NRA Annual Meeting 2010 at a Glance
| Dates | Thursday to Sunday, May 13 to 16, 2010 |
|---|---|
| Venue | Charlotte Convention Center and Time Warner Cable Arena |
| City | Charlotte, North Carolina |
| Meeting | 139th NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits |
| Attendance | Close to 80,000, according to officials |
| Speakers | Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Ted Nugent, Chuck Norris |
The 139th NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits filled Charlotte in May 2010, drawing close to 80,000 people and some of the biggest names in conservative politics. The Gun Websites crew walked the exhibit hall and filmed the new guns of the season: the Remington 1911 R1, the Smith and Wesson SD40, the Ruger LCR in .357 Magnum, the FN FNX-40, the Bison Bull .45-70 revolver and rifles from Barrett and POF USA, along with an interview with the FBI about the NICS background check system.
NRA Annual Meeting 2010 History
The NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits ran Thursday through Sunday, May 13 to 16, 2010, at the Charlotte Convention Center and Time Warner Cable Arena, the 139th annual meeting of the National Rifle Association. Officials estimated close to 80,000 attendees and about 20 million dollars in economic impact for Charlotte, the largest convention in the city’s history at the time.
Sarah Palin spoke at the Celebration of American Values Leadership Forum to about 9,000 members, Glenn Beck gave a keynote without a teleprompter, Ted Nugent led a membership seminar, and Chuck Norris signed copies of Black Belt Patriotism. Theodore Van Kirk, navigator of the Enola Gay and its last surviving crew member, was also honored.
Our Take on NRA Annual Meeting 2010
The NRA show is a different animal from SHOT Show. SHOT is a trade show for dealers and media; the NRA Annual Meetings are open to members and their families, so the exhibit hall is full of regular gun owners who can actually handle the new guns and ask questions. For a video crew in 2010 that meant more candid reactions and more first impressions from the people who would actually buy the guns.
2010 was the year of the 1911 comeback for Remington, the year Smith and Wesson pushed the budget friendly SD series, and a year when compact revolvers like the Ruger LCR moved up to .357 Magnum. The NICS interview with the FBI was a reminder that the background check system was already processing millions of checks a year.
Our NRA Annual Meeting 2010 Adventures
The crew spent the show days working booth to booth, from Barrett and POF USA to the Miniature Arms Society display of tiny working firearms, and caught up with Steve Lee on the show floor.
Charlotte was also a long way from home for a crew based in Arizona, which made the NRA show one of the bigger road trips of the year.
New Guns and Gear at NRA Annual Meeting 2010
Guns and gear the Gun Websites crew filmed at the 2010 NRA Annual Meetings, with links to each video.
Pistols
Revolvers
Rifles
Collectors and Policy
NRA Annual Meeting 2010 Videos
Remington 1911 R1 at the 2010 NRA Annual Meeting
Remington’s return to the 1911.
FBI Interview About NICS
How the background check system works.
Ruger LCR 357
The LCR moves up to .357 Magnum.
Barrett at the 2010 NRA Show
Big bore rifles from Barrett.
More NRA Annual Meeting 2010 Videos
- Bison Bull .45-70 Revolver
- New S&W SD40 Pistol
- FNX-40
- POF USA
- Miniature Arms Society
- Steve Lee at the 2010 NRA Convention
- Booth models at the 2010 NRA Convention
Around the NRA Annual Meeting 2010
More NRA Annual Meetings
NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits · NRA Annual Meeting 2009
The NRA Annual Meetings move to a new city each spring. Upcoming dates are on the Gun Show Calendar.