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Choosing Your First Firearms Training Class
If you’re one of the millions of people who recently purchased a firearm for the first time, congratulations and welcome to the ranks of American gun owners. Like the majority of modern gun owners, you probably bought a gun because you were concerned about self-defense or want to enjoy the shooting sports in some way. Buying a firearm for self-protection is one of the most adult things you can do, because it means you’ve realized that law enforcement personnel are not “first responders,” they’re actually second responders. The first responder to a crime scene is, and always will be, the victim of the crime itself.
If you are the victim of a violent crime, you will not receive a flash of inspiration from on high about the best way to use your gun to prevent injury or death. In order to save your life and possibly the lives of others around you, you’ll have to rely on your instincts and the training you’ve already received.
Think back to when you learned to drive a car: I grew up in Alberta, Canada, and I learned to drive a car during some rather horrible weather conditions. Black ice, zero-visibility snowstorms, howling winds … you name it, I had to deal with it during my first year of driving. Every minute we spend behind the wheel is somehow different, and every minute we are learning how to respond to the rapidly-changing world around us. This process of learning makes us safer, more-experienced drivers, and the more experience we have safely shooting our guns makes safer, more experienced gun owners.
At least that’s the theory.
We didn’t learn to drive a car all by ourselves. Someone had to show us the proper way to drive. So why, then, do we buy a gun and never learn how to use it? Most gun new owners will go to a range, set up their target and dump 50 or 100 rounds into it without a thought as to why all those rounds are spread out over the target rather than clumped together in a nice, tight group.
Shooting stuff is fun, but getting better at shooting requires effort. That sort of thing is not fun, but it is rewarding. When we take a firearms training class, we are cashing in a small portion of the fun we have blasting away at a target, and in return we receive a better chance to stay safe with a gun in our hands.
That’s a trade I’m willing to make, as are thousands of others across this country, year in, year out. I chose to get professional training because learning from an expert improves my ability to shoot. It’s like learning to drive: Yes, you can learn learn the basics from a family member who has a lot of experience behind the wheel, but it’s better to learn from someone who knows not only what to do, but how to teach it as well.
This is why I recommend professional firearms training, rather than learning from a friend or neighbor who is an experienced gun owner. If you’ve never taken a defensive firearms class before, I recommend an NRA Basic Pistol Class as the place to start your defensive pistol training journey. No, you won’t learn the super-secret shooting skills of the Navy SEALs, but what you will learn is how to safely operate your pistol, along with the fundamentals of marksmanship. While that kind of training seems basic (and it is), the fact is, just learning the basics of safely loading and operating your pistol so it becomes second nature takes up the better part of a day’s instruction for a brand-new gun owner. While the NRA does offer an online-only version of this class, I heartily recommend taking any firearms training in-person and on a range with real ammunition (rather than lasers or whatever). Shooting a gun is a contact sport: You need to perform a physical action with your hands, brain, and eyes, and that’s not something you can learn while staring at a computer screen. You need to put your knowledge into action, and that’s what in-person training provides.
Recently, it’s become more popular for some of the more tactically-oriented firearms trainers to dismiss the value of an NRA course, as some instructors prefer to launch straight into more advanced gun-handling techniques instead of safety and basic knowledge. While it’s true that you may learn more about defensive tactics in such classes, you’ll miss out on the core elements of gun safety and gun handling that keep you safe. An NRA Basic Pistol Class will give you the solid foundation of safety and marksmanship that will never go out of style. This is vitally important, because if you can’t handle a gun safely when there’s no threat present, you definitely won’t be able to safely handle it if your life is on the line.
When you do find a class, you probably won’t need to bring much gear with you. Your defensive pistol (unloaded), 100 rounds of ammo (leave that in your car until it’s needed, as the NRA does not allow ammo in the classroom), eye and ear protection (I like electronic ear muffs because they protect your hearing yet allow you to hear range commands), water, pens, and a notebook are what you’re most likely to need, along with bug spray, sun screen and clothing appropriate to the weather if you’re taking an outdoor class.
