Lauryl Akenhead of Team Ruger won second place overall and Highest Lady at the Spears Mountain Safari NRL Hunter competition in Gladstone, Virginia, competing against 76 shooters with her Ruger American Rifle Gen II in 6.5 Creedmoor.
The MidwayUSA Foundation's 5th Annual Day of Clays in Minnesota raised over $225,000 for youth shooting teams, with 350 athletes competing at Rice Creek Hunting & Recreation on May 2nd. Reed's Family Outdoor Outfitters sponsored the event, which benefited 42 youth shooting teams through the Foundation's donation-matching program funded by Larry and Brenda Potterfield.
Team Ruger's David Olhasso and James McGinty secured multiple victories at the 2026 Maryland IDPA Championship and PSA Shootout using the Ruger RXM in 9mm Luger. McGinty won first place in the PSA Shootout's Open Auto division, while Olhasso earned first place in the Enhanced Service Pistol division at the Maryland IDPA Championship.
The USA College Clay Target League completed its spring season with 626 athletes from 66 colleges and universities competing in trap, skeet, and sporting clays. Justin Jerome from Alfred State College won Top Overall and Top Male honors, while Jordan Lewis from St. Cloud Technical and Community College earned Top Female. The fall season begins in September with the national championship in October.
Team Ruger's Gordon Carrell and Randi Rogers won top honors at the 2026 Texas State Open Championship in Orchard, Texas, competing with Ruger RXM pistols. Carrell secured first place overall in the Production division with a score of 259.01, while Rogers earned first place in the Carry Optics unclassified category and second High Lady.
Lancer Systems will exhibit at SOF Week 2026, May 18-21 at the Tampa Convention Center in Tampa, Florida, showcasing weapon systems, carbon fiber components, magazines, and unreleased products at Booth #227.
EOTECH announced its Officer-Involved Shooting (OIS) Optic Replacement Program, providing immediate temporary replacement optics at no cost to law enforcement agencies whose issued EOTECH optics are removed as evidence following verified OIS incidents. The program preserves training consistency and alleviates emergency replacement costs for departments.
RetailBI, powered by Gearfire, released its monthly Firearm Sales Index showing a 12.2% year-over-year decline in April 2026 and a year-to-date decline of 7.9%. The index uses same-store adjusted methodology from over 2,000 U.S. firearms retailers to provide accurate new firearm demand data, replacing reliance on NICS figures.
The Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) is recruiting an experienced General Counsel to serve as a key advisor to leadership and the Board of Directors. The position, based in Missoula, Montana, requires a JD, legal licensure, and ten or more years of experience in non-profit law, land acquisitions, environmental law, and corporate governance.
PROOF Research announced shorter barrel configurations for the PROOF Elevation 2.0 and Elevation MTR 2.0 rifles, now available in Tactical Flat Dark Earth and Midnight colors. Both models feature carbon fiber technology, Zermatt Arms Origin actions, and TriggerTech triggers, with MSRPs ranging from $3,199 to $3,899.
FALCO Holsters announces four new OWB hybrid holsters—C915, C915 L, C916, and C916 L—expanding its TalonGuard lineup. The models feature premium Italian leather and Kydex construction with optional light-bearing configurations, priced from $129.95 to $139.95.
Safariland, a brand of The Safariland Group and key brand of Cadre Holdings, Inc., has launched the innovative HOLLE Duty Belt system. This next-generation lightweight load-carrying platform features precision-mounted accessories, multiple buckle options, and broad compatibility with existing Safariland tactical accessories for enhanced operational flexibility.
Taurus celebrates the 20th anniversary of its iconic Judge® revolver with refined enhancements and updated features. The legendary firearm, which redefined the revolver market and earned iconic status among shooters, returns with upgraded looks while maintaining the versatility and performance that made it an industry leader.
Engaged Industries designed suppressors specifically for The Tactical Games competition, focusing on reduced recoil, minimized gas blowback, and cleaner operation. The suppressors help competitors maintain control and accuracy under pressure while keeping rifles cooler and more reliable throughout extended match days.
Canik unveiled the METE MC9 Prime NC, a non-compensated version of its award-winning METE MC9 PRIME concealed carry handgun. The new model maintains the same ergonomics, trigger, and optics-ready capability while featuring a traditional slide and barrel profile for shooters preferring non-ported designs.
Sturm, Ruger & Company, Inc. announced the Marlin Mad Pig Customs Model 1894, a premium lever-action rifle developed with Mad Pig Customs and Midwest Industries. Chambered in 357 Magnum, it features Cerakote finishing and factory-installed custom upgrades for enhanced durability and ergonomics.
Henry Repeating Arms opened pre-orders for the Henry 1860 SUV Eagle, a custom-engraved rifle developed with the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. Proceeds support SUVCW's mission to preserve Civil War veterans' history, with the rifle available for $4,160 at HenryUSA.com.
Steiner eOptics will participate in SOF Week 2026 (May 18–21) in Tampa, Florida, showcasing mission-critical binoculars, rifle scopes, lasers/illuminators, and imaging systems. The event, jointly supported by United States Special Operations Command and the Global SOF Foundation, brings together the international Special Operations community for collaboration and capability development.
