"Whoa!"

I let out an involuntary yell as the rifle butt slammed into my shoulder. The men around me chuckled and continued to advise my shooting skills. It was my first experience at a firing range, and I didn't know the first thing about guns. To me, they were foreign objects, entirely too powerful and consequently, rather intimidating.

But my timidity lessened and my interest increased as the volunteers at the Fancy Creek Range instructed me on the basics of shooting.

The range is located at Fancy Creek State Park, between Olsburg and Randolph, Kan. Bill Webber, director of the Friends of Fancy Creek Range board, said everyone who works at the range is a volunteer. Bill Long, another volunteer at the range, said everyone working there is safety-certified by the NRA. They certainly acted like it.

The moment I stepped close to the range, Wes, another volunteer, insisted I put on ear and eye protection. From then on, every precaution was taken to ensure everyone's safety. Lines designated where observers could stand and there were "cease fires" and calls to shoot. Wes said the range runs through safety precautions even with practiced customers.

Since it was my first time shooting, I started at the rifle range, and later moved to pistols and revolvers. I first shot a bolt-action, .243 rifle, which had a good kick. Next, Wes suggested I shoot his lever-action rifle, which he said he uses to instruct beginners, children and smaller people because it is lighter and doesn't kick as much.

Wes said the range is open to people of all ages and skill levels.

"We go out of our way to not be in a good ol' boy club," he said. "It's a public range. Anybody who walks in gets to shoot."

He said the range caters to families. An annual membership to the range costs $75 and allows family members to come for free. The daily fee without a membership is $10 per person. Members can also join for $35 per year plus a $4 daily fee.

The Fancy Creek Range first opened in September 2002, according to its brochure. The range is open on the first and third weekends of the month, and the fourth Thursday of every month from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Wes said customers can shoot targets at 25-, 50-, and 100-meter distances.

I tried my hand at pistols in the shorter range. First, I shot a semi-automatic pistol, a .40 caliber Smith and Wesson, under the guidance of Brent Keltner, senior in social sciences and former firearms instructor. My hands were a bit shaky, and the gun kicked up quite a bit.

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But the next two I tried were a bit easier to handle. Wes let me shoot his Ruger .38 special, which was longer and didn't kick much, and then a smaller Smith and Wesson .38 special, both of which he had used on the police force years ago.

This is where I made a major shooting range faux pas: I described a gun as "cute." No matter what a girl thinks a gun looks like, she keep her comments to herself if they have anything to do with femininity. The look I got for that comment was priceless.

However, if you simply must use girly terms for guns, the Fancy Creek Range hosts an event called "Women on Target" twice a year (May 10 and August 23 of this year) where the range is open only to women.

Wes said about 30 to 40 K-State students come to the range on a nice weekend in the fall and spring. Fort Riley provides most of the customers during the summer. Wes said the Friends of Fancy Creek Range allows the K-State gun club to have meets at the range. The Friends of Fancy Creek Range are working on a building that will host a K-State class called wildlife and outdoor management, Wes said.

The range also has areas designated for archery. The Kansas chapter of the Wild Turkey Federation has its state shoot-off at the range, and 4-H clubs have some events there as well.

Overall, the range has a good variety of opportunities, and the safety range officers know what they are doing. I felt safe and comfortable shooting at Fancy Creek Range, and learned the basics about how to shoot several different firearms.

Sarah Burford is a junior in print journalism. Please send comments to collegian@spub.ksu.edu.