You’ve been to a couple of gun shows, (maybe a lot of gun shows?) and you know what they’re like. The 4 rules of gun safety have been ingrained as muscle memory, you’ve taken people to the range, you’ve trained with multiple instructors, and you know how to field strip every firearm in your safe.
What’s different about this one?
The answer is: A lot.
The gun show, when it used to be at the Del Mar Fairgrounds, was huge and fun. It sucked when the show became prohibited from using state grounds and was effectively banned from San Diego.
In 2023 the gun show returned to San Diego and made a modest return in a private facility. To help promote and attract people, we added the Gun Owners Symposium. Those efforts were successful and as the returned show continues to grow, we’re adding more activities to elevate the experience for everybody that attends. Here’s the attractions for a ‘seasoned’ gun owner.
Check out the GUNS
People asked for more guns and ammo, and there’s going to be more guns and ammo.
Something that’s a little different is that all the guns on display will be from local San Diego shops. Visit the tables and get to know your local gun shops. A lot of new pistols have been added to the California Gun Roster, so you can actually touch and feel modern firearms! There will be ammo, parts, collectibles, and more.
Due to restrictions from the City of San Diego, all the gun shops are exhibiting at the show as display only tables. No commerce will take place at the show. If you are interested in purchasing a firearm, you will need to go to the vendor’s shop to initiate any purchases.
Take an In-Person Class
Mike & Erin Pettengill, USCCA certified trainers from the Personal Protection Academy will be offering a variety of classes around medical training, firearm proficiency, and specialty courses. All of the courses are approximately 50 minutes. Level-up your skills!
Under the medical training topic, you can get your CPR AED certification from the Red Cross. You can also take the STOP THE BLEED course, an essential class for gun owners. If you’re learning how to poke holes, you should also learn how to patch them up. Also offered is a course on how to build a medical kit.
For the cost-conscious, the dry fire course is a great way to learn how to improve your shooting skills without the cost of ammo. CCW permit holders (or people interested in getting their CCW) would be well off to enroll in the Handgun Mastery or the Drawing from a Holster class.
A specialty course just for real estate agents is also offered, appropriately names Real Estate Agent Safety. Real estate agents often meet strangers in strange places at strange times. They should be educated and prepared to be able to defend themselves.
A course for church or synagogue security teams is also offered: How to identify a public threat. If you are, or if you know somebody that serves in a security team, this is a great course.
Listen to a Symposium speaker or two
The Gun Owners Symposium features talks on a whole range of topics.
Attend as many talks as you like, the Symposium presentations are included with the gun show admission.
There will be give aways (thank you Condor Outdoor!) and prize drawings, so you should make sure to attend at least one. USCCA will be bringing Gary Gibson to share the lessons learned from recent CCW cases in San Diego.
Also enjoy the free Red White & Bad Ass Brew coffee!
If you want to learn how to connect long distance, Jason Crotteau will be talking about getting into long range precision shooting.
For training junkies Mike Dasargo will be talking about ‘Fluid State Dynamics.’ In other words, how to access that state of flow, or getting ‘in the zone’, when you’re training for self defense.
Take a look at the Symposium schedule to plan your schedule.
Hang with some friends at the Beer Garden
A big reason people go to gun shows is to hang out with their 2A friends. Do it at happy hour!
Saturday afternoon is the Beer Garden hosted by SEAL1. Enjoy a brew (or a drink) with old and new friends in the lower plaza.
Go see RED DAWN on the Big Screen!
It’s everybody’s favorite documentary on World War III! Sponsored by the San Diego Libertarian Party, the evening includes beverages and concessions, as well as prizes and give aways!
People that purchase their tickets before February 27 will be entered in a prize drawing for a Mantis X10 Elite, a PrairieFire Pistol Class, a GPS Tactical Range Backpack, a free hour at Shore Shot Firearms Simulator and a Tuffy Portable Safe!.
We’ll also have a prize drawing that includes a Heritage Roughrider 22LR Revolver, generously donated by a SDCGO member, and MORE!
Test your skills at the Virtual Firearm Simulator
Test your skills in Shore Shot Oceanside’s immersive simulator experience. It’s more than just a video game where you simply shoot as fast as you can. The simulator tests your decision making skills when you’re under pressure. Try it out at the San Diego Gun Show!
Sneak into the BB Gun Range
Hosted by the Kids Safe Foundation, kids can learn real gun safety and marksmanship at the BB Gun Range! Maybe if you’re really nice, you can get a turn at the BB gun range.
Wilde Built Tactical sponsored the BB Gun Range, so please show them your support and sign up for their email list.
Donate Blood
The Second Amendment is all about defending and protecting life. What better way to help save a life by donating a pint?
The San Diego Blood Bank’s Bloodmobile will be at the gun show on Saturday from 8-1pm. A lot of the exhibitors and sponsors have teamed up to put together a great goodie bag for the blood donors!
Visit the San Diego County Gun Owners table
Stop by the San Diego County Gun Owners table and learn about what this organization is doing to protect and defend your Second Amendment rights. This is an active activist group, with lots of opportunities to participate and help educate and engage the community. Let’s face it, without your help, legislature will continue to chip and eat away your self defense rights. SDCGO makes activism easy!
You can also learn about the NOTMESD program, a program run by women, for women. Led by Desi Bergman, this program provides FREE assistance to any woman interested in learning how to use a firearm to protect herself against rape and domestic violence.
Buy a NOTMECA raffle ticket to win an AR-15
#NOTMECA is raffling ten (10) AR-15’s that was generously donated by an SDCGO member in support of the organization. But a ticket and you could win your pick of 10 AR-15’s that includes optics.
Purchase discounted training at the Training Deal Table
Next to the San Diego County Gun Owners table, the Training Deal Table offers discounted training from the areas’ top instructors. These deals are exclusively available to gun show attendees. While there are great basic courses available, there are some awesome deals on more advanced training. Those courses include low light shooting, covert cary, and moving and shooting around vehicles. Even a Krav Maga course is available!
Visit the Mini Car Show!
It’s no secret that car enthusiasts and gun enthusiasts often overlap. Visit the mini car show to experience the unique blend of automotive engineering and craftsmanship, which parallels the precision and design found in firearms. Take a picture of your favorite ride and tag us! #carshow at the #gunshow
Don’t forget to come back Sunday!
While the majority of the events are on Saturday, there’s still a lot to do and see. Enjoy a burger in the lower plaza, sign up for the class you’ve been thinking about at the Training Deal Table, and enjoy hanging out with the Second Amendment community!
