So I got the best present from my wonderful husband for our fifth wedding anniversary. He gave me a Remington 870 shotgun, in 20 gauge. I’ve been shooting pistols and rifles since I was about 12, but I could count on one hand how many shotgun cartridges I’d shot. I wanted to round out my skills, so I put a shotgun on my “list.”
When he gave me my shotgun, I decided I would greatly benefit from a recoil pad. So out we went to one of the larger gun stores in my town in search of one. My husband and I wandered off our separate ways in the store, I went to look for my recoil pad, and he went to peruse the pistols. I found the recoil pads, but they were definitely not built for women. So I found my husband looking at a GORGEOUS Kimber 1911. The moment I walked up to the counter and the sales guy realized I was his customer’s wife, he immediately started teasing me, saying he would distract me so my husband could by the pistol. I tried to tell the sales guy that a) I’d just received a new gun, and b) if my husband bought that pistol, I would be the one to shoot it more! The sales guy didn’t seem to understand that girls like guns too, and continued to berate me. So we left, because he was irritating both of us.
There is still a stigma on women that guns are for boys, and girls keep their boys (husband or boyfriend) from buying guns. I hate it. This is primarily why I don’t usually go into the big box stores, because it is mainly a sausage party behind the counter.
I love my small local gun shop, because it is owned by a husband and wife team, and whenever I go there, they love to put guns in my hands! I swear, every time I go in there, I must handle half a dozen guns! The only reason I didn’t go there in the first place was because I knew they didn’t carry recoil pads.
As for my shotgun, I’m going to order a recoil pad online that was designed specifically for women. But I had to try my shotgun out, right? I had a blast (lol) shooting my very first round of trap, but I definitely need a recoil pad. My shoulder had a nice bruise on it, but I didn’t care! I can’t wait to shoot some more trap.
Happy Independence Day! I hope everyone has a fun and safe holiday. A special thanks to the firefighters and emergency personel who came from all over the country to Colorado to protect my beautiful city of Colorado Springs from the Waldo Canyon fire.
