The Silvercore Podcast with Travis Bader

BC's Firearm Violence Prevention Act took effect October 1, 2026, and Blair Hagen of Canada's National Firearms Association warns that most licensed owners have not read it. Under the act, paying a ticket for a minor infraction, such as an expired licence or a trigger lock that came off, counts as a guilty plea, and that plea can support a firearms prohibition and forfeiture of what was seized. On this Silvercore Podcast episode, Hagen returns to break it down, explain why he calls the SKS the Winchester 94 of today and believes it is the next target, and lay out what gun owners can do before the October 24 provincial election.

Travis Bader walks through how federal, provincial and municipal rules stack, and where air guns and airsoft fit.

Hagen gives his assessment of where BC's parties stand on firearms (every party leader was invited onto the show), breaks down the Supreme Court of Canada challenge to the 2020 Orders in Council, and explains why he thinks a win in court will take years to play out.

The second half turns to what one person can do. Travis makes the case that courts and politics only go so far, and that lasting change comes from culture: gun clubs, range days, a Canadian Schützenfest, and ordinary people using AI tools to research an issue and write to their MLA and MP with consistency. Hagen makes the case for joining whichever political party fits you and changing it from the inside.

Topics covered:
- What BC's Firearm Violence Prevention Act could mean for a licensed owner who pays a fine
- How federal, provincial and municipal firearms rules stack
- Two armed robberies behind a gun counter, and whether banning one make and model would have changed anything
- Where BC's parties stand on firearms, in Hagen's view
- Saskatchewan's answer to central storage: your own house
- Steel manning the case for gun bans, and firearms as a symbol of competency
- Why the SKS has become the next symbol in the debate
- The Supreme Court challenge to the 2020 Orders in Council
- Joining a political party and changing it from the inside
- Using AI to research an issue and write to your representatives
- Courts, politics and culture, and a Schützenfest for Canada

One rifle, one new law, and what one person can do about either.

Blair first joined the show on episode 188.

What BC's Firearm Violence Prevention Act actually changes:
https://www.silvercore.ca/blog/bc-firearm-violence-prevention-act

Learn more about Canada's National Firearms Association:
Website: https://nfa.ca

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The Silvercore Club keeps you sharp and has your back. $5M excess liability insurance for hunting, fishing, and shooting across Canada and the US, member discounts, and a community that gets outside. $59/year.
Join the Club - https://www.silvercore.ca/club

Firearms & hunting courses - https://www.silvercore.ca/course/category
Merchandise - https://www.silvercore.ca/collections/all-merchandise

Host Instagram - @Bader.Trav https://www.instagram.com/bader.trav
Silvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors

This content is for information and entertainment only. Nothing here is professional, legal, or safety advice. Firearms, hunting, and outdoor activities carry real risk. Know and follow the laws that apply to you, use safe practices, and get proper training from qualified professionals before acting on anything discussed. Silvercore accepts no liability for how this information is used.

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00:00 Intro, and a magazine publisher runs for council
03:14 BC's new Firearm Violence Prevention Act
05:39 Why licensed owners feel targeted
10:51 Two armed robberies and the make and model question
12:57 Small infractions under the new act
14:31 Federal, provincial and municipal rules, and air guns
18:56 Why property rights matter to people who don't own guns
21:48 Fear sells
28:48 The provincial election and every leader invited
32:33 Where the parties stand, in Hagen's view
40:03 Central storage, and Saskatchewan's answer
45:46 The debate reopens
48:19 The SKS as a symbol
49:25 Saturday night specials and banning what is registered
52:38 Steel manning the case for bans
56:29 Firearms and the fear of competency
59:40 Grandfathered, yet called too dangerous
1:00:54 A new SKS order, and the Winchester 94 of today
1:04:11 The Supreme Court challenge to the 2020 orders
1:07:55 What happens if gun owners win
1:12:05 What gun owners can do now
1:13:44 Join a party and change it from inside
1:17:20 One voice, and using AI to be heard
1:20:17 The NFA needs people on the legal side
1:22:15 Gun clubs, range days and normalcy
1:26:40 Personal agency
1:29:57 Courts, politics and culture
1:32:56 A Schützenfest for Canada
1:38:05 Acceptable reasons to own a firearm
1:40:55 Self-defence in Canada

OneBC leader Dallas Brodie sits down with Travis Bader for the first conversation in the Silvercore Podcast's BC Election 2026 series.

