I have a friend who owns about seventy acres about a half hour outside of town where he will one day build a home. A few years ago I asked him if I could hunt and shoot there, and he said sure, he appreciated having someone on the property. It’s become quite a refuge for me; often I bring friends to help me set up a stand, or clear shooting lanes, or bang some gong targets. And sometimes, I just go there to be alone, occasionally smoke a cigar, and read my Bible.
Today, I headed out there with my M&P 15-22 and Sig M400 AR-15. Just at the driveway, I saw the neighbor’s younger son Ethan, a middle schooler, on the Polaris heading down the road. I rolled the window down to say hello, and then I heard a .22 coming from their farm, and Ethan said it was his brother Evan, 15. I decided to pull into their farm because I’d been wanting to show them the 15-22.
Jack, the father, has been teaching them some shooting with a traditional .22, but those boys instantly loved the 15-22. It’s just the stock FDE version with a Vortex Sparc II. We were making mud hole explosions like it was Apocalypse Now. Then I brought out the M400 and we went to work on the reactive targets. Every time one popped up in the air, they just roared with laughter.
Then we took the Polaris over to my land, and started banging away on the gongs. Evan was quite a shot. Ethan got a bruise on his shoulder but told his dad he didn’t want it to go away because he wanted to show it to his buddies. Those boys were a delight to be around. They were respectful and consistently said “yes, sir” to me and their dad. They listened to instruction and showed good discipline around the rifles.
Jack offered to pay for the ammo but I told him no, he’s probably going to have to buy a couple of rifles now because of my visit. I did ask him if he had ever tried to find out what fish were in his pond, and he told me I could come by and fish it any time. On the way out we did a couple of doughnuts in the Polaris, took it up to 50 mph, and got back to his farm just as the rain started again.
What’s the point of this story? I dunno. Maybe that men need to spend time alone, friends are good to have, shooting and making new shooters and being outdoors is fun. It’s encouraging to see that some families are still doing it right. I’m blessed to live in a great country. God loves me and gives me all I need. Except now I need a Polaris.
Today, I headed out there with my M&P 15-22 and Sig M400 AR-15. Just at the driveway, I saw the neighbor’s younger son Ethan, a middle schooler, on the Polaris heading down the road. I rolled the window down to say hello, and then I heard a .22 coming from their farm, and Ethan said it was his brother Evan, 15. I decided to pull into their farm because I’d been wanting to show them the 15-22.
Jack, the father, has been teaching them some shooting with a traditional .22, but those boys instantly loved the 15-22. It’s just the stock FDE version with a Vortex Sparc II. We were making mud hole explosions like it was Apocalypse Now. Then I brought out the M400 and we went to work on the reactive targets. Every time one popped up in the air, they just roared with laughter.
Then we took the Polaris over to my land, and started banging away on the gongs. Evan was quite a shot. Ethan got a bruise on his shoulder but told his dad he didn’t want it to go away because he wanted to show it to his buddies. Those boys were a delight to be around. They were respectful and consistently said “yes, sir” to me and their dad. They listened to instruction and showed good discipline around the rifles.
Jack offered to pay for the ammo but I told him no, he’s probably going to have to buy a couple of rifles now because of my visit. I did ask him if he had ever tried to find out what fish were in his pond, and he told me I could come by and fish it any time. On the way out we did a couple of doughnuts in the Polaris, took it up to 50 mph, and got back to his farm just as the rain started again.
What’s the point of this story? I dunno. Maybe that men need to spend time alone, friends are good to have, shooting and making new shooters and being outdoors is fun. It’s encouraging to see that some families are still doing it right. I’m blessed to live in a great country. God loves me and gives me all I need. Except now I need a Polaris.
