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Taking a friend shooting - Question
dsmith
Member Posts: 902 ✭✭✭✭
I know that Highball and a few others on here have suggested taking people shooting as a way to help defend rights, by creating support. What I'd like to know is, what is the best way to ask somebody who is somewhat uncomfortable about the topic to try it? Any advice?
Comments
Stress the "fun" part...leave the blood and guts out of the equasion at first.
Many girls/women are actually at the point of wanting to learn to defend themselves...so you have to play it out by ear....they just need to feel comfortable that you want to train them...and not "feel them up"....
Leading the conversation around to shooting just takes practice...and you will lose a few. Keep at it...and you will learn from each one something new about peaking their interest in shooting.
Leave the romance OUT of it...even if involved with the female. Shooting needs concentration...and even far more so for an instructor.Getting shot ain't romantic...no matter HOW often the tv says so.
What it boils down to is.." Want to go to the range Thursday and try my .22...? "
Avoid weekends if possibe...entirely too many helpful "Experts" will instantly gravitate to the site of a new shooter...'specially if she is good looking.
You can always try one way of the "stealth" method. When you know that you and your friend have some time on your hands, casually mention that you would like to drive out to your range and try out a new gun or ammo or whatever. If your friend jumps at the chance to go with you, they likely will not be too hard to get them to try shooting with you.
Otherwise, describe what a nice drive to the range it is and how pretty the countryside (or whatever) is and how you can stop for a burger on the way down/ back, etc. Once at the range (and I hope you brought extra muffs and glasses and a .22 rifle or revolver) mention how your friend might want to try and hit that bulleye target you have hangin there.
Take it from there.
For example, if you broach the subject of firearms and find some interest, offer to merely show the person some of your guns the next time they stop by your house. Often it is too overwhelming for a newbie to even HOLD a gun, let alone fire it. This can sometimes be overcome by introducing them to firearms in a comfortable environment. I would suggest showing them how to release the mag and open the slide, or open the cylinder on a revolver, to insure that the gun is not loaded. Tell them that is handy knowledge to know, even if they don't become shooters. It is invaluable to know how to check to see if a gun is unloaded, and if not then how to go about unloading it.
Also, one other note, there is an ignorant misconception about ammunition as well. There are a lot of folks that believe if you drop a live cartridge on the ground it will explode in flames and kill everybody in the room (I don't know how these people think we fought wars). But it is important to explain to these people that ammunition is completely safe when it is not loaded in the gun. It will not spontaneously explode, even if dropped. I've heard that even if you throw a cartridge in a fire that the brass case will simply split and burst and cause the powder to burn, but the bullets are NOT going to randomly fly around killing people because there is no barrel to focus the bullet (never tried this first-hand). In fact, it is always good to give a lesson in cartridge constuction (primer, powder, bullet, casing, etc.) and in gun mechanics as well. In my first handgun safety course (when I new NOTHING about firearms) we spent a full 3 hours in the classroom before we even went to the range. The academics should be covered long before you drive out and pop some off with a newbie.
Otherwise, I think this is an excellent way to introduce people to firearms and hopefully open their eyes to their Constitutional rights under the 2nd Amendment.
-WW
MOLON LAVE
-Samuel Adams, Patriot/Brewer
Does this have to be done on a one-to-one basis, or could it successfully be done in small groups?
I would DEFINATELY suggest one on one, as opposed to groups. I took my two brothers to shoot clays, one had been introduced to shooting by me, went on to do more shooting, but still a novice, the other had never shot a gun before.
Its a lot to be watching one beginner, making sure they load the gun properly, keep it pointed in a safe direction, have the safety on, the safety off, standing properly, aiming properly, etc. But when I was dealing with two novices, it was difficult to make sure EVERYONE was safe. My one brother had the tendency, that whenever he would turn around to answer a question, he swung his entire body around, with the gun pointing at my knee caps. I told him to stop doing that a few times, while keeping another eye on my other brother-
Finally, someone got hurt-me. I got whacked by the manual clay thrower. I was so preoccupied with the fellas, I wasnt giving my task at hand the attention it needed.
By the way, THEY BOTH went out and bought shotguns-two guys who were indifferent to shooting.
And the same is true for others I have introduced to shooting-half of them went out and bought guns.
I think that given the opportunity, and overwhelming majority of MEN (and many women),who never did any shooting, would go out shooting if invited to do so. I have taken anti hunters out on their first shooting experience-
I truly believe that most anti gun sentiment offered by the antis would dry up, if someone took them to the range a few times.
"Waiting tables is what you know, making cheese is what I know-lets stick with what we know!"
-Jimmy the cheese man
ALWAYS one new shooter at a time handling guns on the line. As stated..you will have your hands full keeping yourself from being shot when 'newby' steps up to the line...The other person or persons can be involved in loading magazines or merely listening as you begin to increase 'newbys' knowledge base.
I position myself in the beginning to the left of a right-handed shooter...CLOSE. I have caught a swinging pistol or rifle more times then I care to think about...as it started its swing towards people or valuble things.There must be STRONG and CONTINUING admonitions about controlling the muzzle....the very first thing a new shooter that has just hit a target..(Big and Close) wants to do is get approval...and they will nearly EVERY TIME after the first or second shot...swing around beaming with a big smile...bringing that muzzle into a danger zone.
Discipline them...but do it GENTLY but Firmly....do not scream,even if your shorts are in a bunch. Get close and keep control of the situation..until the gun handling becomes second nature. Use your hands, if necessary..to control the piece..this builds trust for you, also..they realize you won't allow them to be hurt.
I demonstrate with airsoft pistols the ease of forgetting and turning towards a person to talk.
Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my gun.
The last thing to do...again with the AIRSOFT pistol. Load it and have student shoot it. Then have student turn away from you. Pull a black ski mask over your head with shooting glasses and spend a few moments putting the student (verbally) in their bed room...3 A.M...with the window breaking. Rather roughly..order them to "Turn Around"...start your advance from 10-15 feet away, moving toward them at a brisk pace. The object here is to break the inhibition of pointing a weapon at a person and pulling the trigger. Yes...I know I just broke the cardinal rule..."NEVER POINT A GUN AT A PERSON"...But I have proved to my own satisfaction that "Normal" training builds inhibitions that gets people killed. I have had students that needed 5 tries before they could squeeze the trigger on me.
Naturally...you demonstrate beforehand by "shooting" yourself in the led or stomach with the airsoft....
Men have been so brainwashed over the past 30 years to avoid all forms of conflict, violence, and force that most women have now surpassed men in the human need for self-preservation.
Any man who dares to defend himself in a forceful way (physically, verbally, or emotionally) is branded as unstable and psychotic. This is why cops now hesitate when they are confronted with an armed assailant. They are forced to consider a non-violent solution before reacting, which often leaves them bleeding on the ground while the assailant escapes.
Immigrants to our country from patriarchal societies (Latin America, Middle-East, Eastern Europe) are held to no such psychological limitations, and have a firm advantage over our neutered matriarchal society. As masculine-hatred, single-motherhood, and lesbian parenthood are further glorified in our society this problem will only become worse.
JMHO,
WW
MOLON LAVE
-Samuel Adams, Patriot/Brewer
Maybe a lot of women who were against guns to begin with were the stereotypical "soccer moms" who just wanted their kids to be safe, but harbored no aggression, so they are not as likely to project their fear of guns onto other people and may be more likely to accept an offer to go shooting.