‘Girls on Fire’: Gun Owners of SA association aims to empower women

It was the early morning boom of the Gun Owners Association of South Africa’s (Gosa) Truvelo .50 calibre rifle which signalled to everyone the Wattlespring Sports Shooting Club was ready for the annual Girls on Fire range day on Saturday.

More than 160 women from all walks of life arrived, ranging in experience from rank amateurs to seasoned professionals (preparing to represent SA later this year) assembled in the early autumn morning.

There were more than 130 competitors and about 30 female range officers.

“The Girls on Fire campaign was created in 2015 to coincide with the 16 Days of Activism from the UN,” said Lynette Oxley, match director and chief executive of the public benefit organisation.

“We changed this to 16 Days of Action for No Violence against Women and Child Abuse.”

Oxley said Gosa believed “women should be empowered and able to protect themselves and their families, rather than merely protest at the current state of affairs”.

“We don’t see women as victims,” she said.

Shooting exercises were spread out over nine different ranges, each with different shooting tasks and run by practised female range officers who would coach first-time shooters.

“The idea behind qualified female range officers and coaches is to ease the stress on the first-timers and give them a hands-on feel for what it is like to handle a firearm under safe conditions,” Oxley said.

Shooters were classified as amateur, semi-amateur and professional. Ranked in the latter class, Bianca Croucamp said she began hunting with her husband.

It wasn’t long until she began competition shooting and for her at Girls On Fire the .50 cal beast was her favourite firearm.

“It’s also not only a sport,” Croucamp said.

“It is a way to keep yourself safe should you need to.”

First-time shooter Adelaide White said she had come to the range to overcome her fear of firearms.

“I don’t want to be afraid of them,” White said.

After running through a variety of firearms from a silenced .22 rifle, to 9mm and .45 pistols, bespoke double-barrelled 12 bore shotguns for clay pigeon shooting and IPSC steel targets, all with the clock ticking in timed events, everyone was exposed to a wide variety of firearms and how to focus under pressure in an unfamiliar environment.

Not even a sudden rain shower could dampen participants’ enthusiasm.

“I was taught by my father how to handle a firearm from the age of five,” Angie Bahll said.

Bahll said her father was a policeman and believed respect for firearms should be taught at an early age.

“All my children can shoot. I taught them to respect firearms from an early age as well.”

She has been shooting all her life, and said the event was “fantastic”.

“To see so many women coming together from all different walks of life, is empowering,” Bahll said.

“I’m a firm believer there should be more events like this.”

Several firearms such as pistols and shotguns (conditional to licences being approved), as well as competency training gift certificates and holidays at various places were also up for grabs as prizes at the gala that followed the range day.

Oxley said the cost of hosting such an event was massive and without the sponsors it would never happen.

“While we were a little short on cash, we managed to have about R720,000 come in, with mainstream sponsors outside the firearm community stepping up for the first time,” Oxley said.

“Every year, people surprise me. This year a person told me after the event it was the first time in two years she didn’t feel like a victim.”

NOW READ: Stricter gun laws are not the answer