hartcreek said:
You are forgetting the largest source for lead ingestion is not from the shooting of firearms but from drinking water.
OK, now we're just getting ridiculous here. Yes, the largest source of lead contamination is from leaded drinking water. But that's because
everybody in the country comes into contact with drinking water on a regular basis. But most people don't go shooting at indoor ranges on a regular basis, so the average lead exposure from shooting is fairly low.
A single session at an indoor range will expose someone to a lot more lead than they usually get from drinking water. For two years I worked at an LGS that had an indoor range. Lead contamination was a constant issue for the range employees. It was also an issue for some of the range regulars. But for the casual visitor it wasn't usually an issue.
But pregnancy changes all that. My wife is a medical doctor and also a mom. She once explained to me how a pregnant woman and her unborn child are at a much higher risk of just about every medical problem there is. And that includes lead exposure.
hartcreek said:
Your wife needs to be able to protect herself inspite of being pregnant.
It's amazing to me how many people have a huge problem calculating the risks in their lives. It's just like the people who are afraid of flying so they drive everywhere. Or the people who carry a gun for protection but refuse to wear a seatbelt. Or the parents who won't let their kids over to a house with guns in it but are fine with sending them to a house with a swimming pool. It's a little ridiculous to prepare for something that's unlikely to be dangerous and at the same time ignore a much more likely danger.
This woman has only four months of pregnancy left. The chance that taking a basic pistol course will save her life in the next four months is
extremely low. But the chance that taking the class will expose the unborn child to dangerous levels of lead and noise is much higher. It's really a no-brainer to figure out which is the most logical choice.
hartcreek said:
Noise suppression is what you need. Is there a chance that you have a buddy that can meet her at the range and loan her the use of a suppressed firearm so she can take the class?
Have you ever shot a suppressor at a range before? It's fun, but it's not much better for your ears because the people next to you usually aren't shooting suppressed. So unless she can get everyone on the range to shoot suppressed also, it's pretty pointless.