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As part of my effort to be a better gun owner, I made a new year's resolution to take some professional instruction this year.
I've been a shooter for a while, but hadn't ever had a lesson.
Couldn't find anywhere else to start, so I signed up with FTA, Firearms Training Associates for their Basic Firearms Safety course. This is the outfit that partners up with the Turner's chain to give instruction to new buyers and shooters.
Showed up about 9:30 on Saturday morning. Poor directions and a lack of proper signage made the place a little bit difficult to locate, but once I did, a gentlemen (one of the owners I discovered later) directed me to the parking area and the classroom/range area.
There were about 50 students in the classroom when we got started around 10:30 after getting everyone registered and verified. Purely by chance(?), I ended up sharing a table with a couple of lovely young ladies, Roz and Ysenia, out for their first experience. Made a nice day even better.
Mike was the instructor for the first two hours of classroom instruction.
Covered the basics for semi-auto and revolver pistol handling.
The class had a large number of female attendees, and there were a handful of minors attending with their parent(s). I was a little nervous around so many newbies, but the school has had zero incidents, and I've lived a full life already, so, what the heck, can't live forever, right?
We took a break for a hot dog lunch and tried to stay in the shade. It was sunny and bright, but not miserably so. Everyone was admonished to keep pouring fluids inside you.
After lunch we were allowed to bring out our weapons into the staging area.
They broke us up into two groups of 25 or so, and then each group was broken into two relays of 14 or so apiece. One relay would shoot while the other relay would reload magazines. Four or five instructors working the range from one end to the other, giving you tips and correcting bad habits.
An advertising guy from the Turner's group, and I shared target number 7. Between the two of us, the bull's eye had no chance from the three yard mark. Nice shootin', Karl.
Another student named Jesse was shooting "lights out" with his 1911 .45.
I mean every round was in a hole the size of a dime. Very impressive.
A couple of hours and 150 rounds later, there weren't no more newbies anymore. Just a bunch of good shooters. They ladies I had shared a table with in the morning, were a couple of natural born killers when I hooked back up with them in the afternoon.
The staff took us back in the classroom for a maintenence seminar. We cleaned up the Glocks the school had loaned to students, and discussed some legal issues.
They passed out some diplomas and had us on our way by 5:30 or so, if I recall correctly.
A great first experience for me, I'm sorely tempted to go back and take their General Handgun course next time. I highly reccomend them as a starting point.
I wasn't sure where to post this, if the moderator would like to move it, be my guest.
Picasso
I've been a shooter for a while, but hadn't ever had a lesson.
Couldn't find anywhere else to start, so I signed up with FTA, Firearms Training Associates for their Basic Firearms Safety course. This is the outfit that partners up with the Turner's chain to give instruction to new buyers and shooters.
Showed up about 9:30 on Saturday morning. Poor directions and a lack of proper signage made the place a little bit difficult to locate, but once I did, a gentlemen (one of the owners I discovered later) directed me to the parking area and the classroom/range area.
There were about 50 students in the classroom when we got started around 10:30 after getting everyone registered and verified. Purely by chance(?), I ended up sharing a table with a couple of lovely young ladies, Roz and Ysenia, out for their first experience. Made a nice day even better.
Mike was the instructor for the first two hours of classroom instruction.
Covered the basics for semi-auto and revolver pistol handling.
The class had a large number of female attendees, and there were a handful of minors attending with their parent(s). I was a little nervous around so many newbies, but the school has had zero incidents, and I've lived a full life already, so, what the heck, can't live forever, right?
We took a break for a hot dog lunch and tried to stay in the shade. It was sunny and bright, but not miserably so. Everyone was admonished to keep pouring fluids inside you.
After lunch we were allowed to bring out our weapons into the staging area.
They broke us up into two groups of 25 or so, and then each group was broken into two relays of 14 or so apiece. One relay would shoot while the other relay would reload magazines. Four or five instructors working the range from one end to the other, giving you tips and correcting bad habits.
An advertising guy from the Turner's group, and I shared target number 7. Between the two of us, the bull's eye had no chance from the three yard mark. Nice shootin', Karl.
Another student named Jesse was shooting "lights out" with his 1911 .45.
I mean every round was in a hole the size of a dime. Very impressive.
A couple of hours and 150 rounds later, there weren't no more newbies anymore. Just a bunch of good shooters. They ladies I had shared a table with in the morning, were a couple of natural born killers when I hooked back up with them in the afternoon.
The staff took us back in the classroom for a maintenence seminar. We cleaned up the Glocks the school had loaned to students, and discussed some legal issues.
They passed out some diplomas and had us on our way by 5:30 or so, if I recall correctly.
A great first experience for me, I'm sorely tempted to go back and take their General Handgun course next time. I highly reccomend them as a starting point.
I wasn't sure where to post this, if the moderator would like to move it, be my guest.
Picasso
