gatordev
15 August 2013, 17:26
Figured I'd share this as some may appreciate it...
Growing up, I wasn't really exposed to firearms very much. Occasionally I'd shoot a handgun when different friends of the family would invite my dad and I to a range and I'd enjoy it, but it wasn't a regular thing and other than a flare gun, there weren't ever any firearms in the house. When I was 18 and in college, my dad bought me a Colt 1991A1 for Xmas. I enjoyed shooting it, but I enjoyed shooting it more when I'd come home and would go to the range with my dad.
Other than occasionally qualifying on the M11 or M16 in the military (or doing the occasional GUNEXes in a helo), I didn't shoot that often until the last 3 or 4 years. While getting back into shooting, I still enjoyed taking my dad to the range and playing with whatever toy I brought that day. I remember one range trip, I brought a resurrected Winchester 62 that was HIS dad's that hadn't been shot in decades. It was fun to shoot it with him, especially when the last time he probably shot that, he was a teenager in the '50's or '60's. While my dad enjoyed shooting with his son, he was never really big on the Action/Tactical side of stuff, as it wasn't his cup of tea.
Yesterday, while home on leave, I took him to a nearby range and introduced him to "tactical precision" shooting. I brought along my CA MK12 (which continues to be a fantastic shooter) and some Black Hills 77gr (and a few rounds of m855, which was surprisingly accurate, at least at 100 yards). We started with some fundamentals...getting behind the gun, eye relief, trigger reset, etc, and he started at the 100. Then we switched up to the better ammo and he had a very respectable group going...not bad for it being about 9000 degrees and his first time behind a SPR. We then moved out to the 200 (about the farthest I could see hits on the paper targets with my scope). I think his first try was a 3" group and his second was a little more open. Not bad with lots of mirage and his first time.
After I confirmed a zero on my CQBR, we called it a day and drove back. It was an hour drive back, so we had some time to talk. He commented on how he enjoyed it a lot more than he thought he would, and appreciated the mental/attention to detail mechanics required. I hate shooting for groups, so I told him next time maybe we could try with steel, which is where the fun starts.
All in all, a good day shooting with my dad. Can't ask for much more than that...except maybe that it had been 20 degrees cooler.
Growing up, I wasn't really exposed to firearms very much. Occasionally I'd shoot a handgun when different friends of the family would invite my dad and I to a range and I'd enjoy it, but it wasn't a regular thing and other than a flare gun, there weren't ever any firearms in the house. When I was 18 and in college, my dad bought me a Colt 1991A1 for Xmas. I enjoyed shooting it, but I enjoyed shooting it more when I'd come home and would go to the range with my dad.
Other than occasionally qualifying on the M11 or M16 in the military (or doing the occasional GUNEXes in a helo), I didn't shoot that often until the last 3 or 4 years. While getting back into shooting, I still enjoyed taking my dad to the range and playing with whatever toy I brought that day. I remember one range trip, I brought a resurrected Winchester 62 that was HIS dad's that hadn't been shot in decades. It was fun to shoot it with him, especially when the last time he probably shot that, he was a teenager in the '50's or '60's. While my dad enjoyed shooting with his son, he was never really big on the Action/Tactical side of stuff, as it wasn't his cup of tea.
Yesterday, while home on leave, I took him to a nearby range and introduced him to "tactical precision" shooting. I brought along my CA MK12 (which continues to be a fantastic shooter) and some Black Hills 77gr (and a few rounds of m855, which was surprisingly accurate, at least at 100 yards). We started with some fundamentals...getting behind the gun, eye relief, trigger reset, etc, and he started at the 100. Then we switched up to the better ammo and he had a very respectable group going...not bad for it being about 9000 degrees and his first time behind a SPR. We then moved out to the 200 (about the farthest I could see hits on the paper targets with my scope). I think his first try was a 3" group and his second was a little more open. Not bad with lots of mirage and his first time.
After I confirmed a zero on my CQBR, we called it a day and drove back. It was an hour drive back, so we had some time to talk. He commented on how he enjoyed it a lot more than he thought he would, and appreciated the mental/attention to detail mechanics required. I hate shooting for groups, so I told him next time maybe we could try with steel, which is where the fun starts.
All in all, a good day shooting with my dad. Can't ask for much more than that...except maybe that it had been 20 degrees cooler.