The shooting
sports are awesome. I have years of experience that has allowed me to
build a strong skill set and learn from my mistakes. The newbies who
are joining up in droves today though don't have the luxury of
experience . Here are some of the things I wish I had known when I
first started shooting.
Me in my younger days trying to look cool, or something.
1.The shooting world is full of self described experts and crappy advice
This is a big one. Every time I walk into the gun store there is some
fat old guy (no offense to fat old guys) spraying advice all over the
room like blood in a Quentin Tarantino movie. It hits you in the face
and drips down the walls, you try to towel it off but the damn blood (I
mean advice) just doesn't stop. And this advice isn't a
polite suggestion, it is more of a sledgehammer of righteousness to the pelvic area. If someone you barely know (or know well I suppose) demands that you buy a specific caliber, brand, and model of gun, plug your ears with anything handy. Don't use your fingers though because you'll need your hands to shield yourself from the bs. There is no one-size-fits-all to buying a gun or gun accessories and the helpful mentors know it. Every person's hands, physical capabilities, and specific needs, differ. A gun is like a hiking boot, you have to try them on first.
polite suggestion, it is more of a sledgehammer of righteousness to the pelvic area. If someone you barely know (or know well I suppose) demands that you buy a specific caliber, brand, and model of gun, plug your ears with anything handy. Don't use your fingers though because you'll need your hands to shield yourself from the bs. There is no one-size-fits-all to buying a gun or gun accessories and the helpful mentors know it. Every person's hands, physical capabilities, and specific needs, differ. A gun is like a hiking boot, you have to try them on first.
2. Everything is expensive. You are never truly done buying stuff.
I am just shy of 30. When I was a teenager buying ammo was cheap and
easy but times have changed. With the current panic (thanks Obama) even
the little 22LR has increased in price like Apple stock. What was once
less than ten dollars for 500 bullets is now twenty on a good day, much
much much (one more) much more pricey if purchased on a website like
Backpage. There are other things to buy as well. Magazines, the thing
that holds the bullets, don't you dare call it a clip on the internet or
it will send Satan to your house to eat your fingers off and your
tongue out. Satan will also use your bathroom and "forget" to flush.
You'll be buying holsters, belts, sights, cleaning kits, and tactical
lights. Notice how all of those are plural? That is because you will
never be truly happy with your gear and will be forever on a quest to
find perfection. Hint: it won't happen. Oh and I almost forgot, you
will buy a gun only to get addicted and want more. Plan on buying a
safe, only to buy a bigger safe soon thereafter.
3. It will consume a ton of your time
So, you have a lot of new gear, a shiny new gun, and that super
lethal silver-bullet Unicorn Slayer ammo that some fat guy (see above)
forced you to buy. Now what? Well, now you need to practice. It
starts off easy enough with some plinking sessions on your uncles back
40 or out in the desert. Then, you start going to the range because
that's where your buddies go. You are getting better but only while
standing still and shooting at a bright orange target at twenty feet.
Being the budding bad ass you are you sign up for a defensive shooting
class, then another, then another. You will learn tons and love it but
keep in mind those skills will be lost almost as quickly as you learned
them unless you go out and do it all the time. Think of it this way:
You'll be a Casanova if you keep the training level up but will become a
nerdy virgin if you don't. It is like a super cruel Groundhog Day
featuring you. Oh, and don't get me started on how much time you will
spend at the gun store looking for needed ammo and avoiding that fat
guy.
4. People will totally love you, and hate you.
The fraternity of gun lovers is a pretty tight-knit group of folks and
we will open our doors, ranges, and arms to you. I mean it, you buy
your first gun and we will hug the crap out of you. I personally carry
confetti in my pockets just in case I run into you at that magical
moment. On the other hand, any anti gun person who finds out will take
your choice as a personal failure on their part and try everything
(including crying) to convert you back. It doesn't matter if it's your
wife, aunt, neighbor, co-worker or mailman. They will find you and they
will attempt to make you feel guilty for wanting to have fun and god
forbid protect yourself. You will become Hitler and Stalin's love child
in their eyes so be prepared. Shoot down (see what I did there?) the
lies and insults with kindness and facts (like buying a gun didn't make
you horny for death and mayhem) and smile. There is not much else you
can do.
5. It is totally worth it!
Don't
let anything I've written above scare you away. Shooting is friggin'
awesome and it will fill you with a sense of accomplishment and
self-reliance. With time you'll know that you are no longer at the
mercy of a police department's long response time, and you'll have a
hobby that really does give back in spades to your life. Millions of
people wouldn't participate in this sport if it was not rad. Reach out to us, ask questions, find a good mentor, and enjoy!
A buddy I got into shooting years ago.
No comments:
Post a Comment