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Urban Coyote

32 Cal.
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Spectators at the range, how do you handle them?

If you're shooting a muzzleloader at a range mostly you deal with spectators. I get them often and I don't mind unless they interrupt me while I'm attending to my gun, especially loading and taking aim to fire. I try to be polite and answer questions. I've even offered to let folks take a shot or two. This being said ther are some people, quite a few actually, who just don't seem to get a person attending to a muzzleloading gun needs to stay focused. I've finally got to the point where l now let the overbearing spectator know this. I usually start out with a hint like "yeah, these guns are a lot of fun but you really need to pay attention when loading them". If they persist I stop them and become a bit more direct throwing in a safety concern or two. So far it's worked pretty good but it amazes me how often I need to use the more direct approach.

Another thing I've noticed about spectators, many of them tell me they have a muzzleloader they haven't shot for years. If they seem reasonably sane, don't argue the sane thing with me I worked at a gunshop, I suggest they should get into shooting their muzzleloader and offer to help them if they catch me at the range. Heck, I even scheduled a time with one guy but he was a no show, maybe he thought I wasn't sane. 😆
 
Yep, as best we can, we have to keep rekindling this sport of ours. People sometimes lack social skills to recognize that this is your pastime, and not you responsibility to stop on a dime to teach.
 
I normally hold up one finger, NO NOT that one, one INDEX finger, and say, "Hold that thought, as I have to focus on loading or I will blow myself up." That does the trick every time, or at least hasn't failed yet. Although..., one guy got testy, saying, "That's not funny." I replied, "Nope, you're right and if I don't get this bullet seated I could bulge or even blow this barrel." That shut him up.

I regard myself whether I like it or not, as a sort of ambassador for the tech and the hobby. So I try to be cordial at a minimum.

LD
 
Urban Coyote said:
Spectators at the range, how do you handle them?

...
Click to expand...
If I can identify them as a gun person (eg maybe they're at the range shooting their AR or hunting rifle, and if I can sense they know what they're doing around guns) and if they express interest (and especially if they express appreciation) I usually offer to let them shoot my gun.
 
Sell them Ten gauge..

bag of carrots I think sold one yesterday lol the smoke bang and all..

another guy new them but still came over to see what one I had.

There were 3 cars there.. not bad.

With trying new.. I didn't want to be alone in the woods on the blackpowder range.
 
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I've never had a problem with multitasking. Maybe it's my training as a police officer or doing demo's as a blacksmith and talking to spectators and hammering on hot steel or tending the coal fire in the forge.
When someone asks me a question or makes a comment, while I'm loading any of my muzzle loaders, I respond to them and still concentrate on the task at hand PPBR. I also invite interested folks to have a hand at a couple of shots and even taught some the loading drill, made converts to black powder a couple of times..
 
I am somewhat confused here. I served time as a RSO and the hard and fast rule was ,If one wasn't actively shooting they stayed behind the firing lane. this lane was marked off 4 feet behind the stations. (benches)
the lookie loos were kept away from the shooters. on cease fire they could approach a station if invited.
can't imagine any range allowing dufus to approach an active station.
all that said, i have people that seem to show up every time i shoot here at home. if they start asking questions while i am loading, i stick a powder measure in the bore if i have just poured powder.
if i have short started i leave the short starter in the bore.
and of course i leave the rammer if i have seated the charge.
seems to work for me. until i launch a RR down range!:doh:
 
deerstalkert said:
I am somewhat confused here. I served time as a RSO and the hard and fast rule was ,If one wasn't actively shooting they stayed behind the firing lane. this lane was marked off 4 feet behind the stations. (benches)
the lookie loos were kept away from the shooters. on cease fire they could approach a station if invited.
can't imagine any range allowing dufus to approach an active station.
all that said, i have people that seem to show up every time i shoot here at home. if they start asking questions while i am loading, i stick a powder measure in the bore if i have just poured powder.
if i have short started i leave the short starter in the bore.
and of course i leave the rammer if i have seated the charge.
seems to work for me. until i launch a RR down range!:doh:
Click to expand...
I have had spectators on the sporting clays range, which doesn’t have the stay back kind of rules as a rifle/pistol range.
 
