This book is designed to get you started with learning how to shoot. There is a lot of content intentionally left out to help you focus on the core fundamentals of marksmanship.
Further Reading
Once you are familiar with the fundamentals, there are many specialized books you can read and courses you can take, depending on your interests. They cover, for example, home defense; personal defense; skeet, trap, and sporting clays; and competition shooting (I recommend taking a look at World Champion Julie Golob’s book, Shoot: Your Guide to Shooting and Competition), such as 3-gun, IDPA, USPSA, long-range rifle, cowboy action, competitive skeet and trap, and many other disciplines. Some activities are specialized for women, youngsters, or seniors.
I highly recommend taking a training course, and there are plenty of options through the NRA’s website (training.nra.org), and most likely through your local gun range. The NRA offers basic and advanced certification courses for many firearm types. The organization was founded in 1871 as a training organization and has been refining its curriculum ever since. As an NRA certified instructor, I can affirm that new shooters will receive excellent instruction that will help solidify your understanding and application of marksmanship fundamentals and firearms safety.
Going to the Range
If you’ve never visited any of your local gun ranges, I highly encourage you to do so. If you’re a new shooter, call ahead and say you’re a beginner and would like to know about the range, and what you should expect when you arrive. Some ranges are indoor; others are outdoor. Some have a motorized hanger that moves the target toward and away from you, and others have 10–15 minute shooting intervals; at the end of each interval, everyone unloads and stays clear of the shooting benches so the targets can be changed. It all depends, so just ask the range master (the person in charge) about the range’s particular protocol.
When you arrive, you’ll probably have to sign in and fill out some quick paperwork. You will be asked what firearm you’ll be shooting and what kind of ammo you have with you. If you don’t have a gun and plan to rent, make sure you know what the shop’s rental policy is—some shops don’t rent, you have to bring your own gun. Many shops require renters to either already own their own gun or have someone else shooting with you.
If you plan to rent a gun, most ranges require you to purchase their ammo, which may be factory-made or reloaded. They simply want to avoid someone bringing in their personal hand-loaded ammo, which could not only damage or destroy the rental gun, but it could also injure the shooter and bystanders.
I encourage you to ask the range master all the questions you’d like, as it will comfort everyone to know (including yourself) that you understand the range rules and how to safely operate a firearm. A good range master will help you with whatever you need.
Some ranges have multiple target options, in which case the range master will ask you what targets you’d like to shoot at. Some places may only have one target option.
The range is a ton of fun and at some point you are going to want to take pictures of you holding some cool-looking gun to share it on Facebook, Twitter, and the Internet to save it for posterity’s sake. I know this because I do it too. However, this can lead to a scenario that I’ve seen too many times at a range, and that scares the heck out of me: For your picture, you take the gun and turn around 180 degrees to face uprange, that is, away from the targets, and pointing the gun down the safety line at other people. Not only does this violate firearm safety rule 2 (never cover the muzzle with anything you aren’t willing to destroy), but I’ve seen fingers on triggers and actions closed as well. Having a gun, loaded or unloaded, pointed at you is an unsettling experience. As someone who’s seen this happen at a range, it’s hard to know whether the gun is loaded or not or whether the action is closed and the magazine is inserted.
Acting out this scenario is one quick way to, at a minimum, get a stern warning from a range master and could possibly lead to your getting banned from the range.
If you want to get your picture taken at a range, the proper way is to point the muzzle downrange and just turn your head toward the camera. Whoever is taking the photo can either be right behind you or, better yet, off to one side and behind the firing line. One last thing is to remember is to keep your finger off the trigger, and I recommend only taking pictures when a gun is fully unloaded.
Other Places to Shoot
If you are lucky to have access to privately owned land, you could get a clay thrower and some metal targets or bottles and have at it! One of my friends is a member of a gun club here in Northern California where nine families own more than 5,000 acres of land. I went on a hunting trip with him, and during our downtime the seven of us lined up on a porch with shotguns and took aim at clays thrown over a small pond. We did this for close to 45 minutes, and it was a ton of fun.
Once I was exposed to more fun shooting activities away from a static firing line, it really enhanced my enjoyment of firearms.
Another option is land owned by the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which is open to the public. I’ve been shooting in some fun places in Nevada near Las Vegas and near the site of the Burning Man festival. Our taxes are going towards the maintenance of BLM land, so you should get money’s worth.
Taking Professional Courses
There are plenty of fantastic courses you can take to improve your pistol, rifle, and shotgun skills. The NRA has a number of classes you can take for a fee, and you’ll be taught by a certified NRA instructor who will reinforce many of the techniques in this book. The National Shooting Sports Foundation also has a “First Shots” program to introduce new shooters to our community and culture.
