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Ready, aim, fire. That's all there is to
it, right? Our instructors at Bob's
Little Sport Shop would disagree. Gun enjoyment begins with knowing
and following the rules for safe gun handling. Only after you understand
the safety rules, can you learn to use a gun properly. By first listening
carefully to your instructors, and then concentrating on your aim, you
too can enjoy the satisfaction of clustering your shots at a target down
range. (Did you know that shooting is one of the few Olympic sports
where men and women compete equally?)
Our day at the shooting range began with
our instructor, Frank Ruple, Jr., reviewing with us the gun safety
rules advocated by the National
Rifle Association (NRA).
Rule 1: always point the gun in a safe
direction. What is a safe direction? That depends on where you are.
In an apartment building, pointing the gun at either the ceiling or
the floor is not a good choice, for obvious reasons. Before picking
up a gun, you must always be aware of your surroundings.
Rule 2: always keep your finger off the
gun's trigger until you are prepared to shoot. A gun cannot fire itself.
Rule 3: and most important of all, always
keep the gun unloaded until you are ready to shoot. At the range, following
these rules, we were taught to walk with our guns pointed at the floor
and our fingers off the triggers; our guns unloaded, the ammunition
clips removed or the chambers on revolvers open and empty.
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Instructor Frank Ruple and fellow NJ OWL
member Judy (left) look at the results of Barbara Ann's great shooting.
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We donned our safety equipment of glasses
and hearing protectors before our volunteer instructors, Bob
Creedon, Wendy Copenhaver, Bill Phillips, Herman
Philpot, and Marc Suidut, led us onto the firing range.
Inside the range, we could choose a gun from among three types:
a semi-automatic handgun, a revolver, or a pistol. (Notice that
we didn't select "weapons" since, by law, only the US
military may fire weapons.)
All our guns used .22-caliber ammunition.
The instructors usually favor larger caliber guns since the louder
muzzle fire and greater recoil make for a more interesting sport.
(A .357 Magnum can be heard beyond the sound barrier of a firing
range.) After selecting our guns, we loaded them. Before loading
the cartridges in a revolver, you may have to remove empty casings
in the chamber . A semi-automatic ejects its spent casings automatically.
(Loading the magazine of a semi-automatic reminded me of filling
a Pez candy dispenser.)
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With our guns loaded and their safeties
on, we aimed at the targets seven yards away. To aim, you align
the gun sight and guide at the end of gun with the target bull's-eye.
(There may be a more technical term, but I need another lesson.)
You hold a gun with two hands. You use both eyes to sight a target.
(I needed two hands to steady the gun, but I got cross-eyed when
I tried using both eyes.) To insure a steady hand, you pull
the trigger while you are exhaling. (Did you know that Olympic
athletes are trained to fire between heartbeats?)
Success for us was measured by our
being able to cluster the cartridges in a group. If your shots are
steady and consistent, your gun sight can be adjusted to move the
cluster to the bull's-eye. By our second round of 50 shots, most
of us were able to cluster our shots. (The macho man firing at
the target with a .357 Magnum scattered his shots like buckshot.)
We may not be ready for the Olympics, but we could probably look
into joining a firing league that accepted competitors with a big
handicap. (Shooting, like golf or bowling, can be handicapped
-- just don't ask me how.)
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Mary shows off an excellent grouping.
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Naomi practices her shooting form on
the range.
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My thanks to Robert Viden, Jr.,
owner of Bob's
Little Sport Shop in Glassboro, NJ, for working with Cathy
to organize this activity for the NJ OWLs. Thanks also to our volunteer
instructors for dispelling the mystery of the contents of a police
holster. I can now watch all
my CSI shows with a better understanding of cartridge calibers and
of the differences among automatics, semi-automatics, and revolvers.
I'm even thinking of taking my husband and daughters to the gun
club so that they can learn about safe gun handling and experience
the thrill of hitting a target. As a first-time OWL participant,
I had a great day and look forward to other OWL activities.
Patricia Berkowitz
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Instructor Frank Ruple (4th from the left)
stands with proud OWL members after a fun day of shooting.
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