Newsletter

To all Chippewa Rifle Club Members:

It has been brought to the attention of the Executive Board that some individuals are not following the correct procedures when they want to go down range to retrieve targets or flags etc.  You should not be hitting the horn, immediately turning on the red safety lights and walking out on the range. This is a safety problem.  Please review the correct procedure below. The new Open Range rules approved by the members in attendance of the general meeting which will become effective in the 2024 season.  Match safety rules will be consistent with the open range rules but with more structured control by designated Range/Safety Officers.

When a cease fire/range cold condition is requested by a member, the following will be the required general procedure:

  1. The member requesting the cease fire must communicate with the other individuals at the range that a cease fire is wanted.
  2. All rifles are then made safe by removal of bolts.
  3. An orange cone will then be placed on a designated location on the bench of all individuals currently using the range facilities. Orange cones will be provided by the Club for ALL benches so that this requirement can be easily met.
  4. Those individuals needing to clean their equipment may then pick up their rifles and move to one of the tables behind the firing line in order to clean, otherwise shooters will no longer be able to handle or touch their rifles.
  5. A new “Cease Fire Line” will be painted on the concrete just behind the benches. Everyone will be required to stand behind the “Cease Fire Line” while individuals are down range.
  6. The person(s) requesting the cease fire will then blast the range horn (3) times so that everyone can hear the cease fire request.
  7. The “Range Cold” red warning lights are then activated.
  8. The person(s) requesting the cease fire will then loudly announce that the “Range is Cold”.

Only after the preceding items are completed will the range be officially cold, and person(s) are allowed down range. In order to make the range “Hot” again, the reverse of the above steps are basically performed. The steps will be listed below for completeness:

  1. The person(s) who requested the cease fire shall visually verify that the range is all clear of people.
  2. Once verified, the “Range Cold” warning lights are turned off.
  3. The range horn is blown (3) times to indicate that the range is now going “hot”.
  4. The other members currently at the range will now be able to approach their respective bench, past the “Cease Fire Line”, and must now remove the orange cones from their respective benches, indicating that they are ready for the range to go “hot”.
  5. After the orange cones are removed from the benches, shooters can bring their rifles back onto the benches, if needed, with bolts still removed.
  6. The person(s) who requested the cease fire will then loudly announce that the “Range is Hot”.

Only after the “Range is Hot” command is announced can bolts be placed back into rifles. For those individuals who need to set wind flags for practice, the following provides the general “Range is Cold” procedure specifically for setting flags, as follows:

  1. The member requesting the cease fire must communicate with the other individuals at the range that a cease fire is wanted.
  2. All rifles are then made safe by removal of bolts.
  3. An orange cone will then be placed on a designated location on the bench of all individuals currently using the range facilities. Orange cones will be provided by the Club for ALL benches so that this requirement can be easily met.
  4. Those individuals needing to clean their equipment may then pick up their rifles and move to one of the tables behind the firing line in order to clean, otherwise shooters will no longer be able to handle or touch their rifles.
  5. A new “Cease Fire Line” will be painted on the concrete just behind the benches. Everyone will be required to stand behind the “Cease Fire Line” while individuals are down range.
  6. The person(s) requesting the cease fire will then blast the range horn (3) times so that everyone can hear the cease fire request.
  7. The “Range Cold” red warning lights are then activated.
  8. The person(s) requesting the cease fire will then loudly announce that the “Range is Cold”.
  9. For those individuals setting wind flags, they must approach a “designated range officer” and notify that person that wind flags will be set during the cease fire. This allows person(s) to sit at the bench to utilize the rifle’s telescopic sight to set the appropriate flags position and height. The requirement of rifle bolts removed and orange cone on the bench still applies. Everyone currently at the range should act as “range officer” as applied to range safety while flag setting activities are underway. 10. Upon completion of setting wind flags, the person setting the flags indicates to the “range officer” that he/she is completed, and moves behind the “cease fire” line if others are still down range.

No change required for making the range “Hot”, as already described.

                                                                  ATTENTION MEMBERS 

If there is anyone using the Chippewa range who is not a member when you arrive, please call the sheriff on that person for trespassing. The number for the County Sheriff is posted on the pavilion walls in various locations. Also, one of our members is a County Sheriff. Thank you.

Range Rules for Addition of 50/100 Yard New Shooting Points
The purpose of this addition is to ensure the safety and communication from one end of the range to the other. With the added distance and separation between the main set of benches and the new benches we have implemented the following new features.
Safety lights are on all shooting points and new switches have been installed at benches 10, 30, the scorer’s table, and on the new shooting pavilion. They have been wired so that all lights can be turned off and on at all the locations of the switches. Four new horn buzzers have been installed and are to be used to alert shooters of a cease fire and to gain the attention of all shooters regardless of shooting position. There are four push buttons that will sound the horns in the same location as safety light switches. For a standard target change a short blast of the buzzer should notify the line that someone needs to change or remove equipment from the range. When this takes place, please permit the shooters to finish a group or series of shots. A visual check and communication that the line is safe must happen before proceeding down range. An emergency cease fire should be signaled by a 5-10 second continuous sounding of the buzzer. If this should happen, all shooters will make their equipment safe and announce to all present that condition. Emergency cease fire will exist if someone appears out of the woods onto the range or other severe breach of safety. The last change to range procedures will be that no rim fire cartridges are to be fired on the main range at the 100 yard targets. This is necessary due to the evidence that many impacts on the ground appear between 150 and the 200 yard berms. Please restrict 100 yard shooting with ALL rim fire cartridges to the new range area. When shooting a rim fire at 200 yards please make the estimated sight adjustments before firing the first shot to avoid having a bullet from landing short of its target.
The main purpose of these rules is to protect you, the members, and the club from an accident. Your cooperation is needed and expected.

The Executive Board of Chippewa Rifle Club 7/23/15