I've been to 2 shoots so far, and I was impressed by the way everyone acted in a safe manner. I was raised in Iowa and for the most part we would all stand behind a fence and shoot at another fence with bottles and such on them. I shot at the indoor shooting range they had on Astrozon and Chelton when it was there, so these were the first times I've shot with an impromtu sorta group. I went to one years ago and as soon as I pulled up and saw people drinking beer, I left.

Long windedly, I mean to say many people have said at the 2 I went to, step back a bit, make sure fingers aren't on triggers, don't cock the gun until at the line.

And Karl told me to make sure as I was taking hold of his gun to keep it pointed at the ground. I was semi careless while taking it figuring as long as my finger was not on the trigger it would be ok. It did go off, and went over the berm. Karl said see, that's what I'm saying! I didn't take offence at all. He wasn't being a bossy jerk, he was enforcing safety measures. I didn't say I've been shooting for years, don't tell me what to do. I haven't shot rifles much. I only took a handgun safety coarse, never a hunters safety or rifle coarse. The guys at these shoots are willing to teach, and the others are willing to learn. I think it's a good thing you perceived a safety issue and brought it up.