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I don't mean to call out a specific range in particular as I've seen this occur at a few ranges I've been at in the last few months but here is something that I've noticed:
ACME Gun Range puts out a Groupon ad for: firearm rental, 2 shooters, eyes & ears, and firearm assistance/instruction - perfect for beginners!
The problem I see often is when newbies redeem this they get little to no assistance/instruction. I've seen this at two different ranges in this past month alone.
The last time this happened there was a newbie & his girlfriend who tapped me on the shoulder to ask if i could help them with their firearm. They had a featureless AR on the bench with loaded mag in it pointed down range.
I asked what the problem was and he said he couldn't get it to shoot.
Me: Have you ever shot this firearm before?
Him: Nope, never shot a gun.
Me: No problem, did they show you how to safely operate this?
Him: Not really.
No big deal, I start with the basics of safety - always point down range, always treat as if loaded, etc. Then moved on to how to safely operate an AR-15. He caught on pretty quick and was following all of the safety advice which was great.
Aside from the initial 10 minutes I spent helping him and a few Q/A's along the way, he was pretty much good 2 go after that and at the end of his session he shook my hand and gave a real grateful "thank you".
Felt good to help somebody out but after my session ended I reflected and thought, "how TF can a range give a box of ammo and an AR-15 to somebody who has no idea how to operate it". seems extremely irresponsible. I'm always happy to help but I can only imagine the accidents that may happen should somebody less helpful be nearby or somebody more reckless be operating the firearm.
ACME Gun Range puts out a Groupon ad for: firearm rental, 2 shooters, eyes & ears, and firearm assistance/instruction - perfect for beginners!
The problem I see often is when newbies redeem this they get little to no assistance/instruction. I've seen this at two different ranges in this past month alone.
The last time this happened there was a newbie & his girlfriend who tapped me on the shoulder to ask if i could help them with their firearm. They had a featureless AR on the bench with loaded mag in it pointed down range.
I asked what the problem was and he said he couldn't get it to shoot.
Me: Have you ever shot this firearm before?
Him: Nope, never shot a gun.
Me: No problem, did they show you how to safely operate this?
Him: Not really.
No big deal, I start with the basics of safety - always point down range, always treat as if loaded, etc. Then moved on to how to safely operate an AR-15. He caught on pretty quick and was following all of the safety advice which was great.
Aside from the initial 10 minutes I spent helping him and a few Q/A's along the way, he was pretty much good 2 go after that and at the end of his session he shook my hand and gave a real grateful "thank you".
Felt good to help somebody out but after my session ended I reflected and thought, "how TF can a range give a box of ammo and an AR-15 to somebody who has no idea how to operate it". seems extremely irresponsible. I'm always happy to help but I can only imagine the accidents that may happen should somebody less helpful be nearby or somebody more reckless be operating the firearm.
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