Target Practice

Went to the shooting range today for target practice.

This is the first time I've ever fired live rounds. My dad gave me an air pistol when I graduated high school, and went through a couple of practice rounds until my mom told me to quit.

I did okay withthe air pistol, so naturally I expected to be somewhat good the first time I fired live. I was with my dad, a police officer, another shooter friend, and his ten year old son-Amos- who just happened to be a recruit for the RP Speed Shooting team.

I had a bit of performance anxiety before I started. They lent me Amos' gun, a .22mm pistol with a compensator, just to give me a feel of what it was like to fire live. The gun was so light that I felt like I was holding a toy, but the recoil definitely reminded me that this wasn't just another air gun that I was playing with.

They were all rather surprised that I did pretty good with my first round, except for maybe my dad.

He told me before I went up to the range that we all had to start somewhere, that he didn't expect me to fire dead shots, but I could see in his eyes that he wanted me to hit my marks.

I did better when I moved up to my dad's pistol--a Star .9mm--and was about average when I used my gun--a .22 revolver.

Of course, I had to suck at my own gun. The instructor told me that revolvers were pretty hard to aim, mainly because they were so heavy and I just wasn't used to the sights.

I've always been pro-gun. I'm still a fence sitter when it comes to other social issues, like stem cells or abortion or divorce, but gun control is something that I am totally sure of.

It's expensive, but I really do believe that if you want to own a gun, you should get it licensed and you ought to know how to use it. This was the first time I fired my revolver. Had I used it on an actual shoot-out, I probably would have hit a couple of bystanders or maybe a stray pot. Out of eight, I only got three dead on shots.

They told me that I should probably get a gun of my own and start practicing, since I was a pretty good shot, and right now I am really thinking about getting a .22 pistol for christmas. Or a .9mm if I can afford it.


They're thinking of going to the range again next week, and my dad is considering taking me there again. He wants me to get used to my gun, and I want to try the .45.

I need to build on my upper body strength though, and I really need to learn my gun. I'm not really after the speed here, but more of the accuracy.

Much like in cars, i'm not really after the speed, but more of precision driving. How to be a good driver.

I'll probably bring my rifle next week, see how I do with that. I much prefer sharp shooting, it focuses you more, and I think you can do that better with a rifle.

Ermm. We'll see.