shotgunning non-safety

[ErikW]

I hate the shotgun sports' lack of the culture of safety I am accustomed to as an action shooting competitor. They sweep everybody with their muzzles, they don't check that their guns are unloaded when they leave a station, there's no such thing as a safe area, and they just generally seem utterly apathetic or ignorant on the subject.

[EricW]

Tell me about it.  I was at a hunt test with my dog not too long ago.  (Dogs & shotguns over live birds.)  Talk about lack of gun safety.  People crossing fences with loaded guns....  One guy had a loaded shotgun pointed directly at the gallery while he was in the field. They acted like I was a spoil sport when I pointed out that a face full of #6 might ruin someone's whole day.

E

[John Dunn]

I was at a conference/pheasant hunt in South Dakota this year.  It's an eery feeling watching a pusher walk towards you with no muzzle discipline whatsoever.  I was ready to hit the ground in a heartbeat, and kept trying to shift out of the way.  Scary.

[Patrick Sweeney]

In the old days, one of the USPSA clubs in our State was at a n old-timers bullseye & trap/skeet club.  We were sitting in the clubhouse trying to crunch the scores (long time ago) while being haranged by a trap shooter about how unsafe we were.

The shotgun rack was in the next room, and we were treated to a steady sound routine of: Door open, action racked, fired hull clatters to the floor, shotgun in rack.  One was live when it fell.  At that point, one of the guys asked if the whiner wanted to bet on how many IPSC guns we would have to rack before an empty fell to the floor.  He quit nagging us.

Scary, indeed, are the Trap shooters.  Even before they drink lunch and go back out.

[benos]

"Even before they drink lunch and go back out."

lol!

Patrick,

Have you ever thought about comedy writing?

be

[lynn jones]

the sad thing is that's mostly true!!

lynn jones

[Ron Ankeny]

Odd, the shotgunners I shoot with have a zero tolerance for unsafe gun handling. The only time I have been swept by a shotgun is when I walked up to a shooter and he turned around. His single was broken and hanging over his forearm so he swept my feet. You guys need to find another place to shoot.

[ErikW]

Ron, I'm talking about every clay shooting range I've been to!

I've come to accept having my lower body swept by an open O/U or oversingle; it's the pumps and especially the autos that raise my ire.

Maybe it's telling that a shotgunners catalog I've got offers both "shoelace muzzle rests" and "cold beverage insulators."

[George]

Even before they drink lunch and go back out."

-------------------------------------------------------

I have actaully heard some of the Skeet Folk at our local club speak of heading into the club house for "some aimin' juice" before another round of skeet. Sheesh!

[BSeevers]

Don't forget your "open to the public" ranges. Then you get 9mm's and SKS's pointed at you all day. Once I was placing targets and looked up range to see a guy pointing a rifle at me while he cleared a jam. Never went back there again. Oh then there was the guy who turned his gun past the 180 on its side to see if it was empty yet.

Yea Patrick I get real tired of people equating fast with unsafe. Its an Psychiatric complex you know.

(Edited by BSeevers at 5:16 pm on Nov. 26, 2002)

[2alpha]

I agree that we USPSA shooters are used to a high degree of safety but....

We run with loaded pistols with the safety off....getting a open double shotgun pointed at your foot worries you? From what I know the shotgun sports have a very good safety record. Lets be careful not to give the anti-gunners ammo by unjustifiably critizing other shooting sports .

[EricW]

Getting swept by an open and unloaded double is just par for the course and doesn't freak me out like it used to.  (FWIW, I try not to sweep anyone with anything, open or not.)  My big problem with shotgunners is them breaking the 180 before opening the gun.  Especially when they only take one shot.  Yikes!!!  

FWIW, I personally like autos better than anything else, just because they automatically end up in safe condition after the last shot.  Whatever any one's opinion on autos, I doubt shotgunners will be convinced to use chamber flags any time soon...

(Edited by EricW at 7:38 pm on Nov. 26, 2002)

[Ron Ankeny]

2alpha:

Being swept by an open breech gun doesn't bother me a bit. That's why I used it in my post, but I wasn't clear. As for autos and pumps, I agree with Erik Warren only slob gun handlers would point them any direction but up, down or down range...and the action better be open even then.

As for public ranges, the gun handling is abhorent. Our local range is one of those "public ranges" and it drives me nuts.