2013 Gun Blogger Rendezvous Info

2013 Gun Blogger Rendezvous VIII Information Sheet:

Once a year Gun Bloggers, Gun Blog Readers, gun writers, shooters, gun association folks, and industry representatives from around the country gather in Reno at the Silver Legacy Hotel & Casino to visit, socialize, compare notes, discuss everything firearms related, and get in three range days covering everything from long range rifle, steel shooting, Cowboy Fast Draw, and more. At the Gun Blogger Rendezvous there is something going on from breakfast to well into the night! 2013 will be the Gun Blogger Rendezvous’ Seventh Anniversary. 

The Rendezvous also raises money for Project Valour-IT, a division of Soldiers Angels, through a raffle of firearms and shooting sports items donated by our sponsors. Project Valour-IT buys voice actuated laptop computers for injured servicemen, who, due to the nature of their injuries, are unable to operate a computer using a conventional mouse and keyboard. This allows them to communicate with their family and friends, directly from their hospital beds, and has been shown to significantly increase their rate of recovery.

We also give out a large number of door prizes and  promotional items to our attendees. Our sponsors, in return, get a lot of positive Internet exposure through the Gun Blogs and stories about the Rendezvous.

Some of our current and previous year  include Ruger, Gunbroker.com, Cabelas, MKSSupply/HiPoint, Crimson Trace, Comp-Tac, Springfield Armory, Dillon Precision, Brownells, National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF), The NRA, The Second Amendment Foundation, and more.

Last year we raised approximately $6,000 for Project Valour-IT, and this year, we hope to do even better. Every penny we can make from the Rendezvous goes to Project Valour-IT.  Even the event organizer (that’s me) pays to register for the Rendezvous!

Dates: September 5^th., 6^th., 7^th., & 8^th.

Location: Silver Legacy Resort/Casino in Reno

Gun Blogger Rendezvous Website:  http://gunbloggers.blogspot.com

Contact:      Mike Gallion

                     2704E Gabelein Rd.

                     Clinton, WA 98236

                     magaero@whidbey.com or blog@whidbey.com

                     360-321-6258

Shipping destination for raffle and door prizes, excluding firearms:

(For firearms we prefer to use certificates instead of the actual gun, and then transfer straight from the manufacturer to the winner, but we will be glad to do it however the manufacturer prefers.)
Please do not ship any packages to arrive at the Reno Cabela's store prior to August 23rd.  due to limited storage space availability at Cabela's.

                Cabela's / Reno
                8650 Boomtown rd.
                Verdi, NV 89439
                ATTN: Gun Blogger Rendezvous / Jamie

I've been putting together a list of Gun Blogger posts about the Recently ended Gun Blogger rendezvous in Reno. I know there are a lot of posts I've missed, so if I missed your posts, email me or mention the URL in a comment and I'll get you on the list too!

http://keeweescorner.blogspot.com/2012/09/gun-blogger-rendezvous-fund-raiser.html
http://keeweescorner.blogspot.com/2012/09/second-day-of-gbr.html
http://keeweescorner.blogspot.com/2012/09/gun-blogger-rendezvous-reno-nevada-2012.html
http://notclauswitz.wordpress.com/2012/09/25/gbr-vii-note-to-self/
http://tractioncontrol.well-regulatedmilitia.org/?p=13589
http://tractioncontrol.well-regulatedmilitia.org/?p=13586
http://tractioncontrol.well-regulatedmilitia.org/?p=13581
http://tractioncontrol.well-regulatedmilitia.org/?p=13579
http://tractioncontrol.well-regulatedmilitia.org/?p=13577
http://smallestminority.blogspot.com/2012/09/sandcastle-air.html
http://smallestminority.blogspot.com/2012/09/0-for-7.html
http://thepackingrat.net/2012/06/10/gun-blogger-rendezvous-vii/
http://engineeringjohnson.blogspot.com/2012/09/its-here_5.html
http://thecluemeter.blogspot.com/2012/09/gbr-new-website.html
http://thecluemeter.blogspot.com/2012/09/gbr-miscellany.html
http://thecluemeter.blogspot.com/2012/09/gbr-videos-molly-shows-how.html
http://thecluemeter.blogspot.com/2012/09/gbr-pics-saturday.html
http://thecluemeter.blogspot.com/2012/09/gbr-pics-friday.html
http://www.greatsataninc.com/gun-blogger-rendezvous-2012/01/

We had a ball!!

Schedule of Events

Wednesday, September 5th.

6:15 Pm. For those arriving on Wednesday, KeeWee and I and some of the other early arrivers are planning on having dinner at the El Dorado Buffet Restaurant. The El Dorado is part of the same giant casino complex as the Silver Legacy and the Circus Circus. The El Dorado Buffet is at one end of the complex. The Silver Legacy is in the middle, and the Circus Circus is on the opposite end.

Thursday, September 6th

8:30 am. Leave the Silver Legacy  Hospitality Room for one of the restaurants for breakfast.
1:15 pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to car pool to Cabela’s.
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm. Guided tour Cabela’s and browsing/shopping. Buy ammo? Pick up munchies and soft drinks on way back to hotel.
6:00pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to go to dinner. Location to be determined later.
Thursday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Friday, September 7th.

8:00am. NRA Sponsored breakfast in our Hospitality room. NRA representative will be speaking to us over breakfast.

9:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for rifle and pistol target shooting out to 900 yards.
10:00 am – 2:00pm. At the range.
4:00pm. – 5:45pm. Show-N-Tell at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Manufacturers and show new stuff, and attendees show neat things too!
6:00pm. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to go to  Dos Gecko’s Mexican Restaurant for dinner. (Currently un-sponsored)

7:30pm. (Approx) Ray Carter from the Second Amendment Foundation will talk to us, and other industry, shooting sports, and legal aspect folks will follow.

Friday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Saturday, September 8th.

8:00am. Gunbroker.com sponsored Breakfast in the Silver Legacy Hospitality room.
9:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for an introduction to Steel Challenge Action Pistol shooting and more.

9:45am – 2:00pm. At the range.
5:00pm – 6pm. Short presentation by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (maybe)
6:00 pm. NSSF all you can eat pizza feed at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. After dinner will be the fund raiser raffle for Project Valour-IT and the drawings for the door prizes.
Saturday Evening until Midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.
Sunday, September 12th.

8:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room for one of the restaurants for breakfast. (Eat fast – It’s nearly an hour to the Fernley range.)
8:45am. Leave for Fernley and Cowboy Action Shoot.

9:45a m – 1pm  Cowboy Action Shooting.

Please note that times and events may change at the last minute, so be sure to check the schedule posted in the Hospitality room regularly.

Cowboy Action Shooting at GBR-VII Yee - Haw!

