First Time OC - Springfield, OR

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Well, I finally got up the nerve to open carry in Springfield (and a little bit o' Eugene) this weekend. I was originally going to carry on Saturday, but we had to go to the bank first thing, and my wife was concerned about the bank reacting negatively, so to keep her relaxed, I left it at home. (I asked the bank while I was there, and they said they have no problem with it that the teller was aware of.)

OnSunday, we planned on going on a long bicycle ride with the kids around the Gateway area, then down to the Willamette River. I put on my holster with my Taurus PT-111 Millennium Pro, put a printout of all the relevant Oregon gun laws in my pocket, and we took off.

We stopped at Subway on Gateway first and got lunch. None of the clerks seemed to take notice, but my wife said a few people stared at my pistol as I walked by them to refill my soda and go to the restroom.

Next, we went next door to Cycle Gear. Spent about 1/2 hour there picking out new ATV riding boots for both kids (they JUST outgrew their last ones), and ordering some new riding gear for my son. At one point while I was looking through the boots, one of the clerks walked by and said "I see you got your glock today." I replied "Nope, it's a Taurus" and smiled. He nodded & walked away. We finished ordering & left.

We had to stop at Target for some sunglasses. Wewalked in, and I nodded & smiledat the security guard, spent about 20 minutes in the store, checked out and left. Another security guard glanced down at my pistol as I was on the way out. I smiled at him and said "have a good day," and he nodded in return.

We rode over the Harlow rd. overpass to Eugene, then followed Garden way down to the bike path, all the way to the Willamette River. Took the bike path back into Springfield, then went all the way over to Mohawk to Baskin-Robbins 31 flavors & had some ice cream. A couple of other patrons there probably noticed it. The rest of the ride back home to the Gateway area was uneventful.

In hindsight, I could've maybe engaged the clerk at Cycle Gear in conversation about it, but I was a little nervous and wasn't sure what else to say.

I really need to get my CHL so I can wear it all the time, because my job prohibits weapons, andwe have little league games at school ballfields.

...Orygunner...

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Open carried (in town) my first time, today. Nobody seemingly saw a thing, nobody commented, nobody seemed to care at all.

Headed out for some errands, today, in Hillsboro and Clackamas. Stopped at the local Fred Meyer grocery, then a couple smaller shops. Not a peep. Headed out to Sportsman's Warehouse out in Clackamas. Inside, I did notice a couple turned heads, but that was it, as there were several other folks wandering around the store similarly armed.

All in all, a comfortable afternoon with no issues or worries. Just as it should be.

In town, at least, I am a concealed carry type. Have so far only openly carried out in the field, on ranches, or while hiking. Through town, it'll take some getting used to. But, it's nice to see (at least on this first outing) that folks won't necessarily get bent. We'll see how it goes, in future.

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Hey! my first open carry today too. Was going to carry when I went out to lunch with my wife and then to Wal Mart. She wasn't comfortable with the idea, so I didn't. We went on a walk around town this evening (Hermiston) and I told her I had to protect her from rabid dogs, so she was ok with it. I think I just have to get her used to the idea...

Anyway, for a lot of the walk, I was strong side to the road. Got some turned heads from people driving by. At an intersection while we were waiting for the crossing signal, a guy really craned his neck as he went around the corner. I hope he didn't hurt himself. The angle at which his neck was turned looked quite painful. We were walking by a yard and there was a cute bassett hound that came running up to us so we pet him. His owner came over and was pretty uneasy I think. His body language didn't say it, but his eyes kept darting to my holster. That was pretty much the extent of it. Pretty uneventful. Going to go run some errands tomorrow though, we'll see how that goes.



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neddis wrote:

Hey! my first open carry today too. Was going to carry when I went out to lunch with my wife and then to Wal Mart. She wasn't comfortable with the idea, so I didn't. We went on a walk around town this evening (Hermiston) and I told her I had to protect her from rabid dogs, so she was ok with it. I think I just have to get her used to the idea...

Anyway, for a lot of the walk, I was strong side to the road. Got some turned heads from people driving by. At an intersection while we were waiting for the crossing signal, a guy really craned his neck as he went around the corner. I hope he didn't hurt himself. The angle at which his neck was turned looked quite painful. We were walking by a yard and there was a cute bassett hound that came running up to us so we pet him. His owner came over and was pretty uneasy I think. His body language didn't say it, but his eyes kept darting to my holster. That was pretty much the extent of it. Pretty uneventful. Going to go run some errands tomorrow though, we'll see how that goes.



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Wow. Seems like you received a lot of attention. You're carrying a full size XD-9, right?

I either am not that observant of people's reactions, not that many people notice mine, or they do and just don't care. I 've carried mysub-compact Taurus PT111 Millennium Pro with a Stainless slide in a high-riding black thumb-break holster in public for almost a month now (very similar to this picture: ccw9mmdidn't seem to have anyone notice his either, but he says he carries his in an IWB holster.

I would think the citizens of Hermiston would be less likely to have an adverse reaction to open carry than, say, Clackamas or Eugene.

Just out of curiosity, what kind of holsterare you carrying it in?

...Orygunner...

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Spent the bulk of the long weekend not in Springfield but in Central Oregon. My dad's in the middle of chemo treatments, so try and make a point to visit every couple of weeks to help out with yard work, home repairs, and the sort.

Eight weeks in andeight weeks to go, you can't help but notice the impacts of the poisoning his body is suffering. I have to hand it to him, he's one tough S.OB; never complains.

While in the Redmond / Bend area I always open carry and this weekend was no exception. Visited Fred Meyers, Walgreens, Sportsman warehouse, and Bi-Mart. As per usual no one looked twice; aside from the clerk who rang up my purchase for 200 mc rounds in .45. He acted quite sketchy during the entire transaction I chuckled to myself thinking "I'd have to be a pretty stupid criminal to pay for this stuff with my visa and then attempt a robbery...."

Perhaps I misjudged his jitteryness, he might have had a wee bit too much coffee going into his shift, what ever the case; No caught on tape moment to report.

A better story occurred Thurs before I left town, whenI hit blockbuster in King City to return some movies.

I pull into the west lot, park and cross paths with a unarmed security guy. Na da, I don't think he even noticed me at all. I return the DVD's uneventfully.

I decided to visit Starbucksa fewsdoors down to the NE. Sitting in front of Baskin & Robbins are two sketchy looking boarders doing the "hang out thing" I gettwo steps past them and I hear one mutter under his breath "Hey look,he's packing".

I go in to java up, about 3 minutes and head back out intending to radar in on these guys for a follow up "vibe".

They moved to the curb between myself and my truck. One totally avoided eye contact while the other watched my all the way across the parking lot.

I rewarded him with the "eye" as I drove past them on my out of the lot.

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I had it in a drop leg holster when I went for the walk last night. I know, I know... it's "tacti-cool" but I thought it would be a comfortable way for me to carry. I got one that you can pull apart and use as a belt hip holster. I put it on my belt and carried today while running some errands. No weird looks or comments. I went to 7-11, Safeway, Wal Mart, and was totally uneventful. I guess I might have just been sensitive to the staring last night since it was my first time.