Amy Oakley...

Brad isn’t a hunter or “outdoors-man” but he and the other men in his family all own guns and like to go to the range. I had never even held a gun, let alone shot one. Mostly out of fear but also out of lack of opportunity. Ever since Brad and I started dating, we have talked about going to the shooting range. I have been very curious about this. Little did any of us know how naturally I would take to shooting!!! 

Brad & Doug

There is a range in Bandera which is about 20 minutes from his parents’ home, so on Saturday I headed out with Brad, his brother Doug and their father, Larry. I was apprehensive and excited all at once. As soon as we got there I knew I was WAY out of my element but I trusted the Becker men to guide me and show me the way. Our first stop was to shoot at targets. Larry started me out with a small gun and patiently showed me how to hold it, use the safety and aim. Brad stood by to help (and take pictures). 

Larry was dancing around behind me catching my empty shells!

 

The first shot was scary because one of the things I had been most scared of was the kickback. Once I got that over with, it was a bit easier. I slowly emptied my first gun on the target and surprised everyone, especially me… apparently I had great aim! They complimented about things I don’t really understand… stuff about keeping all of my shots very close together and being very precise with my aim. Apparently, I don’t stray too much and with a short barrel gun, that is difficult to do. I even got a bulls eye on my first try! We went through several targets and a couple of different kinds of guns. 

The arsenal...

After a few rounds, I got a little cocky and decided to shoot my target in the head… poor target- never had a chance. By the time we had finished target shooting, I had shot a .32 and a .22 and had really enjoyed it. I continued to surprise the guys with my skill so Larry started calling me “Amy Oakley”.

In between my attempts, the guys would shot their own guns.

Next stop… skeet shooting with a shotgun!! Now this I was VERY scared about because I knew the kickback would be really rough. However, always willing to try something at least once, I stepped up. Even though they launched a skeet, I was more concerned about shooting the big 9mm 12 gauge shotgun then aiming at the flying target. After I did it, Brad said I actually came close to hitting it. However, I was more concerned about putting my shoulder back in its socket!! I only shot the gun once more… that was enough for me. I think I will stick to the smaller firearms. So, I enjoyed watching the guys skeet shoot for a while. 

The skeet range was funny. In an effort to appeal to all of their audiences, they have UT section and an A&M section. Sadly, we were put in the A&M section… the guys tried to make me feel better by saying that we were shooting AT the Aggies. Whatever.

You figure out which is the Men's restroom and which is the Women's...

 

So, it was a fun day with the guys and I enjoyed it quite a bit more than I expected. This is something I would enjoy doing with Brad and with his family. Plus, I think Brad will now think twice about crossing Amy Oakley.