Jogging, guns and rattle snakes

jbull380

jbull380

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So last year I combine working out with firearms training. I have a small range in my backyard with a bullet trap and a post at 25 yards that serves as a barricade. I begin my run at the 25, run 3.2 miles returning to the barricade and shoot six rounds at 25 yards with an elivated heart rate heavy breathing and all of the other effects of running.

Yesterday I begin my run and before I get out of my driveway I'm met by a 3' 9-1/2" velvet tale. It resulted in one extra round for the firearms portion of my run.


 
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I'd be hanging me some tissue on that post for such an emergency!
 
You don't need hi-vel loads for snakes, as your post proves

Nor are 'snake shot' very helpful.

Hitting what you shoot at is paramount

Just my opinion , of course.
 
Timber rattler, Crotalus horidus?

What'd you shoot it with? You knew we'd ask! :D

My daughter is moving to Oklahoma. I'll warn her they have those up there, too. Her kids really need to be given a course in snake ID, as they'll be in a fairly rural area.
 
Yep, got them here, too. Summer of 2010 the GF and I were up at my farm and she almost stepped on one near the pole barn. She plugged it with my 60-14, although it took her three shots to hit the serpent once in the neck. It was just short of 39", stretched straight , without the head.

After the killing the bees/hornets stripped it to the bones in about 48 hours.

Good riddance to bad rubbish, if you ask me.

Class III
 
Class III said:
Yep, got them here, too. Summer of 2010 the GF and I were up at my farm and she almost stepped on one near the pole barn. She plugged it with my 60-14, although it took her three shots to hit the serpent once in the neck. It was just short of 39", stretched straight , without the head.

After the killing the bees/hornets stripped it to the bones in about 48 hours.

Good riddance to bad rubbish, if you ask me.

Class III
Click to expand...


All well and good, but I sort of prefer to buy clover honey. :D
 
Texas Star said:
Timber rattler, Crotalus horidus?

What'd you shoot it with? You knew we'd ask! :D

My daughter is moving to Oklahoma. I'll warn her they have those up there, too. Her kids really need to be given a course in snake ID, as they'll be in a fairly rural area.
Click to expand...

I run with my back up a 9mm G19. Funny you mention your dUghter. I texted a pic of the snake to my kids and my dUghter who now lives in Texes texted me back. It was not the "OMG that's disgusting and scary" comment. All I got was "nice head shot" I looked at my wife and asked, are we from Oklahoma or what?
 
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jbull380 said:
I run with my back up a 9mm G19. Funny you mention your dUghter. I texted a pic of the snake to my kids and my dUghter who now lives in Texes texted me back. It was not the "OMG that's disgusting and scary" comment. All I got was "nice head shot" I looked at my wife and asked, are we from Oklahoma or what?
Click to expand...

My daughter's only handgun is a M-38 Airweight snub that she probably can't hit a snake in the coils with. Let alone the head. She's never been too interested in wildlife or shooting.

Her brother clobbered a water moccasin a couple of years ago, with a very nice Colt Govt. Model .45 auto. I think it was loaded with 230 grain Federal HST's. He knows btoh snakes and guns.
 
I live on the northern edge of Timber and Massasauga Rattlesnake range, so I'm not too likely to encounter one in my day to day activities. But like everything (except perhaps coyotes), they would get a free pass unless there was imminent danger to human or pet.
 
I see more cotton mouths or water moccasins and copper heads than rattlers. This is the biggest one I've seen in a while.
 
The TV news in Dallas-Ft. Worth has been warning of venomous snakes out here. They showed a copperhead. It was the gray and brown variant. I think the tan and copper/brown one looks better.

I nearly stepped on a water moccasin here in north Dallas, in a residential neighborhood a few years ago. People from big cities forget that snakes live there, too. I think I hear every year about people being bitten in their gardens and yards. Copperheads are the most frequent biters.
 
One of my neighbors shot this picture of a Bull Snake in her yard yesterday. Everyone out here in Arizona pretty much leaves them alone as they are very efficient rodent killers.
Jim

 
Rattlers and water moccasins get a pass unless they are posing a direct and imminent danger (don't tell my wife that though), but a copperhead seen is a dead copperhead in my book. The others are about as afraid of people as people are afraid of them, and really want to get away.

A copperhead, on the other hand, is aggressive and will literally chase you.
 
Believe it or not, rattlesnakes are protected in Utah. Don't ask me why.

I was talking about it to my neighbor who is a deputy sheriff. He explained that it meant we couldn't go out and purposely harvest them as they do in Texas and other areas. But, he said, if one was in the middle of the trail where I'm taking my pack string...go ahead and shoot it. Interesting.
 
My wife is from Waurika which is a small town in SW Oklahoma. There's not much to see there but they have a rattlesnake hunt every summer that is the BIG event of the whole county. She took me to it once and I have never seen so many rattlesnakes in my life. There was a box full of em' and this guy pulls out a huge one by the neck, and the snakes head looks like it is nearly as big as my palm. He holds it out for my wife to pet its head and she does. He then hold it up to my chest for me to pet it and that snake looked so mad, I said "I'll pass".

I had dreams about rattlesnakes for a month!
 
bhayles said:
Rattlers and water moccasins get a pass unless they are posing a direct and imminent danger (don't tell my wife that though), but a copperhead seen is a dead copperhead in my book. The others are about as afraid of people as people are afraid of them, and really want to get away.

A copperhead, on the other hand, is aggressive and will literally chase you.
Click to expand...

I thought Water Moccasins were much more aggressive than Copperheads.:confused:
 
"Yesterday I begin my run and before I get out of my driveway I'm met by a 3' 9-1/2" velvet tale. It resulted in one extra round for the firearms portion of my run."

Rattlesnake? One round? Good thing you got a shot off before your gun jammed!;)
 
Hmmmmmm....poison snakes, extreme heat, frequent deadly tornadoes, supercell storms, drought, blizzards, dust storms, floods, ice storms...I've always wanted to ask someone who lives in Oklahoma...........why?
 
Long ago I used to run on an agricultural community college in the west end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. 420 acres right in the middle of the developed area. Had it's share of snakes.

One day while running on the asphalt road around the college we came upon about a 5 foot diamond back lying on the sidewalk sunning.

We stopped, looked, and went our way and it went back into the edge of the road grass and weeds.

We do not realize how much we have encroached on what was their original territory.

Normally if left alone, they leave alone.
 
Jst1mr said:
Hmmmmmm....poison snakes, extreme heat, frequent deadly tornadoes, supercell storms, drought, blizzards, dust storms, floods, ice storms...I've always wanted to ask someone who lives in Oklahoma...........why?
Click to expand...


Most of your list I've never had to deal with, & I've lived in Oklahoma about twenty two years . Its not like you have the best weather in the world where you live, especially if you are talking about blizzards & ice storms. So why would YOU want to live THERE? Anyplace has good & bad about it. You just deal with it & move on. I'm moving back to Texas, but not because I don't like living in Oklahoma, because I love it here.:D
 
bgrafsr said:
I thought Water Moccasins were much more aggressive than Copperheads.:confused:
Click to expand...
Same here. Although we've got some nasty water snakes up here, they are all non-poisonous. But they all seem to have bad attitudes.



Airpark said:
...Normally if left alone, they leave alone.
Click to expand...

I guess. I'd feel a heck of a lot better if they'd just shout out "Hey dummy, I'm over here. Don't step on me, 'cause I'll bite ya".
 
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