lardener
03-21-2016, 10:49
So I made my way out to the BLM range to enjoy some of the good weather. Turning the side of the mesa into an impact barrier seems like a good use of land. It's a little disorganized for rifle competition practice I think, since the users were interested in burning powder and shooting cans. I would want to change targets every 20-30 minutes and that seemed difficult. Maybe I should have just put up several targets. For blasting away at random bits downrange I think it would be great.
First, I was surprised that there were cows downrange. I realize it's open range grazing but I suspect the ranchers would be upset if their cows get shot. They were off to the side but enough people were crossfiring at targets on the ground that I have to suspect there's at least some amount of cows that end up hit throughout the year. If the cows had not been standing when I arrived I might not have seen them. They laid down later and if I hadn't been looking for them I wouldn't have noticed them. I suspect that if a cow were laying down at the far end of the range I wouldn't even know it was there. Does the shooter get in trouble for hitting the cows or are the cows grazing at their own risk?
Second, and quite shocking, I saw several people heading downrange without asking for a cease fire. I saw a group arrive and walk out to set targets while there was live fire happening on the other side of the line. Now, as far as actual danger of getting hit goes, the shooters were far enough away that anything resembling a downrange shot would not have posed an actual problem. But I've never seen anything like that at a range. The first time it happened, my brain refused to actually process what I was seeing and it didn't occur to me to call a cease fire before they were back to the firing line. The second time I saw it I asked for a cease fire, picked up my target, and went home. Is this a normal occurrence at that range or did I just get lucky?
First, I was surprised that there were cows downrange. I realize it's open range grazing but I suspect the ranchers would be upset if their cows get shot. They were off to the side but enough people were crossfiring at targets on the ground that I have to suspect there's at least some amount of cows that end up hit throughout the year. If the cows had not been standing when I arrived I might not have seen them. They laid down later and if I hadn't been looking for them I wouldn't have noticed them. I suspect that if a cow were laying down at the far end of the range I wouldn't even know it was there. Does the shooter get in trouble for hitting the cows or are the cows grazing at their own risk?
Second, and quite shocking, I saw several people heading downrange without asking for a cease fire. I saw a group arrive and walk out to set targets while there was live fire happening on the other side of the line. Now, as far as actual danger of getting hit goes, the shooters were far enough away that anything resembling a downrange shot would not have posed an actual problem. But I've never seen anything like that at a range. The first time it happened, my brain refused to actually process what I was seeing and it didn't occur to me to call a cease fire before they were back to the firing line. The second time I saw it I asked for a cease fire, picked up my target, and went home. Is this a normal occurrence at that range or did I just get lucky?