The official record · 15th annual · July 25 and 26, 2026
2,454 women. One free weekend.
On July 25 and 26, 2026, 2,454 women took a free shooting lesson at Recoil Firearms in Taylor, Michigan. More than 50 volunteer instructors and range safety officers worked each day so that every woman got a coach to herself. Nobody paid anything.
Recoil Firearms, Taylor, Michigan
What the weekend looked like
2,454
women trained
Across two days, every one of them for free.
1,175
on Saturday alone
The single biggest day in 15 years of running this event.
50+
volunteers each day
Certified instructors and range safety officers, all unpaid.
49,080
rounds fired
20 rounds per shooter, one lane and one coach at a time.
Bought on the open market, a lesson like this runs about $90 a seat once you count range time, ammunition, targets, gear, and an instructor on the line. Sponsors and volunteers gave away roughly $220,860 worth of training over two days, and not one woman paid for any of it.
How it went
Two days at Recoil Firearms
Saturday, before 9:00 AM
The line was already around the building. It stayed that way most of the day.
Saturday
1,175 women came through, the biggest single day in the history of the event. Recoil Firearms stayed closed to the public all weekend so every lane belonged to the event.
Sunday
1,279 more. Volunteers who had already given a full Saturday came back and did it again.
Both days
Classroom safety briefing, then the range. One woman, one lane, one coach, 20 rounds. Most of them had never held a pistol before that morning.
On the way out
Almost everyone took their first target home.
"From 12 to 112 years old, they are welcome."
"Rick Ector has changed the lives of tens of thousands of women."
The weekend in photos
The reason it worked
The 2026 crew
Certified instructors, range safety officers, and support staff who gave up an entire summer weekend so that every woman on the line had a coach to herself. Several drove in from out of state. Nobody was paid.
- Rick Ector, Founder
- Tanisha Moner, Event Lead
- Will Luker, Chief Range Safety Officer
- Aimee M Garcia, Instructor and RSO
- Alycia Floyd, Instructor
- Amy Lucas, Instructor
- Anastasia Steiner-Birdsell, Instructor
- Andre Macon, Instructor and RSO
- Anthony Avington, Instructor
- Audrey Danielson, Instructor
- Barbara Anne Stockford
- Benjamin Bohannon, Instructor
- Bernardine Daniels, Instructor and RSO
- Bradford Benzing, Range Safety Officer
- Brian Darlas, Instructor and RSO
- Bruce Handrinos, Instructor
- Bryon Hill, Instructor and RSO
- Chad King, Instructor
- Chaim Simmons
- Charles LeBron Simmons, Instructor and RSO
- Chasefu R Jacobs, Instructor
- Christopher Zokal, Instructor
- Cliff Ingle, Range Safety Officer
- Dan Korzienowski, Instructor and RSO
- Danisha Jones, Instructor and RSO
- Darnell Jones, Instructor
- Darwin Brooks Jr, Instructor
- Derrick Dewayne White, Instructor and RSO
- Diontaye Land, Instructor
- Dwayne DeCaires, Instructor and RSO
- Gavin M White
- Jacqueline Emslie, Instructor and RSO
- James Lemerand, Instructor
- Jamie Headley, Instructor
- Jermaine Hart, Instructor and RSO
- Jerry Lawson, Instructor and RSO
- Jerry Terrasi, Instructor
- John Mark Harrop, Instructor and RSO
- Jon Luker, Instructor and RSO
- Karissa Pelletier, Instructor
- Kathy Mosher
- Kecia
- Lamont Peak, Instructor
- Lindsey Lawson
- Marisa C. Hildebrandt
- Mark Haaseth, Instructor
- Michael Charles Bays, Range Safety Officer
- Monique Brooks
- Myles Halstead, Instructor
- Nick, Instructor and RSO
- Pam Benz
- Patrick Collins, Instructor and RSO
- Paul A. Schmuker, Range Safety Officer
- Randy Wimbley, Instructor
- Samuel Brooks, Instructor and RSO
- Sandra A Reynolds, Instructor
- Stephen Sokol, Instructor
- Steven Taylor, Instructor
- Susan Baird, Instructor
- Tamika Tilley, Instructor
- Todd Ellis, Instructor and RSO
- William Lee, Instructor and RSO
Plus the volunteers who worked the door, the parking lot, the check-in tables, and the classroom, and everyone who covered a shift that never made it onto a list.
Paid for by these people
The weekend was free for every woman who walked in because these sponsors covered it.
With a special shout out to Metro Detroit News. A Legally Armed In Detroit event, founded by Rick Ector. Hosted by Recoil Firearms, which closed its doors to the public for the whole weekend.
For the press
Facts and figures
Everything on this page is free to quote and reproduce with credit. These are the numbers of record for the 2026 event.
- Event
- Free Shooting Lesson for Women (15th annual)
- Dates
- Saturday July 25 and Sunday July 26, 2026
- Location
- Recoil Firearms, 22509 Ecorse Rd, Taylor, MI 48180
- Attendance
- 2,454 women, 1,175 of them on Saturday
- Cost to attend
- Free, including the pistol, ammunition, and eye and ear protection
- Volunteers
- More than 50 instructors, range safety officers, and support staff each day
- Founded
- 2012, by Detroit firearms instructor Rick Ector
- Host organization
- Legally Armed In Detroit
- Registration platform
- CCW Hub
Media contact
CCW Hub, support@ccwhub.com. Photos, interviews, and additional figures available on request.
What happens now
This page stays put as the record of the 2026 weekend. The event itself comes back next summer.
Next year
The 16th annual free lesson
Registration opens next summer at the same address it always does. If you missed this one, that page is where to watch.
Ready for the next step?
If your first 20 rounds left you wanting more, a Michigan CPL class is one Saturday, and you already did the hard part.
Find a CPL classWant to run a weekend like this?
Registration, session slots, e-tickets, online waivers, and door check-in for all 2,454 attendees ran on CCW Hub. If your range, club, or organization is planning a community shoot or a free clinic, we will set it up with you.