The conversation runs in three parts: the person, the party and the platform. Brodie traces her path from corporate lawyer, youth defence counsel, broadcast journalist and Residential Tenancy Branch arbitrator to her election as MLA for Vancouver-Quilchena in 2024. She talks about getting her PAL in 2021 and her expulsion from the BC Conservative caucus in March 2025.

On the platform, Travis puts questions from the Silvercore community to her on OneBC's proposed 25% cut to personal and corporate income tax and two-point PST cut, a 10% savings target for every ministry, the party's position on the federal firearms buyback, a provincial storage program and a provincially appointed chief firearms officer, hunting licence revenue, moose and caribou declines, Crown land access, Aboriginal title and the Cowichan decision, SOGI 123 in schools, public safety and addiction, and her first 100 days.

ABOUT THIS SERIES
On September 25, 2026, Travis invited the leaders of all five parties with seats in the BC legislature to the same long-form conversation, with the same format and the same community questions, and followed up on September 28. At the time of recording, OneBC accepted, the BC NDP declined, Centre BC was arranging a date, and the BC Conservatives and BC Greens had not responded. Any leader who accepts before the October 24 election gets the same opportunity. The views expressed are the guest's own. Silvercore does not endorse any party or candidate.

During the conversation, Ms. Brodie names Silvercore as an example of a contractor for a provincial firearms storage program. Silvercore has no storage plan and no arrangement with OneBC or any other party.

CHAPTERS
00:00 About this series: who was invited and who answered
01:37 Welcome, Dallas Brodie
02:47 Law, broadcasting, business and the road to the legislature
07:21 Fishing, a PAL and learning to shoot
12:29 A public decision with a personal cost
19:48 Federal influence, labels and political debate
26:23 The strongest argument against her platform
28:15 SOGI 123 and what is taught in schools
37:11 The 25% tax cut and how it is costed
40:24 A 10% savings target, including health and education
41:17 The federal gun buyback and a provincial storage program
46:37 Hunters, conservation and listening to the experts
51:38 AI and decision-making in government
58:17 The RCMP, the buyback and a provincial chief firearms officer
1:02:47 Where hunting licence money goes
1:04:44 Debt, deficit and the snap election
1:06:41 Moose, caribou and predator management
1:10:25 Crown land access and Aboriginal title
1:14:58 Affordability: what changes for a young family
1:17:40 Repeat offenders and open drug use
1:20:53 The Cowichan decision and private property
1:28:21 Improving life for Indigenous people
1:30:09 Intergenerational trauma and policy
1:36:39 Polarization and leadership
1:42:33 Her first 100 days
1:44:12 Her pitch to voters who have never voted OneBC
1:45:29 Closing thoughts

FIND OneBC
https://1bc.ca

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The Silvercore Club keeps you sharp and has your back. $5M excess liability insurance for hunting, fishing, and shooting across Canada and the US, member discounts, and a community that gets outside. $59/year.
Join the Club - https://www.silvercore.ca/club

Firearms & hunting courses - https://www.silvercore.ca/course/category
Merchandise - https://www.silvercore.ca/collections/all-merchandise

Host Instagram - @Bader.Trav https://www.instagram.com/bader.trav
Silvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors

This content is for information and entertainment only. Nothing here is professional, legal, or safety advice. Firearms, hunting, and outdoor activities carry real risk. Know and follow the laws that apply to you, use safe practices, and get proper training from qualified professionals before acting on anything discussed. Silvercore accepts no liability for how this information is used.

Jay Nichol spends around 140 days a year in the mountains. He guides black bear, mule deer, mountain goat and coues deer across British Columbia, Alberta and Mexico, and runs The Mindful Hunter, an unsponsored gear-review and podcast platform that has grown into Mindful Hunter Outfitting, the Forged in the Backcountry apparel line, and Mindful Munitions, a new Canadian store for the gear he trusts.

In this conversation with Travis Bader, Jay explains what he changed after too many clients missed their shot in spring bear camp, how 18 years of sobriety shaped the way he leaves home for a hunt, and what sends hunters out of the backcountry early.

