Five days at Gunsite-Prologue
As the plane touched down in Phoenix, I felt a flash of excitement and anticipation. It had been three years in the making, but I was really doing it! I was going to Gunsite!
The story begins last December. I had wanted to make it out to Gunsite for a few years, but with a small child at home it had been a bit of a challenge. I had gotten some downtime, and had some spare cash, and decided that I would finally make it out to Gunsite for a class: 250 Defensive Pistol. I didn’t want to go alone, and so I asked a friend and colleague if he wanted to join me. Lewis had recently begun shooting, and I suspected he might be interested. His email came back in about 30 seconds: absolutely!
I called Gunsite, and spoke to a very nice woman named Jane Ann. She answered all of my questions, and emailed me an application. This presented the first hurdle. Gunsite requires either a concealed carry permit or a statement from local law enforcement that you have no criminal history in order to register. I had my CCW permit, but Lewis did not. Jane Ann said no problem…just bring it with you when you come. Lewis applied for his Washington CCW, and had it two weeks later. (Gotta love Washington…no class required, and very quick turnaround.)
The next few weeks were dedicated to getting geared up. The first decision I needed to make was which pistol to go through class with. I ended up deciding on my Smith and Wesson M&P in .40SW. My M&P compact is one of my regular carry guns, and I thought that would be a good place to start. I decided to bring the full-size M&P, though…no need to be a masochist. Gunsite requires 1,000 rounds of ammo for the class, so I knew that we would be shooting a lot over the week. I thought that the compact would be a bit of a handful for that much shooting. Lewis also went with the M&P, but in 9mm. I talked him into letting me bring him my wife’s full size 9mm rather than him trying to go through the class with his compact. (He thanked me later.)
As I mentioned, Gunsite requires 1,000 rounds of ammo, as well as 50 rounds of frangible for their shoot houses. I decided to buy the ammo directly from Gunsite rather than running around trying to find it locally. If you want to bring your own ammo, you can. You can even have it shipped to Gunsite ahead of time so you aren’t traveling with all that weight. Good thing, too…1,000 rounds of 180 grain .40 weighs almost 26 pounds! You can also ship your gun ahead of time, although I elected to travel with mine. Gunsite also has rental guns available, as well as an on-site pro shop that carries several major brands if you want to buy your gun at the school. They sell basically at cost, and if you are renting and decide to buy, they rebate your rental fee. More than one of the people in my class showed up with the wrong gun and ended up buying replacements, but more on that later.
I had most of the other things I needed: eye protection, hearing protection and appropriate clothing. I’ll deviate from the time line here and make a few gear recommendations. Electronic hearing protection is mandatory. It’s tough to hear range commands without it. I brought the Peltor TacSport muffs, and they worked very well. Eye protection: either bring a couple of pairs or ones with interchangeable lenses. Amber lenses worked well for most things, but it is the desert, and you can get a lot of glare and might want to switch to dark lenses. I’d also recommend shooting gloves. I used Pro-Aim 3/4 finger gloves with the braces removed.
Finally, the day arrived, and I got ready to fly from Charlotte to Phoenix. I had never flown with a firearm before, and I wanted to make sure that I left plenty of time at the airport for the inevitable hassle. I arrived two hours early. I needn’t have bothered. Time elapsed from arrival to air-side: about 6 minutes. It couldn’t have been easier. I went to the counter, told the attendant that I needed to declare some firearms, showed her the pistols, signed a form that they were unloaded, locked the case, and was on my merry way.
After a long flight, I arrived in Phoenix and met up with Lewis. He was brimming with excitement, and brought me a present: a black leather cowboy hat! I felt very dressed for the occasion. The bags and guns came though baggage claim without delay, and we started the long drive up to Prescott. It took about two hours. We stayed at the Residence Inn in Prescott. Prescott is about a 35 minute drive from Gunsite, which is located between Chino Valley and Paulden. There are options that are closer, but we thought the Residence Inn made sense. Rooms are suites with kitchens and a small living room. There are also more dining options in Prescott than there are closer to Gunsite.
It was snowing as we checked into the hotel, and I hoped that we would not be spending the next day on the range in the snow. I was exhausted from the trip, but pumped and excited for the big day tomorrow.
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One Comment on Five days at Gunsite-Prologue
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Gunsite Day 1 : Newbie Shooter on
Mon, 15th Mar 2010 10:35 am
[...] is part of my series on my Gunsite experience. Part 1 is here. Lewis and I woke up early on Monday morning to the jazzy music of his cell phone alarm. [...]
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