As I looked through my rear sight, I lined up the front sight of my .22 caliber rifle with the tin can set on the fence. When I pulled the trigger, there was only a small kick and then the bullet glided through the air, hit the tin and went through the can.

Though I do not hunt living animals, I do enjoy target shooting in my yard and family members’ yards. I wanted to go to the gun range to see how well I would do in that environment.

With President Barack Obama making gun control a priority and the constant media scrutiny of gun related deaths, and guns in general, I wanted to see how gun ranges operated since I had never been to one before.

It was a little intimidating walking into Horst and McCann Firearms over the weekend because many of the other target shooters were more experienced than I was.

The range was different than just setting up a target in a field and shooting, because the range was a small room with several lanes with dividing walls that separate the different shooters. The rest of the room, where the targets were set, was open.

Because there are several people shooting in a confined space, which makes it loud, I had to wear protective ear phones at all times. I also had to wear glasses in case shell casings were to hit me.

Loading the gun correctly, making sure the safety was on when I was not using it and off when I was using it, and making sure the gun was pointed in a safe direction at all times were some of the most important things that I had to remember.

Shooting the gun was not challenging because, unlike some guns, a .22 caliber rifle does not kick hard at all. Aiming correctly, however, was the hardest part. I had to place my elbows on the table and lean down, keeping the gun in my shoulder. After a few shots, I got into a rhythm and was able to have fun. I challenged myself by targeting different places on the paper. I would try for the center and the different numbers around the target.

Getting to see the true sport of target shooting was a great experience, even though I did not hit my target every time. Going to the range showed me, once again, that guns can be enjoyable, not just objectified in the media and feared.

Ashley Beyer is a Lifestyles Editor for The Patriot and jcpatriot.com.