebook.com/princessmichellecerino

Tactical Defense Institute in Ohio

https://www.facebook.com/tdiohio

Priority Defense LLC

https://www.facebook.com/prioritydefensellc

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#110
Sharyn Hinchcliffe
Pink Pistols Seattle

I really appreciate the friendships I've made in the firearm community since I started RSWC. Sometimes the friendship turns into another friendship. Thanks to Derek LeBlanc from Kids S.A.F.E. Foundation for making the connection to Sharyn Hinchcliffe. She's a busy woman in Washington state for our Rights on many levels and fronts.

She grew up in New Jersey to a family of police officers. Unfortunately, there was an incident. She had a relative who, as a 5 year old child, climbed up and over things the way kids do. And found their father's revolver. Due to the weight of the gun and the age and strength of the child, the firearm went off. Their family lost a child. This incident is why her father instilled firearm safety to her and her other family members at a young age.

In 2008, Sharyn and a blind date for coffee...it is Seattle. They eventually went to a shooting range. And things changed for her. She enjoyed her new partner's company. And she rediscovered firearms. After the Pulse nightclub shooting in 2016, she decided it was time to get involved with advocacy. A lot of times, there are people who work on the 2A activism more than they shoot. I've had several of these people on the show. Sharyn is not an exception. She's involved with Pink Pistols & Operation Blazing Sword, which are the 2 LGBTQ groups in the firearm community. A couple years ago, they joined together. I had Erin Palette on the show in Dallas. She's the President of PP/OBS.

Sharyn and Pink Pistols Seattle are very active in Washington. She forgoes heading to Las Vegas for the SHOT (Shooting Hunting Outdoor Trade), as she testifies during ‘the first day of gun control legislation'. Her group also attends several events during the year, handing out firearm safety brochures and books, all in the name of educating people and getting them into the fold.

We also talk about some of the laws in Washington state that state that a lever action rifle, a Ruger 10/22, and even a Marlin Model 60, and similar firearms, end up being classified as "assault weapons" because of the way the firearms are designed. And with this designation, there's an extra fee to purchase one.

On the same activism side, she's also very involved with the suicide prevention aspect of firearms. She's worked with Hold My Guns (Sarah Albrecht RSWC #092) and Walk The Talk America (Michael Sodini RSWC #067). Suicide prevention is a very big deal in Seattle, with 75% of their firearm deaths being suicide.

Sharyn and I have a really good conversation while we drive through Tacoma, WA, and take in some of the scenery. It's great to see that there's people out there who are working very hard to maintain and fight back in states where politicians are working hard against freedom and gun rights. With someone as knowledgeable and well spoken as Sharyn, I'm glad she's on our side of freedom.

Favorite quotes:

"The assault weapon bill that was pushed through last year...had lever action rifles called out as being assault weapons."
"I don't care about the NRA on the national level. What I care about is ILA (Institute for "There is also a city attorney that will go after anyone pro 2A."

"If you talk to someone about suicide...it's going to acknowledge they're in a crisis and you are listening to them."

"It's more important to give out that safety information, than it is to be on anything else."

Pink Pistols

https://www.pinkpistols.org/

Pink Pistols Seattle

https://www.facebook.com/groups/PinkPistolsSeattle

Operation Blazing Sword

https://www.blazingsword.org/

TikTok

@sa.hinchcliffe

Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/s.a.hinchcliffe/

#pinkpistolsseattle

Pink Pistols Seattle is also on Meet Up.

Sharyn is on Instagram, Parler, CloutTub, PocketNet, Twitter, Mastodon.

Kids S.A.F.E. Foundation

https://kidssafefoundation.org/

You need to join the Second Amendment Foundation

http://saf.org/

Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms

https://www.ccrkba.org/

Buy RSWC & GunGram shirts, hoodies, & mugs at the store!

https://ridingshotgunwithcharlie.creator-spring.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459

Riding Shotgun With Charlie
#109
Rob Beckman
Firearm Trainer's Podcast
American Defense Training

A few months ago, John Petrolino reached out and connected me with Rob Beckman. Rob was looking for an instructor in Massachusetts for his podcast, Firearm Trainer's Podcast. I listened to a few episodes and really like Rob's format for helping instructors on the business side of things. I was on Firearm Trainer's Podcast back in April, FTP #109. How ironic that he's episode #109 of RSWC!

https://www.firearmtrainerpodcast.com/2021/04/12/ep-109-being-a-firearm-instructor-in-massachusetts/

