Whatever

Good reasons, I figure.

Story Time

Nothing much happens in this small town, so I don't carry any more.
I used to carry when I did Saturday night Bingo deposits for the Club.
Nevertheless, getting a carry permit is as easy as going to the Sheriff's office and filling out a short form, plus a small fee.
They check whether you're a felon or under a restraining order.
If not, you get it.
So I still keep it up to date.

There are getting to be a lot of Black Bears around here, so I carry when hiking out in the State Forest.
I've plugged a few rabid critters over the years as well.
If a raccoon or opossum is out and about by day and shows no fear of you...watch out.

You're all going to think I'm full of shit here, given all my groundhog memes...
But I once shot a rabid groundhog.
I was actually dove hunting that day, standing there bold and proud in the open, wearing blaze orange.
I saw the Groundhog coming towards me, and it was weaving like it was drunk.
It got as close as 10 yards away.
A normal, healthy groundhog would have seen me long before that and hauled ass to its burrow.

At 10 yards even #8 birdshot is lethal to a large-ish critter.
I plugged it and let it lay. Wasn't gonna get any closer to it.

 

Ah. I didn't know you partoked.

Yup. #8 buckshot at 10 yards would even hurt taco critters

 

Birdshot is also lethal to two-legged varmints invading your home.
Without over-penetration or excessive collateral damage.

 

Morning everyone.

News sucks right now.

@Taco-Obsessed everything okay this morning?

 

Eh. I'm not a professional.


But, every now and then, on a crisp spring night by the fire....when I'm getting ready to try to sleep in a tent.....lol.

 

Another Story.

Every now and then there's an accidental discharge at the Trap Range out at the Club.
Not surprising, given the thousands of shots fired there every week.
Which is why safety rules are strictly enforced about never loading the firearm until on the line ready to shoot, and always pointing downrange.
The shooters enforce the rules themselves.
Nobody wants to shoot with someone who's dangerous and reckless in their gun handling.

Anyway, the point being...
An accidental discharge into the back of a traphouse shows almost no spread of the pellets.
A few inches at best.
It will (and does) gouge a shallow mark in cinder block.


*Note
Trapshooting is comprised of three events:

-16 yard "Singles" (everyone shoots at the same yardage). That's 16 yards from shooter to the thrower arm of the trap machine at full extension.
- Handicap (21 up to 27 maximum yardage) No more than 2 yards difference between the handicap yardage of the members of a squad of 5.
- Doubles (from 16 yards).

It's usually (but not always) the beginner shooters who have an AD and shoot the traphouse from 16 yards.
That works out to about 14 yards from muzzle to the back of the traphouse.
I can state with confidence that if someone gets shot, center mass, with birdshot at that range or closer....it's gonna be ugly.
Less than 10 yards...quite possibly fatal.

 

I tried to play frisbee with my dog this morning.
It didn’t go very well.
I think I need a flatter dog.

Morning all

 

I no longer use the public state gamelands pistol range for that reason - waayyy too much riff raff.

I saw some guys shooting one-handed with the pistol tilted sideways, like they were emulating something they saw in a music video.

But that was nothing compared to the guy who was standing to my left, had a jam from a round failing to eject, and immediately turned 90 degrees (pointing the barrel straight at me) while he fumbled around with the slide, trying to clear the jam.
He’s lucky I didn’t kick the crap out of him, but that’s no place to start a fistfight.

I gathered up my gear and left, will never go back.

 

My BIL is a cop and I know for a fact that can most definitely be fatal and certainly not an easy way to go. He's seen it once before.

Ugh scary. Stupid people and guns.

 

The difference here is public versus private range.

Our Club cannot afford an injury at our trap range.
We have insurance, but no doubt it would be cancelled after a serious incident.
Or the rates would go sky high.
And that would be that.

People have been banned from the ranges for unsafe gun handling.
I can recall one membership being revoked outright by the Board when I served.

To my knowledge, there has never been a gun related injury at any of our ranges...trap, rifle, pistol.
Range officers are all members of the Board of Directors.
And the general membership are all very cooperative in reporting violations.
Nobody in their right mind wants that.

Mind you, all membership applications are voted on individually at Board meetings.
If a Board member has any reservations about a particular individual...well, that's just tough.
Maybe I shouldn't reveal that, but there it is.
Perhaps the individual is a known troublemaker...perhaps a Board member doesn't like him.
If his reasoning convinces a majority of the other Board members...application denied.
It doesn't happen often, but I've been there when applications were denied.

It's a small town.
With 20-odd Board members at any given time, very few applicants aren't known to someone on the Board.

 

Yeah, were good. It was long loud night though.

 

How many times can a kid watch Beethoven 2?

 

Penn’s Woods is alive with fireworks. Fuck paying the bills, we gots noise to make.

 

Can I join and are these odd board members just odd or are they totally bonkers?

 

HaHa. In my day, the kids watched VCR tapes and at least there was the possibility of wearing the tape out.

 

Morning

 

Still Here
Poem by Langston Hughes


been scarred and battered.
My hopes the wind done scattered.
Snow has friz me,
Sun has baked me,

Looks like between 'em they done
Tried to make me

Stop laughin', stop lovin', stop livin'-
But I don't care!
I'm still here!

 

Ah yes, tapes were fun. It was always a treat to open up the case and see that the last clod who rented it didn’t rewind the tape, plus they spilled Diet Shasta Orange all over it.

Please be kind, rewind.

 

If they're bonkers, then I am too.

As to you joining...there's a requirement that an applicant live within a 50 mile radius.
It keeps out the riff-raff from big cities coming here on weekends.
People have however, used a friend's address within that radius...
A few were caught out and their membership renewal was denied.

So if you're willing to use a fake address, there's a chance.
Nobody on the Board knows you.

Unless someone were to tip them off.