I just don't shoot when it's hot...

[Pima Pants]

This time of year (July) all my shooting activities cease. In the past I have gone to the desert early in the morning and left by 0800 or gone to an inside range like Caswell's in Mesa. But usually I don't want to shoot that bad unless it's just to function-fire a new carry pistol. Otherwise, I consider the shooting sports a winter activity here in the desert.

I really dislike shooting ranges, either indoor or outdoor at any time of year. My preference is to hit the desert on a winter afternoon and either sit on the tailgate of my truck and plink or wander around the beautiful desert with a .22. Sometimes I've gone out into the desert and barely fired a shot. I'm content to just sit there and watch the clouds roll by. I love being out by myself in the peace and quiet. Maybe for me, shooting is just an excuse to get away from the city. I own (mostly inherited) about 30 different firearms, including a full auto submachinegun so many of my friends think I am out shooting year around, but I'm not.

I would go up to northern Arizona but don't want to spend the whole day driving from Phoenix. I'm not a camper and don't want to be,so that's out.

I guess I'm just rambling on a Sunday night and wanted to stimulate some discussion from other desert rats. Thanks for reading this even though I know I haven't contributed anything of importance.

[El_Ron1]

I'll be shooting less for awhile too. Ranges suck except for organized training purposes. Why don't you pack some gear and spend the night in a motel in a smaller AZ town? Good to get away from the heat and see some sights. Get in a few hours of shooting too. :beer:

[Pima Pants]

Yeah, I could probably do that a couple of times during the long Arizona summers. Your suggestion made me realize that maybe I just don't like shooting as much as I used to. I have a CCW and carry daily but I might only go out once or twice a year in a feeble attempt to maintain proficiency. I've been shooting for about 40 years and as I get older, I guess I've just gotten lazy or something.

It would be too bad if a hobby I have been devoted to all of my life no longer holds the same interest. It seems like the only thing that gets me excited anymore is on the rare occasion when I find a new gun that I like and buy it. Maybe if I did more horsetrading with my guns, it might stimulate some interest. Gotta give that some thought.

Thanks for your response El Ron.

[TheVeryIdea]

I spoze after 40 years, it's not the biggest surprise that something is holding less interest for you. I'm the type of guy who, upon becoming interested in something enough to take it up as a hobby or pasttime or whatever, will immerse myself in it and it will level off after a relatively short period of time.

For being a new shooter, I tolerate the indoor ranges as best I can since my only other option is to do it outside, an unappealing option; I've been checking out different ranges but haven't made the leap to full membership. And I drove around Phoenix with my gear Sunday trying to get the motivation to motor out of town and plink in the desert, but this heat zaps that drive right out of me!

I was in Flagstaff a couple of weekends ago, and intended to head out into the forest and spend some quality time with the G17, but just the idea of driving around in the middle of nowhere hoping to find a spot that was suitable to shoot started seeming more like work and less like fun. Too bad; it was perfect weather up there.

Wow, it sounds like I'm afflicted, too. Don't be down on yourself, Pima Pants. It must be the summer doldrums. It's everywhere.

[Pima Pants]

Thanks for your thoughts TVI. I know what you mean about driving around a strange area trying to find a suitable place to shoot. Sometimes it can be very frustrating.

A good website I would like to recommend is ArizonaShooting.com. Great bunch of folks and I have had a number of questions answered there about places to shoot in Arizona. The site really gets hopping with organized/unorganized shoots when the weather cools off. I haven't attended, but a bunch of members get together a couple of times a year for barbeques and general fun shoots in the desert.

Their buy/sell/trade section is awesome because it's all face to face transactions around the Valley. I have purchased a number of great guns at superb prices on the website. Lots of local discussions about CCW, handguns, long guns, and all sorts of other stuff. If you are a new shooter in Arizona, I highly recommend joining them. It's free of course, just like GT only much more local.

[Scottsdale Thug]

I am a huge fan of spending time in the desert. The indoor ranges are ok but there is nothing like the freedom and openness of the desert. I try to shoot before they close the forests for the sumer and then get right back out as soon as they reopen.

It's been a while now and I am starting to get an itchy trigger finger. I need to get out there and have some "me time" :2gun:

I have been thinking of going up to the rim or over to Prescott. Don't know if I am gonna do some car camping or backpacking, but I do know that some sort of outdoor activity is necessary. (especially after hiding from the heat in my house all summer!!)

+1 for getting a hotel room in a small town.

My philosophy is: I can make it about halfway through the summer and then I need to get outta here for a week or two (just got back from San Diego :tongueout: but anywhere other than here is good enough) and then I can usually make it through the rest of the heat.

I'm sure once you get out there again you will realize how much you have missed it and will proceed to have a blast!!