WOW, big news! It wasn't until the very last minute that this all came together, but some good old fashioned initiative brought it all home! Several years ago i got to visiting with Russ T. Chambers (say his name fast a couple of times!) out at the Pyramid range, and we got to talking about Cowboy Action Shooting. We both agreed it would be neat if there was some way we could get the Cowboy Action Shooting somehow into the Gun Blogger Rendezvous. Unfortunately, there just wasn't any time in the GBR schedule to squeeze it in. We had target range on Friday, pistol bays and steel shooting on Saturday, and Cowboy Fast Draw with Quick Cal on Sunday.

Jasper Agate - The "Sheriff" of the Roop County Cowboy Shooters.

It was looking that we were going the get together with the Sage Hills Cowboy Fast Draw club this year in Virginia city in conjunction with the Virginia city Camel Races Festival. Plans were for the Sage Hills gang to have Cowboy Fast Draw set up at Virginia City to help show off the sport, and attract some new folks to Cowboy Fast Draw Competition. At the very last minute the Camel Races Festival changed management, and the Cowboy Fast Draw participation was denied. This happened only a few weeks ago, and I've been trying to get something as good, or even better, in its place.

Russ T. Chambers

It now looks like Sunday morning may well become one of the highlights of the entire Rendezvous! I tracked down "Jasper Agate" the PREZ of the Roop County Cowboy Shooters, and it turns out that on the same days as the GBR, their club is putting on a three day "Rendezvous" of their own, Western style! When I contacted them  they didn't yet have an activity scheduled for Sunday morning! WOW, what a stroke of luck!

We are going to get a demonstration of Cowboy Action Shooting, and then we'll get a chance to do some shooting and shoot a stage ourselves. There will also be a team competition underway on Sunday morning, so that should be fun to watch too!

This is gonna be fun!!

Raffle Prizes & Sponsors GBR-VII

True Blue Sam has put together a short video showing some of the things you can win at this year's Gun blogger Rendezvous, and also showing some of the organizations who will be attending and/or sponsoring this year's event.

Check it out:




You are going to kick yourself if you miss out and don't attend this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous! There's still time to register, but the Rendezvous is barely a week off, so hurry!!!

See You in Reno!

One of my favorite pistols after my dedicated race guns is my Ruger Single Six .22 caliber single action revolver. It's well made, well proportioned, feels right in your hand, and is very accurate. It's also a lot of fun to shoot. The one down-side, of sorts, was the six shot limitation before you had to reload, and with single action revolvers, reloading is kinda slow. Now, Ruger has come out with a ten shot version of the Single Six, called the single 10. 

In addition to increasing the capacity, they also put on adjustable sights, and made a number of other small changes. Thanks to the generosity of the great folks at Ruger, and special thanks to Lori Petoske of Ruger, someone at this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous will become the proud owner of a brand new Ruger Single 10.

You gotta be there to win it though, and it's not too late to register, so

See You In Reno!

Leupold Optics at GBR-VII

Thanks again to Allen Forkner of Swanson Russel for arranging for some really nice optics from Leupold to be in the fund raising raffle this year at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous. This year Leupold is sending a pair of optics for the GBR.

The first is their new VX-2 (not to be confused with the older VX-II). This will be a 3x9x40mm.

VX-2 3-9x40mm

Trusted by hunters and shooters worldwide. The VX®-2 delivers the performance and features that serious hunters demand. We thought of everything…tactile power indictors; finger-adjustable click windage and elevation dials; the brightness, clarity, and contrast needed to hunt even in low-light conditions. Of course, the ruggedness, absolute waterproof integrity, and famous Leupold® Full Lifetime Guarantee only add to the VX-2’s popularity.

http://leupold.com/hunting-shooting/scopes/vx-2-riflescopes/vx-2-3-9x40mm/

 They are also sending a Mark AR 1.25-4x20mm scope. This is a great choice for those MSRs or 3-Gun rigs.

Mark AR 1.5-4x20mm

The wide field-of-view at 1.5x combined with the intermediate range precision of 4x make the Leupold® Mark AR™ 1.5-4x20mm a perfect selection for close and mid-range shooting with an AR15/M-16 style rifle. From heavy brush to rolling hills, the Mark AR 1.5-4x20mm has it covered.

http://leupold.com/hunting-shooting/scopes/mark-ar-riflescopes/mark-ar-1-5-4x20mm/

You are going to kick yourself for not coming to this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous, you can be sure! There is still time to go, so get on it!!

See you in Reno!!

Win a SIG SAUER ACP AT The Rendezvous

Thanks to Allen Forkner from Swanson-Russell, we are going to have some amazingly cool items in the Soldier's Angels/Project Valour-IT fund raising raffle this year at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous. Unfortunately Allen won't be able to be there due to other work related commitments, but we hope he's back for next year.

Below is a picture of the  SI -SAUER Adaptive Carbine Platform. It is available with or without the stock, and the one without the stock is what has generously been donated to our fund raising raffle. The version without the stock does not require any special permits, according to Allen. The version with the stock, however, without the right permits, can get you in a lot of trouble!!

Here's a little more info on the SIG SAUER ACP:

The  SIG SAUER® Adaptive Carbine Platform (ACP) allows any handgun with an
accessory rail to be quickly modified into  a personal defense weapon or carbine style firearm. Regardless of the brand, most pistols equipped with an accessory rail can be mounted to the ACP without the need for modification to the base gun.

Fabricated from solid aircraft-grade aluminum, the ACP sports M1913 rails at the 3, 6 and 9 o’clock positions with a full-length top rail at the 12 o’clock position. Compatible accessories such as lights, red dot sights and lasers can be mounted for additional functionality.

The ACP brings Personal Defense Weapon (PDW) features to almost any handgun.

The ACP offers law enforcement and executive protection agencies the ability to deploy a carbine or SMG, but wth the controllability of a handgun. An integral hand stop permits the user to get a forward grip without the danger of covering the muzzle. The integral quick-detachable sling mounts allow an ACP-equipped pistol to be carried on a sling for fast access.

The new SIG SAUER ACP allows the shooter access to the pistol’s frame mounted controls, providing an easy training transition and familiar manual of arms. The ACP is also compatible with most sound suppressors.

Want to know more?

Here’s a video of the ACP in action:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK8gKaEGSQ0&feature=player_embedded

The direct link to the product page is:
http://www.sigsauer.com/Catalog/acp-adaptive-carbine-platform.aspx


This is just a start of listing all the cool stuff you can win this year at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous!

See you in Reno!

GBR-VII Schedule

Wednesday, September 5th.

6:00 Pm. For those arriving on Wednesday, KeeWee and I and some of the other early arrivers are planning on having dinner at the El Dorado Buffet Restaurant. The El Dorado is part of the same giant casino complex as the Silver Legacy and the Circus Circus. 


