Sign of the times (I guess)

D

DennisCA

New member
This past Saturday my son and I were out at one of our local range to do some shooting. As we normally do WE set up some bottles and cans were we normally do (at the 100 yard rifle-right side of the 100 yard rifle range). After awhile we noticed that some of the items had been hit, even we didn't shoot at them. So after the next cease-fire, we re-set the bottles and watched.
To our amazement the bottles and cans were getting hit! I watched the people that closest to us and they weren't doing it and the next group of people was farther down. That means they were firing cross-lanes to hit MY DAMN bottles and cans. (which is def no-no and can get you kicked off a range!!)
I walked down the down the line and said in a loud voice "Who-ever is shooting at my bottles and cans, please stop! If you want to shoot at bottles and cans put them up yourself but stop shooting at mine! I put them up for my son and I to shoot at NOT you!. I think I added some expletives but honestly I really can not remember, since I was steaming mad.
I also mentioned it to the range guys who kept on eye on the group on the end. It didn't happen again but it kind-of soured my mood for the rest of the shoot. I can't believe some people-I've never had any problems at that range and it's the reason I go there. The range is huge so there's no chance of someone shooting your targets be mistake.
First time for every thing I guess!
:(
 
Jerkwads! Not acceptable behavior.

Oh, to have access to a range such as yours, withOUT severe range Gestapo, where the setting of any type of non-standard targets would be allowed. Invariably, although not specifically banned, some old curmudgeon claiming to be on the exec. committee or some such will come over and 'splain to me that if I hit the ground, it will bounce up over the burm, which I understand is a valid concern normally, except that my targets were only 10 yards in front of the burm - no way for the bullet to bounce high enough after a miss. Or otherwise explain that somehow what I'm doing is not acceptable ("You can't shoot a shotgun on the rifle range - you have to go to the shotgun range." "But it's a slug, from a rifled barrel." "Doesn't matter." The curmudgeon nit-picking fun-killing variations are endless it seems). However, on a weekday, with no one around, I can set a dueling tree or fruit or whathaveyou on the ground in front of the burm. Or I "usedtocould" - I didn't even re-up for this very reason.
 
Had something similar happen to me about two years ago at a busy public range in SC on a Saturday afternoon. I was there with a few friends when three gentlemen (two in their mid 30's and one in his early 60's) took the bench to our left. They began shooting at our targets and at first I didn't realize what was happening but my shooting buddy sure did. He told them quite clearly to stop shooting our targets and put up their own (I think he managed to keep from swearing at them but just barely). They acknowledged him and stopped... for a little while anyway.

When they started shooting our targets again 30 minutes later all I could think was that these guys must want a fight (I mean, how ignorant does one have to be?) Needless to say, a crowded public shooting range isn't a smart place for a fight of any kind, so my friends and I took the high road and packed up for the day (taking our targets with us). I think a considerable amount of restraint was shown, as no one from my party said a word as we left (but oh BOY did we WANT to!)

What really got me was that as we were pulling away, I spotted the older guy trying to clear a jam he was having with his lever gun... with the rifle at his waist, pointed right at all of the parked cars and folks waiting behind the firing line! Unbelievable!

That was my last time at the public range. I shoot with friends on private property now.
 
Being VERY young looking (I look like I'm probably just out of highschool or - sophomore in college) I typically get looked down on quite a bit in most places I visit.

Had a guy trying to tell me I was wrong about my AR15 being an A4 variant and that I was in fact an A2, and that the Tokarev was chambered to fire the same round as the AK47 and I must not know much about guns to think otherwise.

Grinds my gears, but I think the worst I had was a guy who was completely oblivious to what his kids were doing and his eldest son was trying to clear a jam from a handgun with the muzzle pointed directly at his dad and kid brothers stomach, finger on the trigger no less.

Haven't had any issues with range nazi's or people shooting my targets, but comin courtesy certainly less common than it was in the past.

Typically I try to move benches or at worst simply get up and leave. Not worth the aggravation.
 
Actually scary

Anybody with that cavalier attitude towards firearms is not someone I want to share range time with.
 
Reminds me of qualifing one day while in the service. I had scarfed several extra 45 mags and after I killed my 10 ring enough times, I looked around and noticed most of the other guys couldn't even hit the silhouette, I started aiming at the 2x2 posts they were all attached too.
:) Just awesome watching reactions of guys that couldn't even hit the target just see the whole thing fall over.:D:D (I was cutting them off a couple of inches below the silhouette).:)
Got 5-6 of them before I was 'relieved'
When the RO figured it out, he pointed one out, I took it out and he said 'Enough you nut!" with a big grin. At least he gave me my Expert rating. :)
 
I take the trek up to the family farm to shoot now. Shooting at the local public range has gotten scary. For example, I do MOST of my practice on an old Remington 514 in .22LR. A lot of "stellar shooters" laughed at a "full grown man" shooting a .22LR. I guess they never heard of saving money or working on fundamentals. People like them, safety violators, and just plain RUDE people have pushed me HOME to shoot.
 
