Both my wife and I work remotely from home, she handles legalese for a large company and I handle the movement of product for another large company. When shutdowns happened she still had projects and platforms to implement and was involved with how the pandemic affected her company and the industry she works in. However, I lost products to move and had months of very slow to no work. When restaurants and local businesses closed, we noticed but weren't greatly affected as we enjoyed going out but it wasn't what made our lifestyle. We are outdoor folks who kept at projects around our house, hiked in the state forest that borders our home and on the Appalachian Trail that passes through it. We also spent time at the local shooting club's outdoor range to which we are members.
Mask mandates were followed when running errands for groceries or fuel but while outside on our wooded property running chainsaws and other power tools we were able to enjoy the fresh mountain air. Likewise at the range, the open air and with social distancing being respected we were able to follow almost a normal life, except for the ammunition shortage that happened partly from the pandemic and shutdowns and partly due to the most recent election. Having a reasonable supply of ammo on hand we still practiced and enjoyed the time at the range. Not as many rounds were sent down range and I did conserve ammo by not competing in my usual USPSA matches for the past two years.
Range time became regimented and the focus was on quality shots, both accurate and fundamentally correct. Two qualities that I feel need to always be a part of practice at the range. It's fun to shoot for the sake of shooting but having a purpose in mind before arriving to the range will boost improvement of your skills. Even today with ammo being a little more available again but still higher priced than before 2019, take the time to plan how your ammo will be used. You'll use less each time at the range but you'll see your techniques and accuracy improve with each batch of drills you shoot.
Having started this firearm safety business during these past two troubled years, we are very conscious of not only our ammo supply but that of our students. Classes still involve shooting drills as required but we incorporate much more dry fire practice with laser firearms and lower round count live fire drills with the students firearm and their ammunition. Whether using your firearm for fun plinking or for personal and family protection you still need to practice and learn. The secret is to be smart about doing it.
Happy Safe Shooting!
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