Last week in Idaho, I got to do a bit of shooting with some friends. It was a great reminder that this stuff is fun, and it doesn't have to be complicated.
I'm in Idaho for a couple of weeks, and two couples said they wanted to go shooting. So ... we jumped on our ATVs and UTVs and headed up a gnarly trail in the Forest Service woods to a place with a natural berm, where we had shot before. My friends are good shots, and while I did show them the "ball and dummy" drill (using a revolver with a couple of empty chambers), there was no instruction going on -- just shooting.
I think there were nine or 10 handguns there. CZ, HK, Ruger, S&W, Browning, Springfield Armory and Sig were all represented. We had one .25ACP (Browning/Colt pocket pistol), a .327 Federal revolver (Ruger), several 9mms (Shields, HK, Sig P938), an XDm in .45ACP and my S&W 686 Plus Deluxe -- .357 Magnum.
Andrea and Monique do a lot of hiking in the mountains, and they always carry because there are bears here (which they have run into before). Mike and Brad are both experienced hunters and shooters. We laid out the guns on the tailgate and bed of my Ranger UTV, and we took turns shooting. All safety protocols were observed, of course.
It was like a pot luck supper, where everyone brings something, or more than one thing, and everyone tries everything on the table. A few observations. There's a reason they call the .25ACP a belly gun. If you are too far to stick it in someone's belly, accuracy is ... suspect, at best. The Sig P938 surprised several people with its accuracy. The single-action trigger was new to Monique, but once she got used to it, she really shot it well. We helped Brad install a laser on one of his pistols, and then he did some one-handed and moving drills to see just how useful a laser can be. We tied different ammo in the .327 Federal and .357 magnum, mixing light loads and full magnums.
During the shooting, we kept getting a whiff of elk scent. After we put away the guns, Mike walked around the small opening we had used and found a half-dozen elk beds within 30 yards of us.
We all tend to get caught up in the complicated -- competition, gear, politics, etc. I enjoyed the simple pleasure of being out with friends -- talking, laughing, trying each other's guns, and spending time outdoors.
The takeaway? Don't forget that this stuff is fun. Invite a friend to go with you. ~ Tom
Tom Gresham
Author, outdoorsman, gun rights activist, and firearms enthusiast for more than five decades, Tom Gresham hosts Tom Gresham's Gun Talk, the first nationally-syndicated radio show about guns and the shooting sports, and is also the producer and co-host of the Guns & Gear, GunVenture and First Person Defender television series.
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