If you’re already familiar with how your gun works, take a few moments and safely practice things like inserting ammunition into the magazine and inserting the unloaded magazine into your gun. Remember to keep live ammunition away from your gun until it’s needed and and perform these two actions separately. If you’re not really sure how your gun operates, that’s okay, you’ll be learning how to run your gun as part of your class. If this is your first class, staying safe and learning the basics of marksmanship are your goals, not becoming a member of SEAL Team Six in eight hours or less.
The most important thing you can to bring to a class isn’t a piece of gear, however — it’s a mindset that is open to instruction. If you’re new to guns, you’re going to be hearing a lot of new, often-confusing terms and learning a lot of often-complicated techniques. Relax and understand that practically no one learns everything there is know about guns on their first day in class. It’s the journey that’s important here, not the destination.
Published in Guns
I just went and had a shooting class with a police officer who also teaches NRA basic—what a lovely guy. The other students and I (all middle-aged lady LEO chaplains) all shot well. My pal Lesley, age 62 and shooting for the first time in her life, shot a tight cluster around the “Q” at center-mass.
I still don’t like doing it—my arms ache, and I feel like I’m not breathing properly—but I’ll do it again. For one thing, I think Chaplain Lesley might be hooked!
Bravo, Kate! By all means do it again. Your arms aching probably mostly means that you were a little nervous and tense, which means that you were tightening muscles when they didn’t need to. The more you do it, the more you will become comfortable with your surroundings and the sensations. A lot of shooters do some simple weight training for their arms, along with just being in overall good shape – something that we all need. But relaxing comes first.
It’s a lot like singing, of which I also do a lot. The first job is to relax, then to use the muscles required for the task, keeping the others relaxed. In singing, the improper tension makes you sound like you’re singing through a galvanized pipe. In shooting, you’d swear your firearm had transformed into a shotgun when you look at the target – if you hit the target at all…
And by all means, drag your friend Lesley along. It’s more fun shooting with a friend.
For 50+ years, neither I, nor anyone in my entire family ever owned a firearm. It wasn’t until about three/four years ago, when the brouhaha began over whether the Feds were going to ban AR-15s and high capacity magazines that I signed up for an NRA firearms course at Cabela’s. Why? Because I believed owning a firearm was my right under the Constitution.
Well, I got hooked and now I own three firearms. I go to the range regularly because I’m a Type-A personality and have to get that Type-A “bulls-eye.”
A couple of weeks ago, I was awakened by my home security alarm going off and my German Shepherds barking. I had no clue what was happening, but immediately reached into the nightstand drawer for my fully-loaded, high-capacity magazine, Sig Sauer. Thank God, it was an alarm malfunction.
But point being, that gun, in my hand, while nervous, brought into mind the NRA training that helped me clearly process next steps, and what to do/not do, had it been a real intruder. 911 was still minutes away and I knew that I had those minutes on my side, if necessary.
P.S. For those of you who think this may not be “for your time of life”, I’m 62, having fired my first shots at 59. Trust me, you’re never too old to be responsible for your own life.
Talk about timing! At 52 I’m considering getting a sidearm, and taking the classes. I’m thinking of taking the class first in part to help me decide what I want to start with. It started with a restoration of a 1940’s-50s bolt action Savage arms .22 that my Dad bout years ago that needed fixing up. I refinished the stock (surprisingly nice for a cheap gun) as I make bamboo fly rods and am “handy” with varnishes. A fishing buddy reblued the barrel. I went to a local gun shop to get a cleaning kit and some rounds and remembered Steve Crowder mentioned he liked his Sig Sauer. I asked to hold a P320 9mm and was smitten. I’m feasting on Youtubes from Colion Noir now…oh, and I got the OK from the ever-fetching Mrs. Hoffhines to go for it.
