Beware the Range Cretins ...

[mc5aw]

Visited my outdoor range this afternoon to do some work in the pistol pit. It was the end of the day, so I had the opportunity to police up brass that shooters had left behind. As with most members-only clubs/ranges, there's always a contingent of cretins who are inconsiderate, stupid, or just ignorant of right and wrong. Well, during my post-shooting brass hunt, I nearly fell into a very large dog's very large calling card ... (the pinnacle of cretinous conduct in my opinion is to let a dog do his business on a range and not clean it up). Avoiding that obstacle, I next found a trail of BIG brass casings, from 40' out to nearly 6' from the target. The large dog's owner had evidently brought along his S&W .500 to play with. Well, as I rooted round in a plot of grass, I scrounged up five spent casings then found A BRAND NEW HORNADY .500 MAG ROUND pointing nose down into the dirt. As far as I'm concerned, only Harry Callahan can lose track of the rounds he's fired, but to miscount .500 Magnum rounds, and drop a live one on the ground with the spent brass? It's a major accident waiting to happen masquerading as a a licensed gun owner. I'm glad I didn't cross paths with this particular range cretin and his cretin canine ... it insured me a safe shooting experience, and trip home in one piece.

 

[jaykellogg]

With all due respect, the dog didn't do anything wrong. the person who brought the dog should have cleaned up after it. It is pet owners like that who make it bad for everyone who owns (or is owned by) a pet.

 

[mc5aw]

Jay ... You're absolutely right, and I would never blame a pet. The owner who brings a big dog to a range, should also be ready and willing to pick up after the big dog. That holds true for parks, on the street, wherever. Since my range is on a mountain top in the woods, the contingent of range cretins feel as they can do whatever they wish with impunity, from leaving dog doo, to shooting shotguns and rifles in the pistol pit, to blasting propane tanks on the rifle range. It's just sad ...

 

[Fishslayer]

With all due respect, the dog didn't do anything wrong. the person who brought the dog should have cleaned up after it. It is pet owners like that who make it bad for everyone who owns (or is owned by) a pet.

^^^This. If I'd been there I would have offered one of the several plastic bags I always have in my pocket.

 

[chud333]

I can imagine what the poor dog was thinking
when this idiot was shooting his .500 mag
Dog probley won't ever hear right again and
also have a continuous flinch every time it
hears a car backfire. The world still has its share
of idiots for sure, too bad some are gun owners.

Chuck

 

[DeathGrip]

I can imagine what the poor dog was thinking
when this idiot was shooting his .500 mag
Dog probley won't ever hear right again and
also have a continuous flinch every time it
hears a car backfire. The world still has its share
of idiots for sure, too bad some are gun owners.

Chuck

I was thinking a 500 would make any dog poo.

Poor puppy. Some people are idiots.

 

[dcxplant]

I'm with DeathGrip and chud333,

I feel really sorry for that dog because it has a real numbnxt for an owner.

 

[Hillbilly77]

The latest cretin I saw had nothing to do with dog poop, other than the dose of it between his ears:
The last time I was at the range, when I first pulled up, a moron was downrange checking his target. I didn't know he was a moron at that point.... I figured that out when he got back to his AR (that he left on the bench pointing downrange at himself and his buddy). He picked up the rifle, dropped the magazine, and ejected the LIVE ROUND that he had left chambered!
Cretin!

I waited by my truck until they finished shooting, then I set up.

 

[Gunslinger808]

Really, with all the trash these morons (COC prevents me from calling them worse) leave behind, do you really expect them to clean up after their dog?
Heck, they don't even clean up after themselves.

 

[Alpo]

The latest cretin I saw had nothing to do with dog poop, other than the dose of it between his ears:
The last time I was at the range, when I first pulled up, a moron was downrange checking his target. I didn't know he was a moron at that point.... I figured that out when he got back to his AR (that he left on the bench pointing downrange at himself and his buddy). He picked up the rifle, dropped the magazine, and ejected the LIVE ROUND that he had left chambered!
Cretin!

