The holiday weekend was approaching and I knew I wanted to get out and try something new! I purchased a Groupon a couple months back for a shooting outing for two at Shoot Smart indoor gun range and I never used it. I made plans with a friend of mine to go on Wednesday after work. Way to start the holiday weekend, eh?!?
I had never been to a gun range before, heck I had never shot a gun before. Honestly, I was a bit afraid of guns for the longest time because my father was shot and killed when I was 7 years old. With all of the recent happenings in the world, I felt like it was definitely time to at least learn how to properly shoot. Being that my grandparents are from the country, my family hunts a lot and knows a lot about guns....me on the other hand, I just know what I have seen on TV and apparently that isn't too accurate. I called the Shoot Smart location in Grand Prairie to get us all set up. They had a super easy set up process, you just give them your name and phone number and they send you real time text updates with your remaining wait time. You have the choice to book a private suite that holds about 3-4 people or a traditional public lane. Since this was both of our first time shooting, I chose the traditional lane so we could interact with everyone and take pointers :)
When we got to the range, the parking lot was packed! Michelle and I knew then that this was going to be a fun experience. We could hear the shots when we walked in and we were so nervous but oh so ready! We still had 10 minutes on our wait, so we walked around and looked at all of the guns, ammunition and cute accessories. They have everything that you can think of in there...in every color!! Hearing the gun shots in the background just made our adrenaline rush even more! Once our 10 minutes were up we were greeted by the most friendly firearms specialist, Dayton. We asked him a bunch of questions about types of guns, kick back, safety and most importantly...size!
After answering a bunch of annoying questions, he paired us with a small 26 to start with. They had several targets to choose from as well! We chose a couple pink ones and one zombie guy with brains on the side so we could practice our zombie apocalypse survival skills! We got our ammunition and headed back to our lane. Dayton assisted us with our first shots, but after that it was all on us! Load the clip, put the clip in, release the safety.....BOOM!! That first shot was so.....exhilarating!!! I have heard people say that going to the gun range is therapeutic, a type of stress relief and now I get it! I shot 5 rounds my first go round and hit damn near center of the target with each shot! We took turns shooting and laughing at the others reaction each time. Michelle handled this little guy like a pro too!! She had the stance down and everything!
After we were pros with the 26, we went back to the counter and upgraded our gangster. At Shoot Smart you can exchange guns as many times as you want. You can shoot every gun in the place if you want! We got a Smith & Wesson 15-22. It was a big gun and it was so cute!! It was purple!!! Because of the size we were really scared that it would have a harsh kick back. Michelle went first with this one and when I tell you she handled this gun like a real G!!! When she took the first shot she turned around and said "This is sooo nice!" She finished her rounds and I stepped up to try it out. I loaded the clip, put the clip in, held the gun up, aimed...BOOM! Michelle was right, it was soooo nice!! It wasn't as much power as I was expecting, which was kind of a let down but still super badass!
After mastering that beast, we went and switched out our gun again....and again.....and again. 5 guns and 4 targets later, it was safe to say we were done for the night. We were like kids in a candy store! We kept our targets as souvenirs and we reluctantly walked to the counter to check out. With my Groupon, we only paid $12 each!! Are you kidding me?!?! We had such a great experience there, we have already talked about going back!
So what did I take from this experience??? It made me think of a quote:
“Don't be afraid of your fears. They're not there to scare you. They're there to let you know that something is worth it.”
This experience was definitely worth it!! Something I would have missed out on if I would have continued to let my fears get the best of me. What are you afraid of? Whatever it is, face your fears today!!
Love,
Meek
