Learning to Shoot

This month I went with Shawn and Ed to an all day training class to learn how to handle a gun. I had taken the class and earned my concealed carry permit but knew that I needed to learn how to handle a gun properly. It was one of the hardest things I have ever in my life done, mainly because I COULDN'T do it!! Eight hours of nonstop training and I was still struggling to get my gun out of the holster!
Most of the morning we spent learning safety and practicing different ways of standing and shooting. Mark is checking here to make sure that I have the correct grip on my pistol
Ed took me out the week before the class and bought me my own Smithfield Arms 9mm pistol. I had been having elbow and finger knuckle pains for several months and I wasn't sure that I could even cock the gun because of the weakness in my hands and arms. Shawn switched pistols with me the morning of the class as his SM 9 wasn't as tight and difficult to operate because he had used it lots and lots before. Mine was still very stiff.
Here is Edward shooting around corners and under "cars"Mark is saying (for the umpteenth time) 'keep those thumbs together'!
This was actually at the end of the day, one of the final exercises where we were 'playing' like we were firing around a parked car or other obstructions. I was really proud of my moves as I went from a standing position to rolling onto the ground and firing and hitting the target and then moving back into a kneeling position as I continued to fire. Then I attempted to stand back up and knelt on an empty shell casing....owwwww....all training went out the window as my old age caught up with me - trying to stand up, get off the casing, waving a loaded pistol around...those poor instructors had their hands full with me!Most of these shots were taken in the afternoon as we attempted, one trainee at a time to shoot on command at different targets, while taking cover behind the barrels. Again - once I got the pistol OUT of the holster and get the RIGHT grip I did okay. But time after time I would attempt to pull the pistol out of the serpa holster and not hold it right because of the angle of the holster and the gun would refuse to fire. Once I checked my grip and held it the right way, I was able to fire and hit!
Got him!
here's Ed firing. Shawn took the pictures.
Aim, shoot, fireI am not sure at what point Shawn took this picture but I am really really close to tears here. It seems like I am a total clutz with no ability to LEARN! All day long the instructors had drilled the same stuff into my head, grip the pistol correctly - grip the pistol correctly...and I kept forgetting to do it. I was so disgusted with myself at the end of the day and any and all confidence I had in my ability to learn something new was totally gone. I figured that if I ran into a bad guy and had a full two minutes to pull my gun from the hoster and get my grip right then I could probably hit him!!


However, I told Mark at the end of the day that I WOULD BE BACK! I knew now what I needed to practice and how I needed to do it. Once I overcome the holster draw and get my thumbs together I will be back to show him that I did learn a lot from the class -

And, Mark is using me as his poster child....even old ladies can learn to shoot http://www.realworldpds.com/default.html

MAYBE! Actually, throughout the whole day once I got the right hold of the gun I was a pretty good shot.