Private Jamie or: How I learned to stop worrying and love the gun

Ready to shoot a 50-caliber precision rifle. Stand back!

This past weekend I was given a very unexpected opportunity—I got to play the role of an Army soldier, a duck hunter, a Somalian pirate, and a Los Angeles police officer all in one day at the Angeles Shooting Range in Sylmar, California.

Now, I am not what you would call a “gun enthusiast.” In fact, some people might even classify me as a free-spirited, quasi-hippie (I even traded in a cargo jumpsuit for my worn-in “flower power” tank top at the gun range). Whether this bohemian identity may or may not be accurate, the truth of the matter is that guns downright scare me. I am a small-framed, short little girl who startles easily at the sound of car engines backfiring, skyward sonic booms, and even wayward doors slamming. And being at a gun range with over a hundred firearms blasting all around is definitely not for the feint of heart. In my case, this is considered downright death defying.

But I am on a mission—here, I’ll call it a special operative mission. This mission is to explore as many experiences as I can in this little place we call life. I yearn to see it all and be a part of it all, and that includes facing my fears in order to wholly become a part of the world that we live in. And I must say, the adrenaline rush of pulling the trigger of an enormous firearm was as intense as when I jumped out of an airplane at 13,000 feet elevation. No joke.

I began my ammo-induced journey at the outdoor Angeles Shooting Range in the mountains above the San Fernando Valley, where the charred and blackened hills that lay adjacent were a constant reminder of the largest wildfire in modern Los Angeles County history that burned only weeks before. “Fire, away!” I ironically thought as I watched the bombardment of firearms taking place within the confines of the scorched and scarred hillside.

The moment I stepped out of the car I heard the BAM, BAM, BOOM of the incessant gunfire taking place on the range. The shots ringing out are so loud, in fact, that it is required that everybody wears ear protection from the noise and eye protection from the stray shell casings that may hit you in the face as they come out of the artillery at rapid-fire speed. Just to be safe, my family and I wore earplugs along with our external ear protection. I even wore my prescription glasses underneath my sunglasses (in true nerd fashion) for both safety purposes and so I could see where I was shooting.

After checking in and signing release forms we met my Dad’s friend, Mike, who has an impressive collection of firearms—from rifles to shotguns to handguns, this enthusiast has it all. I was both impressed and terrified. I had never even held a gun (unless you count the water gun someone made me use in the fourth grade), let alone shot one. How the heck was I supposed to do this without sticking out like a sore thumb, hippie shirt and all?

Before we got started, Mike briefed us on extremely important safety precautions that are absolutely necessary in understanding before handling a deadly weapon. This is by far the most important aspect of shooting at a gun range, and I cannot stress enough the fact that people like myself should never handle a firearm unless supervised by a seasoned professional. Mike taught us to keep the gun unloaded at all times and to never point the firearm at anything but the targets. He also showed us how to keep the safety on until being fully prepared and to not put our finger on the trigger until we were absolutely ready to fire.

The first gun I tried wasn’t just any old gun, but an AR-308 precision rifle similar to those used by sharpshooters in the U.S. military. Heart thumping out of my chest, I sat down, rested my cheek on the gunstock, and aimed the gun through the scope at the target 100 yards away. Before sitting down, Mike had informed me that every little thing you do, from your breathing pattern to your heartbeat, can move the gun even fractions of a millimeter away from the target. I remembered this as I took a deep breath and exhaled, willed my heart to stop thumping, and gently pulled the trigger.

BAM!!! The rifle shot and my head thrust back with the force of this powerful weapon. I was in shock as I checked to see if I hit the target—BULLSEYE! Well, almost. But still. “THAT…WAS…AWESOME!!!” I yelled in excitement.

Alright, I thought. Move out of the way, people! Rambo’s a comin’! I’m ready to fire some more of these bad boys! Bring it on!

The second gun I shot was a 50-caliber precision rifle, the crème de la crème of all the artillery there that day. This massive gun, which is almost bigger than me, was so loud that it turned heads every time it was fired. Not only that, but this weapon displaces so much air when it’s shot that its sonic boom-like thud literally travels through your entire body, reaching to your core in an intense, bone-shattering wave. Bystanders stood back when this bad boy was fired, for fear that the wave could knock them out. I was definitely a lot more nervous firing this rifle, but I sucked it up and tried it out, anyway.

WHAM!!! While this felt a heck of a lot more intense than the .308, I was surprised that it had very little recoil and the sonic boom was actually more intense the farther away from the gun, so I wasn’t knocked out as I had expected. Not only that, but Private Jamie even scored a Bullseye! I swear! Not bad for my first time.

Below is a video of me shooting the 50-caliber. You’ll see my head fly and my chair jump backwards, but it’s not as bad as it looks. If my face were more visible you would be able to see my look of sheer shock and amazement.

The third rifle I tried was an AR-15 precision rifle, a semi-automatic version of those commonly used by the U.S. military. I was able to shoot 5 rounds with this one, which was more lightweight and not as intimidating as the previous two (but still pretty intimidating!).

Now it was time for me to “switch sides,” so to speak, and to fire an AK-47, a semi-automatic version of one of the most infamous assault rifles known to man. This is because it is most often used by the “bad guys,” as Mike explained, such as the Somalian pirates, the Soviet Reds, Patty Hearst and the Symbionese Liberation Army, and all those anarchists you see in the movies. The AK-47 is lightweight, small, and is so often used because it is extremely durable and almost impossible to break. But don’t let this fool you: this is one of the deadliest weapons in the world. I liked this one because of its infamous history, but it was pretty difficult for me to hold, even though it is lightweight—looks like I’ll have to pump some iron before I try out to be a pirate or insurgent any time soon.

From here I tried my hand at trapshooting with a Browning Over/Under shotgun.  Trapshooting is where a machine shoots out a “clay pigeon,” which is a disc-shaped target that flies through the air and which is subsequently split into pieces by a master shooter. The master at this one was not I, of course, but my little brother, who tried teaching me how to aim and fire correctly. This was also difficult for me because it was heavy. Surprisingly, the recoil on the shotgun is more powerful than the assault rifles, so while I didn’t come home bragging about hitting my flying target, I did come home with a pretty cool “battle bruise” on my shoulder. I guess that’s what I get for wearing my hippie tank.

The last firearm I shot was a Glock 19 9-millimeter handgun. This little thing is also pretty powerful, and I was surprised at how much force it had. Needless to say, I did not hit the target that was only 20 yards away from me. Oh well.

All in all, my day at the Angeles Gun range was an experience that I am thankful for having, however frightening or intimidating it may have been. The biggest impression this experience had on me was when I looked around at all of the artillery and thought about the real-life soldiers who use these weapons every day in order to keep people like me safe and happy in America. I thought about how nervous I was being at a protected and controlled gun range, and then thought about how nervous American soldiers must feel in the face of death and danger. I keep thinking about these heroes, some of them my age, who are out there right now, thousands of miles away from their homes and families, who are sacrificing their lives so I can go spend a day with my own family at the gun range. It truly is heart wrenching to think about.

Head to the Angeles Shooting Range if you want to partake in an adrenaline-packed, fun-filled adventure with your friends or family. And if you do, take a look at the American flag at half-mast as you’re driving in, and think about our fellow Americans in Iraq. It will make the experience that much more meaningful.