Let's be honest - Range safety

[U.S.SFC_RET]

If there are safety violations committed to the extent you are saying and the seriousness you are saying them then run and do not walk to the nearest exit and leave.
Range safety officers should smell these kind of people out a mile away and be close by pronto. RSOs probably don't get paid top dollar so keep it in mind. Do understand you get what you pay for. Its not just color it is culture and I say subculture at that for the clientele that you are complaining about. Point taken?
If your range is that foot loose and fancy free then count down the days to a lawsuit in the coming after a death or an injury due to a negligent discharge. It had better not happen to you or one of your loved ones while you are there.
If you want to inspect a range then do this. Look up at the overhead cover, are there bullet holes? Look at the vertical poles, discharge damage there too? Ask questions if you are not local and do it long before you set foot in that range. Talk to local LEOs if they seem amicable about it. Find out who owns that range. Does he own other businesses as well? Does he seem to control the town? You shouldn't have to go to the extreme but small towns are what they are. Find out the reputation.

 

[mewachee]

There are many problems with this situation, but I wish ranges would offer safety courses to all new members, monthly even. It seems that this would be a common sense thing to do. This would encourage the gun culture to be a culture safety and respect. NRA basic class would be very good.

 

[Sans Authoritas]

If you want to inspect a range then do this. Look up at the overhead cover, are there bullet holes? Look at the vertical poles, discharge damage there too?

Been to the NRA range recently? 4 RSO's at any given time. Bullet holes all over the ceiling at close range, and there's a lovely bullet impression in one of the bullet-resistant panes that separated a dangerous gun-fumbling fool from the poor sap next to him.

The RSO's are safety Nazis, as they should be, but it doesn't stop the place from being peppered.

-Sans Authoritas

 

[Ala Dan]

I don't think this is a problem that is exclusive to ranges in Augusta, GA;
as this is a known problem over here in the greater Birmingham, AL as
well. Some types of persons want to turn their assault type rifles to
the side; spraying lead into the wooden target stands, thus destroying
them eventually~! Range officers hate it when these type of idiots
show up on the firing line.

 

[fast eddie]

Monday, a young black guy came into the range with a gun in his belt (not in a holster) and the guy at the counter told him to disarm his gun. He took the gun, pointed it at the guy behind the counter and said : "This gun?". There was 3 members in the room and that guy almost pissed in his pants when he saw 3 guys pointing their guns at him.

I am not judging your experiences or opinions, but the the above makes me wonder; why weren't the 3 guys pointing their guns at the young black guy not also required to to disarm their guns when they arrived?
Gun safety is learned behavior. Clearly the examples of dangerous gunplay that I've read in this thread are committed by people with no safety background whatsoever. Perhaps the range should bar folks who exhibit ignorant or stupid behavior until they take a safety class; or better yet make it mandatory for all customers. Seems to me a common interest in firearms and shooting can be a way to bridge a cultural gap.

 

[drgrenthum]

I hate when people post psuedo-racist remarks and then act like they are the most innocent people in the world. The comments here are not overt but i cant believe the posters cant see how they can be read into. Who cares the color of the shooters skin, that was not what pissed you off. It was the fact they pointed the business end of their firearms at you. They were young and stupid, you should of corrected them or got a RSO on top of it. I dont care if you are black, white, purple, green, or yellow with white poka dots if the wrong end of your gun comes at me we have a problem.

I dont care how you are dressed, everyone around me firing gets the once over and i make sure to watch everone out of the corner of my eye until i see everyone is practicing the four rules and even then i have a heightened sense of awareness.

It sounds like the people you are referrering to are young inner city firearm owners. I woudlnt expect most of them to know much about firearms. What i do know is they have affinity for firearms because they are at the range. They are the newest generation of firearm purchasers and the fate of firearms could rest on their voting shoulders or be lost do to their lack of knowledge and stupidity in handling of such a weapon.

I would suggest the poster go to a different range because if he is not willing to correct the action or have a RSO correct the action of those youngsters it is likely to happen again and worse yet they will probably teach to anyone they bring along with them to the range the same faults they are currently exhibiting.

 

[Dookie]

If at any time any of these words come out of your mouth stop and think.
"once, my friends were drinking"
"I'm not racist, homophobe, ect, but........"
"can we borrow your little brother?"
"don't take this the wrong way"

Looking around before telling any joke.

I understand the freaking out part, I know I would have, but did anyone else consider talking to these people and explaining to them about firearms safety? Maybe no one ever told them the proper way to act.

 

[FFMedic]

I would think that maybe many young blacks do not have a great firearms safety background in urban areas for 2 related reasons. Most/many people learn basic gun safety in order to hunt, it's no secret most hunters in the USA are white males. The related reason, hunting (and firearms safety) are not traditional urban activites.

Having worked at a rifle and shotgun range it was obvious that ignorence knows no creed, and neither did teaching.

FFMedic

 

[XD Fan]

Too true, Dookie.

 

[Tom Servo]

I would think that the general gangsta type wouldn't care too much about gun safety. Around here we have Wangstas; white gangsta wannabes.

"Wangsta?" I think I'll have to steal that.

Per capita, I have ejected far more white people from ranges than any other race. Some were the wannabe gangsters, but most come from middle-upper class backgrounds. Race is irrelevant--poor parenting knows no racial boundaries.

In fact, one of my best students wears dreadlocks and baggy clothes. He's got his look, sure, but are we so shallow that that alone should define him? I'd rather shoot next to him than many of the 25-40 year old yuppies I see at public ranges.