FirstSpear will exhibit at SOF Week 2026 in Tampa, Florida, showcasing its full platform lineup and newly integrated Recon K9 brand. The company will host live demonstrations featuring Recon K9's DT Alpha modular vest system led by founder Jason Watson, and maritime capabilities including the AAC Frog Kit with patented CTAF technology supported by Prime Hall and Deep End Fitness.
Dead Air Silencers will exhibit at SHOOTAH 2026 on May 16, 2026, at Soldier Pass Shooting Range in Saratoga Springs, Utah. Attendees can experience new suppressor releases including the Ruger RXD910Ti, Nomad Ti OTB, and CT5P, plus established models like the Sandman X, Mojave 45, Nomad LTi XC, and Wolfman.
Liberty Ammunition will showcase its new Pro Series military ammunition at SOF Week in Tampa, Florida. CEO Gary Ramey highlights that the Pro Series delivers 53% more stopping power than current military ammunition while preventing over-penetration, a critical safety feature for tactical operations.
Maxim Defense will exhibit at SOF Week 2026 (May 18-21) in Tampa, Florida, showcasing firearm systems, suppressors, and accessories at booth #851. The company is also title sponsor of the Green Beret Foundation's HALO Happy Hour on May 21st.
Pursuit Channel highlights its Sunday Sportsmen programming block featuring premium hunting and fishing content including Precision Hunting TV, On the Road, The Choice with Ralph & Vicki, Mark Peterson's The Journey Within, Ted Nugent Spirit of the Wild, and Americana Outdoors presented by Garmin, reaching over 22 million homes via DIRECTV, Comcast Xfinity, and Verizon Fios.
Major League Fishing's seventh-annual Kubota Heavy Hitters Presented by Bass Pro Shops streams live on MyOutdoorTV from Orange Lake in Ocala, Florida, featuring 32 pro anglers competing for a $100,000 top prize and Berkley Big Bass bonuses up to $100,000.
They seem like an unlikely group of apostles, each wearing a slung AR-style rifle over a belt rig or chest pack filled with backup magazines, handguns, blowout kits (IFAKs) and knives.
The attendees for the NRA’s ARC training brought ARs that were as different in their configurations as their respective owners’ personalities.
But this mix of range officers and shooters from across the country are apostles. They’re the NRA’s best hope for popularizing the organization’s American RIfle Challenge. If they bought in to the competition, the hope was they would take that enthusiasm back to their home ranges and start running local ARC matches themselves.
While their rooms and meals were covered after they arrived for the ARC training at Camp Atterbury, Indiana, they paid for their own transportation. With gas at $5/gallon, that demonstrates a belief in the
Like true apostles, they came to learn how to spread a simple message: if you already own an ARC-style rifle, or are considering buying one, the NRA American Rifle Challenge is the competition designed to help you learn new skills, make new friends and…learn to run your AR correctly.
While everyone was shooting demonstration stages, they were also training on everything from the computerized scoring system (top) to accurately scoring targets (bottom).
Rifle proficiency isn’t a message unfamiliar to the National Rifle Association, despite all the “issues” the organization has suffered over the past few years. Marksmanship training was, after all, the organization’s founding purpose.
The ARC competition itself isn’t new, but it never seemed to catch on with the shooting public.
The NRA’s competition division is tasked with changing that. As part of that task, the ARC program supports the use of AR rimfires, pistol caliber carbines (PCCs) and the use of suppressors for training and competition.
If the people I spoke with and watched at Atterbury are any indication, we’ll be seeing many more of the ARC events around the country.
It won’t happen overnight, but the effectiveness of the folks being trained should go a long way toward turning it into a popular match. They are, after all, the disciples of the match.
Speaking with attendees from Michigan, Colorado, and California (shooting California-compliant ARs-with some difficulty), they totally “got” the idea that just owning an AR doesn’t make someone a competent shooter any more than reading a book about golf meant you were ready to play. Competency, in any endeavor, requires practice. Competition helps focus the mind while making weak points easy to spot.
Michigan resident Steve Wasenko not only demonstrated his willingness to learn, he demonstrated the fact that this competition would be applicable for everyone. Wasenko’s in a wheelchair, but his shooting abilities were on display to the point he finished first among the shooters/students in one of the demo stages.
Steve Wasenko demonstrated the inclusive nature of ARC competitions and the fact that shooting competency doesn’t have to be restricted by physical challenges.
“I love shooting,” he told me, “I want everyone to see that this is shooting where it doesn’t matter how experienced you are -or aren’t- it’s a chance to compete, have fun, and get better.”
He and his business partner are opening a new Michigan facility -and it will feature ARC matches. It will also encourage physically challenged individuals to come give shooting sports a try. As an alum of Trevor Baucom’s highly successful Adaptive Defensive Shooting Summits he’s not only an ambassador for ARC competitions, he’s a solid example of the ability to shoot not ending with a catastrophic injury.
The results from the Camp Atterbury training won’t be something quantifiable in the near term. It, like anything based on discipleship, will take time to bear fruit. As the attendees collected their sample targets, shirts for initial range officers, and other assorted training aids, it looked like they were leaving with two key ingredients for success: knowledge and enthusiasm.
We’ll keep you posted.
—Jim Shepherd
Editor’s Note: Learn more about the America’s Rifle Challenge at: https://arc.nra.org
