HorizontalHunter
NES Member
First a little background is in order: I was a member of the Westfield Sportsman's Club for many years and I left the Westfield club after new range rules were instituted in the wake of the tragic accident at the machine gun shoot. These new range rules restricted the use of handguns to those 21 years old and older and long guns to those 18 years of age and older unless the shooter had his or her own FID card.
At the end of last year I joined the Chicopee Sportsman's club and as of July 2010 all members must complete a range safety class. I attended that class this morning and it was basically a review of range safety, etiquette, and basic club guidelines. But one of the things that was said is that the board of directors is currently meeting with the clubs attorneys and there are new range rules coming regarding age limits on the shooting ranges. The new rules are expected to mimic the rules at the Westfield club restricting the use of handguns to those 21 years old and older and long guns to those 18 or 15 years of age(they were not sure on the age limit yet) and older unless the shooter had his or her own FID card. My impression the the 21 years of age for a handgun was pretty much a done deal as the director of the club stated that you have to have an LTC to even look at a handgun is a store in Massachusetts.
This is directly from the officers of the club that were running the training session and is not second hand information. I made my feelings clear in the training session as this is the sole reason I left the Westfield Club and joined the Chicopee club and if these age restrictions come to pass at the Chicopee Club I will once again be looking for another club when my membership expires.
I really believe that if don't introduce our children to the shooting sports before the ages of 15, 18, or 21 most of them will be lost to the sport forever. If all clubs follow this new trend the shooting sports that we all enjoy now will gradually disappear.
If you belong to the Chicopee Sportsman's Club and feel as strongly about this as I do you might consider writing a letter to the board of directors and let them know how you feel about these changes that are on the horizon.
Bob
http://www.chicopeesportsmensclub.com/clubnews.asp
At the end of last year I joined the Chicopee Sportsman's club and as of July 2010 all members must complete a range safety class. I attended that class this morning and it was basically a review of range safety, etiquette, and basic club guidelines. But one of the things that was said is that the board of directors is currently meeting with the clubs attorneys and there are new range rules coming regarding age limits on the shooting ranges. The new rules are expected to mimic the rules at the Westfield club restricting the use of handguns to those 21 years old and older and long guns to those 18 or 15 years of age(they were not sure on the age limit yet) and older unless the shooter had his or her own FID card. My impression the the 21 years of age for a handgun was pretty much a done deal as the director of the club stated that you have to have an LTC to even look at a handgun is a store in Massachusetts.
This is directly from the officers of the club that were running the training session and is not second hand information. I made my feelings clear in the training session as this is the sole reason I left the Westfield Club and joined the Chicopee club and if these age restrictions come to pass at the Chicopee Club I will once again be looking for another club when my membership expires.
I really believe that if don't introduce our children to the shooting sports before the ages of 15, 18, or 21 most of them will be lost to the sport forever. If all clubs follow this new trend the shooting sports that we all enjoy now will gradually disappear.
If you belong to the Chicopee Sportsman's Club and feel as strongly about this as I do you might consider writing a letter to the board of directors and let them know how you feel about these changes that are on the horizon.
Bob
http://www.chicopeesportsmensclub.com/clubnews.asp