Day 1 concluded with more than 400 rounds through the Detective and by the end of the day malfunctions became more and more common. The hot, dusty weather did NOT agree with the lubricant in the Detective and I experienced a few failures to eject. Lisa helped me out with a quick bore snake and re-lube, but between the weather, the stress, and the reload drills (mags dropped in the dust) the Detective and mags needed a full cleaning and lubrication. Everyone else experienced the same need to tend to their firearms.
And so Wednesday morning found most of us in the condo hauling out our cleaning supplies and cleaning mats. Lisa sold me some GunButter (the greatest stuff on the planet) and I gave the Detective some much-needed TLC.
After breakfast we headed out the range and hung out for a bit while the stages were prepared.
Range Day 2 found us running through the previous day's drills, but the with the newer shooters joining us. Since there were 23 of us, we shot our drills in relays. After the heat and exhaustion of Range Day 1 the breaks provided by the relays were quite welcome.
After running through our previous drills our instructors led us through some new moves. In day 2 we covered:
- Reloading on the move
- Footwork
- Switching targets
- Shooting on the move
- Strong hand and weak hand shooting
- Keeping the sight picture on the move
- Handling moving targets
Near the end of the range time we ran some stages and shot some steel. About this time I realized that although I do really well on paper targets, I suck at steel plates. Judy checked the sights on the Detective and they were not *ahem* adequate, but I hated how poorly I did on the plates.
However, I found I LOVED shooting the paper and moving targets of the stages. The stages offered more of a challenge than line shooting at a single target and although I'd never done stages before, I did quite well for a beginner.
Learning to be accurate and fast is, after all, the entire point of the camp, as well as becoming comfortable and confident with firearms.
Some pics taken during various breaks at the range:
Renee, Sheila, and Penny
One of the relays.
Break time.After the range (and a slight detour for margaritas and a beer) we returned to our condo and cleaned up for the last dinner. We also had a visitor in the form of Dewey, Deb's Great Dane/ Mastiff mix.
Yes, he is HUGE and about 180 lbs of sweetheart.
Oh, yes, and we made it onto the local news.
After the broadcast we headed out to our last group dinner and continued to get to know all of the other campers.
Jackie and Donna
Eva and Penny
Everyone.After good food and good company we headed back to our condos for our last bit of rest before the culmination of the camp.
Mel
Tomorrow: Match Day and the End of Camp
This is Part 4 of a series of posts about my experience at the Ladies Shooting Camp I attended last week.
Post 1 - Background
Post 2 - Meet and Greet
Post 3 - Day 1 of Instruction
Post 5 - Match Day and Culmination of Camp
