Range time with a new shooter

Yesterday, I took my step son shooting for the first time ever. He is 26, lives in the city, a good kid, and is a fairly typical millennial. I can tell you that he has mixed views about guns as he is surrounded on social media by other millennials who adhere to the anti-gun line that is so common among young urban adults. After the recent mass shootings which occurred in El Paso and Dayton, he was visibly angry and challenged my views on gun ownership rights. We hashed it out together and both agreed that evil people who misuse guns are the problem, not the average gun owner who uses guns lawfully.

Last week, to my surprise, he declared that he wanted to go shooting. So yesterday, we headed to the range with a pair of .22 rifles. We set up on the 50 yard range with a scoped CZ 457 and a bunch of ammo. Initially, he was tentative with the rifle and a little jumpy with the noise going on around him. I was patient with him and he eventually forgot about the noise and figured out the rifle. After a couple hours and a lot of rounds down range, he was working the bolt with authority, shooting nice groups, and having a blast. During my turns at the bench, he was looking around and taking an interest in the other firearms in action around us, especially the AR style rifles.

On the way home, he said he had a lot of fun and commented on the nice people at the range. He also said that guns aren’t all that bad. I must say that I was pleased. I don’t know that he will ever become a gun owner. However, he had a good experience with firearms and that was enough. I foresee a few more trips to the range in our time together.

Best thing that anyone can do is keep the discussion going
about gun education. The times we live in, being surrounded
by social media can be a dangerous distraction. At our range
and being an RO and director, I had a chance to work with
the junior rifle squad, 11, thru 18 years of age. Most were
from outer suburb areas to rural districts. You can sense the
different mid set of these kids, compared to inner city youths.

Hope you have many more sessions with your step son.

Fuj

my hero!

Good job putting forth the effort. Hopefully, your range time made a lasting impression. I work with a small group of people and most are not millennials, and those very few that are, are on the upper edge of the age group to be classified as one. However, we have a guy that has been with us about a year. Coincidentally, he is 26. It is next to impossible to find any commonality with him. Their entire way of life is so foreign to me. They certainly have a different way of thinking.