Starter gun debate....or....those wanting to share the sport should think about this thread from a Starter/Loaner perspective perhaps.

If we are on this forum, odds are we have shot more than a few matches and find the sport to be fun. So far we have had 2 matches in the great white north of NH. 38 first Sunday, 26 the second Sunday keeping in mind we shoot SB Cowboy PC Cowboy at the same time as Smallbore Rifle/SB Hunter Rifle . Darn few people shoot the 'real thing' as I like to call it. It looks hard and looks expensive.

So....why not get your club to have a "club loaner" program? Or, have the leaders of the sport develop a loaner program to help folks get hooked? Rem 541 that many of you guys picked up from CMP for a song...drat....would be a great place to start. No? Then new shooters can see for themselves what the best first step should be.

Bring a new shooter to the range this weekend and set the hook!

durant7 wrote:Starter gun debate....or....those wanting to share the sport should think about this thread from a Starter/Loaner perspective perhaps.

If we are on this forum, odds are we have shot more than a few matches and find the sport to be fun. So far we have had 2 matches in the great white north of NH. 38 first Sunday, 26 the second Sunday keeping in mind we shoot SB Cowboy PC Cowboy at the same time as Smallbore Rifle/SB Hunter Rifle . Darn few people shoot the 'real thing' as I like to call it. It looks hard and looks expensive.

So....why not get your club to have a "club loaner" program? Or, have the leaders of the sport develop a loaner program to help folks get hooked? Rem 541 that many of you guys picked up from CMP for a song...drat....would be a great place to start. No? Then new shooters can see for themselves what the best first step should be.

Bring a new shooter to the range this weekend and set the hook!

Well said!!!!

On another note just placed my order for the Tula Toz 78-01 will give a full report in about a month or so.

durant7 wrote:Bring a new shooter to the range this weekend and set the hook!

Otherwise known as the "Evil Kitty" maneuver.

As for loaner guns I am not aware of any "club" loaners at the 2 clubs I shoot with. But I know myself and most others at our local match would loan you theirs to try the game out. Even I use loaners for one class in airgun

You are right though getting people out to try it is the main thing. We were discussing this topic at the SB match this morning with mixed ideas about why and what to do about it. Bottom line though is that you have to bring people into the sport in some way for them to get hooked.

Dee

OFGC has a loaner rifle, and most of us have rifles and ammunition we're glad to share! We had quite a few new shooters and visitors today, and great weather for them too.

When newcomers try out the sport, esp. if new to rifle sports, odds are they will have trouble hitting enough animals to feel they might be good at this. Once discouraged they don't come back.

Why not ensure a higher level of satisfaction - and help set the proverbial hook - by setting up a few C-P-T-R at the 40m line.... I have done this for kids and they enjoyed the experience. Maybe the same thing can be done for adults new to rifle sports.

OFGC has a "Club" match using 1/2 scale targets at regulation distance, run alongside the regulation match, that attract a lot of new shooters and even very experienced shooters that want to fool around with a different gun. It isn't NRA sanctioned, it sure is fun and makes a great starting point that feeds into the NRA matches. It's a ball!

twofifty wrote:When newcomers try out the sport, esp. if new to rifle sports, odds are they will have trouble hitting enough animals to feel they might be good at this. Once discouraged they don't come back.

Why not ensure a higher level of satisfaction - and help set the proverbial hook - by setting up a few C-P-T-R at the 40m line.... I have done this for kids and they enjoyed the experience. Maybe the same thing can be done for adults new to rifle sports.

Back when my old club had a range, we held a few Legislative Days, where we hosted lawmakers and their staff from the nearby State Capitol. We put pigs on the chicken stands, and rams on the pig stands. We had an instructor take the newbie through a few rounds off sandbags, and then try to get into an offhand position. Iniatially we had trouble explaining to lean back to counter the weight of the rifle in the stance. I found it easier to tell the people (mostly women) to thrust the hips forward, this causes the far shoulder to drop, which is what we were looking for anyway. We never could get the club members to stop referring to this day as "the Legislative Shoot"!

Great PR opportunity to invite legislators/politicians to a fun non-competitive introduction to our sport.
A great way to showcase the wholesome, safe, responsible, skillful and fun aspects of one of the shooting sports.

Somebody grab this NS-522!!

http://www.forthehunt.com/Auction/ViewI ... =100853593

Quonset Hut wrote:Somebody grab this NS-522!!

http://www.forthehunt.com/Auction/ViewI ... =100853593

There is another one for around $299! If I only had a better paying job