You did not just ask me that..

Seriously, it just happened again. While shopping with D2, we wandered into the Hunting and Fishing Department of our newly opened national retail chain sporting goods store. While we perused the racks, and wandered from the apparel to the firearm accessory section, D2 naturally gravitated toward the bows. The salesman, who had been laughing at the lady afraid to touch the stuffed bear (she was seriously freaked out by the taxidermy in the section), wandered over and asked if we needed any help.

I politely answered that we did not, we were just looking around. Then it happened. Again. He said those words I dread.."Can I help you find something for your husband?" And with that..D2 legitimately laughed out loud and looked at me and said.."Oh boy.." And while she was saying that to me, I apparently replied to him with "Don't do that..Don't ever do that.." And that's where his education began..

Don't ever assume that a female in the hunting and fishing section is there to pick up something for her husband. He actually ended up being a terrific guy, along with the other guy in the department  He did make one more assumption early on in the conversation, he assumed I was a LEO.  After we cleared up that fact that while I owned a Springfield XD-9, it was not my duty weapon. It just so happened that I was a female firearm enthusiast, who held NRA Certification as a Range Safety Officer and as a Pistol Instructor. He soon stopped asking me questions he was sure I didn't know the answer to, and we had a really pleasant conversation. D2 and I probably spent a good 15 minutes BSing with them about different local sportsman clubs and what firearms I owned, and what I did with them. (I was apparently quite the novelty!)

This was D2s first experience with someone making an assumption based on our gender.  She's heard me blabber on at home after having a run-in with various salesman, but she's never actually been there before when something really stupid like that has been said to me.  I seriously think I need to design a course to teach to salesman on how to sell to female clientele.

While I was "educating" the boys, D2 was looking at the rack of bows. She found a crossbow that she liked (exclaiming "Ohhhh...this one is pretty!!") His remark? "Oh, that's a really nice bow..AND we have it in pink camo!"

Don't do that either!!!! Don't assume that because we're lady's, we want pink bows, pink guns or pink camo clothes! If I want it in pink camo, I'll ask if it comes in any other colors. After laughing at her that she called a crossbow "pretty" he explained that most of the bows he's sold to women recently were because they "really liked the Hunger Games.."

I already covered the whole "pink thing" in an older blog..I don't want a pink gun, or a pink bow, or pink anything..don't assume because I'm female, I want a pink!  (Again, I have no problem with the color pink, what I have issue with is the assumption that because I am a female, I automatically must have pink everything!)

It was then he told us we were marriage material! =) They don't get many of our kind in their department!

As we left, I told him next time, don't make the assumption I needed help picking out something for my husband, and he said not to worry, he'd know us upon return! We'll go back, even just to test my education process. I guarantee they will think twice next time a female wanders into their department.

Now to work on my Selling to Women sales program..I think I could get rich!

Wait..you want a what?

So my youngest turns 16 this fall. While every other girl in town is having swanky Sweet 16 parties, D2 seems to have a dilemma. When asked what she wanted for her birthday, she said she didn't want a party. Instead she thought she wanted to take a friend into New York City and see Wicked. OK! We can do that!

Then last night, while driving to Junior League, (where she out-shot the boyz) she said she might have changed her mind..cause she really, really wants..a crossbow..wait, what?

This is the same girl who wanted a bow and arrow for her 14th birthday, so kind of as a joke, we bought her an inexpensive junior model. She's had more dang fun with that thing in the back yard, (which reminds me, I need to run to WalMart and get another big foam target!)

She's also talking about wanting to try hunting. Now to meet this girl, your immediate impression would be she's a "girly-girl." But while her hair and makeup always look perfect, this little athlete could whip your butt without ruining her eyeliner. All 100 pounds of her..

She truly is an athlete, a softball player, and between her high school team and her summer travel team, she really hasn't had all that much free time. Most of her summer was spent playing 2nd base on her travel team. She played like a boss, stopped a line drive with her face and despite her 2 blackish eyes and a swollen nose from the impact, still went and hung out with her friends that Saturday night. She even brought home the MVP medal in one of the tournaments.

So let me summarize, I've got a 16-year-old girl, who rides horses, shoots guns, plays competitive softball and now wants a crossbow. Of course she'll end up getting one..she'll be the only girl in her High School with one too. (Whats that saying, you can take the girl out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the girl?) 

