Someone also posted here about a man being murdered and having his NFA items stolen at a public range in the past year. I forget the details, but it gave me a lot to think about when I go shooting.
Its one good thing about having a dedicated range master. Usually where I shoot all they do is BS with you and spot targets when its only 1-3 people there but you’re never ‘alone’ per se.
I learned this lesson early on when my neighbor was taking me shooting up in the hills, and he kept a little pistol CCW’ed at all times and we took the rifles loaded with us to check/change targets. You could bury someone out there and they would likely never be found. When we drove out or in he had the pistol tucked under his leg.
I always keep a swivel head even with the RM there and check out people who is coming and going. If someone really gave me the creeps it would only take me a couple minutes to pack up.
Usually the response I get from LEO’s when out and about with a sidearm on my hip in AZ is a curious “what you carrying there?” or something similar. A very pro-gun state and just how the other 49 states should be.
Dirtbags would be scarce if everyone was actually armed. Crooks are cowards by and large, only getting away with the BS they do because they know 99% of the people have no way to stop them.
That was my big wake up call. I learned about it years after the fact but it changed the way I shoot. There were many times in high school when I had rifle and ammo in the truck and would go shooting by myself afterwards in a pretty secluded area.
When my friend and I go shooting at a quarry neat a cabin of his, we always have at least 1 AR loaded, and we each have two AR mags on our persons, usually in our belts with our loaded pistols too. Can’t ever be too careful.
I live in a college town, and it didn’t take me long at the public range, that when a vehicle drove up to check in, my head went up and I took good note as to who/what had just arrived. I have seen some things happen more often with college kids, than with fuds. My first goal is safety, then I will keep an eye out and offer advice in a easy way if needed. Some times I just keep a damn good eye out and packup, drive away. I also keep a pair of binos in my rig for keeping an eye out when ever I’m out doing anything. If I’m sitting somewhere for a while I will glass around, as well as keeping a local eye out. Sometimes you catch good things too, but when you do, no matter what, don’t let one thing consume you, so as not to notice other things around yourself.
Life is to good to leave early.
Thanks for the heads up Gunz… I think many of us take our environment for granted when shooting. Oddly I think us being surrounded by firearms put our guards down.
Most of my shooting is done at a private club but it is secluded and bad shit can happen anywhere if we aren’t dialed in.
A little off topic, but how does this desert shooting work? I see it on YouTube all the time but I can’t understand it.
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Is this public land for shooting/recreation?
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How big is it?
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How you know where others are shooting/riding?
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How do you know if your backstop is safe? I hear bullets ricocheting and whizzing all of the time.
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How do you know that someone isn’t just over the hill that you are firing at?
Excuse my ignorance.
Thank you for the reminder and the wake-up call, IG. It got me to thinking about the last time we went shooting in the woods here in Washington. I’ll have to discuss with my shooting partners where we will need to step up to avoid becoming victims.
I do miss Arizona
See my responses.
I’ve been on the wrong end of ass tards out there and had bullets dropping an whizzing all around me.
When we shoot to 1000, we can see all the way into the big mountain that backs us up.
I’ve been out shooting in the desert when some idiots on dirtbikes rode past us and straight downrange, ignoring the half-dozen people firing rifles. We shook our heads at the idiocy, called a cease-fire, and waited for the morons to leave. Sometimes you just have to be the better person and deal with it. Most of the time, though, I’ve found that people tend to go to their own little patch of desert, there’s plenty for everyone.
Right outside of Las Cruces, New Mexico is a community shooting range. Sometimes you’re the only one out there for hours on end, the kicker is there is a State prison right across I-10, no more than 3/4 of a mile away from the range.
It wouldn’t take much time to get some firepower, a vehicle and be gone with several different directions and the Mexican border less than 30-45 minutes away. It always kind of made me feel a little self conscious when I shot there on my own.
Always a good reminder.
I don’t stop shooting for those white trash idiots. We don’t get those assholes much where we shoot now. But years back I had that happen all the time.
Another argument for electronic earmuffs.