I finally made it to the range! Of course, as soon as I got to the stairway leading down the the range in the basement, my good friend Cindy, who was my shooting buddy for the night, told me they were out of ammo. Sum'bitch. Had to go to Walmart and buy some ammo to shoot but then we were good.
The way the range on campus works (yes, I have a range on my university campus. How much does my school RAWK?!) is simple. You have a one-time $2.50 orientation fee about the rules of the range, renting the actual guns is free, you just pay for the ammo. Nice and simple, and not too expensive. With a student ID, 25 rounds of .22LR is like, $4. I think a box of 50 rounds of .45ACP hovers just above $11, so I'm not gonna argue.
Anyway, we went to Walmart, and of course, all they had was .22LR. No skin off my back, I'm buying a freaking rifle that fires .22LR, so all the extra is good for me. Yay!
Okay, time for some action shots. This is my girl, Cindy, who gave me shit all freaking night for eight million reasons, none of which related to my shooting.
Of course, she wouldn't let me take a picture of her face, probably cuz she knew it would go on the blog, where all the anonymous perverts of the internet would fap to it, but oh well.
It's me!
And for my friends out there in the Intertubes, don't even start on the grip I have. I know now it's not the best way to go. Keep in mind I had never handled a pistol before in my LIFE, and all they did was show me how to load it up and go. Not handling. No safety. Nothing. Just how to load the magazine and stick it in the gun. I have since been instructed on how to properly hold ze boomstick, and I promise I'll do better next time.
Still... not bad for the first time I picked up a gun, huh?
So...you CAN hit the broadside of a barn, huh?
ReplyDeleteYes! I can! Scary, ain't it?
ReplyDeleteI hope that, in addition to some grip training, you've also gotten some safety training.
ReplyDeleteAt least know the "four rules" by heart and live them religiously. They won't do you wrong:
1. Treat all guns as though they are loaded*
2. Never allow the muzzle to cover (point at) anything you don't want to destroy.
3. Keep your finger off the trigger until the sights are on target and you're ready to fire.
4. Always be sure of your target and what is beyond it.
If you follow those four rules, you'll never have a negligent discharge and, even if the gun malfunctions and fires uncommanded (virtually impossible, but I'm sure it's happened once or twice in the history of firearms), no harm will be done.
There are a lot more small considerations to gun safety to be aware of, but those four simple rules are the basic, mandatory requirement and are enough to get you started.
*some prefer "all guns are loaded" or "there is no such thing as an unloaded gun". I disagree because that makes the rule inherently false. The point is, even if you know for a fact that it is unloaded, always treat it as if it were and follow the remaining rules anyway.
Came here via Jay G.
ReplyDeleteFirst, congrats and welcome to the tribe!
Second, with new shooters I always add one more rule to Curt's 4 rules. "Never try to catch a dropped/fumbled gun". Let it go. It will NOT go off by itself when it hits the ground (exception are some extremely old guns), but it is very likely you'll snag the trigger trying to catch it.
Congrats on your first trip.
ReplyDeleteAt those prices, I hope you take advantage of that range often. Nice to know that some colleges still have ranges...absolutely awesome.
Thanks for sharing and welcome to the "People of the Tribe".
Hey! You shoot better than Jay "minute of berm" G.
ReplyDeleteI've got a number of handguns, but only my copy of the Ruger .22 pistol you're shooting makes it to the range with me every trip. That gun even makes my marginal skills look good. :P
ReplyDeleteBTW, $4 for 25 rounds of 22LR is a ripoff* but $11 for 50 rounds of 45, or even $11 and your firstborn is a deal and a half, so I guess it all evens out.
*unless they are uber-super-ultra-match unobtainium rounds.
In addition to the grip (which is not as big and horrible a deal as you make it sound) you should look at your stance. The pics show both of you leaning back away from the target. Your shoulders should be above, or slightly forward of your hips - so your weight is a little more toward your toes than your heels. This effects both how stable your stance is during recoil, and how easy it is to move.
ReplyDelete