Last night I joined the rifle club :)
I've been looking for a new sport and, although not particularly physically demanding, I thought this could be good for my focus and possibly quite relaxing. I'd tried fencing in the past but wasn't particularly gifted and hadn't enjoyed the atmosphere of the two clubs I’d been to - both very male dominated, a bit aloof. I didn't feel that I knew the basics before I was thrown into it.
I have to admit, though, shooting is not something I’ve always had a burning desire for. I assumed there was probably a lot less skill involved than fencing. A 'point and click' sport. I also shared the concern that it would be full of red-necked 'yee ha' sorts, bragging about the size of their weapons. As with a lot of things, if it has such a strong stereotypical and media-fuelled persona, I’m curious to find out whether it's true. In this case, it wasn't.
I started by e-mailing the club. It took some time for them to get back to me. Eventually they did, and I had to fill out my details and consent to a police check before they could allow me through the door. The police check only took about a week, then they e-mailed me directions so that I could go for my induction and safety training.
The club itself is well hidden and you couldn't tell from the outside of the building what was going on inside. It has a thick door with a light above. You know if someone's in if the light's on, then you knock and someone answers. It really does have that 'secret club' feel about it, for obvious reasons. It made me wonder how many other buildings I pass, whilst wandering about town, might have something strange and clandestine going on behind their doors :op
It was a quiet night with only three young lads and two older members. Apparently, different people go on different nights. It's open four nights a week and you can go as often as you like. I started with my safety training. We were shooting .22 Anschutz small-bore bolt rifles, like this:
It's illegal to have automatic handguns in the UK, but you can fire 'black powder' guns. Powder guns are the ones you have to load yourself with the powder and shot - sort of Pirates of the Caribbean style. It's also illegal to carry ammo without a license, even without the gun. Many people don't own black powder guns because, in order to do so, you not only need a gun license but an explosives license for the powder. If you have one of those, the police are allowed to turn up and search your home any time they like without a warrant - it puts a lot of people off the idea.
During the safety training, I got to see what a .22 rifle could do to 10 sheets of mahogany and a lump of hard putty the size of my fist. You wouldn't be coming back. Bit of a step-up from the air rifles that had inspired me (I came top of the class during a summer activity course when I was in my teens - won an Aero!) and instilled a respect for weapons. I was then taught safety procedures such as loading the gun with a plastic green flag when it's empty, then the basics of how to work the locking chamber and fire.
All of this seemed pretty straightforward and I was thinking 'yeah, easy enough.' Then came the lesson on how to position yourself. At this point, I lost the image of standing at a shooting range, and started to realise just what was really involved.
First off, you're not standing up. You're lying down on your stomach. I'm right-handed, so I lie with my right leg bent, angled slightly on my left side, to give my diaphragm space. I'm propped on my left elbow, which is my supporting arm for the rifle. The right hand is free to load the ammo and pull the trigger. So you look a bit like this:
You wear a jacket that is about two sizes too small for you. Mine didn't even do up at the front. It's made out of tough canvas material. The idea is that the jacket is so tight that, when you're lying in that position, you can relax every bone in your body but the tension across the shoulders and arms will hold your position. This is important for reasons I’ll go into in a minute.
In addition to the tightness of the jacket, you also have a belt strap around your upper left arm. It's pretty tight, like you're about to inject yourself with something! So, one end is tight around your left upper arm, and the other end has a hook that attaches to the underside of the rifle. Your left arm is the one that holds/supports the rifle, so you have a glove on that hand. With the rifle resting against your right shoulder, you put that gloved left hand over the top of the strap and hold the rifle up against where the strap joins the gun. It's pretty hard to explain, and I’ve only found one picture on another site (hope they won't mind me borrowing it!). It doesn't really show it that well, but it sort of gives the idea:
This is where the suit comes in, because your left arm is supposed to be completely relaxed. You don't hold the gun so much as rest it. The tension in the jacket across the top of your shoulders, when in position, keeps the tension even though you're relaxed. Your right arm, when it's not loading, is also resting quite high (if you're standing up and you bring both elbows up to your chin you're about there) along the trigger, with the butt of the gun resting against your right shoulder. You then have two sights that you line up.
It's a pretty intense position to hold. After two rounds (ten shots) my left arm had gone dead, my elbow was sore, and my neck was stiff. Was 100% worth it though, and apparently you get used to the position. I was really surprised how small the targets were. I assumed you'd be able to see the rings on it, but at 25 yards it was a small black dot on a wall far, far away. Seriously, when I first saw it, I had no idea on earth how anyone could hit it with any degree of accuracy. It was tiny. I was also surprised how light the trigger was. You barely had to squeeze it to fire, but there wasn't much kick-back. Barely noticeable really - more than an air rifle, but not very impressive :op
I have to say, I came away grinning. I only shot four rounds, it was getting late by the time I’d finished my induction, but it was enough to give me a taster. I absolutely loved it. The skill comes not from hitting the target, but from doing it with any degree of consistency. Especially when you have to reload in between each shot, and the slightest movement can send your next bullet way off course.
It's like a meditation - one which women are usually better at than men, according to my instructor! Once you line up your sight with the little black dot in the middle of the target, you have to relax. You steady your breathing and then you breathe right out - all the way out - and wait for a second. Once you're completely and totally still, that's the point at which you fire. Problem is, if you pause too long you start to see things, you can't be sure you're lined up because you're focusing too hard on the target. To remedy this, you close both eyes then open them again to see if you're still aiming at the same thing. It's a very strange sensation to be so uncomfortable yet so relaxed. When you breathe out and lie there, completely still, it is this wonderful place. I really enjoyed it.
So, how did I do?
Well, my first attempt was pretty darn good. Check out the baby dead in the middle!
Little high, though. Second was better - more consistent, but one 'wayward' bullet:
The next card, I was a bit flustered when I started. The three lads were having a competition and I was trying to get ready when they'd already started. I was struggling to relax and I ended up trying to write my name on it :op
I knew I’d done badly on that one, but I relaxed much better on the second round. Still wasn't sure I’d done okay, though. I was utterly stoked when we went to collect the paper! What an awesome round to go out on - I was so proud :oD
So, I have learned that there is actually a lot of skill involved in rifle shooting and it's a lot harder than I imagined - and a lot more uncomfortable! But it was great fun. I’ll def. be going again next week. As sports go, it's also really cheap. There's an annual membership fee of around £40, it was £5 for the induction training, £50p each time you turn up to use the range, and about £2.50 for a round of 50 low-grade bullets.
Yay for guns! :oD
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