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Chapter 7 - Reach Out And Touch…

We’re not talking about touch someone, rather touching targets that are 1,000 yards away with a well-placed rifle shot. Nancy Crowley uses her bolt-action rifle in a variety of positions, taking targets that are 10 football fields away. This type of shooting sport is done along the lines of sniper shooting. Since I’ve seen Nancy compete at 3-gun matches I wondered why she was diverting off into the sniper shooting. Bottom line is that she loves rifle shooting of any kind. Nancy uses her AR15 rifle for the closer 3-gun targets, of 100 yards to 400 yards. Then for the matches with targets that are further away she goes to the larger .308-caliber bolt-action rifle. Nancy claims the .308 is more accurate with less moving parts then the lighter semi-automatic AR15. The AR15 feeds rounds continually, while the bolt action rifle is one bullet at a time so she carefully plans out each shot.

Scared of Guns…

I thought that maybe Nancy had been brought up with rifles but exactly the opposite is true. When we spoke she set me straight as she said: “I was brought up to fear guns and I never even touched a gun until I was 44 years old.” Nancy lives on a small rural ranch outside of Albuquerque, New Mexico, and as a side job raises hay for her animals. During the day she works as a corporate computer programmer. Before getting active in shooting sports Nancy competed in high-level dressage horse shows. As she was finishing her doctoral program (PHD) in computer science she didn’t have the time to devote to her riding programs. Nancy admits she never thought about taking up any kind of shooting. She changed her mind late one night when working outside at her ranch. As a divorced gal Nancy felt: “I was too exposed being outside late at night. I didn’t feel like I could take care of myself.”

Nancy mentioned to a friend that she would like to learn something about self-defense. She remembers going out to the range with her friend for the first time and how badly her hands were shaking. I wondered if she was afraid that the gun would be too loud or too big for her hands? Nancy replied: “I was worried about the whole experience. I knew I had something deadly in my hands and I was scared that I would do something wrong.” She started with a safety course and by the end of the first session Nancy was confident that she wanted to continue her education in firearms. Her next introduction to guns was when the same friend took her to a nearby gun show. They were going to look at a variety of guns to see which one would fit her hand the best. This was Nancy’s first time to a gun show: “I had always been told that gun shows would be filled with people who were freaks. I was terrified to be at a gun show and was glued to Rod’s side, but after wandering through the place I have to admit that everyone was polite and no freaks in sight.”

Nancy bought a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol as her first gun. She joined the Zia Gun Club, which operates the gun range outside of Albuquerque. Nancy started out in action handgun matches, which is like a slower type of IPSC program. She remembers her first match with humor since she missed most of the targets and ran out of ammunition on every stage. Even though she didn’t do well she remarked: “The other shooters were all so nice and encouraging, I had so much fun and knew I had found a new sport to enjoy.” Now five years later she “owns a lot more guns and I don’t run out of ammo (ammunition) anymore.” In addition to the informal action handgun matches, Nancy started competing in IPSC. Now she competes in bolt-action rifle, IPSC and the tactical 3-gun matches that were covered earlier.

Even though Nancy has a busy match schedule, she still makes time for self-defense programs. She continued with her NRA training and became a certified instructor. Nancy, along with other local instructors, now teach a weekend NRA course called First Steps Pistol and Personal Protection In The Home. These courses are done on a volunteer basis and over 80% of the attendees in her classes are women. Nancy is aware that most of her students have never shot before and claims: “The transformation from women who are scared in the beginning, into women who are confidently handling firearms by the end of class is very rewarding for me.” In fact Nancy was laughing when she told me: “By the end of day two we (the NRA instructors) bring out a variety of firearms with ammo for the ladies to try. Then we can’t get them to stop shooting! They want to try everything.” The other point Nancy made about the courses she teaches is: “It’s one of the few things I can do that makes a difference in someone’s life. That’s a good feeling for me.” Now that Nancy has been shooting for a number of years she says: “I’m not afraid to tell people that I shoot. I value my life and my ability to take care of myself. While I respect people who choose not to defend themselves, that is their choice, not my choice.”

As we were finishing up our interview Nancy shared with me a situation she encountered at work. One of the men from her department stopped her in the hallway and said: “I hear you shoot guns, and I just wanted you to know you don’t look like a shooter.” Nancy’s reply back to him before walking away was: “What do you think shooters look like?” I’d like to answer her question with one of my own. I think people in shooting sports look like Nancy, they look like me, maybe they look like my husband or my brother. Or maybe people in shooting sports will look like you?

It’s a Garand, Not a Grand…

I always thought my dad was calling this gun a grand, but it turns out the M1 rifle is known as the J.C. Garand. While most people may not be familiar with this rifle it had a rich history of military action during World War II and Korea. I know my dad, a Marine during World War II, was a history buff and enjoyed talking about the M1. It was about ten years ago that my dad and husband went to a Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) held at the Tucson Rifle Club. Through attending this class they received refurbished M1 rifles at a substantial savings. They were both excited about receiving their guns, which is something that Dean Lucy could relate to since he did the same thing. Dean and his wife, Colleen, both shoot their J.C. Garand rifles at various Midwest matches.

