“A Gal and Her Holster”
Many of you, our customers use our holsters on a daily basis to carry concealed or open carry and by viewing our customer database mostly men. However, we offer many options for women to carry comfortably concealed, open carry or on the range for practice or a gun training class.
I, Jan Leahy, co-owner of Simply Rugged would like to share how some of our products work day-to-day, hunting, hiking, riding a 4-wheeler, carrying concealed in a purse or bag, etc. I am writing from my own and other women’s experiences while carrying a firearm everyday no matter what activity I am engaged in.
I would like to share a little bit about my background working with my husband, Rob Leahy, Simply Rugged and trial and error to comfortably carry a firearm. I have spent many hours in the outdoors, camping, hiking, fishing, kayaking, etc. Each activity dictates different ways to carry a firearm comfortably. And, through the years have spent a fair number of hours firing many different guns from a .45-70 Century Six Shooter, my .25 06 Mountain rifle, lever guns, single action guns, many different sized revolvers, the latest auto loaders, my favorite S&W M&P full size or compact 9mm, .22 Ruger Mark IV, and so on. I am a multiple class graduate of Gunsite and attend many other events we host with industry and media. I am also a member of The Well Armed Women and train at Gunsite with the Prescott chapter. All this aside, work side-by-side with Rob developing and testing our products daily.
The vast majority of the time I carry an auto loader on a sturdy belt in our holster named the Competitor and a spare magazine in our Single CID Mag Pouch . This combination gives me a quick draw and very comfortable set up, I can carry all day long whether I am on the range or hiking through the woods.
One of our other “comfortable for women to wear holsters” we manufacture is our Cattleman , which we can make for revolvers and auto loaders. The holster is lower slung and rides comfortably on your hip. The Cattleman can work as concealed carry depending on the garment you wear over your gun and also functions as a range holster.
For Deeper Concealment or even off body carry, we produce the Pocket Protector , which works for carrying in your purse/bag to stabilize the gun or in your pocket – “I know, women’s pockets in pants are non-existent anymore.” Well, when you do have an actual pocket it works great! Mostly, I carry the gun in a purse/bag in this holster.
Another piece of advice about holsters; our body shape, as a women, will direct us to the style of holster that is comfortable for us. Some women will find our Sourdough Pancake (for large revolvers) or our Silver Dollar Pancake (for small revolvers) comfortable too, they can be worn inside-the-waistband or outside. Generally, longer wasted women find this style of holster comfortable and it can be worn strong side or crossdraw.
If I can speak for most women who chose to carry a firearm as part of their wardrobe, you must have multiple ways to carry depending on your environment. Dressing around the gun is as important as a sturdy holster, belt and ammo pouch when thinking about your “gun” wardrobe.
Jake Jan and Rob preparing to launch on the Kenai River in Alaska Jake and Rob have N frame 44 mags Jan has her SIG 365 loaded with 147 hard cast Buffalo Bore ammo. Jan shooting on the Military Crest with her custom Ruger American Scout in 5.56