You must be really hurting their profit margin Jim.
I think we may be.
Don't they even realize that newcomers you train there are likely to continue visiting? :banghead: :banghead:
Yes, I tried to explain that (among other things) to their GM today. He was neither interested, nor amused.
The headbanging picture is quite appropriate here....
For a few weeks now, when I've gone over there to train someone, either other shooters or, are ya ready? - their own Range Safety Officers - ask me for business cards. Its somewhat distracting to my students, and I don't like handing cards out on the line out of respect for their business. Now, many of you know my vehicle and the company signage that is all over it. We have ALWAYS had a business card dispenser on the back of the truck, but sometimes the cards get wet in the rain. I started sticking a few cards (2-3) in the window so that people could take them on their own without interrupting my training. I've noticed a few times that all of the cards were gone when I got back to my truck. Well, some of their employees have apparently been taking my cards and trashing them. I was even accused of putting my cards under the windshield wipers of other cars in the parking lot (never happened).
Here's the best one yet - they accused me of purposely parking close to the door so that people would see my truck. Now, let me ask you guys. You pull into a place and there's a parking space somewhere near the entrance; do you
A) Take the parking space closest to the door?
B) Drive to the farthest reaches of the parking lot and take a space in no man's land?
I chose option A (which sometimes was 8 spaces down the row) - CSA had a problem with that.
Now, I'm also a member of a shooting group that meets at the range once in a while. Some of the group's members have taken a number of classes with us. One night, the group had a range evening planned. I didn't have anything else going on, so I offered to "work" the firing line for free and offer some free training and tips to the group - CSA had a problem with that.
A woman's shooting group asked me to come to CSA to be a guest speaker at their monthly meeting. My appearance got cancelled because....CSA had a problem with that.
CSA sent their director of training to Utah to get certified to teach the Utah class. 2 months later, he quit and took his certification with him. I sent CSA an email offering my help until they got someone else to teach it - CSA never responded to my email.
No less than 3 CSA employees have asked me for a job with my company. One of them even handed me his instructor business card which he apparently gives to range users to take his training classes outside of CSA.
When we started using the range, I gave them a copy of our liability insurance. Last week, they asked for it again. Apparently, they "lost it". I'm sure they were testing me to see if we had insurance.
Sounds like there's trouble in paradise. Too bad they're looking to blame the wrong people for their troubles.