Haven't shot my 1022 yet. And I've been looking at some of my local ranges to see what works for me. And some require you to watch a 30 minute safety video & take a written/graded test. And been wondering can you shoot inside a national forest out in the middle of nowhere part like in Osceola for instance? Just double checking as I don't want to violate any state statures. And my local outdoor gun ranges is 29 minutes away. And don't want to be scared off from ranges bye all the overbearing rules etc Just to target shoot my gun & break it in.
Original Poster, understand that a lot of the comments are not about you personally but rather situations that others with a bit more experience have gone through.
Ranges have rules for several reasons including any mishaps on the range can cause them to get sued out of business, result in death or serious injury, create a negative experience for customers, and generally speaking they cannot discriminate on who gets to shoot up front aside from age perhaps (unless a private club). Insurance companies also demand that certain things be done to reduce the risk of lawsuits and insurance payouts.
Search around for range horror stories reported on this forum using the search function and you will see why owners of ranges or clubs do these briefings. Firearms is one of those issues where there should be zero tolerance for negligent discharges and range safety depends often on Range safety officers or the range owner putting their foot down when unsafe practices occur on their range. It is not personal, they don't know you yet, its business. Clubs are often a great way to meet people of a like interest and remember that people see things in different ways but are generally helpful if asked in a polite manner. In addition, the NRA through its affiliated trainers
https://firearmtraining.nra.org/ has some excellent firearms safety programs that are certainly in your area and not that expensive. Many states also have mandated hunting training including safety
https://myfwc.com/education/outdoor-skills/hunting/ that is also well worth attending and if you want to learn to shoot better on the cheap, there are far worse things than going to an Appleseed training event. See
https://store.rwvaappleseed.com/ If you are new marksman and do not want your inexperience to be demonstrated to others, you can usually come up with private lessons from someone. The truth is the best thing is to be connected to others to learn the craft.
So what about the other alternative, wilderness areas. Like it or not, by choosing to be armed, you have assumed some obligations to be a good citizen in the shooting community. Thus, you should find out and obey all rules and laws (these are not suggestions and remember that offenses on federal land can be tried in federal court) and generally be a good representative of the shooting community. One, only shoot in the designated areas in a safe manner using approved targets/stands only, have someone with you, be aware that others may or may not be safety conscious so you do have to maintain situational awareness, and clean up your trash--and to be a good citizen other trash left around as well. Leave the place as good or better than when you got there. Far too many folks simply assume that they can bring trash to shoot or use signs, various buildings, structures, etc. as targets. They present a poor image to others and end up getting everyone banned for their destructive notion of "fun". Don't be that person. Another is that shooting by yourself is not advised because what happens if you have an accident, someone threatens you, your firearm is stolen, etc. Part of the obligation of firearm ownership is not to allow your firearm to fall into the wrong hands. Be a good citizen of the firearm world.
Like an automobile, operation of an essentially deadly machine that can affect the lives of others is something that requires maturity, prudence, and caution. A ill-advised action can change your life forever along with others so safety is always first over fun if need be. Others have noted the consequences of firing with inappropriate backstops but even the best backstop can be circumvented by firing over it which believe or not people do from time to time. Even a .22 LR can kill or injure at quite a distance.
BTW, I am pretty acquainted with firearms and I have to go through these briefings as well at a new range if that makes you feel better. If you keep your mind open, despite a lot of it being common sense or even repetitive such as Col. Cooper's firearm rules, you will learn something if you have the attitude of being open to new knowledge. Every year in annual firearms training for Uncle Sam, I had to go through essentially the same briefing but sometimes if you paid attention, a new question or situation comes up in these that makes it all worthwhile in reducing risk. I take defensive driving training as well because a habit that you form unconsciously might just not be that safe and being reminded of that is a good thing to nip it in the bud.
Then once you have a good foundation of firearm training, you can pick and choose what you want to do even it is just plinking from time to time or defending your family.
Oh, and one last thing, shooting with others often allows you to get to fire cool guns that you might never afford or be able to acquire. You also get a chance to make friends outside of the virtual world and meet a lot of fine outstanding individuals along the way.
Stay safe and good luck.
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, and know an ND could go up thru the ceiling/floor and hit someone you love.
