TRY BEFORE YOU BUY: SPORTS FAIR AIDS SHOOTERS.

Byline: BRETT PAULY

``Would you buy a suit without trying it on?''

Of course not, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's reserve deputy Susan Casabella, answering her own question. Unfortunately, she said, seldom can one try a firearm for target practice before buying it. You can test-drive a Buick, but it's probably illegal to test out a Beretta behind the gun shop.

Things were different Friday during the first day of the weekend-long Shooting Sports Fair at Mike Raahauge's Shooting Sports ranges in Western Riverside County. The unique annual event allows visitors to shoulder, handle and fire new lines of pistols, rifles and shotguns.

Stressing safety, education, convenience and ``good, clean fun'' to an estimated 15,000 fairgoers, the fair serves to ease a buyer's concerns over whether a gun is right for them by going straight to the source - manufacturers' reps. One can ask about their products and shoot them at clay targets for a nominal fee, from $1 for 10 rounds of .22-caliber rifle bullets to $5 for three .50-caliber handgun rounds.

``From a recreational point of view, guns are expensive,'' Casabella said. ``You might as well try them first.''

With so many variables in the purchasing process, that's sage advice, said Scott La Rue, a Redondo Beach sports shooter employed in the aerospace industry.

``You want to know how the firearm is going to fit your hand and body, how it is going to act as far as recoil is concerned, the overall finish and the way you are going to shoot with that particular gun,'' he said. ``I've repeatedly bought firearms that I've went on the sell because they just didn't fit me right and just couldn't hit (targets) right and I wasn't comfortable with that gun.''

Being able to try before you buy - even just five attentive pulls on a weapon's trigger - might provide some answers, La Rue explained: ``This is the best sporting event that is available to us shooters. Going out and having hands-on use of each gun, it's really a special event for us.''

You'll still have to go back to the gun shop to make your purchase, but you might have a better handle on what you want. Unlike increasingly controversial gun shows, firearms sales are prohibited at the Shooting Sports Fair.

``That's important,'' said Bob Adams of Coburns Wholesale in Fontana, which sells ammunition, shooting accessories and reloading supplies. ``I think there is a perception that people have that we're selling guns out of the trunks of our cars to people in parks, and we don't do that. This is to have fun; I've never seen anything like this.''

Adams was manning a women's and youth shooting booth geared to introduce newcomers to target shooting, which is considered by many a dying recreation in a world where gun violence is rampant and hunting isn't viewed with the same reverence as it once was.

``I think the sport has got to be more inclusive,'' Adams said. ``It's got to include everybody, because it's traditionally been marketed toward males. We need to get other people interested in the sport if it's going to survive.''

Briyana Negrette walked away from the booth after hitting seven of 10 rifle targets. Not bad considering she's 7 years old.

``It was fun,'' said the ``veteran'' Garden Grove shooter who handled the .22-caliber Ruger with confidence. ``When you shoot, you hit the yellow things (targets).''

Briyana's siblings, Jason, 9, and Jessica, 11, would take their turns shortly afterward. ``It's good for anybody who owns firearms to bring their kids out here,'' said their father, Rick Negrette. ``Good familiarization. Good environment for the kids to come out, take part and get used to what Dad likes to do, and, maybe, hopefully, what Mom wouldn't mind coming down and doing.''

The aroma of gunpowder was thick on this breezy day deep in dairy country; like salt air, the smell sticks with you a long time. The olfactory sensation brought back memories of my adolescent days in Oregon, plinking cans in the woods with younger brothers.

When I picked up and fired Winchester's newest Model .94 lever-action .30-30 rifle, I harkened back to a turn-of-the-century smokeless black powder version of the same gun with which we would shoot at bull's eyes. To encourage parity, Dad suggested the paper targets be staggered at varying distances; the older the brother, the farther away they were set up.

A family tradition, shooting brought me and my siblings closer as our confidence, experience, trust and intrigue over such in-depth technical aspects as velocity and trajectory blossomed.

Gun unenthusiasts won't relate, but target practice is a recreational outlet, much like golfing or bowling or even fishing, that promotes camaraderie and friendly competition and often creates bonds that last a lifetime. It certainly appeared as if those sentiments were being shared on this afternoon.

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2 Photos

PHOTO (1--Color) Briyana Negrette, 7, of Garden Grove takes aim with a Ruger .22-caliber rifle Friday during the Shooting Sports Fair in Norco.

(2--Color) San Bernardino recreational shooter Kevin Larson gets in some target practice with a .45-caliber pistol at the Shooting Sports Fair in Norco.

Brett Pauly/Daily News