TargetTalk

I have been coming in contact with more and more people lately that are against competitive shooting. Specifically; Small Bore & Air Rifle as well as Bullseye pistol shooting.
Is it because of lack of exposure to the sport or what. I recently went to a brand new indoor range facility that was run by a local gun dealer.
I was prohibited from shooting bullseye pistol or Smallbore rifle, even if I payed my hourly fee. But yet they let a guy shoot a AR15 platform as fast as he could pull the trigger.
Confused.

RJ

What reason did he give you,
There are some excellent clubs in NJ.

I too would be curious to hear the reasons given.

That a gun store would turn down a paying customer seems rather odd to me!

just a thought...some indoor ranges require use of their ammo. How much ammo would an AR15 sprayer consume in 15 minutes versus what you would consume? Maybe it's about money.

If they require the use of ammo purchased there, it might be a liability thing. At Bud's, shooters are required to buy ammo there for any rental gun, although you can use anything you bring in your own. I can see where an overly cautious range owner (or his lawyer) might think that be worried about liability if some fool blew up his hand or injured someone else with an overloaded handload.

So what was the rationale given?

Roger

It was not a question of ammo or even paying for extra range. The range does not want the extra gear on the range, and besides it has been their experience that competitive shooter types were just a pain in the butt to deal with.
I do agreed with the last part, some of us are a pain in the butt.

However I have met People at the ranges, that as soon as they fine out that you shoot competitively they shy away.

So it's a sort of anti-elite snobbery? Not saying you're necessarily an elite shooter, just that 'good old boys' might not feel comfortable with someone they perceive to be a threat to their egos by shooting 10's while they struggle to stay on the paper. Is that it?

Wow - I've never encountered that kind of anti-snobbery. I'm not a competitive shooter, but Joe Sixpack can't tell that from my gear. I've got a spotting scope and brass catcher set up and wear Knobloch glasses and shoot at round targets at the far end of the range. At 25 yds the other shooters can't see my targets so it looks like I know what I'm doing. That is, if anyone bothers to look - most of the people there are so involved with their own thing that I doubt many even notice what I am doing. On rare occasion, I do get some attention when the TOZ is out, but that's about it.

It sounds like the shop owner there is just a jerk.

Roger

My experience is that sometimes the do not know what a free pistol is, so they freak out, when I raise my pistol high before lowering back to the target, like a lot of folks. Some ranges simply freak out when they spot someone shooting single handed.

It takes slightly better time but all the ranges in my area are pretty knowledgeable nowadays. One of my home clubs inevitably automatically gives me Lane #1. While my other home club is private, so I can pretty much do what I want.

PS. My experience with competitive shooters is that they all know the range rules and safety, and thus behave like model clients. It is the AR15 type that usually have no clue.

conradin wrote:PS. My experience with competitive shooters is that they all know the range rules and safety, and thus behave like model clients. It is the AR15 type that usually have no clue.

yeppppppppp

Conradin wrote:PS. My experience with competitive shooters is that they all know the range rules and safety, and thus behave like model clients. It is the AR15 type that usually have no clue.

That's when I see little puffs of white dust coming from the acoustic tile in the ceiling and stray holes in my target from a shooter two lanes over.

Roger

I actually have a habit of "taking a break" from my lane and went to the range lounge if I see a bunch of gang-bangers looking guys came in with AR15 and other large caliber long arms. Lane #1 is inevitably mine anyway, so generally nobody will take it. I have seen plenty of these guys violate safety rules that once a range safety officer friend had to wrestle the guy down on the floor. The idiot was holding his AR15 and keep turning around with the rifle left and right towards the other occupants along the line. I had cold sweat afterwards when I realized what happened.

Anyway, I think my post is beyond "target shooting". The truth is that we target shooters have to deal with idiots and sharing a public range since not all of us belong to a private club.

Over the yrs, I've also notice most non target shooters seems like don't like to share range space with us. I think one of the reason is perhaps even a mediocre target shooter in either handgun or rifle can make most of those "tactical" gangbangers with their tricked out ARs and high cap semi auto pistols looks like incompetent idiots when it comes to marksmanship, I'm sure some of us tends to make this point in a rather obvious manner.

Don't rub it in.

Idiots don't like having their marksmanship 'skills' shown up as being mediocre, or their manhood insulted by people questioning their gun-handling.

Gun shops want to make money, they wouldn't want their customers to be advised to practice with an air gun instead of buying expensive add-ons for their junk cannons.

Target shooters tend to take their time, gun shops want people in and out, and to use as many bullets as possible in the interim.

I used to enjoy whipping my IPSC friends with their tricked-out hi-capacity .45s using my as-issued Browning 9mm......

JamesH wrote:I used to enjoy whipping my IPSC friends with their tricked-out hi-capacity .45s using my as-issued Browning 9mm......

Didn't think you were allowed .45s in Aus anymore?

j-team wrote:

JamesH wrote:I used to enjoy whipping my IPSC friends with their tricked-out hi-capacity .45s using my as-issued Browning 9mm......

Didn't think you were allowed .45s in Aus anymore?

.45 calibre is allowed in a couple of disciplines, but not IPSC.

JamesH wrote:Idiots don't like having their marksmanship 'skills' shown up as being mediocre, or their manhood insulted by people questioning their gun-handling.

Gun shops want to make money, they wouldn't want their customers to be advised to practice with an air gun instead of buying expensive add-ons for their junk cannons.

Target shooters tend to take their time, gun shops want people in and out, and to use as many bullets as possible in the interim.

I used to enjoy whipping my IPSC friends with their tricked-out hi-capacity .45s using my as-issued Browning 9mm......

Translation: we select target shooters are just such superior beings!

Yup, sorry to say but I have to agree with FredB on that call. We do no service to the sport by belittling lesser-skilled shooters. Being civil and supportive can earn significant points for our kind.

I go with Fred H. We don't have to sneer at "lesser mortals", but our very existence offends them.

Too damn bad! And I'm sorry Tanktrek has to shoot at range with an attitude like that.