[charlie in md]

My Dad didn't hunt or shoot, but my older brothers got shotguns for their respective 16th birthdays. They were both avid hunters and shooters while I was growing up. My first experience was them letting me shoot a .36 cal black powder pistol in a gravel pit when I was about 8 years old. They also took me out to shoot a .410 870 at trap range they frequented. I got my first shotgun (an SKB 500) on my 16th birthday, and still have it (33 years later).