[Pima Pants]

Great strategy, Thug. Sometimes it seems like the "halfway" point in the summer is around September 1st!

By the way, I grew up in Scottsdale and graduated from Coronado High School. The Scottsdale thugs I know now all wear suits and ties and usually have real estate licenses...

[Scottsdale Thug]

Ha ha ha ha ...yeah:rofl: :animlol: :rofl: :animlol:


Edit: Graduated from Chaparral HS

[TheVeryIdea]

Originally posted by Scottsdale Thug
I have been thinking of going up to the rim or over to Prescott...+1 for getting a hotel room in a small town.

That's a great idea, Thug. I've been looking for an excuse to get up to Heber-Overgaard and go to the Red Onion for a bacon cheeseburger and fries, then on to the White Mountains for some exploring. A hotel room in Show Low can't be too horribly expensive. :)

[El_Ron1]

Be sure to check for possible fire restrictions wherever you end up shooting. The fines can get expensive.

[360]

I know what you mean, I sure hate feeding that $15 an hour to Caswells, just for the sake of air conditioning...

[Glock_Holiday]

Originally posted by El_Ron1
Be sure to check for possible fire restrictions wherever you end up shooting. The fines can get expensive.

Also make sure your not on a reservation. You'll get more than fines. You'll be lucky if you ever see your firearms again.


Originally posted by 360
I know what you mean, I sure hate feeding that $15 an hour to Caswells, just for the sake of air conditioning...

Caswell's is $15.00 for as long as you want to shoot now. Also Caswell's is part of the employee network program.

http://www.employeenetwork.com/

If your company is part of it you get 50% off range fees and a 10% discount on most mechandise.

[TheVeryIdea]

Well, Sept. 1 is less than three weeks away, which means: Summer is almost halfway over. :burn: :animlol: I went up to Flag a couple of weeks ago -- right after the monsoon season arrived for real -- and the forests were open and moist and largely empty. And I found a random Forest Service road and followed it until I came across a little crater with a berm around it, and figured it was a sign to break out the goods and get to know my 17 all over again. Chilled air, beautiful sky, green trees all around, no one around but me...just the tonic I needed.

So, Pima Pants, is that "long drive" from Phoenix starting to look shorter now? :)

[Scottsdale Thug]

Sounds like fun....


All I need is a couple of days off and it's "Go Time"

[MB-G26]

Originally posted by Scottsdale Thug
Edit: Graduated from Chaparral HS

<----- Went double sessions to Saguaro while Chaparral was being built

[Pima Pants]

Originally posted by TheVeryIdea

So, Pima Pants, is that "long drive" from Phoenix starting to look shorter now? :) [/B]

Well, I'm waiting for a .22 cal suppressor from AZEX Firearms to arrive from the factory then I will be doing the BATFE paperwork dance for a few weeks. That should put me into the end of September; still too hot around here but a good a time as any to head up north. I also bought a Walther P-22 that I haven't shot yet because I'm waiting on the suppressor. The gun and suppressor are actually for my wife who would like to shoot but the earplugs or hearing protectors bother her. I showed her a video of the P-22 being fired with the same suppressor I'm buying and she was hooked.

The weather usually cools off enough for me to do some desert shooting sometime in November. I really think we have two seasons here: summer and a few weeks of poor swimming weather. That's about it.

[Scottsdale Thug]

Originally posted by MB-G26
<----- Went double sessions to Saguaro while Chaparral was being built

:wavey:

[AZ_Quailhunter]

Being the desertrat that I am....I really dont mind shooting in the dead of summer. I agree with most of you about the indoor ranges too.....I enjoy my freedom out in the desert too damn much to spend 15 per hour to shoot.....when for 15 in gas....I can get our west of Phoenix off of I-10 and follow all kinds of dirt roads to my favorite shooting spots. Just fun walking around and plinking with the .22 or the Glock 19. I come back feeling "refreshed" even when it is 115 out....:banana:

[Pima Pants]

The last time I went shooting was mid-June off Peralta Trail in the Superstitions. It was slightly cooler than the rest of the Valley, probably due to a little higher elevation. I spent about an hour under a Palo Verde tree shooting and drinking lots of water. Even though it was warm, it beat an indoor range anyday. Plus, I was definitely the only one out there, so it was quiet. The desert is rugged and beautiful out that way. Just 30 minutes east of my house in Mesa and I was on the dirt.

[reconvic]

Originally posted by 360
I know what you mean, I sure hate feeding that $15 an hour to Caswells, just for the sake of air conditioning...

Caswells has no air conditioning only very poor swamp coolers. Just the showroom has air. I belong there and to Scottsdale Gun club and prefer in the summer to stay at Scottsdale, Caswells get way to hot
till winter. Plus they stopped holding any matches there. I went there today and they has home fans there which made me stay only 45 mins.:upeyes: