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OC in the Lynchburg Area?

lima

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First, I'm a woman, licenced to carry concealed for a little over two years now (since I turned 21) and an NRA certified instructor... oh... and pregnant.

I've carried with almost 100% commitment since I got my permit but always concealed (except a very few short times).

IWB was my favorite method of concealment but I've found that with this little one making everything I own uncomfortable IWB just isn't possible anymore. I've carried in my purse a couple times but I HATE IT. I can't stand putting my purse down and not having control of my gun.

But with my clothes getting tighter and tighter concealed carry just isn't working out like it used to. It's becoming harder and harder to conceal.

I've open carried to gun shows in Roanoke and from the car to a store and back and very small instances like such but never all day (mostly because my work won't allow carry). But I'm thinking that as the summer progresses and so does my pregnancy, OC is going to become a more and more regular thing.

I'm new to Virginia. My husband and I have only been here since September of '07 and while I've OC to restaurants that serve alcohol I have no other experience with the places and people down here.

I know a couple people have told me that Wal Mart is a no-go. They will ask you to leave if they see you OCing. But are there any other places that are either anti or pro so that I can plan my shopping accordingly?

With my little one I LOATH the thought of being unarmed and unable to defend the both of us so if a place will not allow my carrying then I will GLADLY take my business elsewhere as long as I can defend myself and my baby. I'd just like a heads up so I don't waste my time on places that are going to cause me more trouble than it's worth.

Any suggestions?
 

vbnative73

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I OC at Food Lion almost daily. I've got 12-month old twin boys and my wife is always sending me there for something. Nobody has ever said a word to me about it, not even :what:. No response one way or the other while OCingat BJ's either.
 

WhatTimeIsIt?

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I've open carried almost everywhere I've gone for the past year, never had any problems. Been to several Wal-Marts and never been asked to leave. I've never been asked to leave anywhere as a matter of fact. While this has mostly been in the Hampton Roads area, I doubt you will encounter many problems anywhere in the State.

Edit: Oh yeah, and I don't have a government permission slip.
 

Neplusultra

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A pregnant woman with a gun? :) I seriously doubt you'll have any problems at all. It's not like you rode up on a harley, wear studed leather and have tattoos all over. At least I hope it's not..... :) (edit: forgot the smiley)

I wouldn't worry about it. One thing I would suggest is getting a retention holster for your gun. When you OC you are advertising that you have a gun and anyone wanting to take it will have surprise on his side.
 

lima

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Neplusultra wrote:
A pregnant woman with a gun? :) I seriously doubt you'll have any problems at all. It's not like you rode up on a harley, wear studed leather and have tattoos all over. At least I hope it's not..... :) (edit: forgot the smiley)

I wouldn't worry about it.
LOL, No, no tattoos. No leather (except my holsters and belt), definately no motorcycle and my gun has pink grips. I drive an SUV and look more like little red riding hood than a biker chick.

As far as a retention holster is concerned, that's not a bad idea. Though all of my holsters are top quality and can only be drawn from properly or not at all (as they naturally have very wonderful retention by their design) a retention holster probably wouldn't be a bad idea.

I usually carry a fixed Ka-Bar TDI weak side for retention (and a backup means of defense) (along with my spare mag) and have done retention drills and training but it's not a bad idea to take it a step further if needed. Gaaahhh.. I thought I finally had a respectable enough holster drawer that I didn't need another one.
 

xd.40

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We need to have a "young persons" OC gathering... (No offense to the "old(er)" ones out there... :lol: Like, 18-30ish? (obviously, anyone would be invited, but trying to draw a younger crowd into knowing about their rights, just as Amateur Radio Operators do from time to time.) It's to bring fresh people into the circle. Good idea or not?

Edit: I'm a dummy and don't know how to use punctuation.
 

Neplusultra

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xd.40 wrote:
We need to have a "young persons" OC gathering... (No offense to the "old(er)" ones out there... :lol: Like, 18-30ish? (obviously, anyone would be invited, but trying to draw a younger crowd into knowing about their rights, just as Amateur Radio Operators do from time to time.) It's to bring fresh people into the circle. Good idea or not?

Edit: I'm a dummy and don't know how to use punctuation.

Sounds like a good idea but at $3.50/gal I'm a little out of range here in Pearisburg.
 

Citizen

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xd.40 wrote:
SNIP We need to have a "young persons" OC gathering... (No offense to the "old(er)" ones out there... :lol: Like, 18-30ish?
Too late. Way, way too late. :)

That sort of thing needs to be posted BEFORE the comment, not parenthetically after the comment. :)
 

lima

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xd.40 wrote:
We need to have a "young persons" OC gathering... (No offense to the "old(er)" ones out there... :lol: Like, 18-30ish? (obviously, anyone would be invited, but trying to draw a younger crowd into knowing about their rights, just as Amateur Radio Operators do from time to time.) It's to bring fresh people into the circle. Good idea or not?

Edit: I'm a dummy and don't know how to use punctuation.
That would be fun. It would be nice to get to know other people from the area. I'm looking at the towns mentioned in other posts and looking at profile locations and I have NO idea where 99.9% of these places are. For all I know you could live across the street and I have no idea.

