Mrs. Peel

A good article on the changing demographics of gun ownership, with plenty of interesting data points: The changing face of gun ownership (msn.com)

I hate to see the activist groups mentioned getting an even stronger foothold in the White House.

@1LtCAP - fyi, moved it to "concealed carry" forum - no need to have topics like this in 1A (where they'll actually get fewer eyes).

@MLArmory - Pls see the pinned instructions about listing items for sale, and update both of your recently posted ads with the required wording. We put those rules in place some time ago just to ensure transparency and fairness in the process! Thx so much and good luck with your items!

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN The Annual Take A Kid Pheasant Hunt is Coming! This year's Take a Kid Hunting Pheasant Hunt will take place on Saturday, November 4. Properly licensed and supervised youth hunters have the opportunity to hunt one of ten (10) Wildlife Management Areas (WMA) stocked specifically for this program. The required Registration is now open for the eight (8) guided morning hunts. When registration reaches capacity for each WMA, it will no longer appear on the online registration form. Registration closes October 15. Late registrations will not be accepted. Priority will be given to first time participants and we encourage youth who have never had the opportunity to upland hunt to take advantage of this program! Walk-in participants WILL NOT be accepted, so please register as soon as possible to guarantee your spot. Youth hunters who do not register for the guided morning hunt can still participate November 4 and November 6-10 on any of the 10 WMAs stocked for the Take a Kid Pheasant Hunting program. Youth hunters must be properly licensed and accompanied by a properly licensed mentor. If you have any questions, please contact staff at [email protected]. Questions? Contact Us SUBSCRIBER SERVICES: Manage Preferences | Unsubscribe | Help This email was sent to [email protected] using GovDelivery Communications Cloud on behalf of: New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection · 401 E. State St. · Trenton, NJ 08625

Yeah, I would never consider a roof rack... I lack the strength to be hoisting something to that height. I was considering the hitch mount racks. Yikes! A ton of really useful info so far. Thanks, everyone!

For a while now, and for a multitude of reasons & potential purposes (including a shooting-adjacent reason), I've been noodling on getting a new bike. I'm not at all close to a decision yet, but I do see myself getting something hopefully within the next year. I have an old Huffy that I recently pulled out of my walkout basement (hadn't ridden it in years) just to test it out... but as I suspected, I swiftly confirmed: "Damn, I can't ride this thing anymore!" Among other issues, it just felt waaaay too tall for me... too difficult to negotiate with my (now) very bad knees... and frankly, riding it felt very much like a disaster-in-waiting! (For the record, I'm not a graceful athletic type, to say the least, lol...so I was not surprised by this rather sorry conclusion). I had even looked at recumbent bikes not long ago (easy to ride, easy on the joints), but the problem there is they are just too large and cumbersome. Ideally, I'm looking for a bike that's small and transportable - that I can get either into my car (by folding?) or onto my car (using an installed rack?). And I must say, I'm increasingly attracted to the idea of an e-bike. If I'm peddling around, far from my house or car, and a knee suddenly starts to act up, for instance... well, sheesh, it's nice to think I could just hit that throttle and "buzz" right back to wherever I need to be. They seem to be the best of both worlds.... peddling around when you want to, but also power assist when you want that. Most recently, I am eyeballing the shorter "step-through" e-bikes with 20-inch "fat" tires, and I'm very intrigued by some of the folding ones. NJGF is a big enough audience that I figure someone out there might have some interesting knowledge/insights on the following issues.... My questions are: Tech (of any kind) is one of the rare categories that often DROPS in price over time (think: calculators, laptops, etc.) I'm wondering if a purchasing delay would be on my side? What's your best guess? Do you think these e-bikes are going to get cheaper or more expensive over time? Also, is there a best season to buy? I do worry about the ones that have caught fire (big discussion on electric vehicles in general in the 1A Lounge, and I know that's a problem, albeit a rare one). It may be rare, but when consequences are potentially catastrophic, one does need to consider! I don't have a garage, so would either need to store in an outdoor storage cabinet - or - in my walkout basement. Any firemen out there with recommendations? Do we know if those fires happened spontaneously when the bike was just sitting there? Or only when it was being charged? How to mitigate? Charge the battery outside, away from the house with an extension cord? Store the whole bike outside in a cabinet? Or pull it into the basement but remove the battery and store THAT inside a fireproof container? (or perhaps wrapped in welding fabric)? Other thoughts/ideas? Are there known brands out there that are considered better than others? The brand names I'm seeing mean nothing to me yet. I've never had a rack of any type on my car (2000 Audi A4)... is it safer (in terms of theft) to have a folding model INSIDE the car and out of sight? Or do those racks with appropriate locks dissuade most bike thieves? Any other thoughts/suggestions? Any input is much appreciated! These are costly items... I really want to do my due diligence and make a sound purchase whenever I'm ready.

