ChuckS Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 Hi there, We had the 10th Anniversary match at the Prado Olympic Shooting Park. This range was built for the 1984 Olympics. We had a couple stages set up in a 50 meter deep bay that had facilities for moving targets last used more than 20 years ago. We had on stage in the corner area with a popper and paper hidden from all but the start position by remnants of the old structure. A shooter missed the target and somehow put a bullet through an existing hole in the wall that allowed the bullet to hit a bee hive that was deep into the structure. The bees were not pleased. We had about a half-dozen shooters and staff get stung, some multiple times. Not wanting to risk someone having an allergic reaction, we had to toss the stage since resetting the popper and target was risky. They settled down a couple hours later and the guy who drew the short straw on the tear down crew was able to retrieve the equipment without incident. So, I guess that "Be sure of your target and what's behind it" is still a good rule. We had no clue the bees were there. During setup, we cleared some weeds and did a rattlesnake check. We were not expecting an aerial threat. As usual, there were some very happy shooters and some very sad shooters. This was a first! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 They don't sound like domestic honeybees. They are pretty docile and settle back down pretty quickly once disturbed. If you are gonna shoot at that range a lot, I would call a bee keeper and have them removed or destroyed (if they are Africanized honeybees). Africanized honeybees have been known to kill people from swarming them and stinging. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckS Posted July 8, 2019 Author Share Posted July 8, 2019 16 minutes ago, GrumpyOne said: They don't sound like domestic honeybees. They are pretty docile and settle back down pretty quickly once disturbed. If you are gonna shoot at that range a lot, I would call a bee keeper and have them removed or destroyed (if they are Africanized honeybees). Africanized honeybees have been known to kill people from swarming them and stinging. That's exactly why there was no hesitation to shut down the stage. It is being addressed with the range operators... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sarge Posted July 8, 2019 Share Posted July 8, 2019 Bee stings and a rattle snake bite in the same weekend! This game is getting dangerous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rowdyb Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 Texas State PCC a few weeks ago in Houston I skipped a round off something that went into a tree and hit a hive. We had to wait a long time before we could shoot again, but the bees did eventually calm down. It is a weird thing to have happen for sure! (just like when a dog came up to me while shooting a stage....) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HoMiE Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 Aren’t all bee colonies pretty much africanized honey bees now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Harpo Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 15 hours ago, GrumpyOne said: They don't sound like domestic honeybees. They are pretty docile and settle back down pretty quickly once disturbed. If you are gonna shoot at that range a lot, I would call a bee keeper and have them removed or destroyed (if they are Africanized honeybees). Africanized honeybees have been known to kill people from swarming them and stinging. Could also be yellowjackets/wasps, rather than actual bees... Some of us have been known to call most "flying stingy" type critters bees, just because that's easier to do than trying to figure out if they're bees, wasps, or hornets :D (Could be a regional thing, I don't know. I'm a little bit north of Homie, so he might be able to back me up... Or just confirm that everyone I know prefers to use vague language :p ). Either way, sucks to have to throw a stage out, but it's a good thing nobody had an allergic reaction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 SoCal is much more dangerous than I thought !!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted July 9, 2019 Share Posted July 9, 2019 Yellow Jackets are the Devil's scourge. Those bastards are just mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChuckS Posted July 9, 2019 Author Share Posted July 9, 2019 Not really sure what they were but I could see a bunch circling our Pepper Popper from 10 yards away so the call was easy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickbfishn Posted July 10, 2019 Share Posted July 10, 2019 Sounds like yellow jackets in a frenzy. Those little devils don’t calm down until their enemy is destroyed..or in my case, until my ear, my lip, my back, and my inner thigh (exceptionally close to the family jewels) were destroyed. Hate those things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GOF Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 On 7/9/2019 at 9:53 PM, nickbfishn said: Sounds like yellow jackets in a frenzy. Those little devils don’t calm down until their enemy is destroyed..or in my case, until my ear, my lip, my back, and my inner thigh (exceptionally close to the family jewels) were destroyed. Hate those things. Yes, sound like Yellow Jackets. You should get the club to buy a flamethrower Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EEH Posted July 14, 2019 Share Posted July 14, 2019 I have a buddy that’s has to carry one of those epi pen, that would have been a bad day . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSEMARTIN Posted July 15, 2019 Share Posted July 15, 2019 21 hours ago, EEH said: I have a buddy that’s has to carry one of those epi pen, that would have been a bad day . My son is allergic to bee and wasp stings. He carries two epi pens. One of them recently saved his life. He was stung at work and immediately self-administered epinephrine. He went to the Emergency Department and hung out there for several hours before being admitted for overnight observation. It scared the s#!t out of me. This may be a bit of a thread drift, but the most common mistake people with allergies make is not taking their epinephrine soon enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacLethal Posted October 2, 2019 Share Posted October 2, 2019 Damn, that would Bee a horrible situation to get stung while shooting. Good idea on tossing the stage though, no one likes getting stung. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe4d Posted October 2, 2019 Share Posted October 2, 2019 On 7/8/2019 at 10:43 PM, HoMiE said: Aren’t all bee colonies pretty much africanized honey bees now pretty much,, well all honey bees.,, other types of bees.. And all the honey bees are either domestic or feral. Not native here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now