If it isn't Lynchburg, Roanoke, Bedford, or Appomatix I don't know where it is.
 

xd.40

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Neplusultra wrote:
xd.40 wrote:
We need to have a "young persons" OC gathering... (No offense to the "old(er)" ones out there... :lol: Like, 18-30ish? (obviously, anyone would be invited, but trying to draw a younger crowd into knowing about their rights, just as Amateur Radio Operators do from time to time.) It's to bring fresh people into the circle. Good idea or not?

Edit: I'm a dummy and don't know how to use punctuation.

Sounds like a good idea but at $3.50/gal I'm a little out of range here in Pearisburg.
You know, I didn't even think about that. I wouldn't even know where to have one that is centrally located for everyone.
 

Citizen

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Oops. Deleted because I realized I was teasing someone about the geography when they had only been in the area about 7-8 months.
 

occva

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I am also in Lynchburg (Forest). I have not had any big problems in the area. The bakery lady at food lion asked me for my permit about a year ago. I explained that I did not need one and now she just waves at me. Have been in Wal-Mart and Sams many times and never asked to leave. Chic-fil-a on Wards road usually gives a discount if they notice my gun. I guess they assume that I am law enforcement. Also at chic-fil-a there is a cop there 9 out of 10 times and never a word.

Biggest bummer about Lynchburg is the lack of shooting locations!!
 

lima

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occva wrote:
I am also in Lynchburg (Forest). I have not had any big problems in the area. The bakery lady at food lion asked me for my permit about a year ago. I explained that I did not need one and now she just waves at me. Have been in Wal-Mart and Sams many times and never asked to leave. Chic-fil-a on Wards road usually gives a discount if they notice my gun. I guess they assume that I am law enforcement. Also at chic-fil-a there is a cop there 9 out of 10 times and never a word.

Biggest bummer about Lynchburg is the lack of shooting locations!!
You're not kidding. It is horrible around here. No place to go shooting which stinks.

I'm so happy. I actually knew where Forest was!

It's good to know about the Chic-fil-a because with all this morning sickness one thing I learned I could eat is chicken nuggets. McDonalds has been getting a lot of my business. But Chic-fil-a's nuggets are better. Also good to know about Food Lion though I usually do my grocery shopping at a Kroger near our home. Haven't tried OCing there but maybe someday.

That's odd about WalMart though. I had two seperate people tell me they will never go back to WalMart because they were asked to leave by security after open carrying. This was in the last three months too. I guess it depends on whether anyone complains or not.
 

Citizen

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lima wrote:
SNIP That's odd about WalMart though. I had two seperate people tell me they will never go back to WalMart because they were asked to leave by security after open carrying. This was in the last three months too. I guess it depends on whether anyone complains or not.

Just call corporate and ask them to send word down to the store that WalMart policy is to allow what is allowed by the laws of the in which the store is located.
 

asforme

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Mar 27, 2008
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I live in Lynchburg with my wife and 1 month old and I OC everywhere I go except work. I OC in Wal-Mart twice a week or more and have only heard positive comments. I also suspect I have been getting the law enforcement discount at Sheets. Several people I work with also OC regularly and the only place anyone has ever had a problem with is Macadoos, and you can search the forum for how that was resolved.

I've even OC'd at the best start parenting center in Forest. I think we have it pretty good in Lynchburg. BTW since we're seeing more people on the board close by I think a meetup should be in the works.

Also about shooting in Lynchburg, I'm hoping to join the Isaac Walton League soon, with the gas I'll save over driving to PSS in Roanoke the membership will pay for itself.
 

mxwelch

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May 9, 2008
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Bedford, Virginia, USA
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WhatTimeIsIt? wrote:
I've open carried almost everywhere I've gone for the past year, never had any problems. Been to several Wal-Marts and never been asked to leave. I've never been asked to leave anywhere as a matter of fact. While this has mostly been in the Hampton Roads area, I doubt you will encounter many problems anywhere in the State.

Edit: Oh yeah, and I don't have a government permission slip.

Same here. Lima, I've OCed in both the Bedford and Lynchburg Walmart and wasn't asked to leave. Did get a funny look fromone cashier though. The kind that tells you that something is out of place, you know, like a rattlesnake crawling up your leg.



I will say this, it was late as I had just gotten off work so all bets are off with a different manager. I will also say this. Look at one of the concealed carry fanny packs. They should eliminate most of your problems as well as give you a little bit more storage space.
 

asforme

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Just to further prove that Wal-mart is just fine, my wife and I just got back from doing some grocery shopping there. We were both OC'ing and got several stares, including from the manager (or someone with a nametag, walkie talkie and a tie) and a cop who was shopping there, but not a word said.
 

Bravo_Sierra

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Neplusultra wrote:
A pregnant woman with a gun? :) I seriously doubt you'll have any problems at all. It's not like you rode up on a harley, wear studed leather and have tattoos all over. At least I hope it's not..... :) (edit: forgot the smiley)

I wouldn't worry about it. One thing I would suggest is getting a retention holster for your gun. When you OC you are advertising that you have a gun and anyone wanting to take it will have surprise on his side.

I don't have a Harley, but I do wear studs, spikes, and have tatoo's all over my arms... guess things are different in Vegas though.
 
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