Attention All NJ Deer Hunters! NJ Fish & Wildlife will be hosting three Deer Hunter Forums to discuss preliminary proposals on simplifying NJ’s deer hunting regulations. Please attend to discuss ideas on how to make deer hunting regulations less complicated and less expensive. Your feedback is crucial to keep deer hunting a treasured tradition and valuable wildlife management tool in the Garden State! The Forums will take place at the following locations: North – September 7, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Pequest Trout Hatchery – 605 Pequest Rd., Oxford, NJ Central – September 28, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. Rutgers EcoComplex – 1200 Florence Columbus Rd., Bordentown, NJ South – October 5, 2023 at 6:30, p.m. Batsto Village State Park Visitor’s Center – 31 Batsto Rd., Hammonton, NJ See you there! Questions? Contact Us

Zero knowledge of building a range - but I have other related experience, like 1) a decade or so of planning board experience, 2) observations from watching my former PA range's plans to add a longer rifle range quickly fall apart (due to environmental concerns) AND 3) being on the board of a non-profit that has successfully blocked warehousing in my area for years by raising publicity and engaging various experts to slow the developers down, etc. Since you're in construction, you may have already anticipated this... but since you posed the question, my advice would be to first find yourself a very reputable environmental engineering firm/consultant in your area, with deep NJ DEP regulatory knowledge, to confer with right from the get-go, even as you're looking at potential properties. You would engage them to scrutinize any potential lots and, among other things, do an in-depth search for any previous mapping/surveys/studies at Fed/state/county levels. You don't want to buy a piece of property and THEN find out there's some issue with the land already identified, but buried in a county office somewhere (e.g., a tiny patch of wetlands that was identified years earlier... or a small - even intermittent - tributary that flows into another waterway deemed "sensitive"... or the lot is part of an area previously identified as a breeding site for some protected animal species... or any number of other environmental issues). The lead contanimation that occurs at a range could certainly be raised as an issue, but particularly if any number of those special conditions just mentioned (or others) exist on the property... and that could throw a total wrench into your plans. Likewise, someone with environmental engineering expertise would also have at least an awareness of any new related environmental laws coming on to the scene. I personally think you need an expert intimately familiar with all of those issues who can raise those flags before you plunk down any money on property. You also want that person/firm to be experienced enough that they know the NJ DEP folks on a first name basis, too, so they can then grease the wheels AFTER the lot purchase. (That does not come cheap btw!) You might be thinking "but this area is so gun-friendly, that sounds like overkill" - but remember, all you need is for one or two determined objectors to catch wind of your plans, start some grassroots PR and fundraising, and then hire their own experts, file a lawsuit, and believe me, they could tie your plans up for AGES... and you'd be left sitting on a bought-and-paid-for piece of property that you can't even do anything with! And in NJ, it is most likely the environmental issues that they would leverage to tie you up in knots. My impression is that even deep South Jersey has changed in recent years post-Covid, with an influx of new people from more northern areas - I think you can assume those folks might carry some anti-gun sentiments, too. So yeah, you COULD run into objectors, even for a relatively small range in an otherwise gun-friendly area. Better to anticipate and clear any hurdles as best you can in advance IMO.

I've never believed that more gun control laws actually CAUSE a reduction in the horrible, mass shootings that seize such media attention. I just don't think the evidence is there to show that. I think OTHER types of actions (like organized programs that pluck kids out of gang life) can save lives... but not gun control laws per se. As I recall, even the CDC study commissioned by then-President Obama showed no clear pattern between the assault weapons ban, for instance, and a reduction in shootings. More recently, yet another study, this one by JAMA, again shows no correlation between gun control and mass shootings. Here's an article on AmmoLand (with link to the study): Mass Shootings Have ‘No Correlation to Gun Laws,’ says Report (ammoland.com) And if you prefer viewing rather than reading, here's a good video with a synopsis of the study by the Washington Gun Law channel: Do Gun Laws Really Save Lives? A Real Look at the Numbers. - YouTube

Watch this... enjoy!

Hey, Perryvlle is my PD! In years past, I would ring the bell and get buzzed in by a trooper at the front desk (and there was ALWAYS a trooper at the front desk). Then, when I went again in more recent years, I was waiting for several minutes... before someone (I guess from another part of the building) finally came to the front desk to buzz me in.... leaving the impression that the front desk might not always be manned anymore (but there's still someone in the building to respond to visitors, because I'm sure the camera and buzzer go into different areas). Interactions btw have also been consistently courteous and professional. I'm curious, did your friend ring the bell and wait for a response? I know some local police stations have moved to an unmanned status at different points of the day out of necessity (due to understaffing)... (happened in my prior town), but I'd be genuinely shocked if that was the case with a state police barracks alongside a major interstate! Yikes! I mean, I've read many times over the years that a common security rule is: if you believe a car is following you late at night, do NOT drive home... drive to the nearest police station instead. Well, sheesh... that advice doesn't really hold much water anymore, does it, if the police station is unmanned or even slow to respond to someone at their front door? So, I really hope your friend is wrong about Perryville! But I'm going to ask around locally and see what I can find out & I will report back if I learn something... because frankly, I'm now very curious about this myself, for all kinds of reasons.

Tex! Yes, too soon.

NJ Fish & Wildlife’s R3 Program is happy to be partnering with members of the Wallkill River Ducks Unlimited Chapter and the Wallkill River National Wildlife Refuge for a waterfowl hunting workshop on August 26. The program is open to new or inexperienced hunters as well as those who may be interested in getting back into waterfowl hunting and will include an in-depth mixture of classroom and field demonstrations. This FREE workshop will be held on Saturday, August 26 from 8:30 am to 4:00 pm at the Wallkill River NWR in Sussex County. Registration is limited to 50 people. Here's link with more info and to register: Wallkill River Ducks Unlimited Chapter Waterfowl Hunting Workshop (nj.gov)

Isn't it sad when your new laws are so egregious, that even people on the other coast are making videos about them? Meanwhile, actual criminals don't need to post bail and are put right back on the street. Disgusting!