A few years ago, I had a rather unenjoyable day at the range, when a group of 8 unsafe idiots showed up to shoot a single AK. Major safety issues aside (I mentioned them a couple years ago), they didn't bother putting up any targets of their own.

They just pulled out the ultra-tacticool AK and started blasting everyone else's targets at the 100 yard line, passing the AK around the group. There are 15 positions to shoot 100 yards, and they were all full. Between all of the shooters, there were at least 50+ targets on the backerboard. In less than 7 minutes, those inconsiderate idiots had dumped what appeared to be over 500 rounds from pre-loaded magazines and put at least one hole in every single target.

Worst of all, the Range Master was right there with them, giving them some "accuracy tips"... :rolleyes:
When a few of us that had been trying to do serious load testing complained about the targets and safety issues, the Range Master simply asked the group to move down to the 50 yard line. ....Where they promptly violated every safety rule, blasted everyone else's targets at 50 yards, started shooting back across the 50 and 100 yard lines to try to hit a metal gong, and then shot across all of the 25 yard shooters to ruin the spinners and gongs on the handgun range (and sent shrapnel toward all of the 7-yard shooters).

Normally, some polite requests can get someone to stop doing something impolite or unsafe. But those idiots had the Range Master looking over their shoulder the whole time, without saying anything, so they emptied the entire range out pretty quickly. No one wanted to hang around while they were doing that crap....
 
I had a similar situation almost happen when I was training and qualifying private security officers. One trainee was having a hard time qualifying. Another next to him asked when we had a break if he could help the other trainee out by putting a few shots in his target so he could qualify. I told both that if I saw it both would be instructed to leave the range and would fail the course. They never tried that and both eventually passed the qualification course. One qualified very well and the other just barely. This was back in the mid-1980s.
 
@Frankenmauser I'm more surprised the range masters didn't kick their sorry butts off the range. Guns, we have enough trouble at the ranges as it is, and we don't need to have any more publicity in the form of the media driving out and showing how x number of people got hurt because of "trigger happy gun owners" or whatever degrading slang the media can cook up.

If I was the range master, they'd have been out the gates and banned from ever returning if they caused that much trouble after being told not to do what they were doing...repeatedly.
 
Wow, reading some of these stories makes me feel mad, sad, distressed, and fearful all at the same time.

For the time being, I use public ranges (I plan to join a club in the spring of 2015), but I have never witnessed anything like that. The range I use is a state owned range that is staffed by no less than 2 DNR Officers at all times, and they are rather strict on any possible safety violations.
 
I belong to a private club that has booted several people in the last two years. We had a pair of kids bump firing an AK put a round over the berm and hit a house a half mile away.

I am a bullseye shooter and practice three times a week around 300 rounds per visit. I usually go out bright and early, no later than 6:30am. That way when the yahoos start showing up around 11am I'm packing up to leave.
 
We have a few at the range I go to,but I have found these people don't like getting up at 4:30 AM. I am at the range and shooting by 5:15 and long done and gone before they even get out of bed. There has been a few show up earlybut there are about 6 of us that meet every Sat and Sun out there. We keep them in Line as none of us are worried about hurting their feelings when it commes to safty and courtesy. Obey the rules or leave. Sherriff's Phone number is listed on a board right there. Sherriff's office is about 2 miles away. You want to shoot 500 rounds in 10 seconds---More power to ya,but do it safe or leave.
 
Every open range has all types of shooters. those who shoot quetly, minding their own business, those who yell and holler and shoot wildly, those who know everything about your firearm, and some genuine good folks who are a pleasure to talk to. Anymore I simly ignore or wait out the irritating ones and talk with the good folks. One time I had a bucket of what we called hedge apples at the range for my wife to shoot with her .243 make quite the splatter when hit. There was a couple of just plain old good fellers one who had his son with him, (polite kid, who was a pretty good shot for being in his early teens)shooting who were so amazed at the free fun targets, I drove up the road a ways and picked up a couple dozen for them to shoot at too. Ended up talking with one of them for quite a while as his son and my wife were demolishing the hedgeapples. Those are the ones you want to remember.
 
Cross lane fire is not a joke. At a local range, some idiot did such and the angles were such that a round came back and hit a guy with a through and through in the shoulder.

The law was frozen and law called, folks noticed a couple of guys trying to pack up and leave. They were discouraged from such. Guess who and the law is still dealing with them.
 
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