From Jay:
The Truth About Training for Mountain Hunting (free downloadable plan): https://youtu.be/wAugmpvZrtc
Free downloads and tools: https://www.mindfulhunter.com/tools
Kowa TSN-88A Sweepstakes: https://forgedinthebackcountry.com/blogs/resources/kowa-tsn-88a-sweepstakes

Find Jay Nichol:
The Mindful Hunter: https://www.mindfulhunter.com
The Mindful Hunter Podcast: https://mindfulhunter.podbean.com
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/MindfulHunter
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mindful_hunter
Mindful Munitions: https://mindfulmunitions.com
Forged in the Backcountry: https://forgedinthebackcountry.com
Forged in the Backcountry on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/forgedinthebackcountry
Mindful Reviews: https://www.mindful-reviews.com

_____
The Silvercore Club keeps you sharp and has your back. $5M excess liability insurance for hunting, fishing, and shooting across Canada and the US, member discounts, and a community that gets outside. $59/year.
Join the Club - https://www.silvercore.ca/club

Firearms & hunting courses - https://www.silvercore.ca/course/category
Merchandise - https://www.silvercore.ca/collections/all-merchandise

Host Instagram - @Bader.Trav https://www.instagram.com/bader.trav
Silvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors

This content is for information and entertainment only. Nothing here is professional, legal, or safety advice. Firearms, hunting, and outdoor activities carry real risk. Know and follow the laws that apply to you, use safe practices, and get proper training from qualified professionals before acting on anything discussed. Silvercore accepts no liability for how this information is used.

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00:00 Introducing Jay Nichol
03:00 Leaving home at 15
04:00 Only as sick as our secrets
08:00 Stolen CDs and the start of addiction
14:00 Addiction as a sense of purpose
18:00 The rite of passage nobody gave him
24:00 Letting people help you
26:00 Two mistakes: no mentor, no community
32:00 The annealing hot take
35:00 University with no high school diploma
40:00 Proving something to his father
43:00 Ego death and moments of clarity
49:00 Clean your house before you leave
52:00 The dark years, 2023 and 2024
56:00 Tapping out versus breaking
1:01:00 Why men talk shoulder to shoulder
1:09:00 Hours per day doing what you love
1:12:00 Anger as fuel, and compartmentalizing
1:17:00 Telling his daughter no
1:19:00 1,200 rounds in five days
1:22:00 The kneeling logging road shot
1:24:00 Buy a 223, shoot 1,000 rounds
1:27:00 Kill the weak parts
1:30:00 Zone two and the StairMaster
1:36:00 Travis on going into AFib
1:42:00 The illusion of learning
1:45:00 Nothing died, so you failed
1:47:00 36 deer in 105 minutes
1:50:00 Spend it on field days, not a spotter
1:52:00 Forged in the Backcountry
1:56:00 Outfitting in BC, Alberta and Mexico
2:00:00 Launching Mindful Munitions
2:04:00 Why the focus is men