I waited by my truck until they finished shooting, then I set up.

Are you suggesting that the gun was going to fire itself while they were downrange?

 

[A10]

Are you suggesting that the gun was going to fire itself while they were downrange?

My understanding of the statement was that the problem is leaving a hot weapon unattended at the range. Truly STUPID behavior.

 

[pilgrim6a]

Standard Safety Rule.
"All firearms will be unloaded and made safe BEFORE anyone goes down range."
Every range I've ever been on has that rule posted.

 

[steamloco76]

My gun club has a 50 ft indoor range. Last winter my wife and I entered the range, turned on the lights and vent system, then began to get our gear out. Wife yell's what the... some scumbucket let their dog poo on the range floor!Right beside one of the shooting benches. We, of course, cleaned it up. I then wrote a note about the poo and dropped it into the office mail slot. The club has video surveillance, so the offending person is on the hard drive.

 

[Rule3]

Are you suggesting that the gun was going to fire itself while they were downrange?

Do that at our range and you will no longer be a member.

No second chance.

 

[Hillbilly77]

Are you suggesting that the gun was going to fire itself while they were downrange?

Not at all.


But, like what has been said, you never know.... All it would take is some other moron to say "Ooh, look, an AR! Lemme play with it!" You never know.
Cretin leaves gun loaded and walks away, another cretin comes along and... BANG! One dead cretin, and one cretin up on manslaughter charges.

There was recently a case like that near where I live. A moron handed his LOADED pistol to his moron buddy, who then promptly pointed the gun at the wall and pulled the trigger. This happened at a used car dealership, and the bullet traveled through the office wall and hit a potential customer in the parking lot. Thank God, the customer was unhurt. The bullet hit him in his coat sleeve. Both morons were charged with endangerment.

 

[Edmo]

There are nimrods everywhere...

Several years ago, I had worked up some handloads for my M1 Garrand using a batch of new unfired brass. At a local public range I was one of two guys testing loads. While the range was hot and we were both firing, I saw a third guy from the corner of my eye stooping over to the right of my bench. I looked up to see what he was doing and he was collecting the brass as it was coming out of my rifle!

Apparently he thought it was public brass once it left my rifle and hit the ground. We had a brief "understanding" and I didn't see him after that.

Edmo

 

[steamloco76]

Do that at our range and you will no longer be a member.

No second chance.

Pretty much standard procedure at most clubs; leave a loaded gun unattended while downrange and you are gone. Another big no-no is handling your gun at the firing line while someone is downrange.

I've had the second one happen several times. When I arrived back at the firing benches, I gave a stern lecture about range safety to the morons and said that would be their only warning. Most offenders realize why they were wrong, a couple challenged me with the 'who left you in charge?'

 

[JJEH]

Yeah, scary and dumb stuff happens. Even around a "safe" environment like a gun range...

But here's the thing. I expect to see mistakes from beginners. I sure don't expect any dumb things (not talking abt. mistakes!) from experienced shooters, and I'm not talking about people who make a living shooting targets...

Unfortunately some people don't care... at all.

 

[DeadAye]

Maybe there was NO DOG involved....
Could have been having so much fun with that 500 that he just couldn't leave the range to *take care of bizness*.

 

[Rule3]

Pretty much standard procedure at most clubs; leave a loaded gun unattended while downrange and you are gone. Another big no-no is handling your gun at the firing line while someone is downrange.

I've had the second one happen several times. When I arrived back at the firing benches, I gave a stern lecture about range safety to the morons and said that would be their only warning. Most offenders realize why they were wrong, a couple challenged me with the 'who left you in charge?'

Happened to me a few weeks ago. Will not go into the whole story but I e mailed the in charge folks and in a few days we got new signs put up and the line repainted, even painted HOT COLD so the morons can figure it out!