Pink or Camo...Men or Women

I have been seeing a lot of things in the shooting world geared specifically towards women and for the most part I support that. Women are different and I think it is smart for companies to address the things that are unique to women and what might appeal to them. That is good business. There are a lot of different choices in the world of guns for men too. It is smart marketing to try to reach as many people as you can. Offering a variety of products to meet the diversity that exists is wise indeed.

I am not a pink gun kind of girl and I really don't want pink anything.  I like pink, I wear it a little, but it's just not that important to me.  I am a function over form kind of gal.  When my husband buys running shoes he looks at color and style.  I look at fit, period.  I could careless what color my shoes are or if I have a single pair of running shorts to match.  I want the lightest shoe that will support my foot, so I can run as long as I want with the most comfort.  I am like that across the board.  Give me a gun that works well for me and you can make it any color out there.  If the thing that fits my need also comes in a choice of colors my choice probably isn't gonna be pink, however, I have 2 daughters that adore it and having a pink rifle is just the thing to get them excited about heading out to the range.  Thank you pink gun manufactures.  I would prefer that when I walk into a store to buy a gun item that the sales person doesn't automatically assume I want pink, but then when my husband walks into a fabric store they assume he doesn't know anything about fabric(he doesn't, but you get my point) because typically men don't shop for fabric. We do that as a society, we generalize and stereotype, it can be an annoyance, but for me it's a minor one.

Offering several colors in guns opens up options and I am all for options.  Purchasing a pink rifle or not is a personal choice that anyone can freely choose to buy or not.  If a lady would prefer something in camo she may opt for that.  If there is a man out there that sees a pink revolver that tickles his fancy, he can buy it and shoot it to his hearts content.  Most men probably would not choose that option and therefore the pink marketing really is aimed at women and I am dandy with companies doing so.  I say use whatever you can to bring more people, women, into shooting.  Pink should not be your only strategy, but I can't argue with the results.  Lots and lots of people are buying these itms.  I think it is a win for the individule that prefers pink, for the company that wants to make money and for the community at large who benefit from more folks join us in our passion.   

My issue is not with the things, but with the attitude of some. My problem is with separating out boys from girls. I am not taking about equality or fairness. Sometimes it is nice for a group of men to get together and engage in boy-ness and to be honest sometimes I get a little sick of being around all that boy-ness. Go do it without me once and a while, please. I also understand that it is nice to be in the company of only women sometimes. I know that many women feel more comfortable with other women and I am glad there is that option.  I am not knocking classes that are exclusive to one gender or the other and I am not knocking those who prefer to be in a class of all men or all women, but for me, it seems limiting.   

I want to shoot next to the guy or gal that is better than me.  I want to be pushed and challenged and I don't care if that person happens to be a man.  I want to train with the highest level of trainer I can get to train me and if that happens to be a man then so be it.  I don't want to go to a Sniper School for women.  I want to go to Sniper School. I would love it if when I went to sniper school I wasn't the only woman there, but regardless I just want to go to school. What chance is there that I could come out on top in a school like that, zero, but I can't ever know what my top level is, if I am not pushed by the best. I realize that is some what of a limited goal because I am not ever going to get a chance to shoot next to Chris Kyle, but my goal is still to push myself to the highest possible level that is available to me. In doing that, I know I will come out a much improved shooter, competitor(not in matches, just generally speaking) person and that is always my goal. 

Sometimes a person just wants to go to an all female class because it looks fun and they are not interested in pushing themselves and that is dandy. I might even join you from time to time, but if we are talking about training, serious training, I want something better than just fun.When I take advanced classes I am always the only female in the group and while I am rarely the best in the class, I am in the top few. Some women can shoot better than some men. I shoot better than lots of men. There are many, many, many women who shoot better than me, so understand, this isn't to say that I don't want to shoot with women because women are not as good as men, many times they are better. It is to say I want to shoot with the best regardless of if they are a man or a woman and I don't understand why anyone would want anything less than the best for themselves.