I was looking for a lady to interview who was active with the CMP so I put a request in through their web site. A few days later I got an email back from Dean Lucy from the Bristol Gun Club, located outside of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Dean went on to share with me: “Colleen has shot in every J.C. Garand Match at Camp Perry since it started in 1998.” He also added: “I think some of her (Colleen’s) best times are while passing out all the food she brings for our club. This is truly a family and friends shooting event, like something from 50 years ago.” I give Dean credit when his email ended with: “Colleen isn’t the best shot but she did beat me this year for the first time and I’m her husband.”

Considering that the M1 weighs almost 10 pounds, compared to my AR15 at a mere 6 pounds, I was intrigued by the idea that a gal would want to shoot this heavy rifle. I dialed the Lucy’s phone number and got a chance to know Colleen. Then when I got her picture I have to admit she wasn’t what I was expecting. At 5'11", 135 pounds, along with blonde hair and red fingernails I wondered even more why she picked a big rifle to shoot? Colleen admitted: “I don’t clean guns, I don’t load the ammunition, I like being feminine. I don’t like to hunt but I do like to shoot together as a family.” Family has always been a big thing in Colleen’s life and as she grew up in Florida she explained that her childhood included camping, water skiing and all sorts of outdoor activities. She added: “My dad had guns and I grew up respecting them. I think today that kids don’t respect guns. Their parents seem afraid or unwilling to educate them about guns. I think this is a mistake because children are always curious about things they don’t understand.”

Colleen met Dean after she moved to Illinois. They got married and started a family. I guess you could say that for the Lucy’s, shooting sports are a family affair. They obviously practice what they preach about educating kids on gun safety. Colleen was proud to share that their son took 1st place last year in the Junior Division at Camp Perry while participating in the ’03 Springfield Bolt Action Rifle match. It wasn’t until Colleen was in her early 30’s, when their son was old enough to go to the range that she started to shoot the M1. I wondered why she’d want to start with this more challenging type of firearm. Colleen gave me an interesting answer. “I got into the sport because I wanted to be the person he (Dean) came home excited to be with. He was interested in the M1, so I got interested in the M1 because it was important to me that we share something extra. I love being a mom and a housewife. I like looking after my guys; it doesn’t work for all women but it works for me. I just wanted to be a little bit more.”

Colleen gives credit to Dean for buying her the right equipment, like a good shooting jacket with a stiff back. She says that makes shooting the M1 a little less harsh for her. As you might expect Colleen has had several men request her help in getting their wives, or girlfriends, to come out to the gun range. She is more than willing to be the enthusiastic recruiter for new lady rifle shooters but gives everyone the same advice. “Start the ladies out with an AR15, which is a very gentle gun and easy for her to use. The worst thing you can do is start her out with a rifle that is too heavy or has too much recoil for her.” I agree with Colleen and I’ve included that tip, along with many more, in the chapter titled “Gals, Guns & Glory.” I’ve been saying all along that having instructors other then your husband might be a good idea. In Colleen’s case she credits Dean, along with other club members, in being very good teachers. About the men she meets at other matches she said: “All the guys want to help and it’s always constructive and encouraging, never negative.”

We went on to talk about her experiences at the big matches held in Camp Perry in Port Clinton, Ohio. Seems that the Civilian Marksmanship Program was tied in from the original DCM program (Department of Civilian Marksmanship). This program was started and funded by an act of Congress back in the 1890’s, as a way to encourage young men to shoot correctly. Then in 1996 Congress took away the funding and the CMP program, along with Camp Perry matches, were faced with difficult times. The NRA was holding several large national matches each year at Camp Perry. In terms of the M1 match there were only about 300 shooters participating. The Lucy’s wanted to see this match continue since they felt the people involved in their rifle shooting sports are family oriented people. As Colleen remarked: “We didn’t want to lose this great environment and all these great friends.” In 1999 the matches at Camp Perry underwent reorganization; they started promoting several more divisions. Colleen also noted that more women and juniors started to participate as well. She was pleased to announce that at the match in 2004 there were over 1,500 shooters. The only disappointment was that even with an event of this size it still did not receive any significant media coverage.

I wasn’t surprised about the lack of media participation at the Camp Perry “mega match.” I think every big match needs to do a better job of cultivating reporters from all media sources. I suggest that each gun club have a PR director on its board. This PR person should stay in touch with a small group of local reporters, calling them on a regular basis, whenever there is something new or different at the club. My experience is that eventually you’ll get some positive media exposure. The other thing that Colleen brought up that I want to touch on is how the Camp Perry match was revitalized, growing from 300 shooters to 1,500 shooters. It grew and prospered because of Colleen and other shooters just like her.