Thursday, September 6th

8:30 am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality Room for one of the restaurants for breakfast.
2:15 pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to car pool to Cabela’s.
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm. Guided tour Cabela’s and browsing/shopping. Pick upmunchies and soft drinks on way back to hotel. Buy ammo?
6:00pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to go to dinner. Location to be determined later.
Thursday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Friday, September 7th.

8:00am. NRA Sponsored breakfast in our Hospitality room. NRA representative will be speaking to us over breakfast. 
9:00am. Leave the SilverLegacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for rifle and pistol target shooting out to 900 yards.

10:00 am – 2:00pm. At the range.
4:00pm. – 5:45pm. Show-N-Tell at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Manufacturers and show new stuff, and attendees show neat things too!
6:00pm. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to go to  Dos Gecko’s Mexican Restaurant for dinner. (Currently un-sponsored)

7:30pm. (Approx) Ray Carter from the Second Amendment Foundation will talk to us, and other
industry, shooting sports, and legal aspect folks will follow.

Friday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality
room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Saturday, September 8th.

8:00am. Gunbroker.com sponsored Breakfast in our Silver Legacy  Hospitality room.
9:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for an introduction to Steel Challenge Action Pistol shooting and more.

9:45am – 2:00pm. At the range.
5:00pm – 6pm. Short presentation by the National Shooting Sports Foundation (maybe)
6:00 pm. NSSF all you can eat pizza feed at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. After dinner will be the fund raiser raffle for Project Valour-IT and the drawings for the door prizes.
Saturday Evening until Midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Sunday, September 12th.

8:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy  Hospitality room for one of the restaurants for breakfast.
9:00am. Leave for surprise event (maybe)

10:00am – 1pm Surprise Event

The Cowboy Fast Draw Intergalactic Fast Draw Championships, originally planned to be at the Virginia City Camel Races Festival has been cancelled as the Festival has changed management and they decided that they did not want Cowboy Fast Draw at their Festival.

I am working on another possible event, (also very cool) but if I can get it together at this late date or not remains to be seen.  If  I can arrange it, it will be fun!

Please note that times and events may change at the last minute, so be sure to check the schedule posted in the Hospitality room regularly.

Updates

The Gun Blogger Rendezvous is less than a month away, and this year's event is shaping up nicely. We've gained  some new sponsors, and the raffles and door prizes are looking great too. GunBroker.com will be a new sponsor, and will be providing a meal for us. It's not yet determined if it will be a breakfast or a dinner, but they are going to make sure none of the attendees go hungry, at least on one day of the Rendezvous!

Due to the efforts of our friend Allen Forkner of Swanson-Russell, both Leupold and SIG-SAUER will be major sponsors again this year.  Unfortunately Allen won't be able to attend this year as work requires him to be elsewhere for that weekend, but you know he'd be there if he could! I've got a bunch of pictures and info on the really cool stuff from SIG and Leupold, but that will be in another post. You WILL want what SIG is donating, though, I guarantee it!!

I talked to Randi Rogers, and she's no longer with Glock. She's now working for, and shooting for Comp-Tac. She's been winning some really big matches, too!  Go Get 'em Randi!!

Anyhow, it looks like Glock will no longer be a sponsor as they haven't even responded to multiple attempts to get them back again this year. We appreciate their sponsorship in the past, and we hate to lose them this year, but we apparently don't fit whatever their requirements might be. The good news, though, is that Comp-Tac will be sending along some goodies for us. Thanks, Randi!

In other GBR News, the Smokin' Gecko Restaurant and pizza place has changed in to a Mexican restaurant. Our Friday dinner will now be Mexican, instead of ribs. I enjoyed their BBQ Ribs, but Mex is fine too! The pizza for our Saturday Night NSSF Pizza Feed will be coming from another source this year, and I am still looking into that.

The "Who's Who" list of this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous is growing, and I am pleased to announce that Ray Carter of the Second Amendment Foundation will be joining us in Reno at the Silver Legacy for the Rendezvous. If you aren't quite sure exactly who the SAF is, or what they do, go check out their website. They are definitely "In the trenches" fighting for our 2nd. Amendment rights.

Having the SAF send Ray to our Rendezvous is really cool, and I'm looking forward to meeting him in person and getting the latest on what's happening.

You really should be there too!

See You In Reno!!

If you've been thinking about going to this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous and you are in the Seattle area, but cost was a major concern, then Alaska Airlines has a deal for you! Right now you can fly round trip bob-stop Seattle to Reno on Alaska Airlines for only $185, and that's round trip! You can't drive it one way for that.

Will this price last very long? I expect it will disappear VERY quickly, so if you are in the area, you might want to call 1-800-ALASKAAIR.COM and get your tickets. I looked the other day and if you don't mind a stop in San Jose, there were some flights available for $129 bucks. Those may be gone, but  maybe not, you never can tell.

So come on down to Reno for the Rendezvous and join in on the fun!!

See You In Reno!

A whole lot of the fun at the annual Gun Blogger Rendezvous is all the folks you get to meet and visit with. Here's a picture of a couple of faces you may well see at this year's GBR.

Is it:


          1. Abbott & Costello?
          2. Groucho & Harpo?
          3. Amos & Andy?
          4. Charlie McCarthy & Edgar Bergen?
          5. Ricki & Lucy?
          6. Jeff Dunham & Walter?
          7. A couple of dudes at the SHOT Show?

I guess you'll just have to come to the Gun Blogger Rendezvous to find out!

See you in Reno!!

The Gun Blogger Rendezvous is not that far off, so you need to get your registration in, and your hotel room booked right away. Why should you go to the Rendezvous? Well, Derek, The Packing Rat, put together a short video that answers the question really well.

You don't have to be a blogger to attend, just someone with common interests, and since you are reading this in the first place, most likely you'd have the time of your life in Reno, between the range trips, the socializing, and everything else that gets crammed into three and a half short days!

Not only is it a great time with some really interesting people, but you also will end up with some cool door prizes, and if you buy a ticket and get lucky, you just might win a gun or something! Every penny we can clear at the Rendezvous goes to Project Valour-IT, a division of Soldier's angels, so you know your money is going to a good cause.

See you at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous!!

Interactive Registration For GBR-VII

GG at Girls <3 Guns (Girls Love Guns for us Neanderthals), a regular attendee of the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, has put together a really nice interactive PDF file for filling out your Rendezvous Registration. This new form really works well, and you can fill it in on line, then print it out, put your check with it, and mail it in. The old clunky way still works too, where you download and print out the registration form by hand, but with the new form, you can fill it in on line and print it, thus saving wear and tear on your ball point pen, pencil, crayon, or Smith-Corona.

We are looking forward to this being the best Gun Blogger Rendezvous yet, so fill out your registration and get it mailed in right away. It's not that far off, and we need to get a good estimate of how many will be there in order to set up space, meals, and so forth. You don't have to be a blogger to attend, just someone who reads the blogs, enjoys shooting and guns, and would like to meet the gun bloggers in person so you can put a face to the name.

