DocHeb
Veteran Member
I'm trying to fit in and develop a more "rural" attitude, but sometimes I need to know if my expectations are inappropriate. Here's an example:
We purchased 20 acres and built our "farm". There is a 1 acre split out of one corner of our property that has a small house where a young couple lives. We've met and talked a couple times. At 10:00am Sunday, we're inside and I hear a loud "boom", the windows shake, and I'm convinced my new tractor blew up outside. I run out, only to hear another "boom" from my neighbor's house. As it turns out, he's firing a high powered rifle into a target on a hay bale on our common property line. This is no 22 cal - I don't know guns, but this is a BIG bolt action rifle with a scope. This goes on for 70 - 80 shots over the next hour. My 11 year old daughter locks herself in her bedroom. My wife wants to call the police. The downfield trajectory of this firing position bisects my property, running about 100 feet east of my house. This means I'm pinned down, unless I'm willing to accept this guy's feeling that he would never miss, there will never be a ricochet, and a hay bale is an adequate backstop for rifle fire. I talk to other neighbors - they state he does this "all the time" and is a "gunsmith". They shake their head when they say this. I'm a little worried about getting on the wrong side of the "gunsmith", especially since we're not in the house on a full time basis, and he has a gun. What is the proper "rural living" approach to this situation?
We purchased 20 acres and built our "farm". There is a 1 acre split out of one corner of our property that has a small house where a young couple lives. We've met and talked a couple times. At 10:00am Sunday, we're inside and I hear a loud "boom", the windows shake, and I'm convinced my new tractor blew up outside. I run out, only to hear another "boom" from my neighbor's house. As it turns out, he's firing a high powered rifle into a target on a hay bale on our common property line. This is no 22 cal - I don't know guns, but this is a BIG bolt action rifle with a scope. This goes on for 70 - 80 shots over the next hour. My 11 year old daughter locks herself in her bedroom. My wife wants to call the police. The downfield trajectory of this firing position bisects my property, running about 100 feet east of my house. This means I'm pinned down, unless I'm willing to accept this guy's feeling that he would never miss, there will never be a ricochet, and a hay bale is an adequate backstop for rifle fire. I talk to other neighbors - they state he does this "all the time" and is a "gunsmith". They shake their head when they say this. I'm a little worried about getting on the wrong side of the "gunsmith", especially since we're not in the house on a full time basis, and he has a gun. What is the proper "rural living" approach to this situation?