Some shooters--even experienced, knowledgeable ones--are uncomfortable in the roll of mentor or instructor. They sometimes feel they are not qualified or think they have to prepare a comprehensive curriculum in order to start someone off on the right track. Others don't worry about such things at all and simply grab a few guns, a bunch of ammo and their new shooting buddy and head for the firing line. Both of these approaches have problems.

Obviously, never getting around to actually taking anyone to the range doesn't do much to bolster the ranks of the shooting fraternity. On the other hand, just throwing someone onto the firing line has drawbacks, too. New shooters can be intimidated, be overwhelmed, feel unsafe and develop bad habits if they are immersed in things too quickly without at least basic preparation.

Luckily, the solution for both of these extremes is very easy to implement. An elaborate training program is not at all necessary, but some classroom instruction and dry practice are mandatory to make the experience safer, more comfortable and much more pleasant.

Exactly when and how such classroom time occurs depends on the needs of the student and the comfort level of the instructor. Generally speaking, anyone thinking of inviting a new shooter to the range should review basic safety materials and take some time planning the outing and choosing guns, ammo and targets that will be particularly suitable.

Each situation is different because each student is different. It is up to the mentor/instructor to fit the course to the student. A dozen Boy Scouts have different needs from a buddy from work or your wife or girlfriend.

Generally speaking, women and men approach guns with different attitudes that pose different challenges. Not surprisingly (especially to the women), men tend to approach guns in a similar fashion: a bit too cavalier, with a confident grip and little attention to placement of their trigger finger or what's covered by the muzzle. Women tend to have some trepidation about handling guns. They are very attentive to keeping their finger off of the trigger and the muzzle pointed if not in a safe direction, at least away from themselves.

Different organizations have different sets of rules and different ways of remembering them, but they all boil down to the same basics. Truth be told, every six-year-old has a rudimentary grasp of the three most important questions: Where does the bullet come out? What do you do to make it go "bang?" What happens to what the gun is pointing at when it goes "bang?"

Anyone who can answer those three questions and grasp the true gravity of the answer to the last question knows all they really need to know about firearms safety. Everything else is just tricks and techniques to help transform safe practices into habits.

I try to keep things as simple as possible with three core "Always Rules" and two sets of five rules each for the range and the field. The Always Rules can be remembered as "Always say Never, Never." They are: 1. Always treat every gun as if it's loaded (even when you're sure it isn't). 2. Never allow a gun to point at anything you would not want destroyed. 3. Never allow your finger to enter the triggerguard until you are ready to shoot.