This is the year, so come join us for a whole lot of gunny fun in Reno in September!

Here's the link again for the Registration form, in case clicking on the picture above doesn't work for you.

See you in Reno................

Silver Legacy Group Code

I thought I had posted the group discount code for the rooms at the Silver Legacy for the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, but after looking for the post, I can't find it, so I guess I didn't get it posted after all.

The Group Room Discount Code for the Silver Legacy is

GBLOG12

Give them this code when you make your reservations and you will get discounted room rates and free WiFi, which they otherwise charge you for.

See you in Reno!

Registration is now OPEN for GBR-VII

I now have the registration form available for this September's Gun Blogger Rendezvous. It's a PDF file, so download it, print it out, and send it in. All the instructions are on the form.

I think this year's Rendezvous will be the biggest yet, and Reno's weather in September is usually quite nice for spending some time out at the different ranges.

If you've been wanting to get to the Rendezvous, then make this year you finally come to Reno and join in on all the fun!

It's a blast!

Silver Legacy Financial Agreement Reached

The Silver Legacy hotel and casino in Reno, the site of this September's Gun Blogger Rendezvous,  has been struggling financially,  like most of the casinos out there. Part of this is due to the economy, and part of it is due to additional competition from tribal casinos.

On the first of March a note from their creditors for 142 million dollars was due, and the Silver Legacy's owners were not able to come up with the money to pay off the note. The casino owners and the creditors have been in negotiations trying to work out an agreement to restructure the debt and to allow the Silver Legacy to continue in business and avoid bankruptcy.

I just received an email from the Silver Legacy that an agreement has been reached, and the Silver Legacy will continue on, business as usual. This is great news for the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, as the Silver Legacy folks have always been great to work with, and I really didn't want to have to re-locate the Rendezvous to another facility.

Here's the Reno Gazette Journal article

See you all in Reno in September!

The contract is now signed for the 2012 Gun Blogger Rendezvous. The dates will be September 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th of September. This is the second week in September, as usual. It is also the same weekend as the Reno Balloon Races.

The Rendezvous will be at the Silver Legacy Resort and Casino in Reno, where it's been for the last few years. We will be moving a few doors over to a larger Hospitality Room, but only a few doors away from where we were last year. The new location has the possibility of opening up into a larger size, which allows us some growth area for the future. Plans are to follow the basic schedule of last year's Rendezvous, but there will also be a few changes, and possibly some new things too, but it's still; way too early in the planning stages to make any announcements about that.

Every year I get a few emails asking why the Rendezvous can't be held on a different weekend, as that weekend conflicts with (fill in the blank). Reno has some sort of major event going on almost every weekend, and hotel prices vary widely depending on the demand for rooms. The week after the Rendezvous is the Reno Air Races, for example, and it's tough to get a room at all, let alone a group of rooms at a discount. Later in the month the weather starts getting colder, and it starts getting miserable at the ranges when we go shooting. Earlier in the year it seems that just about everyone is busy just about every weekend. In short, we are on the dates we're on because it's the best compromise, taking all the different factors in to account. If the dates happen to conflict with something for you, we're sorry about that, but there isn't a single day in the year that doesn't conflict with something for somebody, so we try to pick the best possible dates we can get.

Someone always asks "Why not put the Rendezvous in (his home town)? ", or "Why not move it around to a different city every year, like the NRA Convention?" The short answer is that it's an amazing amount of work to put on an event like the Rendezvous, and where the NRA has a good sized staff on the payroll to organize the convention, the GBR has only an unpaid staff of KeeWee and I, along with the much appreciated help of a few blogger volunteers. To move to a different city  means re-inventing just about every detail, and moving it every year means starting almost from scratch every year, and that's way more work than I can handle.

We all hope that the Gun Blogger Rendezvous dates will work into your schedule and that we'll see you in Reno in September. If you've never been to the GBR, perhaps this is the year to give it a try! We always have a grand time, and for spouses not so interested in the gunny side of the Rendezvous, there's also lots of other things in Reno to see and do, so come to Reno in September, and have a ball!

Rendezvous Raises over $8,000!

We've just about got all of the accounting finished up, thanks to the help of Barrett Escrow, and it looks like the Gun Blogger Rendezvous raised about $6,000 for Project Valour-IT. Added to that is the yet to be determined amount being raised by SIG's generous donation of a SIG 1911, custom engraved with the Soldier's Angels logo, currently being auctioned off at Gunbroker.com. At the moment the price on it is $2,075, and there's still time for it to go even higher. Although the Gunbroker auction didn't happen at the Rendezvous, it was a direct result of SIG Sauer's participation in the Rendezvous as a sponsor, so I think it's OK to count it in there. Regardless, it's more money raised for Soldier's Angels and Project Valour-IT, so it's definitely good news!

Hospitality Room Change

There has been a last minute room change for the Gun Blogger Rendezvous Hospitality room. We are now using the Silver Baron "E" room instead of the Silver Baron "C". It is just a couple of doors over, and there is a Gun Blogger Rendezvous sign outside the door.

Otis Technologies To Sponsor Rendezvous

Otis Technologies, maker of some very fine cleaning kits, will be sponsoring the Saturday breakfast at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous. In addition, they will also be contributing one of their Elite Cleaning Kits to the Project Valour-IT Fund Raising Raffle at the Rendezvous.

Otis Elite Gun Cleaning Kit.

 Here's the full description of the Elite kit:

The most innovative gun cleaning system in the Otis line of products is the Otis Elite®.

Suitable for an armorer but used by thousands, the  Otis Elite® is designed to maintain all rifles .17 to .50 caliber,  pistols .17 to .50 caliber, shotguns .410 to 12/10 gauge, and all  in-line muzzleloaders. The Otis Elite® contains the  world famous item #750 Tactical Cleaning System, and the entire line of  bronze bore and chamber cleaning brushes from .17 caliber through 12/10  gauge.

Also included in this extensive cleaning system are  six Memory-Flex® cleaning rods, an all purpose nylon receiver brush, a  T-handle bar, three slotted tips, obstruction removers, small and large  Patch Savers®, a bore reflector/flag safety,  small caliber and all-caliber 100% cotton patches, and two .5 oz. tubes  of Otis O85® Ultra Bore® Solvent.

All of the components are neatly stored in a black  nylon, rust proof case which includes a lock and keys for additional  security. The Otis Elite® now includes the brass scraper tool set,  optics cleaning gear and an interactive instructional  DVD. With over 40 gun cleaning components, detailed gun maintenance  guide, and a lifetime warranty, the Otis Elite® is the Hallmark of  Excellence in firearm maintenance.

To say that this kit is pretty nice is like saying the Pope tends to be a bit religious!
Come to the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, buy a raffle ticket, and this Otis Elite kit could follow you home!

