"Shotgunnin' is for people who don't think a lot."

This is an exact quote from my instructor yesterday at the Platte River State Park - Outdoor Heritage Education Complex. I could have slipped in a good joke about Republicans after he said it, but I bit my tongue. Probably not the best thing to do in a room full of Nebraskans and firearms. This gentleman from Nebraska Game and Parks showed us the basics of a shotgunnin' and explained that "it's about looking good," and "your predatory instincts." 


All joking aside, the guys and gal at the park were excellent teachers and I learned the basics of shotguns, the different actions (pump action, semi-automatic, bolt action, etc).  At a few different times during the firearm safety demonstration, I blurted out a few gasps of laughter knowing that my friends and family would be like, "whaaaaaa?" if they knew I was there.  Well, now you know what I was doing yesterday! 

When we got to the archery range, I was suddenly taken back to Alford Lake Camp and, well, skipping archery to go swimming. At ALC, the range was in a clearing in the woods, the bugs were bad, and the sun burned through the pine trees making my polyester camp uniform itchy and sweaty. Swimming always won.  But this time around, I enjoyed flinging a few arrows. 

Here's a cool picture of targets in the archery range. 

I had to post a picture of this guy, 

a volunteer who helped us shoot.

I experienced a very electric adrenalin rush while handling the shotgun - this reaction scared and shocked me. I was very nervous, but the man who was helping me was very calm, knowledgeable, and encouraging. Don't worry folks, I'm not about to go hunting, but I might bring Aaron back to the range and shoot a few clay birds.

After shootin' guns and flingin' arrows, we talked at length about Teddy Roosevelt and the history of wildlife management in North America. In response to exploiting game and depleting populations to nothing, he said, "If you could kick the person in the pants responsible for most of your trouble, you wouldn't sit for a month." I like that. 

We could all use a kick in the pants from time to time. 

Here's a quick video of the afternoon. Enjoy.