Another new guy - thanks for being a great sub!

Embarrassed to say that I have been lurking on Reddit for about 3 years since I started carrying. This quickly became my favorite sub. I have been very impressed with r/CCW in that there is a lot of good information that's shared with little flaming and more maturity than you'd normally see.Like u/usernamejamie, I am about to turn 50, but am relatively new to shooting. I have always been into self defense, but from an unarmed perspective. As I have grown older and have slowed down and stopped training as much (trained and then taught martial arts for 20+ years), I have realized that all of my skills and strength could be overcome by anyone, including a child, who could squeeze a trigger. After having a family, I grew to realize that it's part of my responsibility as a parent to be capable of protecting my wife and children, and making sure they could do the same.As far as firearm experience and training, I had little real experience until about 4 years ago, and then jumped into pistols, then USPSA, and have just taken my first formal training, which validated my skills, to some degree. I have an AR, shotgun, and rifle, but need to take some time to learn to use them to a degree to which I can use them for defensive purposes, if needed.The most pleasant part of becoming a gun owner and shooter has been the community aspect. I was amazed at how helpful the gun community in general has been, including this subreddit.Anyway, thank you to r/CCW being so welcoming. via /r/CCW http://ift.tt/2tThciv