I grew up shooting guns....we didn't have ear plugs back then. My dad needed hearing aids in his later years, I always thought it was from the military, shooting guns for sports and qualifing for the police...most of the time then they didn't HAVE ear plugs.
Huh? What?
I always wore hearing protection indoors, but figured it was OK outdoors to go without. Well, when you're popping 22's you can get away with it a bit, but like all shooters I began the pursuit of the big noise. Wear it all the time now.