I really appreciate you posting this. I am just now starting to think about getting one for self defense. Unfortunately I live in an unfriendly state so I may not get one soon, but just as soon as I get out of here…
But seriously, I had some thoughts that similar to what you said about learning the basics of safety etc. first and from a professional rather than friends so it is great to see someone say that as well. It makes me a lot more confident about how I should proceed should I choose to do so.
Thank you!
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@ModEcon, allow me to add to all the perfect advice that Kevin Creighton gave, specifically for a person who is just beginning on his/her journey into the world of firearms, not to mention personal safety: If you already own a firearm, that’s fine. Go with it, at least for the time being. If you don’t, then I highly recommend that you don’t buy one until you’ve done some shooting, hopefully with a variety of firearms. There are so many things to consider, like the size of your hands, the size and cant of the grip, a wide variety of controls and systems, types of sights, when, where and how you plan on carrying (The correct answer here is “always” and “everywhere it’s legal”), caliber, and who knows what else.
And while the training by a professional is critical, so is talking to fellow travelers about their experiences. For instance, many first – timers think they would prefer a shoulder holster. Except in rare circumstances, it is not a very good choice at all. Don’t waste your money.
One more thing: I don’t know what state you’re in, but I’m in California – you won’t get much unfriendlier than that. But it is still 100% doable. Do it. Don’t put it off.
Since we have some potential gun girls here, I can’t resist with some recommendations #shootlikeagirl
If you are serious about getting better at shooting, but don’t know where to start in regards to books, I’d look into Gabby Franco’s Mastering Your Pistol Marksmanship, Vol 1. Gabby is a former Venezuelan Olympic shooter who came to the United States and took up USPSA competitive shooting. She’s currently sponsored by Remington.
Oh, heck, let’s just do a obligatory Gabby video, shall we?
One of the best introductory books to the shooting world that also covers competitive shooting is Shoot: Your Guide to Shooting and Competition by Julie Golob. Julie is an alumni of the United States Army Marksmanship Unit, has more championships than I can keep track of anymore, and she’s the captain of the Smith and Wesson shooting team.
Eh. I’m on a roll…since we’re talking gun girls, how about Molly Smith? She’s not shooting as much these days since she’s at school in NYU, but I’m sure we’ll see her setting stages on fire again once she’s done with school,
Lastly, if you are a potential gun girl and interested in shooting, check out A Girl and A Gun to see if there is a chapter near you.
More Julie, you say? Sure..
@Quietpi
Well, unfriendly state indeed, I am also in California. And I do understand that I can do it; I just don’t know if right now is the time since I do not have the finances to do it correctly. Also, I have shot many different guns with family, just not in an organized professional class structure nor specifically trained in maintenance or self defense. So the experience with different guns is less of an issue, but that is good advice to not rush into one setup, gun/holster, before knowing more what I need.
Also, I have been looking into it and think I can safely say that a medium sized compact 9mm pistol is the one I would buy if I choose to. I have heard good things about glocks or similar type. I love the look and feel of the 1911, shot an old one once and it was really nice to shoot, but sadly it looks like those are not as practical. However, I won’t decide till I have tried some different models out.
I assume that training centers and classes will have some rental options for training, practice or trying out styles.
Good advice, thanks.
PS: Going to school makes carrying almost pointless since the one place I go, guns are illegal. Talk about infringing on the right of self defense :( .
You won’t have any problems getting your hands on rental pistols if you live near any decent sized ranges. I encourage people to try out different kinds of pistols before they buy one and to seek good counsel to help guide them through the process.
I’m a big fan of striker-fired pistols for first time gun buyers since they are reliable, relatively simple, and fun to shoot. Everyone makes them these days so there are plenty of options.
