Sai passed away

Flare day, when the young asian RSO shot a flare into the berm and set the hillside on fire?

Yeah.  IIRC the first shot was into the dirt, but was a dud.  That's when he shot the second one and it hit the dirt and then skipped to or over the berm.  Then the hillside went up in flames. 

I left before the fire got really rolling.  I went back maybe a few days later and saw the charred hillside. 

Sometimes looks and demeanor is deceiving.

What seems to be a mean hard ass turns out to be a really nice person.

Case in point: (one of countless ones over my life but one of my favorites).

In my working days we used to hit the high rise decks in new construction.  The deck is the highest floor (at that time) of a high rise building.  The pace of work is one floor every 3 to 4 days.  So the deck today will be the floor beneath you by the next week.

In my opinion one of the hardest jobs in construction is those steel men doing the rebars on high rises.  They are responsible for erecting the skeletal rebar foundation before concrete is poured.  The electricians usually work side by side with the steel men installing conduit for the electrical system along with plumbers, carpenters, etc.

There was this short stocky steel man Foreman that was constantly yelling at the top of his lungs at his men.  Usually for failing to install the rebar to specs but mainly just to "HURRY THE F**K UP!!.  He rode his men hard and relentlessly, day in and day out.  I initially wondered why the men would put up with this kind of verbal abuse.  A foreman pushing hard is nothing new, as construction has a schedule and to fall behind costs serious money.  There were intimidating instances where this foreman would slam down steel and anything else nearby to either get his point across or to just get the men motivated.

But I found out why his men tolerated his behavior.  It's because when the lunch bell rings, or the pau hana horn blares, this man becomes the most caring and compassionate person you'd never think would come from a person just yelling and screaming just minutes before.  There is an old school saying:  "Work is work."

During lunch, his voice is gentle and genuine.  He would ask his men how things are with family.  He would bring treats for the men:  I remember he brought ice cold mangoes or pineapple slices for the men.  Being on the top floor of a high rise under the relentless sun and you will appreciate these small, simple gestures.  He always had a huge cooler of juices and sodas for his men.  Many times he would come over and offer us drinks also.

When there are milestone accomplishments he is super generous to his men.  Usually when there is a "topping off" party (when the high rise building reaches it's top floor) he would hold BBQ parties with beer, steaks, and pupus for his men and a few of the other trades like us, plumbers, and a few other trades.  As far as I know he provided the majority of the drinks and food out of his own pocket.  Keep in mind this is the olden days of construction (early 90's) before it no longer was permitted to drink and have gatherings on construction sites after work.

Aside from his super duper loud and intimidating voice, he has shown himself to be a caring, friendly, down to earth and quiet type of guy.

Like I said earlier about that old school saying:  Work is work.......

Sai passed away

Sometimes looks and demeanor is deceiving.

What seems to be a mean hard ass turns out to be a really nice person.

Case in point: (one of countless ones over my life but one of my favorites).

In my working days we used to hit the high rise decks in new construction.  The deck is the highest floor (at that time) of a high rise building.  The pace of work is one floor every 3 to 4 days.  So the deck today will be the floor beneath you by the next week.

In my opinion one of the hardest jobs in construction is those steel men doing the rebars on high rises.  They are responsible for erecting the skeletal rebar foundation before concrete is poured.  The electricians usually work side by side with the steel men installing conduit for the electrical system along with plumbers, carpenters, etc.

There was this short stocky steel man Foreman that was constantly yelling at the top of his lungs at his men.  Usually for failing to install the rebar to specs but mainly just to "HURRY THE F**K UP!!.  He rode his men hard and relentlessly, day in and day out.  I initially wondered why the men would put up with this kind of verbal abuse.  A foreman pushing hard is nothing new, as construction has a schedule and to fall behind costs serious money.  There were intimidating instances where this foreman would slam down steel and anything else nearby to either get his point across or to just get the men motivated.

But I found out why his men tolerated his behavior.  It's because when the lunch bell rings, or the pau hana horn blares, this man becomes the most caring and compassionate person you'd never think would come from a person just yelling and screaming just minutes before.  There is an old school saying:  "Work is work."

During lunch, his voice is gentle and genuine.  He would ask his men how things are with family.  He would bring treats for the men:  I remember he brought ice cold mangoes or pineapple slices for the men.  Being on the top floor of a high rise under the relentless sun and you will appreciate these small, simple gestures.  He always had a huge cooler of juices and sodas for his men.  Many times he would come over and offer us drinks also.

