I agree with Stan. I shared this article all over social media today. Very happy to read responsible reporting as I shoot at Continental as well. Sad and wish he would not have chosen to take his life and esp. in a place where people are shooting.

+1. This is correct.

I was at the range three hours before this happens. Kind of creepy.

Wife and I were in there when it happened. Unreal.

@scott morton - how long did the police keep you around interviewing you?

Stop preaching.

Prayer might help but a diazapam drip goes a long way.....

newsflash: your god is not everyone's preferred deity.

But everyone is a child of God.

i can see you haven't been to Freestate. i recommend it. i stopped going to Continental when Freestate opened and haven't looked back.

Hi!

I've been to Freestate several times. It's nice, but I like Continental better. I shoot frequently but usually wrap up in ~30 minutes, so the inability to get < 1 hour of range time kind of sucks. And their ammo prices are higher.

I admit it took some time to get to know the CA folks, but now that I have... I really like it there.

Oh, I do wish CA had FS' target lines. It's nice being able to tell it how far to go with the single touch of a button ;-)

i guess i've just had way too many bad experiences at Continental. PS: if you join, you don't pay range fees. :P and who's buying by the box, anyway? buy in bulk online, save money! or start reloading...

Laura, point me to where I can buy some ammo online on the cheap, and I'll be on that as fast as I can click the link :-P

SG ammo has had it on occasion lately. it pays to keep shopping the websites, really.

I've been looking, but pretty much striking out. Everything seems to be OOS. I'll take a look at SG ammo; thanks for the rec!

SG actually has real-time updated inventory, while the other sites i've used (Natchez, Cabelas) generally allow backorders.

Wasn't until my second visit to Continental that I realized the staff wasn't just "having a bad day" my first time there. I'll never be back. Being condescending idiots isn't the way to attract repeat business. I'd drive to PA before going back.

Tom: I felt the same way the first couple times I went in. However, I then thought about all the stupid crap they must have to deal with on a regular basis and decided I'd probably be cynical about newcomers too. After I had three or four trips under my belt and they trusted I knew how to operate a firearm, it was much nicer.

Lots of people embellish their "experience" with firearms. Being nice is definitely second to keeping the range safe. I had an enlightening experience at a range northeast of here; the RO looked on as this guy *repeatedly* did a muzzle sweep of the range (and it was busy!) with his shotgun. I packed up my crap and left. If the RO isn't going to say something, I'm not gonna be the victim of a ND.

Gail Talbott - maybe you could split orders of components with other reloaders?

I don't think WJZ's spiking of the story had anything to do with a fear it would create a risk of copycat behavior. Broadcast newsrooms do not make decisions on that basis.

For what it's worth, every range that has been in business for a while has had at least one suicide. What some people have criticized here as a negative attitude from the staff at this place is VIGILANCE. You work in a gun shop or range, and you have a responsibility to watch and evaluate everyone within sight, all the time. Even people who are well known.

I am less likely to shoot at a public range where people are all warm and fuzzy. This is not "fun," folks--it's dead serious stuff, and if you don't think of it that way, I hope you're not on the firing line when I am, because I don't want you endangering me by having so much fun you aren't paying attention. I have seen it, especially with groups of people. In fact, I have left the range and reported it to the RO on occasion.

I am at a loss as to how being unapproachable improves the safety of your customers. If anything, having newbies be comfortable to ask which end of the gun the bullet comes out should be rule number one for a range employee. Then, for people such as this guy, maybe if they actually engaged their customers in a five second "how about those Ravens" conversation maybe they would have spotted that the guy was having a REALLY bad day. I am NOT saying it would have helped in this situation, but if part of their duty is to somehow size-up their customers for everyone's protection, then I do not know how they do that by never engaging them.

When I am at the range, all my attention is focused on that area downrange of the muzzle. Unless I am coaching someone, in which case all my attention is focused on that shooter and his/her movements.

I would not risk injury by shooting the breeze around moving machinery, and it's just the same principle. You're dealing with an implement that can cause injury if it's handled carelessly. Maybe you'd like to meet my cousin, who lost his left index finger in a chop saw, because he wasn't paying attention...

Stan- The police had plenty of video evidence to determine what happened so we were not formally interviewed. As far as the staff goes, we found them very friendly and helpful. Wife and I were in there for the first time to check the place out and had just walked away from the lines when it happened. First time at a pistol range for her so it goes without saying she is still freaked out.

Scott, I'm glad to know that the police did not make matters worse for you, and especially your wife, by doing a lot of interviewing. Please be patient with her, and try to help her understand that something like this is an extremely rare occurrence.

Every public range that has been in business for a few years has seen at least one suicide. From what I was told this morning, this guy was considerate enough to have waited until nobody else was on the firing line before killing himself.

But you cannot control anyone but yourself: maintain situational awareness, stay in control of your temper and actions, try to act with a bit of dignity and maturity, be as considerate of others as possible. Trouble will still find you. When it does, you deal with it, put it behind you as quickly as possible and stay the course.

Apparently the range was not crowded on the night of the suicide, and the guy had the decency to wait until no one else was at the firing line.

I could have been worse. Which is why I don't understand the people who have complained here that the CA people were not sufficiently friendly and touchy-feely for their taste. I want the employees, especially the range safety officer, to be dead serious, and paying full attention.

There's one RSO there who is a long time IPSC competitor, and he does not let anything get past him, especially in the matter of people getting sloppy about muzzle control. I am always glad to see him on the job. The other guy who probably rubs people the wrong way is that 70-ish man with the Italian surname. This man is retired from the Coast Guard, has been in a lot of tough scrapes, and is not someone you want to displease. But I have never known him to be nasty, just extremely direct. It took me about six months of regular shooting there to earn his respect, and now that I have assisted in a couple of classes that he has taught, I have a good feel for the kind of foolishness these people have to tolerate every single day. And, after all, this ain't tiddlywinks; it's a sport that involves deadly weapons.

LOL Stan you are replying to a person who has been banned from Patch multiple times. You might remember him as BO or Kongo.

That's your idea of responsible? That's funny.