I shoot a 1911 in competition and I love mine, but I wouldn’t recommend a 1911 as a first pistol. They can be… quirky.. if you don’t get the right pistol and magazine selection correctly. You also have to deal with the manual safety issue and some extra issues that come with a single action firearm.
I don’t see an NRA Instructor”s patch in the OP pic. But, Kevin, if that is the instructor, could you let me know where she teaches? Taking such a course could be helpful in developing a necessary second order skill – maintaining concentration in distracting circumstances.
That is a stock photo and not my shot, but you can find an instructor near you on the NRA’s website. Take care, because the quality of instructor can vary widely. Look for people who have NRA instructor training and something else besides, like instructor training from Tom Givens, Rob Pincus, John Farnham or others. They’re the people who have gone the extra miles for themselves and therefore can go the extra mile for you.
My hubby and I have tried to maintain a schedule of practicing every two weeks. We have to drive an hour to the indoor range, but it’s worth it. I totally understand @katebraestrup and the aching arms: I get just plum worn out! But my arms are getting stronger and I’m ready next time to fire a few more rounds. Hubby has encouraged me to get a private lesson, too, so I’ll put that on the schedule soon. It’s really confidence building and I’m actually starting to enjoy it!
@canesplitter @ModEcon Try YouTube channel, Hickok45 if you want to learn more about firearms, and which is potentially the best fit for you. Located somewhere in the middle of Tennessee, he’s really quite the character. The man has over 2 million subscribers to his channel, and he reviews and demonstrates all makes of firearms giving you his opinion of what he likes/doesn’t like about each. He also gives instructions about loading, carrying, and cleaning firearms. First time I cleaned my firearms, I had his channel on and followed step by step.
Another website you might find interesting is http://www.thewellarmedwoman.com. There are chapters all over the country, and 12 in California. Totally agree that before you make your purchase, rent a few pistols at the gun range. A Glock 17, 9-mm, which is part plastic, is going to feel and shoot much differently than a Sig P-227 .45, fully metal. I, personally, am a fan of the high capacity magazine, and all my firearms, including my concealed carry, have double-stack magazines. I live in the Chicagoland area, and occasionally have to travel downtown to my office. Thugs don’t work alone, at least not in Chicago. -:(
I am a big fan of what Carrie is doing, and I think that getting women to relax around guns is a very good thing indeed. One of the smartest and most with-it people out there right now is Kathy Jackson. She is FAR ahead of the curve on integrating armed self-defense into our lifestyle, rather than upsetting the apple cart in order to carry a gun.
A couple of other people to look into for women and guns are Annette Evans, Falia Photography and one my co-bloggers at Lucky Gunner, Melody Lauer. Melody is especially interesting because she’s one of the few trainers out there who are teaching stuff that’s directly applicable to our lives, rather than giving us a bunch of tools for our toolbox and telling us to go build a house.
Oh, and one more: Claude Werner. He’s a former instructor with Tom Givens, so he knows his stuff, and he’s about the only guy out there creating training that can be done in a stall in an indoor range. Way, WAY too many instructors are teaching stuff that only can be learned on a pistol bay or out in the back forty somewhere.
WRONG.
Very few gun owners have access to such things. Teaching skills that can be practiced weekly is SO much better than teaching skills that can be practiced once a year.
Wonderful piece. Thank you! I have been thinking about acquiring a pistol. But I don’t know where to begin. How do I select the right gun? Would it be best to acquire the gun first or is there a NRA course that includes such advice? Thank you again.
HPVDV
Oh boy, did you come to the right place! As for gun first or training first, I’d recommend going to a range that has a wide variety of guns and shooting them all. When I bought my first gun, I started at one end of the 9mm rental display and worked my way down to the end, settling on a CZ75*. Do that, then buy as your experience and wisdom dictate, then take a class. I find I learn better when the training is directly applicable to what I own, rather than the abstract.
* Yes, I know, I recommend something other than the CZ75 in the article I just linked. I am nothing if not a bundle of contradictions. :D