America is one country we have been to where carrying guns is legal. People feel safe holding onto one. I for one would not be at the best of my comfort being around an armed person. There are shooting arcades where people practise their shooting skills. Even people without a gun license could rent a gun and some bullets and get started with shooting.
We set out to to check one such gun range place. We filled out a form and handed over a photo id to the guy at the other side of the counter which was lined with guns big and small ranging from hand guns, shot guns to long rifles. We chose a hand gun and paid for the bullets to get a pack of 50. Although that seems like a lot of bullets, frankly they go off pretty soon. We were given safety glasses to keep the flying shells off our eyes and a heavy oversized headphone to keep us from going deaf, each shot is indeed blaring.
We got to choose a target and were then let inside the shooting arena. Despite the headphones we could hear the muffled gunshots as we stepped in. We were given safety instructions and were then left to be all by ourselves. Loading the ammunition is probably the most tougher and required quite some strength. Emptying away the magazine in relation is way faster I must confess.
I watch a friend of mine as he takes the hand gun from the case, puts the magazine in, flips the safety lock and starts shooting. The loud shots and flying bullet shells further stir my nervousness. I am told its my turn, I try to imitate my friend while trying to appear confident. I align my vision to the target, wrap my shooting hand around the target, take one deep breath and press the trigger. A small spark, a roaring boom and the air filed with the smell of gun powder. The recoil was immense for a first timer. While my friends got most of their bullets to the bullseye, I did not even hit the target. The second time, as instructed by my friends I held the gun tighter until it hurt. I was still not close to the bull’s eye although I did manage to hit the target. I then finished the remaining bullets quickly. The impact from the recoil was easing out with each shot and the floor was slowly getting carpeted by the shells. By the end all the scattered castings looked unsettling, like a carcass.
We then swapped the gun for a more powerful one, this one didn’t have the trigger lock. It also needed bigger bullets translating to bigger holes on the target but required more muscle to load them into the magazine. I was stressed out by the fact how easy it is to shoot and all the horrible incidents that step from this ease of carrying one and shooting came to mind.
We decided it was a good time to call it a day. It was a great relief to take the ear gear off. Didn’t realise how heavy it was until then. Best part we got to take the bullet punctured targets home to show off the shooting skills, rather lack of.
We went to the Wades Eastside Guns. They also have membership plans that could save some buck for the frequent ones. We rented a lane, hand guns and ammunition.
