Drizzt
Member
Women & guns in the Valley
Posted: 5/3/2006 12:56:26 PM
They get manicures, they wear make-up and some are dead-eye shots.
They're average women, buying guns and learning how to shoot them--- even in a life-or-death situation.
The National Rifle Association has caught on with a new magazine targeting women.
"Women's Outlook" features female gun owners hunting, shooting in competitions and learning how to defend themselves.
Women packing heat is a national trend that’s also happening here in the Valley.
“Partly because we're women, partly because we're so young, when we come in here a lot of people are very surprised,” said Lauren Chase, 20, a regular customer at The Range in Fresno, a firing range that’s open to the public.
A girlfriend brought Lauren brought to The Range a few months ago, and the two young women have been shooting together ever since.
“The first one was so scary,” said Lauren about the first time she fired a shot with her instructor.
“He started me with one of the biggest guns. It was like a 45 caliber,” she added.
Will Ayres teaches Lauren and many other female students how to handle a gun.
He said Lauren and Christine are part of a growing trend.
“Going through most of my private lessons, the majority of my really, really top shooters are females,” Ayes said.
Women take up shooting as a hobby or a competitive sport.
But Ayres said the number one reason female customers at The Range pick up a gun for the first time is self defense.
Keli Maire trains women to defend themselves using martial arts and plain common sense.
She said learning to shoot or buying a gun are decisions women need to make carefully.
“Owning a gun and being able to use a gun are two different things,” Maire said. She also said the question of whether a gun will mean more safety has a different for each woman.
Shooting an attacker or an intruder is also much more difficult than it looks in movies or on television, especially in a high stakes situation.
“Buying a gun for personal defense is a really big responsibility,” Ayres said. “It takes a lot of time to sit down and think about, am I capable of using this to save my own life?”
He said any woman who doesn’t feel she could use a weapon to defend herself under pressure should reconsider bringing a gun into her home.
Statistics from gun control groups may also make some women want to reconsider. By the numbers, you’re 20 times more likely to shoot someone who lives in your home than to shoot an intruder.
It’s also three times more likely that you or someone who lives in your home will be murdered.
That’s why instructors say women need as much professional training as possible.
Becoming an accurate marksman-- or woman-- takes time.
Lauren Chase said she wasn’t ready to buy a gun for her own home just yet, but she was considering getting her own weapon in the future.
“I don't really feel the need for it for self defense,” she said. “I'm just doing it because it's something Ienjoy. Later on down the line, probably, I might.”
But down the line, Chase said she would also know what to do just in case she ever has to pull the trigger.
http://www.cbs47.tv/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=176117BC-0E65-49EE-B7E9-06C0FD5313D7
Posted: 5/3/2006 12:56:26 PM
They get manicures, they wear make-up and some are dead-eye shots.
They're average women, buying guns and learning how to shoot them--- even in a life-or-death situation.
The National Rifle Association has caught on with a new magazine targeting women.
"Women's Outlook" features female gun owners hunting, shooting in competitions and learning how to defend themselves.
Women packing heat is a national trend that’s also happening here in the Valley.
“Partly because we're women, partly because we're so young, when we come in here a lot of people are very surprised,” said Lauren Chase, 20, a regular customer at The Range in Fresno, a firing range that’s open to the public.
A girlfriend brought Lauren brought to The Range a few months ago, and the two young women have been shooting together ever since.
“The first one was so scary,” said Lauren about the first time she fired a shot with her instructor.
“He started me with one of the biggest guns. It was like a 45 caliber,” she added.
Will Ayres teaches Lauren and many other female students how to handle a gun.
He said Lauren and Christine are part of a growing trend.
“Going through most of my private lessons, the majority of my really, really top shooters are females,” Ayes said.
Women take up shooting as a hobby or a competitive sport.
But Ayres said the number one reason female customers at The Range pick up a gun for the first time is self defense.
Keli Maire trains women to defend themselves using martial arts and plain common sense.
She said learning to shoot or buying a gun are decisions women need to make carefully.
“Owning a gun and being able to use a gun are two different things,” Maire said. She also said the question of whether a gun will mean more safety has a different for each woman.
Shooting an attacker or an intruder is also much more difficult than it looks in movies or on television, especially in a high stakes situation.
“Buying a gun for personal defense is a really big responsibility,” Ayres said. “It takes a lot of time to sit down and think about, am I capable of using this to save my own life?”
He said any woman who doesn’t feel she could use a weapon to defend herself under pressure should reconsider bringing a gun into her home.
Statistics from gun control groups may also make some women want to reconsider. By the numbers, you’re 20 times more likely to shoot someone who lives in your home than to shoot an intruder.
It’s also three times more likely that you or someone who lives in your home will be murdered.
That’s why instructors say women need as much professional training as possible.
Becoming an accurate marksman-- or woman-- takes time.
Lauren Chase said she wasn’t ready to buy a gun for her own home just yet, but she was considering getting her own weapon in the future.
“I don't really feel the need for it for self defense,” she said. “I'm just doing it because it's something Ienjoy. Later on down the line, probably, I might.”
But down the line, Chase said she would also know what to do just in case she ever has to pull the trigger.
http://www.cbs47.tv/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=176117BC-0E65-49EE-B7E9-06C0FD5313D7