Other places—such as Gunsite Academy in Arizona and Front Sight near Las Vegas, Nevada—have a large roster of courses you can take. There are a number of other large training schools available as well.
Your local gun range and store will most likely have additional resources and classes to share with you.
Traveling with Firearms
Regardless of whether you are driving, flying, shipping, or transporting your firearm, you are responsible for knowing the local, state, and national laws in countries your firearm will be going through. Caution is advised if you are traveling with firearms to New York City, Washington, D.C., or Chicago, as they have strict gun laws. International travel can sometimes require weeks or months of planning, applying for permits, and making other preparations for bringing firearms, so start your research early.
Since gun laws are constantly changing, consult the appropriate police department or other government agency for detailed information.
Flying
Flying with firearms is actually a fairly straightforward process. I’ve traveled all across the country through many airports and have become experienced in traveling with firearms.
Your first step should be to check the airline’s website with regards to their firearms policy. While each airline has its own policy, it generally looks like this:
Again, you’ll want to check with the specific airline’s website for their exact guidelines.
Before you leave home for the airport, make sure your firearm is empty and properly stored in a locked case. You can either have a case with a key or combination lock, and I prefer to not use TSA locks, since once the guns are checked by TSA at the counter, there should be no reason for them to examine them again on the way to the plane, or to baggage claim upon arrival. If TSA want to examine my gun case again, they can always locate me at the airport to unlock it.
When you arrive at the airport, here’s what the process will look like:
Once you’re done with the steps above and before going through security, it is very important is to check the pockets in all items of clothing you are wearing or carrying and to check in all bags for any loose ammunition that you may not be aware of. After checking in at the counter your next step is to go through TSA metal detectors. You don’t want your trip delayed if TSA finds a live round in your pocket. It’s possible that you could be fined or imprisoned for attempting to bring live ammunition aboard an airplane, so this is an important step to take before going through security.
Upon arrival, go to the baggage claim. Depending on the size of your case, your item might be on the regular carousel or it could be in the area for oversized and special items. Keep an eye on both.
Like other airplane baggage, gun cases can get misrouted or lost. I know a few competitors whose guns did not show up for a match on time, but, thanks to the generosity of the shooting community, other shooters are generally quick to loan gear for the gunless shooter. We know that it could happen to any of us, and taking care of each other is one of the great things I love about the shooting community.
All in all, flying with firearms is very manageable as long as you know and follow the rules.
Shipping
If you don’t want to bother with the hassle of lugging a gun case to the airport, shipping is always an option. It’s best to contact your local gun shop to coordinate the shipping and receiving logistics. If you decide to ship via the US Post Office, you absolutely must contact them ahead of time to discuss your particular situation before bringing any firearm into a post office or even its parking lot, all of which is federal property and may be subject to additional restrictions.
Driving
Transporting firearms in a motor vehicle is another option. In many areas, this includes motorcycles. There are too many combinations firearms transportation laws at the city, county, state, and federal levels to list here, but it’s your responsibility to know the laws of every jurisdiction through which you’ll be traveling. Certain jurisdictions may require pistols to be locked in a secured box out of reach of the driver, but other jurisdictions may allow loaded long guns within reach of the driver. It really just depends.
Gun laws are constantly changing, so again, make sure you check with all pertinent law enforcement agencies to make sure you are complying with the law.
Public Transportation
Consult the appropriate transportation authority.
Walking
Generally speaking, you can walk with your bagged, unloaded firearm to and from your car, or from your car to the gun range or wherever you plan to legally discharge your firearm.
If you live in the suburbs or other urban area, unless you have a conceal carry permit it’s not advised to go run errands with your firearm in a backpack, purse, or other bag. It could be perceived as a method to conceal carry a weapon, which in many counties and states requires a permit through local law enforcement. Violating a conceal-carry law can put you in a really bad situation.
If you live in a rural area, then you might have more-lax laws about walking around with an unloaded, or even loaded, firearm.
The advice for transporting firearms in this chapter is for those that are unloaded and bagged. Walking with a loaded, bagged firearm may not be legal in your area without a proper permit. With regards to walking in public with your firearm, the safest arrangement is to make sure it is unloaded and bagged up. You do not want to attract any unwanted attention, such as a concerned citizen deciding to call the police because you’re walking down the city street with a tactical rifle that is not bagged.
All of this will vary depending on where you live, so again, consult your local law enforcement agency for further clarification. Be advised that it can be very challenging to locate accurate information online, and even law enforcement may not be 100 percent up to speed with the current laws.