Airgun Depot's Airsenal News

Aside from the competition aspect of formal gatherings such as Field Trial events, and 10-meter shooting, air guns can provide a welcome respite from the TV and video sets that our kids own. Here are a couple of ideas to get your kids, and yourself, outside....ideas that are fun and suitable for family times.

There is of course, the hunting discipline that so many enjoy. However, not everyone is inclined to shoot animals, but that doesn't mean that you can't hunt anyway. Here's an example:

Next to my property is a large drainage ditch. It serves to funnel water away from the higher ground and fields behind my property (which are rapidly turning into subdivisions). An activity I enjoy doing with my kids is to take our pellet guns and "stalk" the cans and debris that litter the ditch after every rain. Once a can or piece of trash is suitably ventilated with pellet holes, we pick it up and put it in our trash bag. Sometimes we have slowly moving targets, if the wind is blowing, of a piece of paper or plastic sack caught on a bush. Needless to say, opportunities for shooting abound.

This idea can be transferred to the lake when you pick up debris along the shore, in ditches alongside country roads, any place that needs a little litter control. The kids love it, and getting to pop a can or bottle, then picking it up and properly disposing of it, is a great combination of shooting skills and environmental awareness.

Another game that you can play with your kids is to enjoy a game of tic-tac-toe. I make targets with the tic-tac-toe frame printed on the paper. I also include a large bullseye, and a smaller bullseye. My kids have to hit the larger target to claim the square, and I have to hit the smaller bullseye to claim my square. It is challenging, fun, and the kids get a big kick out of beating old Dad at a game that is older than dirt! You can make the targets yourself using several different kinds of computer programs, and a handy box stuffed with rags or a dirt bank serves as a handy backdrop. This game can even be played inside with lower-power air guns.

Balloons are popular targets, especially for younger kids. A good reactive target is always a winner with the younger crowd. Blow them up, attach them to a good backstop, and let those little ones enjoy themselves. And for the grownups.....set them out about 75 to 100 yards and test your skills with a little more challenging distance involved. You'll find yourself jumping and giving high fives just like a kid again when you hit a 100 yards target with an airgun!

So use your imagination, come up with a game or activity that allows you to shoot and shoot often, involve the kids and the rest of the family, and you'll have a wonderful time that builds memories and hones skills, all at the same time.