I'm proud of D2 having an interest in things that are completely not the norm here in our part of New York. She's intelligent, articulate, and well-rounded. I'm thrilled that her interest in shooting sports is growing. 

We will be looking at colleges this year, maybe we can find one where she can continue with her new hobbies! And lets face it, mentioning to that boy who keeps hitting on you that you're on a shooting team, can't hurt! =)  Well, unless he's a real country boy, then it's still probably all good! =)  Now to get started on a piece about D1 and her shooting adventures..

Puleeze..

I've heard it before..and if you're a female shooter, you probably have too.."you should try a revolver, it will be easier for you." Wait, what?..Seriously? Why would a revolver be "easier for me?" Do men really believe they're so superior to women that we are not semi-automatic worthy? Do they think we're too weak to properly handle anything larger or more complex than a basic 6-shooter?

In short, yes! It's the same reason manufacturers push their little pink .22 revolvers on women. I don't want a little pink .22 revolver, I have a .22 and I love it, but its a Browning Buck Mark semi-auto. And it's not pink!

Firearms are tools. I prefer my mine to be black and semi-automatic. Do men think I'm unable to rack the slide on my firearms? Guess again buddy. Is there an upper limit on calibers that a lady shouldn't shoot? Not in my book.

I happen to love revolvers! Who doesn't?! They're great, reliable firearms. In fact, my next firearm purchase will be a Smith and Wesson .38 Special. But don't you dare presume because I'm a woman that one will be "easier" for me than my semi-automatics. They're not a "ladies" gun, plenty of men I know prefer revolvers, that's why manufacturers make so many different shapes and sizes, so we can buy what we like (and feel most comfortable with).

I know I'm not alone out there, I'm certainly not the only female who has faced this issue. I've seen other female bloggers write about similar subjects because these are issues we all face as women shooters. (@fateofdestinee has an AWESOME video blog about this and other subjects that face us, so be sure to check her out and give her a follow while you're at it!)

I love my Springfield XD-9. I love my Kimber 1911 too. Do my hands get tired after the umpteenth time racking them? Sure! Whose don't? It's not just a women's issue!

Don't get me wrong, I have no problem with pink, or pink guns, but if you're going to assume it's all I can/should shoot because I'm a female at least make it pink camo!

Pushing past her comfort level..

For the past several weeks, my girls (ages 17 and 15.5) have been enjoying range time with my clubs newly reinstated Junior League. We're fortunate to have some great volunteers who have shot  both competitively and while on the job, who are teaching a great group of kids how to improve their skills.

Last week, with it being the day after the Fourth of July, only my girls were able to attend Jr. League. Giddy up and game on! They decided they wanted to see who was the better shot, so we held a little friendly competition. In all fairness, D2 (short for Daughter #2) has had a lot more range time than D1 because of work schedules, so she's had a lot more coaching.

While they both shot well, D2 outscored D1 and held bragging rights around the house for the week. Planning a rematch, D1 was sure she could outscore her younger sister, but as fate would have it, she got called into work and put in a 10 hour day. No range time for her tonight. Instead, D2 went alone (straight out of work herself, hence the scrubs in the pictures!).

We had 5 kids show up tonight, 3 boys and 2 girls. (This may have been the first week where the boys outnumbered the girls, but no worries, the girls held their own!)  At the end, there was just D2 and two of the boys. We decided to shoot plates. Suddenly, the girl with the bragging rights all week was a bundle of nerves. She tried to convince me we needed to go home. She tried to tell them she was tired. She didn't want to have to shoot plates against the boys. But she did. Her coach saw to it that she at least try. (She was less than thrilled with being put on the spot, but she went along after telling everyone not to expect her to hit any of them).

The boys weren't flawless. D2 held her own. First round, she shot 3 out of the 6. When she missed that 4th plate her nerves got the best of her and she missed the next 3. Second round, however, she took her time, watched her breathing, and took down all 6! She pushed past her comfort level and surprised herself with a perfect round.

I'm glad her coach encouraged her to try it, I think she learned a few things she didn't expect to. Now I'm waiting for D1 and D2 to request range time so they can have a plate shooting competition!

