Took my girlfriend shooting for the first time...

[Smaug]

She had a blast, too.

Before shooting:

• She thought the Ruger KP90 was 'pretty'
• She didn't think she would like my Ruger 77/22 rifle w/Leupold scope
• She thought my Ruger Mk. II (basic model w/ 4" barrel and fixed sights) was nice
• She didn't know if she would have fun

After shooting for 4 + hours at 25 and 50 yards:

• After shooting the Ruger KP90, she no longer liked it. (Too much kick after having fallen in love with the 22s)
• The 22 rifle was her runaway favorite (as I predicted to her )
• She loves the Mk. II. At the end of the day, she kept all shots on a 25 yd. target at 25 yards; and this with the sights factory-set for 50 feet!
• She had a LOT of fun, and had no problem at all shooting for 4 + hours. Her hand was starting to hurt a bit, I hear.
• She did try a Glock 17L which a buddy (Mugenlude) brought, and thought that one had too much kick also, but not as bad as the KP90.
• She feels guilty that she thinks anything but a 22 has too much kick; she's going to keep trying the 45 (her own idea) and try the 44 Magnum (with light Specials) next time too. ;f
• We now have a membership to a local range with 25, 50, 100, 200 yard ranges for pistol and rifle, trap, skeet, 5 station, and blackpowder.

As you can guess, I am very excited that she shares even a tiny bit of my interest in shooting. She watched me clean two guns last night, (the others are still dirty) but is perfectly happy to leave that part to me, hehehe.

I am hoping that when my G34 arrives, I can slowly break her into centerfire with it. I think she will prefer it to the Ruger 45. If she does, we will probably equip it with flashlight and keep THAT as the home-defense weapon.

We have already planned another shooting outing next Saturday, in exchange of course for a romantic Sunday day trip the day after. This diplomacy really works, fellas. Give it a shot. (maybe I am blessed with a very open-minded girlfriend, but how many doctors do you know who will shoot or even TOUCH a gun?)

As many others have said before, if you're trying to get a woman close to you to start shooting:

• Start her with a 22, preferably a rifle unless she is the very macho type
• Move onto a nice 22 pistol
• Start at close range with big targets so that she feels proud of herself and builds confidence. Let her use a good rest too, if necessary. If you start that way, she can't miss, and will be so happy she won't want to quit there.

I have a couple of pix; they're pretty big (250-274k ea.) so I will leave it to you whether they are worth the wait or not.

Kate with Mk. II
Kate with 77/22

 

[4v50 Gary]

AR. For a high power, mild recoil rifle that women can love at first shot.

BTW, that's a heckuva lot of light washing out the 2nd photo.

 

[Hal]

maybe I am blessed with a very open-minded girlfriend, but how many doctors do you know who will shoot or even TOUCH a gun

Fer real?
Doc's make good money dude - $$ + GF that likes guns = lots of neat Xmas presents for the lucky fella

Just kidding - - - mostly - -

Anyhow, Mrs. Hal and I had one of out first dates ,,,back in the "stone age" as my son refers to it,, at a shooting range. It turned into 23 years (as of last Sunday) of wedded bliss.
(and all sorts of neat guns as presents) Although she isn't a doc, she does work with the handicapped and developmentally disabled (PC term for retarded)

 

[Smaug]

4v50,

Yes, that IS a lot of light washing out that second photo.

I had to make a choice though: either wash out the background so that you can see Kate and the rifle, or expose for the background and have Kate be totally dark.

On second thought, I should have used fill flash and exposed for the background, but I didn't think of it at the time.

Yes, I am thinking hard about buying an AR for us next year. (this year's budget is tight; she isn't practicing yet, I'm paying all the bills) The way our government is going, I need to get one as soon as possible.

 

[Double Maduro]

If she thinks the KP90 is "pretty", that kind of explains why she likes you.

I love my P90 but it is not "pretty".

Congratulations on a woman friend that enjoys some of the things you do.

If you haven't already done it, get a set of Hogue grips for the KP90. I bet she will like it better.

To introduce her to centerfire pistol, can you say "Makarov"? I knew that you could. Besides, everyone should have one.

Nice to hear a happy story for a change.

DM

 

[B00ridge]

Tell her to watch her thumb when shootin that Ruger. Slide (ok, well bolt) could nip her a bit.


Awesome job...!

When I started dating my g/f she hated guns. A few months later I have her blowing up tannerite with my AR15s, shooting my .45s, busting clays and my bro-in-law even got her to shoot his .45-70 marlin!

 

[spartacus2002]

I've found that a good introductory gun (for someone not scared of guns) is a heavy 6" .357 revolver firing light .38 specials. Muzzle flip, but no real recoil.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Good for you and your girl friend both!