“Don’t go looking for the intruder!” Will Farrugia is expert in his instruction to a group of eight women who have decided to arm themselves with knowledge and experience by taking the Florida Firearms Training class, ‘Ladies Only Introduction to Handguns.’ He knows that much of this business is about dealing with what’s going on in a person’s head when faced with danger. The women sit quietly in a classroom at Gun World of South Florida while he and his wife, Megan, carefully elucidate the Hows, Whys and Whens of concealed gun carrying. While many people hear a “bump” in the night, only the ones who feel confident enough to overpower a potential intruder will go look for them. Will is adamant in his opinion. “If you lock your bedroom door and turn the light on, any person trying to get in is going to know that you are aware of their presence. That may be enough to make them go away. Always have your cell phone in the room with you and dial 911, stating clearly. There are more at this site that you can find regarding intruders and how to handle them. ‘There is an armed intruder in my house.’ Let the police handle the bad guy.” Stories of shoot now, ask questions later are warnings that Will is careful to pass on to the women.
Megan, soft spoken and gentle, is a sure shot who can relate to each lady in the class. A young mother, she brings the perspective of a momma bear. “When Will and I purchased our home, it had to have a certain layout that gave us the ability to protect our son in case of intrusion.” She is the perfect advocate for an expanding industry. “Women who want to become gun savvy are the fastest growing market in firearms,” she says. “There are a lot of pink accessories, but we want to show and teach you that there is equipment available that may not look “girlie” but may be the best for you.” Female gunowners also need to familiarize themselves with 9mm ammunition and other types of ammo (9mm ammo, 12mm ammo, etc.) needed for their firearms. If you need to learn more about this, navigate here for additional knowledge about the ammo.
So why are these ladies here tonight? One of the students says, “My husband and I are empty nesters and he travels frequently. I’m a little afraid to be home alone in our rural Parkland neighborhood and want to be sure that I am prepared to protect myself.” Another lady says that she is feeling older and less confident about her strength. She wants to be able to assuredly take charge if she’s ever accosted or approached by anyone who means to do her harm. A young Coral Springs mother says that her husband and son are so excited about spending time at the range that she’d like to be able to learn more, understand the attraction and join them in this hobby. Megan says that only about 10% of women will get involved for competitive reasons, although that portion of the industry is growing for women and girls, too.
After a fair amount of classroom instruction and rubber weapon handling (to understand hand position as well as where NOT to point your gun), the ladies are taken onto Gun World’s clean, safe and secure range where they will each load, reload and shoot more than ½ a dozen different firearms from revolvers to semi-automatics, including larger scale to very compact guns. You can also check over here to purchase guns. Will says, “The gun you may think is the one for you, may not feel right. I think most of you had an idea when you came as to what you wanted to shoot, but you may find a preference for something that you hadn’t even thought of.” He says that women are most surprised that the light guns they thought would be right for them are usually much harder to handle than heavier, more robust weapons. “The recoil on a smaller, lighter gun is going to be very strong, often overpowering the shooter’s ability to control the weapon for the next shot,” he explains. “Because of physics, a larger, heavier gun can absorb the kick of the explosion much more comfortably, allowing the shooter to feel more in control and confident for the next shot.”
Learn more about gun safety and handling by taking a class or having private instruction at Gun World of South Florida with Florida Firearms Training (561) 450-9586 or see www.FloridaFirearmsTraining.com
