Tennessee gun owners aren’t required to take classes, but many do. WPLN went to learn what it’s like.

Gun ownership is growing, and even though Tennessee does not require firearm training — or permits — many gun owners choose to take firearm safety classes. This prompted producer Katherine Ceicys to attend an entry-level class as part of a series of episodes about firearms by This Is Nashville. 

The Royal Range USA gun range in Bellevue is a converted movie theater. Thick cinderblock walls that used to contain the sounds of action films, now dampen the sound of real gunshots.

The range offers a wide variety of courses, from introductory lessons to tactical training — like how to shoot from a car — and even scenario-based trainings conducted in mock environments.

At a recent ‘Learn to Shoot’ class, there are 22 entry-level students.

Anakarina and Andrea, a young married couple, are motivated to have a gun to be able to protect their home.

“He wants to have a gun in the house so I said, ‘you need the training for it,’ ” says Anakarina, “so if it’s going to be in my house, I also have to learn.”

Jake, a college student who is living on his own for the first time, is here for a similar reason.

“So I’m living with a few friends and I’m like, ‘do we really know how to defend ourselves if we needed too?’ ” he says, ” ’cause I always felt safe with my parents, but now I’m like, ‘it’s a whole different world.’ ”

To ease everyone in, the class starts with an hour-long lecture and slideshow that covers safety basics, explains how a gun actually works (there’s a video), and includes diagrams about a proper shooting stance.

The second hour is more hands-on, as students handle unloaded, empty guns.

Katherine Ceicys WPLN News

An instructor at Royal Range USA helps students practice firearm handling with unloaded guns.

“How to make sure there wasn’t anything in the gun … how to get the gun ready,” says Amber Steinhurst, who is in the class to become more comfortable around the firearms already in her home.

Then it’s time to move to the range. Students put on ear and eye protection and wait for an instructor to set them up in a booth to shoot.

Everyone jumps — at least a little bit — at the first shot fired close to them.

Each student could fire up to 50 rounds. Many did and were ready for more. But others were done after a few shots.

Kim Chappel says she felt unprepared a few years ago when someone showed up, unwelcome, on the doorstep of her country home. She asked her husband for this class as a Christmas present.

When she comes out of the range, she reflects on what it felt like to shoot.

“The power of a gun is daunting,” she says. “And so I think that’s something that, again, that’s going to take time for me to get used to. It wasn’t so much in the recoil or anything, it was more just having that power. I don’t how to really explain it beyond that.”

Katherine Ceicys WPLN News

Amber Steinhurst and Joanna Eblen with their B29 paper targets after taking the “Learn to Shoot” class.

Tennessee is a permit-less carry state. That means residents do not need to take a class like this or secure a permit to purchase or carry a loaded firearm.

Bo Smith, a 25-year veteran of Nashville’s police department, co-taught the intro class. He recommends that every student keep learning, including taking the class that used to be required for permits.

“There is a lot of law in that [class]. About four hours of law. You need to know when you can use it and when you can’t. That’s really important,” he said. “If you point [a loaded gun] at someone that doesn’t need it pointed at, you could face criminal charges. If you hurt someone that doesn’t need hurting, criminal or civil.”

Smith says it takes effort to learn basic handling and shooting skills, and that it’s easy to get rusty. He’s blunt that it takes time and effort to be a skilled and competent gun owner.

To hear more about gun safety, check out the four-episode series on firearms from This Is Nashville.

Learning how to safely handle firearms