Reel Guns of the Old West

One of the largest national shooting championships for law enforcement in the United States begins just 15 days from today.

The 46th NRA National Police Shooting Championships (NPSC) will take place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on September 21-25.

You can expect to see a little more coverage about this big event in the next few weeks. Danielle and I will also be blogging live from NPSC, so we'll give you the latest news.

If you’re not going to be in the area, you’ll miss out on a real treat. The National Firearms Museum (NFM) will bring their traveling exhibit to the Law Enforcement Exposition.

On display will be Reel Guns of the Old West, a collection of seven firearms that have had starring roles in some classic American films and television shows.

Represented are guns used by some of the icons of the old west -- John Wayne, Charlton Heston and Clint Eastwood -- as well as original Colts and Winchesters "that have kept the romance and adventure of the Old West alive in our collective memory," said NFM Senior Curator Phil Schreier. "These guns will tour the United States in an effort to generate interest in the National Firearms’s newest exhibit, GUNS WEST!, which opened in the Spring of 2008 in the William B. Ruger Gallery."

Some of the firearms that you can expect to see include:

• Clint Eastwood’s S&W Model 29 that he used as Inspector Harry Callahan in "Dirty Harry" and "Magnum Force."
• Tom Selleck's Sharps rifle from "Quigley Down Under."
• John Wayne's Colt Dragoon from "True Grit."
• Clint Eastwood's Walker Colt from "The Outlaw Josey Wales."
• Chuck Connor's Winchester 92 from "The Rifleman."
• Charlton Heston's Hawken from "The Mountain Men."
• John Wayne's Winchester1892 from "Stagecoach."

GIFT GIVEAWAY

Each month, NRA Hunters Rights has a gift giveaway. They pick one name at random from an e-mail drawing and send that person the gift of the month. The e-mail is huntersrights@nrahq.org; make sure that you put Gift Giveaway in the subject line.

This month they’re giving away Alpen Optics Teton Model 88, which retails for $800:

This 10x42 pair has a 341-foot field of view at 1,000 yards. Each prism is treated with more than 60 layers of Alpen’s exclusive metallic coating to provide optimal light-gathering performance. They are waterproof, fogproof, and feature long eye relief, formidable rubber armor and easy, center-focus adjustment. They are tripod-adaptable, weigh just 26 ounces and come with twist-lock eye guards, objective lens covers, carrying case and a quick-release neck strap.

Hunters for the Hungry

If you are a hunter and would like to share your extra game meat with deserving and needy families in your area, check out a Hunters for the Hungry program. This name may vary in different areas of the country, but regardless of the exact name, these types of game-sharing programs all have the same goal -- to give back to your community by helping those persons who are urgently in need of nourishing food.

Through the generosity of hunters, hundreds of thousands of pounds of venison and other game meat are distributed each year to individuals and families through food banks, soup kitchens, homeless shelters, and various charitable organizations in states across the nation. And it's not just the impoverished or indigent portions of our communities that are helped. Victims of hurricanes, floods, tornadoes, wildfires, and other natural disasters are also aided by these programs.

The NRA supports the national and state-level efforts of these game-sharing programs through its Hunters for the Hungry Information Clearinghouse, a national and state-by-state list of game-sharing programs, including contact information.

NRA has been involved since 1991 with game-sharing programs through its Hunter Services Department. The Hunter Services staff provides valuable assistance to these programs by working with state government agencies, furnishing logistical guidance, and increasing public awareness through education, fundraising, and publicity.

In addition to providing game meat, hunters can also help by donating money which will be used to help cover the costs of meat inspection, processing, packaging, storage, and distribution. And, of course, volunteers are always needed to lend a helping hand in these humanitarian efforts.

Get involved today! Visit the NRA Hungry Information Clearinghouse to obtain contact information on game-sharing programs in your area. You can also receive game-sharing information by getting in touch with the Hunter Services Department. Visit their Web site at www.nrahq.org/hunting, phone them at (703) 267-1503, or e-mail them at hservices@nrahq.org.

Competitors Corner Newsletter

The latest Competitors Corner Newsletter is now online.

NRA Firearms Museum offers traveling exhibits

The NRA's National Firearms Museum, located at NRA Headquarters in Fairfax, Virginia, offers an exciting traveling exhibits program to affiliate organizations. Selecting historically significant firearms and accoutrements, the museum staff assembles impressive exhibits which then visit various locations around the country.

The traveling exhibit program was created by the National Firearms Museum in 1990. In the past few years, as many as 18 visits have been made each year to locations throughout America. Recent exhibits have included displays at the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming, the North Dakota Cowboy Hall of Fame in Medora, North Dakota, and the NRA National Rifle and Pistol Championships at Camp Perry, Ohio. In addition, plans are currently being developed to provide museum traveling exhibits at Cabela's stores in numerous states.

Dates and locations for future traveling exhibits have not been finalized yet, but keep an eye on the NRA Blog for more information about these upcoming events! Also be sure to visit the National Firearms Museum's website to learn more about the museum and take a virtual tour of its exhibits.

NRA launches new website for young shooters

The National Rifle Association has launched NRAInSights.org, a comprehensive interactive website designed for NRA Junior members and their peers.

The site, created and maintained by NRA Publications, contains classic website essentials-games, videos and forums-but users also will be able to employ the site for educational purposes. Gun safety, firearm cleaning tips, how-to articles, Second Amendment issues, wild game facts, news updates, product information and a calendar of events are just a few of the elements that they can research.

"We are extremely proud and excited to present this site to America's youth," says Joe Graham, Executive Director of NRA Publications. "Compared to other outdoor websites that are geared toward younger audiences, NRAInSights.org stands out as the most comprehensive and entertaining."

Filled with additional content to complement what is offered in its companion magazine, NRAInSights, the website is expected to extend to users far beyond Junior NRA members. Users are encouraged to share the experience with friends via interactive tools such as "email this article to a friend," and customize the site to a background color of their choosing. They may also select which category of stories they would like delivered to their homepages first, such as hunting or competitive shooting, for example. Additionally, they are invited to become part of a new community by sharing their experiences in the outdoors or recreational shooting via photo and story submissions.

Students will find the site an invaluable reference tool for in-depth content on Second Amendment issues, the U.S. Supreme Court ruling (l/c) on the Washington, D.C., handgun (l/c) ban, and the history of the NRA. A comprehensive wild-game encyclopedia is complete with multiple images for each animal, range maps, sounds and in many cases, instructions on how to hunt particular game. A replication of the Coney Island Shooting Gallery at theNational Firearms Museum at NRA Headquarters in Fairfax, Va., provides a real arcade shooting game experience online. To see everything the site has to offer, go to www.NRAInSights.org.

The National Rifle Association of America is the preeminent provider of shooting, training and public service programs that foster the safe, responsible ownership and use of firearms. NRA Publications publishes six monthly magazines delivered to nearly 4 million NRA members: American Rifleman;American Hunter; America's 1st Freedom; Shooting Illustrated; NRAInSights; and Shooting Sports USA. It also produces two television shows, American Rifleman Television and American Hunter Television, airing weekly on the Outdoor Channel.