Monthly Archives: June 2012

Why I love Colorado

Posted on by Melissa
I recently came back from a trip to the east coast. I was there to see my cousin graduate from high school. My aunt, uncle and cousin live in Washington DC, so we spend a few days there and then went down to Atlantic City for a couple days. We had a wonderful time, but spending some time out east made me appreciate home. Don’t get me wrong, the east coast is beautiful, and Washington DC is amazing and full of history, but it’s a different world out there.
I haven’t been to DC in about 15 years. When you’ve been somewhere as a kid, then you go back as an adult, it’s like the first time, because you have a completely different perspective. The first thing that struck me was how claustrophobic that city is. There are a lot of people, in a very small area, compared to where I live, in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where we’re very spread out. It was a little uncomfortable, but it wasn’t the biggest culture shock…
The biggest culture shock about Washington DC was their gun laws. Pretty much take all of Colorado gun laws, and turn them up-side down. It’s basically full of CAN’T's. You can’t apply for any type of permit or license to carry a gun. You can’t have a “high capacity” magazine (more than 10 cartridges). You can’t have a fully automatic firearm or suppressors (aka, any fun). You can’t have a taser or stun-gun. And finally, the only way you can transport a gun through Washington DC is unloaded, and neither the gun nor the ammo can be accessible to the passenger compartment.
When people live in an environment with their gun freedoms suppressed like this, they become ignorant about guns, because people assume if the government restricts guns, guns must be evil. They have no idea of the rich gun community in other parts of the country. They don’t understand how the sport enriches people’s lives, young and old. I was at the range with A Girl and A Gun the other day, and I watched a 7 year old girl fall in love with shooting, and see her confidence grow with every shot. I feel sorry for those who cannot see past the anti-gun rhetoric, but I have to admit, it does make me proud to live in a state like Colorado.

No Boys Allowed

Posted on by Melissa

So the Colorado Springs chapter of A Girl and A Gun women’s shooting league officially launched last night, and it was an incredible experience! I walked into the clubhouse at the Pikes Peak Gun club (a little late) and about 15 women had shown up for some sisterly shooting. I had never been in the presence of so many like-minded women. There were women of all experience levels, some who had never shot before, all the way up to one of our facilitators, who is a competitor, as is the creator of the club. We even had a few young ladies with us, too. So in the clubhouse, we listened to the creator of the league and the two facilitators of the Colorado Springs chapter talk about the history of A Girl and A Gun. The creator of the club had only started it about a year and a half ago, and she already has over 40 chapters all over the country! The cool thing is that our chapter was the first to launch outside of Texas.

So after our history lesson, we went though a quick safety briefing, then the ladies announced we were going to shoot steel. All of the experienced shooters started cheering, including myself. I’ve said it before, but I LOVE shooting steel! It is so satisfying; you know right away if you hit your target without waiting for a cease-fire and walking down to your targets. I was there mainly as a Range Safety Officer and an instructor, but I had to have my fun, too. The four of us roamed the firing line, watching the ladies shoot to make sure everyone was being safe, and offering tips. That’s one of the best parts of being with all these women instead of being on a line full of men. When I offer advice, the women take it! Some men look at me and don’t take me seriously, and therefore, don’t listen to me when I try to give advice. Don’t get me wrong, if I see a gross safety violation, man or woman, they don’t have any choice but to listen to me!

After most of the ladies had their fill of shooting, I got my turn and tossed some lead down range. I don’t know if it was all the good juju from being around all these women, but I was just ON. It was a constant ting, ting, ting as I shot the target. Made me feel all warm and fuzzy!

After everyone was done for the day, we went back to the clubhouse for cake. We all hung out for a little while, talking about our experiences, and just generally enjoying the camaraderie.

A Girl and A Gun will hold “Girls Night Out” every Wednesday at the Pikes Peak Gun club from 6-8pm. You don’t have to be a member, and you don’t have to have a gun to come out and have a good time. I’ll be there most Wednesdays working as RSO and instructor, so stop by and get some “group therapy!”

If you’d like to see some pictures from our first Girls Night Out, check out A Girl and A Gun’s facebook page.