Little ole me..on the NRA Blog!

Admittedly, I was pretty psyched when I got the notification that @NRABlog.com was now following me on Twitter! (Sweet!) But when I got a direct message asking if they could post my blog about becoming an NRA Certified Pistol Instructor, I did a double take! Who me? Ummm...YEAH!

About two hours later I received a message back, saying it was done. My little blog, with all of 6 posts..out there for the world to see. I guess that's the beauty of social media..one second you're anonymous, the next the world is looking at your picture.

I started my little blog as a sort of experiment. I wrote a few pieces that had been published on another blog (Girls Guide to Guns) and I posted a few on one of the firearms forums I belong to (www.gunfolks.com). But I wanted somewhere to keep them all in one place. I tried to come up with a creative name for my blog, and after the third try, I settled on WeShoot2. Because we do!

Other than starting a Twitter account under the same name as the blog (@WeShoot2) I didn't do anything to promote the blog. Heck, I think I only tweeted two of my pieces on that twitter account. I really didn't care if anyone read my writings, and frankly, I didn't think anyone would be interested in it..oddly enough, I'm still not sure but it was kind of fun to take things out of my mind and put it out there for people to see.

As a female firearms enthusiast, I'm constantly reminded that it's still very much a "mans world" especially here in my part of New York. I'm tired of going into a sporting goods store and having the sales people either ignore me or worse yet ask me what my husband wanted me to pick up for him. (Cause that.just.happened.) I'm tired of coming up with smart remarks when a clerk asks me something ridiculous..because I'm a woman. ("Ma'am, you realize those are for a gun, right?" "Oh really..I thought they were pretty, I was gonna make some earnings out of them..") (And yes, that also happened).

That said, I've also found that the guys that I know who do shoot, are some of the nicest, helpful and most supportive people I've ever met. Always willing to lend a hand, offer advice, or even meet me at the range so I'm not there alone. To them, I'm one of the guys, and that's cool with me.

I'd love more women to get into shooting. I'd love them to see you're not alone when a salesman tries to sell a gun to your husband, when it's really for you. I'd love for every woman out there who got their pistol permit for the sole purpose of co-owning their husbands firearms, to get out there and try it. I'll try to plan a Ladies Day at the range, and now that I'm an NRA Certified Pistol Instructor, I can start helping ladies get out there on the line and get comfortable around a firearm, and just maybe like shooting as much as I do.

And in the meantime, between my random writings, I think I'm going to start keeping track of the dumb things people say to me that are firearms related..Stay tuned..and thanks for reading! And thank you NRABlog for putting me out there!

Now I have to work on getting decent pictures of me at the range..

First meeting of the Junior Club..

The newly formed Junior  Club met this morning.We ended up with 6 juniors, ranging in age from 12 to 17. Three were boys, and three were GIRLS! It was nice to see an equal number of girls and boys, even if two of the girls were mine!  There are a few more kids who will join in the next time they meet but it was nice to have a smaller group, as some of them hadn't handled a rifle before.

After a thorough safety lecture, everyone started with the basics, regardless of their own personal experience with firearms. Square one..The guys who volunteered to take charge of the group did an excellent job talking about more than just what they'd be doing in the club, they also covered situations the kids might find themselves in outside of the range. Life lessons that go beyond range time, that's what I like. 

The kids had a good time, each shot a few different .22lr rifles. Each time they meet, they'll build on the skills they've learned. We're hoping to keep it safe, fun, fresh and interesting. Keep them coming back and improving their skills. 

Who knows, maybe we started a future Olympian today! If nothing else, they're gaining skills and having fun, in a safe, supportive and instructional environment. 

Working with kids..

OK they're technically not "kids" they're between the ages if 12 and 18, and they're learning to shoot!

After almost 2 years, we were finally able to get the club I belong to, to start back up their Junior League. We start tomorrow.

My girls have been to the range with me many times, but I'm excited for someone other than me to be offering instruction and guidance to them. I'll be there helping. I'm hoping for a large turnout, and frankly I'm hoping the girls outnumber the boys.

Here's to GirlPower! Because we.shoot.too! I'll blog about the first day to let you know how it went..till then, keep your powder dry..