Had a coworker’s kid (12) going on and on and on at the farm one day. Loaded 1 chamber of my ROA, with 1 of my hog killer loads. Pointed it downrange and touched it off. Zack’s dancing up and down like he’d eaten an entire bag of coffee beans. I loaded the next chamber, but a couple felt wads instead of a ball. Capped it, handed it to him. Eyes big as dinner plates, grin ear to ear, he pointed it downrange and yanked the trigger…
I don’t/won’t shoot at public ranges other than SASS events. And very rarely then, local range is too close to Memphis for my taste.
 
Urban Coyote said:
.....

Another thing I've noticed about spectators, many of them tell me they have a muzzleloader they haven't shot for years.....
Click to expand...
I've noticed same. Or, the corrolary is: they always wanted to try muzzleloading but never got around to it.

(Revealing some suspicion as to their actual level of interest)
 
While I get the same thing at the range while everyone else is doing modern I simply state that you have to wait until I finish my task here . I would be glad to answer any questions.

Works with most Inquiring minds.
And afterwards most I have dealt with take their first black powder shot, hit or not there is a big smile.
It,s all in how you deliver the message...
 
I try to not to go to either of the ranges alone these days. Twelve yrs. ago , I had a questionable experience at the most rural of the two ranges. Was there by my self sighting in a new .40 custom long rifle. A strange car came in and parked and the two guys came over to the bench rests armed w/a Mac 15 , and a 10 shot 9mm pistol. There are only two bench rests at this range , rather cramped quarters , and conversing w/them they said they only wanted to test their guns. I stayed behind them out of their way , hoping they didn't want to test them on me. In conversation , they said they were from a town about a 100 miles away , and I happend to know a number of folks there from my business contacts there. I reliquished my 25 yd. target for their use , as they had no targets. I was glad when they finished testing their weapons , and headed to their car. From that day on , I'm always armed with a second defense weapon. That was stupid of me to use such a rural range by myself , and I've not done that again. The other range is at a more popular sportsmen's club with more traffic , and a higher chance of some other genuine shooter there. I still will always be armed for security's sake , and will stop shooting a m/l to talk and advance the m/l black powder sport if I can......oldwood
 
Currently only shoot at a private club with gate that requires a passcode or combination to gain entry (plus actual range is about a mile from the road and gate), and unless a nefarious individual decides to ram things with a vehicle, I should be good. That said, I still have a modern 9mm somewhere around my waste.

As far as actual spectators, when shooting muzzleloaders, I usually have a short barreled blunderbuss with a 12-1/2” LOP in my truck that I will offer any youngsters (with their parent’s/guardian’s permission) the opportunity to try if they show interest if what I am shooting isn’t appropriately sized. I’ll also offer adults the opportunity to shoot if interest is shown. All that said, if range rules for those not shooting are not followed, the point is made. On a private club, and member id is required to be shown while on the property. There are consequences if rules are not followed. I’ve never had an issue, but back to that thing around my waste…..
 
Only remember one sorta problem over the years. Man was explaining to his son how percussion caps made my rifle go off while he was showing him my opened tin of caps which he dropped/spilled into the gravel beneath the loading bench. He did help me find/pick up what ones we could. I should've used a brass capper, for some reason had the open tin on the bench.

Been many years since I shot M/L on a range with other people. Miss doing that. Sometimes.
 
I have my own 50 yd range behind the house. That's quite enough for these old eyes. And it's the average distance for deer hunting in these dense woods. For unmentionables and socializing, I go to the 100-yard National Forest range about an hour away. It used to be wild west and downright scary at times. But now it's a top-notch range that always has two paid DNR RSOs on duty. Really cuts down on the tomfoolery.
 

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