A shooting at the Range

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Barmcd

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Aug 6, 2023
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I got an email from my gun club last night stating that the range was closed until further notice and the April membership meeting on Monday evening was cancelled. It was terse and provided no other information. This afternoon I got another email supplying some details for the closure and cancellation. It was equally terse and provided the bare minimum of information. A member shot another member at the range, and the incident is being investigated by local law enforcement. The range is closed until the investigation is complete. No word on the condition of the victim or whether it was intentional or accidental. The last incident we had was about 2 years ago when a member loaded the wrong ammunition in his rifle, and it blew up, inflicting serious injuries on the shooter.

Absent any facts, I have no idea how it happened, but I have packed up and left the range a couple times in the past because someone was not handling their firearm in a safe manner. My Friday old guys shooting group recently had to have a talk with one of the older regulars about giving up his guns because his gun handling was becoming a safety issue. This situation is a reminder that you are responsible for your safety, and you need to not only watch yourself, but those around you.
 
Sorry to hear about that incident at your club and is a reminder of the importance of being aware of the behavior of the shooters around us at the range. I'm a member at an indoor range that is open to the public and have left early because of careless shooters I observed. There are only 12 lanes and no RO back where the shooters are. The lanes are on video monitors that can be seen out front but only one employee usually who stays out front and too busy to monitor. Being retired I can go during weekdays to avoid most of the idiots. Hope the situation at you club gets resolved soon and was accidental.
 
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I visited a range a couple years back that had cease fires, but nobody was really watching the line when people were downrange.

There was a younger group taking turns shooting an old Mauser. When the cease fire was called, I walked by their bench to go check a target. The bolt was closed and I asked them to open it for my safety. They balked a little and said something about me not trusting them. I politely told them that it wasn't so much about trusting them, it was the ancient gun they were shooting. They got my point and opened the action.
 
I could be wrong, but it appears to me that most private and/or club ranges do not have RSOs and depend on members to police themselves. Two edged sword there for sure, IMO. On the one hand, nobody wants an obnoxious know it all who gets off on having a little authority. On the other, when someone is being unsafe or unpleasant to others, you find yourself wishing for someone with that same authority to enforce the rules. I don’t know that there’s an easy answer to this.
 
I prefer the newer ranges as compared to the old toot ranges. The former are better supervised and have decent bathrooms. Seen some pretty bad things at the old toot range. I also shoot competitions as they are pretty well supervised.
 
Turkeytider said:
I could be wrong, but it appears to me that most private and/or club ranges do not have RSOs and depend on members to police themselves. Two edged sword there for sure, IMO. On the one hand, nobody wants an obnoxious know it all who gets off on having a little authority. On the other, when someone is being unsafe or unpleasant to others, you find yourself wishing for someone with that same authority to enforce the rules. I don’t know that there’s an easy answer to this.
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We do not have an independent RSO. The theory is we are all RSOs. That works until it doesn’t. I don’t think the club would survive if dues were raised to pay for an RSO during operating hours which are from 8 am until sunset 365 days of the year.
 
I gave up weekend rifle shooting at my gunclub range years ago in favor of weekdays when the crazies were working. Few people to distract you and seasoned shooters during early weekday mornings. I will do a family group handgun shoot on Saturday or Sunday morning as the pistol bays have high berms separating them.
 
Barmcd said:
We do not have an independent RSO. The theory is we are all RSOs. That works until it doesn’t. I don’t think the club would survive if dues were raised to pay for an RSO during operating hours which are from 8 am until sunset 365 days of the year.
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Yeah, that’s probably the only practical way to do it for the reason you mention, at least for 95% of private clubs and ranges.
 
doubleh said:
I gave up weekend rifle shooting at my gunclub range years ago in favor of weekdays when the crazies were working. Few people to distract you and seasoned shooters during early weekday mornings. I will do a family group handgun shoot on Saturday or Sunday morning as the pistol bays have high berms separating them.
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One of the advantages of being retired!
 
I am fortunate to have my 92 acre farm to shoot on.I have a freinds farm down the road as well. I belong to a club near me in case of firearm discharge restriction or some other no shooting ordinance comes along. Had a suicide 25 years ago on pistol range at the club.Insurance and dues went up.
 
