Kenneth Wallace Payne, 73, of Wagoner, was shot multiple times Thursday morning at the Fort Gibson Wildlife Management Area Shooting Range. Authorities are asking for the public's help to find the person responsible. . . . . At least four guns were stolen from him, as well as a portable tool chest.
Yepper, although I mostly shoot my CZ 452's and my 10/22's at the range, my SA compact 1911 is on my hip - cocked and locked. I almost pulled it the other day when some dude appeared behind me unnanounced. He saw me reaching, his eyes got big and he apologized for "sneaking" which he really wasn't doing intentionally. The point is, ear protection sorta' puts one at a disadvantage. OTOH, so does deafness.speedsix wrote:...saw that in "The FBI Story"...learned my lesson there...always leave one loaded and pay attention...where better to steal guns???
The Annoyed Man wrote:Until the mid to late 1990s, there was a shooting area like that in the Angeles National Forest I used to go to called "Kentucky Flats." The Forest Service eventually shut it down because the twice annual cleanups were too expensive. People dragged all manner of crap out there to shoot at, and they never hauled it back out with them—old washing machines, engine blocks, bowling balls, refrigerators, what have you.
Anyway, all kinds of people would go there to shoot, some less savory than others. I would never walk down to the target area without either having someone back at the truck to cover me, or carrying my weapon (loaded) down to the target area. There were several instances of people having their guns stolen that way, although I'm unaware of anyone getting shot when their guns were stolen. Although I never witnessed it, friends of mine who owned the Hidden Springs Cafe (Amos and Jim, the owners were shooting buddies of mine) lived up there in the mountains and they told me that Sheriff's Deputies had responded on more than one occasion to calls of automatic weapons fire at Kentucky Flats. It turns out that this place was also a playground for Los Angeles area "social clubs" where they went to test out new (illegally acquired) toys.
I never ever went there alone. My buddy Amos was a retired LA Co. Deputy, and he was a pretty calm and imposing figure. He died a few years back of a terrible lung disease picked up overseas on a trip with his wife. I still miss him.
BTW, Amos was a vet too. U.S. Navy, end of WW2 through Korea. Tough old bird. I've got several "Amos Stories" that I treasure.
Funny you mention the "social clubs" thing...I saw this thread and was going to post about something I witnessed many years ago and this made me think of it...I was stationed in Northern California and there was a range in the foothills up behind the base. An unsupervised public land range. Anyway, my supervisor and I went there to shoot our 9mm pistols. When we got there, an older gentlemen was showing a small kid how to use a .22 rifle. No problem. We stayed clear of each other and notified of ceasefires. After a while, a "low-low" car showed up...four or five guys (can't remember after a decade has gone by) got out, opened the huge trunk, threw a couple of small TVs out into the shooting area, stepped back with what appeared to be Uzis, Mac-10s, something like that, and blazed away...just ripping rounds off, tearing those TVs to bits...then they hopped back into their car, and rolled out. My supervisor, the older gentleman and myself just kind of looked at each other; the little kid's eyes were like saucers they were so big...pretty scary...those dudes COULD have just tore us up with those things (which were illegal in California, EVEN IF they had the Fed paperwork, which I HIGHLY doubt)...glad I wasn't alone, for certain.The Annoyed Man wrote:Until the mid to late 1990s, there was a shooting area like that in the Angeles National Forest I used to go to called "Kentucky Flats." The Forest Service eventually shut it down because the twice annual cleanups were too expensive. People dragged all manner of crap out there to shoot at, and they never hauled it back out with them—old washing machines, engine blocks, bowling balls, refrigerators, what have you.
Anyway, all kinds of people would go there to shoot, some less savory than others. I would never walk down to the target area without either having someone back at the truck to cover me, or carrying my weapon (loaded) down to the target area. There were several instances of people having their guns stolen that way, although I'm unaware of anyone getting shot when their guns were stolen. Although I never witnessed it, friends of mine who owned the Hidden Springs Cafe (Amos and Jim, the owners were shooting buddies of mine) lived up there in the mountains and they told me that Sheriff's Deputies had responded on more than one occasion to calls of automatic weapons fire at Kentucky Flats. It turns out that this place was also a playground for Los Angeles area "social clubs" where they went to test out new (illegally acquired) toys.
I never ever went there alone. My buddy Amos was a retired LA Co. Deputy, and he was a pretty calm and imposing figure. He died a few years back of a terrible lung disease picked up overseas on a trip with his wife. I still miss him.
BTW, Amos was a vet too. U.S. Navy, end of WW2 through Korea. Tough old bird. I've got several "Amos Stories" that I treasure.
Oldgringo wrote:Yepper, although I mostly shoot my CZ 452's and my 10/22's at the range, my SA compact 1911 is on my hip - cocked and locked. I almost pulled it the other day when some dude appeared behind me unnanounced. He saw me reaching, his eyes got big and he apologized for "sneaking" which he really wasn't doing intentionally. The point is, ear protection sorta' puts one at a disadvantage. OTOH, so does deafness.speedsix wrote:...saw that in "The FBI Story"...learned my lesson there...always leave one loaded and pay attention...where better to steal guns???
Although you're concentrating on your target, you must remain aware of your surroundings at all times AND in all places.