See you in Reno.................

Appleseed Project At The Rendezvous

More great news from GG at Girls Love Guns!I've always thought it would be great to attend one of the Appleseed rifle clinics, and maybe this will be the incentive to finally do it!

The following has been "borrowed"  from GG's blog:

HawkHavn of Appleseed has agreed to send Gun Blogger Rendezvous FREE APPLESEED gift certificates. We will be passing them out to all of those who have registered to attend GBR at the Saturday night shin dig. Whoohoo!

HawkHavn will also be sending free targets (who doesn’t love free targets?) as well as Appleseed brochures and business cards. I hope every GBR blogger uses this opportunity to learn about RWVA and its Appleseed program and to attend a free Appleseed shoot. These shoots are amazing.

Still Time To Attend The Rendezvous

There is still time to get your registration in and to attend this year's Gun blogger Rendezvous, but it starts next Thursday, September 8th., so you need to get hopping! If you send your registration Priority Mail (or FEDEX) today or tomorrow, I should get it in time to get you in. If not, or if it only becomes possible to attend at the very last minute, you can still get in. Download and print out your registration and bring it, along with your $30 / per person to the Rendezvous and give it to me directly, and I'll get you in. The Rendezvous is not full to capacity, and one way or another, if you show up, we'll get you in.

2011 Gun Blogger Rendezvous Registration Form

Hotel  accommodations group rate pricing "Officially" ended 30 days before the first day of the Rendezvous, but they have been very good about honoring the group rate at the last minute, provided they have the room available. Be sure to contact them right away and give them the group code.

To reserve your room, give them a call at the Silver Legacy at  1-800-687-8733 and give them the Gun Blogger rendezvous Group Code of GBLOG11.  When you are making your reservation, you might ask them if you can get  a room that faces McCarran Park, so you can watch the hot air balloons  from your window.

See you in Reno!

Driving Directions to Ranges at Rendezvous

NOTE: The directions last year weren't very good, and we have re-written them this year to make the route more direct. HOWEVER, until we have one of the Reno Residents verify these directions, they are still only tentative. If there are any changes needed, we will post the changes as soon as we know what to change. The final directions will be available at the Rendezvous.

Driving Directions from Hotel to Washoe County Regional Shooting Facility – Pyramid Range Friday for long Range Rifle and Pistol, Saturday for Steel Challenge Pistol shooting.

• Start at (Silver Legacy) 407 N VIRGINIA ST, RENO going toward E 5TH ST - go 0.3 mi
• 0.3 Turn RIGHT (East) onto E Maple St 131 yds
• 0.4 Take Ramp onto I-80
• Take SR-445 [Pyramid Lake Hwy] exit towards Pyramid Lake
• Follow road towards Pyramid Lake. Watch for sign to range.
• 26.8 (Approx.) Turn LEFT (West) onto Local road(s) 0.7 mi
• 27.5 Turn RIGHT (North-East) onto Local road(s) 43 yds
• 27.6 Arrive Range

SUMMARY
Driving distance: 27.6 miles; Trip duration: 31 minutes    Driving time: 31 minutes

On Friday we will be shooting at the covered Public Shooting range area. On Saturday we will be at the Western Nevada Pistol League pistol bays. These bays are part of the same facility. The pistol bays are in the same area, but to the right of the public shooting area, down a dirt road.

The Pyramid Range

Driving Directions from Hotel to the Sage Hills Gun Club for Cowboy Fast Draw on Sunday.

On Sunday we will be shooting Cowboy Fast Draw at the Sage Hills Gun Club Range in Reno. 7370 Desert Way, Reno, NV. Sage Hill Clay Sports is located on the southeastern flank of the Washoe County basin, overlooking the city of Reno and its southernmost suburbs.

The club is easy to find if you follow our directions and not those of any online mapping service or your vehicle's navigation, its driving directions will dead-end you on the wrong street.

Follow these instructions instead:

• Start at (Silver Legacy) 407 N VIRGINIA ST, RENO going toward E 5TH ST - go 0.3 mi
• 0.3 Turn RIGHT (East) onto E Maple St 131 yds
• 0.4 Take Ramp onto I-80 1.1 mi I-80
• 1.5 At exit 15, turn RIGHT onto Ramp 0.2 mi US-395 / Susanville / Carson City
• 1.7 Take Ramp (LEFT) onto US-395 1.3 mi US-395 / Susanville
• From the 395, exit at Damonte Ranch Parkway and drive EAST.
• Turn LEFT onto Steamboat Parkway.
• Turn LEFT onto Rio Wrangler.
• Follow Rio Wrangler onto the access road and into the shooting facility (we're up on the hill above you).

Tentative Schedule For The Rendezvous

Wednesday, September 7th.

6:00 Pm. For those arriving on Wednesday, KeeWee and I and some of the other early arrivals are planning on having dinner at the El Dorado Buffet Restaurant. The El Dorado is part of the same giant casino complex as the Silver Legacy and the Circus Circus. 

Thursday, September 8th

8:30 am. Leave the Silver Legacy "Silver Baron C” Hospitality Room for one of the restaurants for breakfast.
2:15 pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to car pool to Cabela’s.
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm. Guided tour Cabela’s and browsing/shopping. Pick up munchies and soft drinks on way back to hotel. Buy ammo?
6:00pm. Leave the Hospitality Room to go to dinner. Location to be determined later.
Thursday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Friday, September 9th.

8:00am. NRA Sponsored breakfast in the Silver Baron “C” hospitality room. California firearms Attorney Chuck Michel will be talking to us over breakfast.
9:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for rifle and pistol target shooting out to 900 yards.
9:45am – 2:00pm. At the range.
4:00pm. – 5:45pm. Show-N-Tell at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Manufacturers and show new stuff, and attendees show neat things too!
6:00pm. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to go to Gecko’s BBQ Restaurant for dinner sponsored by GunUp.com.
7:30pm. (Approx) Alan Gura informally discusses legal stuff.
Friday Evening until midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.

Saturday, September 10th.

8:00am. Otis Technologies sponsored Breakfast in the Silver Legacy "Silver Baron C" Hospitality room.
9:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy Hospitality room to car pool up and head out to the Washoe County Shooting Facility, the Pyramid range for an introduction to Steel Challenge Action Pistol shooting and more.
9:45am – 2:00pm. At the range.
5:00pm – 6pm. Bill Brassard of the National Shooting Sports Foundation
6:00 pm. NSSF all you can eat pizza feed at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. After dinner will be the fund raiser raffle for Project Valour-IT and the drawings for the door prizes.
Saturday Evening until Midnight: Refreshments and conversation at the Silver Legacy Hospitality room. Bring your own refreshments and munchies.



Sunday, September 11th.