MarshallDodge said:
I visited a range a couple years back that had cease fires, but nobody was really watching the line when people were downrange.

There was a younger group taking turns shooting an old Mauser. When the cease fire was called, I walked by their bench to go check a target. The bolt was closed and I asked them to open it for my safety. They balked a little and said something about me not trusting them. I politely told them that it wasn't so much about trusting them, it was the ancient gun they were shooting. They got my point and opened the action.
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On every range I've ever been at nobody was allowed to touch a firearm on the line while anybody was downrange.

I would have told you no.
 
Riomouse911 said:
On weekdays I shoot 2-3 times a week now that I’m 2 yrs. retired. Best. Hobby. Ever. :thumbup:

Stay safe.
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Yep, get to see and get to know some of the same guys after a while. Also, less crowded, which is good in that I have a brake on one of my rifles. I will not set up directly adjacent to another shooter. Try to put at least one empty station between us. I know how potentially unpleasant these can be.
 
MarshallDodge said:
You would have left a loaded and cocked gun pointed toward people downrange?
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Again, no one touches a firearm during a ceasefire or while anyone is downrange. I walk around all day long with a loaded and cocked gun on my hip it hasn't gone off accidentally yet.

Unless you were the range master they were under no obligation to listen to anything you said
 
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Barmcd said:
I got an email from my gun club last night stating that the range was closed until further notice and the April membership meeting on Monday evening was cancelled. It was terse and provided no other information. This afternoon I got another email supplying some details for the closure and cancellation. It was equally terse and provided the bare minimum of information. A member shot another member at the range, and the incident is being investigated by local law enforcement. The range is closed until the investigation is complete. No word on the condition of the victim or whether it was intentional or accidental. The last incident we had was about 2 years ago when a member loaded the wrong ammunition in his rifle, and it blew up, inflicting serious injuries on the shooter.

Absent any facts, I have no idea how it happened, but I have packed up and left the range a couple times in the past because someone was not handling their firearm in a safe manner. My Friday old guys shooting group recently had to have a talk with one of the older regulars about giving up his guns because his gun handling was becoming a safety issue. This situation is a reminder that you are responsible for your safety, and you need to not only watch yourself, but those around you.
Click to expand...
Time to find another range. My club vets each member and you need to be recommended by another member.
 
The original design/ purpose of a firearm was to kill - that design intent remains to this day. The math says that if you put enough firearms into enough human hands, someone will get shot - it is inevitable. Tens of thousands of people get killed and injured every year using a vehicle designed for benign travel - innocent point A to point B - just another day on the road. Hundreds of people a year get shot during various hunting seasons. What is thought is going to happen when you put a firearm in the wrong person’s hand - an absolute guarantee that someone will get shot. When in a concentration of firearms and people, your head needs to be on a swivel. People are notorious about taking their safety for granted - when it comes to other people and their mindless natures, that can be a very costly mistake.
 
Sorry to hear about your situation. I've offered 2 different clubs money to hire a RSO; both turned me down. A board member of one of these clubs even asked me "Why would we do that?"
 
Our 2 outdoor ranges have full-time dedicated RSOs that do an excellent job. In over 25 years, they've never had a shooting.

Our 5 indoor ranges rely on the employees occasionally glancing at the camera feed from inside the shop. In the same time frame, there have been 5 shootings with 2 fatalities- though granted, one was a suicide.
 
At the club/range I belong to we have full time RSO’s 7 days a week it’s not cheap to get into our club or easy I was on a waiting list for 2 years. But it is safe I have never felt the need to leave due to someone being unsafe there is zero tolerance for that. If there is an issue you just call or text the RSO entry gate/office and someone will be there very quickly. If you cause any problems or are unsafe your membership is immediately terminated no questions asked and if you resist leaving you get a ride in a metro cruiser. We also have several different law enforcement agencies that practice here, we actually built them their own ranges to train on. We do get the occasional accidental discharge with someone holstering and shooting themselves but that is about it .
 
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