Mark Twight joins Travis Bader on the Silvercore Podcast for a conversation about alpinism, Gym Jones, the training behind 300, and life after peak performance. The booking took five years and one condition: in person only.
Twight climbed in the Alps, Alaska and the Canadian Rockies, including The Reality Bath, a route that went unrepeated for 37 years. He climbed the Slovak Direct on Denali in 60 hours with Steve House and Scott Backes. His books Extreme Alpinism and Kiss or Kill were picked up well outside climbing, including by military units who found the chapter on attitude and character applied to their work. He later worked on nine feature films, most of them with director Zack Snyder, building physical transformations against production deadlines.
In this conversation, recorded in person in Montana, Twight talks about what separated him from better technical climbers, why he keeps walking away from things at the top, and what he has found in the valley since.
Topics covered:
- Growing up the son of a National Park Service law enforcement ranger
- Taking up shooting in 1995, and mentors including Brian Enos and Pat Rogers
- Getting disqualified before firing a shot in his first match in 21 years
- Self image, permission to fail, and why some competitors stall
- Mount Hunter in 39 hours nonstop, and the arithmetic of pack weight
- Writing while drinking, and the decision to stop
- Building the cast of 300, and why fast results do not hold
- Leaving the Aquaman job when the paycheque became the only reason to stay
- Declining physical capacity, and purpose after achievement
A conversation about total commitment, and the bill that comes due for it.
Learn more about Mark Twight:
Website: https://www.marktwight.com
Substack: https://marktwight.substack.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wfmft
_____
The Silvercore Club keeps you sharp and has your back. $5M excess liability insurance for hunting, fishing, and shooting across Canada and the US, member discounts, and a community that gets outside. $59/year.
Join the Club - https://www.silvercore.ca/club
Firearms & hunting courses - https://www.silvercore.ca/course/category
Merchandise - https://www.silvercore.ca/collections/all-merchandise
Host Instagram - @Bader.Trav https://www.instagram.com/bader.trav
Silvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors
This content is for information and entertainment only. Nothing here is professional, legal, or safety advice. Firearms, hunting, and outdoor activities carry real risk. Know and follow the laws that apply to you, use safe practices, and get proper training from qualified professionals before acting on anything discussed. Silvercore accepts no liability for how this information is used.
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00:00 Five years and a one word reply
06:20 A ranger father, an anti-authority son
12:50 Nine films, mostly with Zack Snyder
17:20 Forty pounds and a changed life
20:00 Extreme Alpinism reaches Special Forces
26:50 The mountains are not clever, men are
28:40 Guns are stupid, then a range day
31:30 Brian Enos, Gunsite and mentors
41:50 Back to competition, DQ'd first match
49:40 You never outperform your self image
51:20 Permission to fail
57:20 Seven lives in one lifetime
1:01:00 Mount Hunter, 39 hours nonstop
1:04:50 The Slovak Direct in 60 hours
1:11:00 Why he stopped climbing
1:16:30 Writing drunk, and what it cost
1:29:00 Coming down to the valley
1:38:40 Borrowed beliefs and in-group politics
1:44:40 Hunters, conservation, common ground
1:47:20 Paragliding before anyone knew how
1:56:40 Something to rebel against
2:00:20 The first gym, and what it taught him
2:06:40 Invitation only, everyone on parole
2:12:30 300 and the website that crashed
2:16:30 Fear, rationalization, walking away
2:23:20 Walking off Aquaman
2:31:50 Fast results are unstable results
2:46:20 Why dangerous things matter
2:51:40 Risk tolerance over technical skill
3:03:40 No off-ramp for veterans and athletes
3:08:00 Intent instead of intensity
3:17:30 Saying goodbye to Daryl Miller
3:23:20 What success means at 65

Ian Sim spent nearly three decades in the RCMP. In December, alone in his apartment, the strokes came. He saved the wine, booked an Uber to emergency because it was faster than an ambulance, and days later faced a decision about a clot-busting drug with minutes on the clock and nobody to call.
The man who returns to the Silvercore Podcast is in what he calls the afterglow. Colours are brighter. Food tastes better. Any familiar face is an old friend.
Ian cold-called the SAS out of directory assistance and got a yes. He policed Wreck Beach by getting out of the car and learning names. He wrote a counterterrorism paper that got him summoned to the principal's office, and he has rebuilt his off-duty carry proposal into something a province could adopt on its own. And he answers the question an RCMP recruiter asked him at 19: do you have a healthy or an unhealthy interest in firearms?
His answer got the room to go quiet.
Ian speaks as a private citizen. His views are his own, not those of the RCMP.
_____
The Silvercore Club keeps you sharp and has your back. $5M excess liability insurance for hunting, fishing, and shooting across Canada and the US, member discounts, and a community that gets outside. $59/year.
Join the Club - https://www.silvercore.ca/club
Firearms & hunting courses - https://www.silvercore.ca/course/category
Merchandise - https://www.silvercore.ca/collections/all-merchandise
Host Instagram - @Bader.Trav https://www.instagram.com/bader.trav
Silvercore Instagram - @SilvercoreOutdoors https://www.instagram.com/silvercoreoutdoors
This content is for information and entertainment only. Nothing here is professional, legal, or safety advice. Firearms, hunting, and outdoor activities carry real risk. Know and follow the laws that apply to you, use safe practices, and get proper training from qualified professionals before acting on anything discussed. Silvercore accepts no liability for how this information is used.
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00:00:00 Welcome back
00:01:00 The warning shots
00:12:00 The big one
00:18:00 The clot buster decision
00:29:00 A song and a $5 bill
00:43:00 Is there any such thing as a coincidence?
00:53:00 A Reaper in the desert
00:56:00 Cold-calling the SAS
01:04:00 The afterglow
01:12:00 They don't look like supermen
01:19:00 Radio, Wreck Beach and who works for whom
01:32:00 Smart on crime
01:35:00 Off-shift carry, the proposal rebuilt
01:48:00 Define the problem first
01:55:00 The paper and the principal's office
02:10:00 A Liberal beat him to it
02:14:00 "I wanted to live my life armed"
02:26:00 The next sidearm
02:36:00 Courts and credibility
02:38:00 Until next time