8:00am. Leave the Silver Legacy "Silver Baron C" Hospitality room for one of the restaurants for breakfast.
9:00am. Leave for the Cowboy Fast Draw Blogger Match.
10:00am – 1pm Cowboy Fast Draw Shooting with Quick Cal Eilrich.

The Cowboy Fast Draw shooting will be the last scheduled event of the Gun Blogger Rendezvous. For those not leaving until Monday however, there are still lots of things to do. Virginia city is nearby (you are already part way there at the Fast Draw venue), the Reno Car Museum, and the river walk through downtown Reno are all recommended. There may also be shows available for Sunday night of interest.

As you can see from the schedule, there is not a lot of time extra throughout the day, so we need to try to keep as close to on schedule as we can manage, otherwise it makes it difficult to have enough time for all of the activities. Although the conversations in the evenings tend to go well into the night, I would suggest not staying up too late, as you will regret it as the Rendezvous goes on!  

Pro Ears at The Rendezvous

I just got an email from Pro Ears (IMHO the BEST dynamic hearing protectors money can buy)  and they are really stepping up to the plate with their sponsorship of the Gun Blogger Rendezvous and our fund raising efforts for Soldier's Angels and Project Valour-IT.

First, they will be giving a set of Ultra 33 hearing protectors to the first 35 attendees to register for and attend the Gun Blogger Rendezvous.

Pro Ears Ultra 33 Hearing Protectors

Second, they will be bringing bags of  “stuff”, including stickers, DVD’s with images and videos, spec sheets, and more, for all registered attendees.

Third, they will have a gift promo code worth $50 at  Proears.com, for all registered attendees.

Fourth, they will be donating 1 set of Pro Ears Pro Tac Mag Gold hearing protectors (MSRP $329.95) to the raffle.

Fifth, they will be bringing sample Pro Tac Mag Golds for all to try-about 3 or 4 sets—on the range.

Sixth, Charles Ricci, co-owner of Pro Ears, will be attending the Gun Blogger Rendezvous in person, and bringing some interesting stories about pro ears and hearing protection.

Charlie did mention that he wouldn't be bringing any of his guns, though, but I think we can find a few interesting things for him to shoot, don't you think?

Lucky Gunner Sponsors GBR-VI

The good folks at Lucky Gunner are contributing a $100 Gift Certificate to the Gun Blogger Rendezvous for our Fund Raising Raffle.

In addition, they have set up a special discount code for $15 off of any purchase of $150 or more. They would like for the GBR attendees to share this special on their blogs as an exclusive deal for event participants and their blog following to enjoy.

Here are the details:

• $15 off an order of $150 or more on LuckyGunner.com
• Good for 1 use per customer
• Expires this September 30th, 2011
• Discount code:  GBR-2011

Need ammo? check it out!

History Channel & Top Shot Sponsor The Rendezvous

When I was going over the list of sponsors, I knew I'd probably forget someone, and sure enough, I missed one of our newest Gun Blogger Rendezvous sponsors, The History Channel and the Top Shot Program.

I'm sure most of you are already watching Top Shot, but if you somehow missed it, it's a really enjoyable program. I watch almost  no television at all, with the exception of the Top Shot show, and I've seen every episode of Top Shot from the very first one.

If you've missed the previous episodes, you can watch them on your computer by going to the Top Shot website. That's cool, since you can watch certain segments more than once, as I do!

Rendezvous Supporters & Sponsors

Here's a list of all the great sponsors and supporters who make the Gun Blogger Rendezvous possible.

Brownell's
Cabela's Reno
Cowboy Fast Draw Association
Crimson Trace
Front Sight Training Institute
GLOCK
GunUp
Leupold
Lucky Gunner Ammo
Midway USA
National Rifle Association
National Shooting Sports Foundation
The Packing Rat
Palomino Valley Gun CLub
Para-USA
Pro-Ears
Sage Hill Reno Rustlers
Smallest Minority
Springfield Armory
Sturm, Ruger, and Co.
Weatherby
Western Nevada Pistol League
Woolrich Tactical
SIG SAUER 
J. Dewey  Mfg.
Otis 
The History Channel/Top Shot
Magnum Shooters Supply

I certainly hope I haven't forgotten any of the great sponsors and supporters for the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, but if you see someone I've left out, please leave me a comment and I'll get it fixed right away!

Thanks to True Blue Sam for pulling most of this list together for us!

Chuck Michel To Speak at The Rendezvous

Chuck Michel is the California attorney who represented the high school kid who was expelled from school for having his shotgun in his pickup truck that was parked off campus when he was in school as he had been duck hunting before going to school. Chuck got the lad back into school, recovered the legal costs, and the entire incident removed from the school records.

Chuck works with the NRA on firearms and Second Amendment cases in California. Chuck is planning on attending the NRA Breakfast on Friday morning at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, and hopefully, will be able to spend some time with us in the Hospitality room socializing!

If you have considered attending the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, this is definitely the year to be there. You don't have to be a blogger to attend, either. The Rendezvous is open to not only the Gun Bloggers, but to everyone who has similar interests, including industry folks, the NRA, The National Shooting Sports Foundation, competition shooters, and more. There will be attendees from New York, New Jersey, Ohio, and all over the United States.

We need a few more folks attending, just to fill it out to a nice comfortable size, without it getting to big and impersonal.

The Rendezvous is an event like no other, and if you miss it,  you are going to kick yourself, particularly once you read the write-ups after the Rendezvous is over and find out what you missed!

So,


The 2011 Rendezvous will be September 8th, 9th, 10th, & 11th, 2011 at the Silver Legacy in Reno, NV. It's not too late to register and make your reservations.

Don't forget, all the money we raise at the Rendezvous goes to help injured military folks through Soldier's angels and Project Valour-IT.

Win A Ruger SR9C at the Rendezvous!

CORRECTION: Ruger is donating a SR9C (Compact) rather than a SR9B. Even cooler!!

The great folks at Ruger have come through big time in helping the Gun Blogger Rendezvous in our fund raising efforts for Soldier's Angels and Project Valour-IT. Ruger is donating a Ruger SR9C for our raffle. The SR9 series are a hot item right now, and I'm sure they can sell every one they can make, just as fast as they can make them!

WIN ME AT THE RENDEZVOUS

Yes, there is a little fine print, but here's the short version.

• You must be able to legally own this gun to win it. 
• If you can't legally own it, for any reason, you have made a contribution to Project Valour-IT, but you don't win anything. 
• No substitutions. 
• You cannot give your ticket to someone else. 
• The name on the ticket must be the name of someone who can legally own this gun, else no gun.
• No Exceptions.
• You must present at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous at the time of the drawing to win. 
• All decisions are final.
  

More News and Sponsors

I've got so much new and interesting things going on regarding the Gun Blogger Rendezvous, I haven't been able to keep up with it all. There are going to be some new and fun things going on at the range on Friday and Saturday, along with the regular activities like in previous years. Weatherby and SIG SAUER are combining their efforts on the new activities.