Recently in Sioux Fall, SD, Rob and I were both students at the MAG40 course, taught by Massad Ayoob himself! There were several other podcasters in the class. It was hosted by Paul & Susan Lathrop of the Polite Society Podcast. Amanda Suffecool (RSWC #009) of Eye On The Target Radio, the Polite Society Podcast, and the DC Project was a student. So was Robyn Sandoval (RSWC #080), from A Girl & A Gun and DC Project. And Neil Weidner from Active Self Protection was also a student. One of the MAG Staff was Tracy Becker, also with Polite Society Podcast. Many of us were staying at the same hotel, so Rob & I filmed shows while we were carpooling to the class.

Rob started shooting at a young age and got some formal training while earning the Rifle Shooting Merit Badge in Boy Scouts. He's spent years hunting. He's been a trainer for a number of years, then decided to work his way to be an NRA Training Counselor, which is who trains the trainers. He also teaches the USCCA courses, too.

He started the Firearm Trainer's Podcast to help give back to the firearm community and to really help his instructor students help with the business of running an instructing business. Once someone decides to be an instructor they get educated on firearms, safety, and teaching the curriculum. But often they don't have a lot of business guidance. (I know I didn't.) FTP is a great resource. I've been listening for a while and I really get a lot from the show.

This episode is a bit different from others. Rob and I rode to the MAG40 class and we filmed segments every morning on the way to class. We talk about the drills we did on the range. We also talk about some of the things we learned during the class as well. When you take the MAG40 class, you will learn that there's so much more to the legal aspect of using a firearm in self defense than just saying "I was in fear of my life". Or talking to the police and saying ‘I think I'm having a cardiac arrest. I need to go to the hospital". Or what's even worse is when you talk to an old family friend who used to be a police officer and they say "Shoot the bad guy and drag his body back into the house and put a knife in his hand." That will certainly get YOU in jail and up on murder charges.

The shooting drills we worked on were great. We did several stances, tweaked grips, and used some uncommon shooting positions to simulate shooting around objects. We had a new handgun shooter in the class and she ended up being the ‘most improved student' of the class. She was able to take home Mas' signed target...which was a perfect score of 300!

Rob had the second highest score of 297. I got 286. I'll admit, I started throwing shots when we got to 15 yards back. I was thinking about which stance we were supposed to use. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

Please check out the link to Massad Ayoob Group for classes. There's a course in Manchester, New Hampshire in August, 2021. If you'd like to get a sample of the class, check out In The Gravest Extreme, written by Mas back in the 1970's.

https://www.amazon.com/Gravest-Extreme-Firearm-Personal-Protection/dp/0936279001/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1LOMOSHXNHZJX&dchild=1&keywords=in+the+gravest+extreme+by+massad+ayoob&qid=1623717573&sprefix=In+The+gravest%2Caps%2C162&sr=8-1

Favorite quotes:

"My formal education in firearms began when I was in Boy Scouts."

"To help educate the instructors, how they can be the best instructor for their students."

"I became an instructor because of your podcast."

"One of the downsides of being an instructor is you don't get that much trigger time."

"Most lawyers don't spend more than a half a day on defense law."

Firearm Trainer's Podcast

https://www.firearmtrainerpodcast.com/

Firearm Trainer's Podcast Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/firearmtrainerspodcast

American Defense Training

https://americandefensetraining.us/?fbclid=IwAR31DKiP7uBwDBthY1ovjz64P2VUMCljHSLJuaJFyWffJvynoZ_18cQdY3U

Massad Ayoob Group

https://massadayoobgroup.com/

Please support the Riding Shotgun With Charlie sponsors and supporters.

Leadslingers Whiskey

https://leadslingerswhiskey.com/

info@leadslingerswhiskey.com

Keyhole Holsters

Veteran Owned, American Made

http://www.keyholeholsters.com/

Dennis McCurdy

Author, Speaker, Firewalker

http://www.find-away.com/

Or listen on:
iTunes/Apple podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/riding-shotgun-with-charlie/id1275691565

Spotify

https://open.spotify.com/show/4EEPud0XzYz4wo0MYmA9uB

iHeartRadio

https://www.iheart.com/podcast/269-riding-shotgun-with-charli-30654270/

Self Defense Radio Network

http://sdrn.us/

OpsLens App on iPhone & iPad

https://apps.apple.com/us/app/opslens-network/id1498033459