Bear in mind, the shooting culture is still seen as White Testosterone Dominion in the eyes of most outsiders. It's a jump for women and minorities to go shooting, and think how they'd feel if everyone was eying them suspiciously.

 

[Bazooka Joe71]

"Wangsta?" I think I'll have to steal that.

You'll be stealing it from 50 Cent.

I believe the correct definition of 'wangsta' is wannabe gangsta.

Yep, you're welcome...You are now slightly dumber now than you were before you heard that.(BTW, that wasn't an insult, no matter how high your IQ is it got worse after hearing that.)

 

[Golden Hound]

Bringing black people (even the ones who dress like gangstas - although I think it's stupid,) other minorities, cultures, women, etc, this is the best strategy for the pro-2A movement. The wider variety of people involved in shooting, the more roots in the ground, and the stronger the tree.

With that said, there's no no no excuse for ever sweeping someone else or pointing at them or any other of that horrific behavior. It's gotta be corrected, firmly. But ignorance of firearms safety , as others have said, is a cultural more than a race issue.

 

[Tom Servo]

You are now slightly dumber now than you were before you heard that.(BTW, that wasn't an insult, no matter how high your IQ is it got worse after hearing that.)

No insult taken. My mighty Earthling brain has survived worse. I've had to sit through Karaoke.

To be honest, I don't see any range allowing that kind of behavior for long if they expect to be in business. Serious blood would have been shed if this sort of thing happened with the regularity suggested. Something's being exaggerated, and with a slant I find unsettling.

Bear in mind, the gun culture is changing, albeit slowly. I've been teaching many more women and minorities lately, and for the most part, they're much safer and easier to teach than Suburban Joe Sixpack or his baggy-pants-sideways-hat-wearing-4-cylinder-import-car-with-goofy-fins-driving kid.

 

[XDKingslayer]

Oh! If some of you think I am racist, last week, there was 2 young black women (inexperienced with handguns) shooting and my wife and I spent 30 minutes with them to help them improve their skills. We let them shoot our guns and give them good guidance. We all enjoyed it and it was the highlight of the week for us.

You're not racist, but you definately have male problems.

Why is it you'll help 2 black women at the range but you'll yell at black men?

 

[Rachen]

I've seen Colt/AR guys act like the biggest group of afterschool-special jocks. "Dude? Is that an AK? Hah! *crams AK user into a locker*"

You serious? Now thats some folks that need to GROW UP!

Why is it you'll help 2 black women at the range but you'll yell at black men?

I think he yelled at them because he got TWO Mac-10s pointed right at his chest for a split second or two. You'd yell too if it was you.

Bringing black people (even the ones who dress like gangstas - although I think it's stupid,) other minorities, cultures, women, etc, this is the best strategy for the pro-2A movement. The wider variety of people involved in shooting, the more roots in the ground, and the stronger the tree.

Well said! That is so true. The antigun extremists tend to lump gunnies together as their typical "redneck" stereotype. When we have a diverse and powerful organization of unified people, not only will the stereotypical assumptions bite the dust, it will also allow us to be able to generate a great public image. The antigunners want us to believe that we gunnies tend to isolate ourselves, however, thanks to the Internet, most people now know that great Charlton Heston was right alongside Martin Luther King Jr. when he marched in Alabama and Washington.

 

[siglite]

Sure, it's a cultural thing.

It's the lack of firearms education that results in this crap. I see it all the time. But the color of ones skin has little to do with it. Stupid comes in all shapes sizes and colors.

So who here has done anything besides "screaming" to help educate these folks?

 

[ScottyT]

Bringing black people (even the ones who dress like gangstas - although I think it's stupid,) other minorities, cultures, women, etc, this is the best strategy for the pro-2A movement. The wider variety of people involved in shooting, the more roots in the ground, and the stronger the tree.

With that said, there's no no no excuse for ever sweeping someone else or pointing at them or any other of that horrific behavior. It's gotta be corrected, firmly. But ignorance of firearms safety , as others have said, is a cultural more than a race issue.

+1!

 

[SoCalShooter]

I would say, contact the RSO and make sure he or she is not asleep at the helm.

At the local range here I am a range officer and I'll tell you this if someone paints the line with a weapon, they get an abrupt warning second time they get removed, unfortunately I cannot say that all our range officers do that but I have had to ask people to leave before, safety is paramount.

 

[Rugerlvr]

All this makes me very glad for my highly structured local municipal range. The RSO's there are stellar, and I've never ever seen any horseplay, or unsafe gun handling. I love that place.

 

[BlackJackal]

I've seen quite a bit of the same behavior among kids (Jr. High through college-aged) in my rural area...
The one thing that they tend to have in common (besides the liklihood of shooting off a toe)

wait a minute.. im going into grade 10 and ive taken the canadian firearms safety course and passed with a 98%.. ive been handling firearms for about 5 years now, and i ALWAYS keep my finger off the trigger always resting just above the trigger on the receiver untill i am ready to shoot, i live with my mother and she encourages me to shoot and learn about guns because thats what im interested in, she has complete faith in me in firearm handling and i even helped her threw her firearms course for handguns/ longrifles. dont judge people because of there age/skin or how they act, but i must agree, that if some one walks into the range holds there gun side ways, wearing bagging clothing, pointing there gun in un-safe directions dosent seem vary trust worthy to me, no matter what there skin colour/age u cant judge them untill u witness them preforming unsafe acts with firearms, maybe i dont seem "safe' with a firearm, i dont wear baggy clothing but i do wear metallica/ ac/dc shirts stuff like that, and people do judge others by the way they look, but once u no them that is really when u can judge them. just my thoughs on this.

 

[Justin]

This thread has run its course.