Weatherby will be donating a new shotgun to the Project Valour-IT Fund Raising raffle, and Ruger is also donating a new pistol to the raffle. Dewey, makers of fine quality gun cleaning kits and rods, will be a new sponsor this year. Leupold will be adding a beautiful new scope to the raffle too. Pro Ears will be also sponsoring this year, and also letting us play with their hearing protectors at the range. We will be able to buy them at a very special Rendezvous price, if we find one we like.

This is just some of the highlights, but I've been so busy I haven't had time to really get posts up about all of the neat things going on for this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous.

If you don't go this year, I GUARANTEE you are going to kick yourself.

It's going to be amazing.


Hope to see you there!

Woolrich Joins Rendezvous as Sponsor

I just got an email informing me that Woolrich will not only be sponsoring this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous, but that their sponsorship will be the donation of  between $800 and $1,000 worth of really cool clothing!

Here's the email from Allen Forkner:

Woolrich Elite Series Tactical wants to keep you in comfortable concealed carry clothing for a year.

Woolrich Elite is donating an “Elite for a Year” package to the Gun Blogger Rendezvous prize table. The winner of this will receive one Elite Series Tactical item every month for the next 12 months. This includes new products slated to be unveiled at the 2012 SHOT Show.

A leader in military and law enforcement tactical wear, Woolrich Elite Series is taking advantage of its traditional sportswear catalog to develop concealed carry products for the responsible citizen. These products deliver all the tactical utility, without the heavy tactical look.

Items such as the Elite Concealed Carry Chino, the Elite Discreet Carry Short-Sleeve Shirt or the Elite Discreet Carry Twill Jacket are designed to meet the needs of concealed carry.

See more at www.woolricheliteseriestactical.com or visit us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/woolricheliteseriestactical.com

Would I look good in that, or what?

Always need shirts......

Even the pants are cool!

If you have never been to a Gun Blogger rendezvous, then this is the year to be there! Many thousands of dollars of neat things including guns, training, clothing, and lots more will be raffled off to folks attending the Rendezvous. There will also be a whole lot of swag for door prizes too.

Lots of bloggers that you probably already read will be there, and some other interesting folks too. You don't have to be a blogger to attend, either! It will be the Gun Blogger Event of the Year, so get your reservations in NOW, as it's less than eight weeks away!

What is Project Valour-IT?

All of the money we can raise at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous goes to Project Valour-IT, a division of soldier's Angels.

What exactly is Project Valour-IT? Let's let Maj. Chuck Ziegenfuss, the founder and first recipient, explain it:



Chuck has attended some of the Gun Blogger Rendezvous' in the past, but now that he's stationed in Hawaii, it's a bit far to travel for him. There WILL be someone at this year's Rendezvous representing Project Valour-IT, and although specifically who it will be has not been confirmed, it's going to be someone you will enjoy meeting if you are there!

Get your registrations in ASAP. You don't want to miss out on all the fun!

A hat tip to True Blue Sam for showcasing Chuck's video!

More great news! At this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous, coming up in mid-September in Reno, GunUp.com will be hosting our dinner on Friday night. We plan on going to the truly spectacular Buffet Dinner at the El Dorado hotel, part of the complex where the Gun Blogger Rendezvous is held. GunUp

CEO Dan Hall is planning on being there in person, and there's a good chance Caleb Giddings, who now works for GunUp, will also be there. No decision has been made yet as to if any of the GunUp Pro Staff and shooting team will be there. If you would like to meet Kelly Bachand (from the first year of Top Shot), Molly Smith, or James Austin in person, drop Dan an email at dan@gunup.com and let him know.

While you're at it, you might mention how much we appreciate the support for the Gun Blogger Rendezvous from GunUp!

GLOCK Donates Gun To Rendezvous

Great news for our fund Raising efforts at this year's Gun blogger rendezvous! GLOCK will be donating a GLOCK pistol certificate for our fund-raising raffle. This certificate will be good for a new basic model GLOCK of your choice. For a small upgrade fee, you can also step up to the fancier models. We will have all of the raffle rules available before you buy any tickets at the Rendezvous, but the new GLOCK will be won by someone actually attending the Rendezvous, so you must be present to win!

A big thanks to GLOCK, and particularly to Randi Rogers (El Supremo Lady Shooter!) at GLOCK for arranging the details for us. Maybe someday Randi will be able to join us at the Rendezvous......

Pro-Ears To Co-Sponsor Gun Blogger Rendezvous

I have always liked the Pro Ears hearing protectors, I've used their products for years, and the people that own and operate the company are really nice folks too. Pro Ears is an American owned company, and their products are built right here in the US of A, too!

I recently received an email from Charles Ricci, co-owner of the company, telling me that both he and his partner are planning to attend this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous. Pro Ears will be donating a $329.00 set of electronic hearing protectors to the raffle, and they will be bringing other promotional items too, for door prizes. On top of that, they will be bringing a number of the top of the line Pro Ears Hearing protectors for us to try out at the range days, and if we like them, we can buy them at the end of the Rendezvous at a HUGE discount!

This year's Rendezvous is going to be amazing!

Alan Gura at This Year's Rendezvous

Alan Gura and some of the "Usual suspects" at the
 2009 Gun Blogger rendezvous. That's Alan in the black shirt.

In 2009 at the Gun blogger Rendezvous we were fortunate to have Alan Gura as an attendee. Alan's schedule was tight, and he wasn't able to be there for the entire Rendezvous. Alan's insights on the Heller decision, the not-yet-decided McDonald decision, and the state of Second Amendment issues was well worth the trip all by itself!

This year, Alan is going to do his best to be there again at the Rendezvous, subject to scheduling, of course.

Here's a quote from Alan's email:

"Thanks so much again for your generous invitation. I'd be happy to attend as much of the get together as I can. I'll block off that time on my calendar and avoid setting things for those days. The final details will have to wait. As you may know this is an extraordinarily busy time in the 2A litigation business.."

I have also received information that another 2A attorney who has been doing some excellent high-profile work in California is also making plans to attend. We should be able to make an announcement on this very soon.

This September's Gun Blogger Rendezvous is going to blow the doors off of previous year's Rondy's, with new faces, new sponsors, higher involvement from our previous sponsors, and of course, the usual suspects there too! It looks like there will also be several well known folks from the shooting sports world, and more announcements will be coming soon on those folks, too!

We have already contacted the Silver Legacy about getting a bigger meeting room. Before we commit to that, though, we need to get some sort of idea as to how many are planning on attending. If we wait too long, the larger room will be taken by someone else, and then we will have to set a cut-off number for attendees to be able to use the room like we used last year.

If you are planning on attending, please send in your Rendezvous Registrations right away. If you are pretty sure you are going to be there but not sure enough to register yet, send me an email and let me at least get your name on the list of those hoping to be there.

