Is Krav Maga turning me into a redneck?

I don't know much about guns. I've never really been a fan or felt the urge to even learn about them. Coming from a pretty liberal and wonderfully naive family, we tended to avoid any discussion that involved artillery. It didn't seem to be a necessity to expose ourselves to such a violent and hostile reality. I viewed guns as weapons that killed. They were dangerous and often mishandled and gun owners were reckless to leave them around where children could access them so easily.

My ignorance of guns caused me to fear them.

I immediately shunned the idea that people could shoot for sport. I threw out the notion that proper education and training could lead to safe gun usage. I shut my mind to any possibility of a positive relationship with a gun.

And then I began taking Krav Maga and I was exposed to gun defenses. I hated it. I was uncomfortable handling the rubber guns and it was awkward. The idea of being threatened with a gun had never even entered my realm of possibilities. I didn't take the gun training seriously as I had no situational knowledge to relate it to. This was so foreign to me and I could not figure out how to apply it to my own life.

I soon discovered that I was in the minority by not being a gun owner. Guns and Krav Maga seem to go hand in hand. It was a constant shock only to me when discussions turned to bragging rights about the contents of their own private arsenals. I had never known people who owned a gun or talked about it so openly.

Slowly, I could feel a shift in me taking place. I wanted to be exposed to this world I had always feared. I watched a few friends handle their guns in front of me and I was surprised as I began to feel a tingle of excitement course through my body. I knew I wanted more.

Turns out there is a gun called a Kimber. How fitting! I decided to find out for myself what all the excitement was about. I faced my fears and went down to the shooting range with some friends. My friend has a Kimber so I was super excited to have that as my first shooting experience. After an hour of gun protocol, proper handling and training, I was itching to get out there.

I had no idea what to expect and I let my body completely relax. As I squeezed that trigger and got the first shot off, I was stunned by the recoil. But I was instantly addicted. The power gripped my body and consumed me with an adrenaline force I had never experienced before. I couldn't get enough. I ripped of an entire magazine in seconds. I didn't have to think. I could just obliterate without thought. How strangely empowering.

My hands were pretty steady and I was focussed. I spent some time working on my aim and visualizing my target. It is amazing how the mind can drum up such specific imagery and then in a millisecond, you can destroy it.

I loved the smell of the gun powder and I relished in the sting in my eyes. My whole body was rigid with anticipation yet totally relaxed in execution. I can't wait to go back for more.

So I guess all these Krav Maga rednecks aren't as reckless with their guns as I had once thought! Seems like there is a method to their gun toting madness after all!