2011 Gun Blogger Rendezvous Registration Form

Thanks! 

 

Time To Make Your Silver Legacy Reservations

It's already time to think about getting your Silver Legacy room reservations in for this September's Gun Blogger Rendezvous. We have reserved a block of rooms, and in doing so, we have also get free room WiFi for you, and the use of the Hospitality Room at no charge for the entire Rendezvous.

The Single/Double rate for Wednesday, Thursday, and Sunday nights is $59.00 per night, and the weekend rate for Friday and Saturday nights is $119.00 per night. That's for single OR double occupancy, so there is no extra charge for a second person. Yes, they do tack on some extra taxes and fees, just like everywhere else.

A Room at the Silver Legacy in Reno.

To reserve your room, give them a call at the Silver Legacy at 1-800-687-8733 and give them the Gun Blogger rendezvous Group Code of GBLOG11. When you are making your reservation, you might ask them if you can get a room that faces McCarran Park, so you can watch the hot air balloons from your window. The earlier you book your room, the better chance of getting a room facing that way.

The Gun Blogger Rendezvous is September 8th, 9th, 10th, and 11th. A number of us show up on Wednesday, though, and don't leave town until  Monday morning, the 12th.

If you've never made it to the Rendezvous, perhaps this is the year!

See you in Reno!!!

Rendezvous Registration

This year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous, scheduled for September 8, 9, 10, & 11th. at the Silver Legacy Hotel & Casino, is going to be even bigger and better than last year. The plans are for most of the events to follow the way it was last year, with some new things, new sponsors, new faces, and other good things thrown in.

I will be soon making an announcement about a person planning on attending who you will definitely want to meet! (No, no word from Sarah Palin, but one never knows....)

I can tell you already that this is not the sort of thing where you will have much chance to catch up on your sleep! Also going on the same weekend as the Gun Blogger Rendezvous will be the Reno Balloon Races. Watching over 200 hot air balloons in the air at the same time, and from your hotel window, is something to see! The park where they launch the balloons is really close to the hotel, so you get quite a view.

To get your registration in, click the link to download the Registration Form, fill it out, and mail it in, along with your check. If you have a few extra bucks to donate to Project Valour-IT along with your Registration, there's a place on the Registration form for that, too.

2011 Gun Blogger Rendezvous Registration Form

Next week I will be posting all of the information on how to book your hotel room at the Silver Legacy, and how to get the group rate. The Hospitality Room that we use throughout the Rendezvous is provided at no charge to us, provided we have enough folks staying in their hotel. They also provide our group with free Internet Access in our hotel rooms, so you can get in some blogging, if you are so inclined, in your spare time!

See you in Reno in September!!

Win a .45 A GBR-VI

For those of you that attended the Gun Blogger Rendezvous last year or the year before, you already know True blue Sam's Mom Bea. For those of you that haven't met Bea, True Blue Sam has a post up about his 110 pound (maybe) 80 year old .45 Revolver packing mother. It is an absolute 'Must Read". Not only is Bea one of the coolest shooters you'll ever meet, she has decided that since she has a Ruger Black Hawk in .45, she figures everyone should have one!

Bea has arranged with Ken Jorgensen, Lori Petoske, and the great folks at Ruger  to buy a brand new Ruger Black Hawk, which she is then donating to be raffled off at this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous as part of our fund raising efforts in support of Project Valour-IT!

You better start making plans to be there at this year's Gun Blogger rendezvous!

You should also go read the entire post over at Sam's about Bea.

2011 Rendezvous Dates Set

Great news! The contract with the Silver Legacy Hotel in Reno has been negotiated and signed,  and the dates for next year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous have been set. The 2011 Gun Blogger Rendezvous will be held on September 8th., 9th., 10th., and 11th. That's Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

The hotel room rates are exactly the same as last year, and for those coming in on Wednesday or departing on Monday, there are also group rates for Wednesday and Sunday nights. The plan is for the 2011 Rendezvous to very closely follow the 2010 event as far as major activities and outings, with some new smaller events thrown in. If you have never attended the Rendezvous, or haven't been there for a few years, have a look at last year's schedule and you'll get a pretty good idea of what to expect at GBR-VI.

The money we raise at the Rendezvous will go to Project Valour-IT,  like last year.

I can pretty much guarantee you that the attendees to GBR-VI will not get enough sleep, eat more than they should, meet some amazing people, and be able to set off the TSA's gunpowder residue detector from 100 yards away!

You should put the dates on your calendar right now, before you forget. For those of you planning on flying to Reno, I would suggest setting up your travel dates on one of the online airfare watch services like Kayak, and follow the air fares closely. When you start monitoring the airfares well in advance, you can usually get the best prices available.

See You in Reno next September!!

Soldier's Angels Article About this Year's Rendezvous

There's a nice article about this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous up over at the Soldiers Angels / Project Valour-IT website.

Go check it out!

Steel Shooting at the Rendezvous

True Blue Sam put together a very good video of some of the steel shooting at the Gun Blogger Rendezvous.



It was a lot of fun!

Steel Challenge and Cowboy Fast Draw at the Rendezvous

The guys at CS Tactical put together a really well done video of the Steel Challenge and Cowboy Fast Draw sessions from this year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous.


Gun Blogger Rendezvous 2010 from CS Tactical on Vimeo.

Mike, from CS Tactical, knocked me out of the fast draw, but I shot some of my best times of the day, making him work for it! It came down to Mike having two wins and I had one, so I had to win the next run against him to stay in the competition. I shot a .739, which for me is about as fast as I go, but Mike shot .736, and I was done for the day. That decisive round is on the video. Mike went on to win the match overall with some very good shooting. After the match the timer operator commented that for a bunch of folks that don't shoot Cowboy Fast Draw we had a pretty fast group!

"Next year, Mike, I'll be a gunnin' for ya!!"

Thanks to Mike and "Mase" from CS Tactical for putting together the video, and to The Western Nevada Pistol League folks for making the steel shooting possible this year, and to Quick Cal and the Sage Hills Reno Rustlers for putting on the Cowboy Fast Draw match for us.

$5,088 Raised for Project Valour-IT at GBR-V

Although there will most likely be a few donations made to Project Valour-IT as a result of the Gun Blogger Rendezvous that are not in the totals, as it now stands the Gun Blogger Rendezvous raised $5,088 this year in Reno! We also had the largest attendance and the most shooters at the range events that we've ever had.Thanks to the generous support of all of our wonderful sponsors, everyone went home with lots of cool swag. It was absolutely the best Gun Blogger Rendezvous ever!

This year's Gun Blogger Rendezvous set the bar really high, and next year, I hope to move it even higher.

Thanks again to everyone who made it possible, and thanks to Soldier's Angels and Project Valour-IT for all the great things they do for our troops.