When there are milestone accomplishments he is super generous to his men.  Usually when there is a "topping off" party (when the high rise building reaches it's top floor) he would hold BBQ parties with beer, steaks, and pupus for his men and a few of the other trades like us, plumbers, and a few other trades.  As far as I know he provided the majority of the drinks and food out of his own pocket.  Keep in mind this is the olden days of construction (early 90's) before it no longer was permitted to drink and have gatherings on construction sites after work.

Aside from his super duper loud and intimidating voice, he has shown himself to be a caring, friendly, down to earth and quiet type of guy.

Like I said earlier about that old school saying:  Work is work.......

This really brought back memories. I worked construction from the mid 70’s until I retired 3/2020. I was a concrete/prestressed/post tension inspector. You described the job and the atmosphere very well. I worked with thousands of ironworkers in in my 45 years. Some became friends. Most earned my respect. It is a very very tough job which is very very tough on your body. Most don’t make it to retirement age before being injured or just plain worn out. I always remembered that the ironworker foreman only made a dollar or two an hour more than his men. The responsibility and stress is not worth that small amount. I loved my job and I miss the camaraderie I had with most ironworkers. 

Sai passed away

Oh no, I was hoping he just retired. Rest in peace and thanks for the scary lesson Mr Sai. 

Who’s the short filipino kinda chubby guy on the rifle side.  I got yelled at a lot by him in the beginning. Nothin that I didn’t deserve tho. 

Who’s the short filipino kinda chubby guy on the rifle side.  I got yelled at a lot by him in the beginning. Nothin that I didn’t deserve tho.

bald older guy?
that;s Slick...

I think the range should start giving out free adderall.  Having new shooters is great - it grows the community and gives a certain neighborhood board president heartburn.  It got bad enough today for the RO to call a longer pause during the relay to remind people they would be sent home if they didn’t follow the range safety rules. 

I think the range should start giving out free adderall.  Having new shooters is great - it grows the community and gives a certain neighborhood board president heartburn.  It got bad enough today for the RO to call a longer pause during the relay to remind people they would be sent home if they didn’t follow the range safety rules.

Rifle or pistol side?

Rifle or pistol side?

rifle

Again, what’s the story ?
This is getting a little nuts.
And that’s two reports in a short timeframe.
Are these all newbs ?
Yellow line violations ? Sweeping/muzzle control violations ? Closed bolt violations ? Rapid fire violations ? ……..

Again, what’s the story ?
This is getting a little nuts.
And that’s two reports in a short timeframe.
Are these all newbs ?
Yellow line violations ? Sweeping/muzzle control violations ? Closed bolt violations ? Rapid fire violations ? ……..

i'll let bota tell the rest of the story...

bald older guy?
that;s Slick...

I like when he scolds someone over the loudspeaker bc you can hardly make out what he's saying with the thick Filipino accent.    
he's the one that convinced me to get into shooting years ago.  i knew him outside of kokohead before.  very nice guy

the chair is against the wall...

I like when he scolds someone over the loudspeaker bc you can hardly make out what he's saying with the thick Filipino accent.    
he's the one that convinced me to get into shooting years ago.  i knew him outside of kokohead before.  very nice guy

don't aks what is in the fanny pack...

Again, what’s the story ?
This is getting a little nuts.
And that’s two reports in a short timeframe.
Are these all newbs ?
Yellow line violations ? Sweeping/muzzle control violations ? Closed bolt violations ? Rapid fire violations ? ……..

It's people forgetting where they are and what they're doing mostly.  There was a group of local 20 somethings that got scolded for taking selfies with their guns while everyone was down range.  The head guy was pretty chill and went over after and talked with them about it after.  This middle age guy (50's) was fussing with stuff on the bench and ended up flagging the line with a loaded rifle while he was holding it in his left hand - again carelessness.  One relay I could hear Slick yelling at someone and then the head guy telling them to get off the bench.  This was before the lead guy called a pause on the next relay.  Just gotta pay attention to what you're doing...

Maybe gotta look into "gig slips".  These are written warnings of the infraction with the date.  So many gig slips and there could be suspensions or bans from the range.

Gig slips are a love/hate type of thing.  Depends on the individual's maturity level.  But for the most part, the infraction is very rarely repeated again.

Its better to correct the action the moment you see it. You can usually spot someone who is careless the time they step foot onto the range.....
The ROs have it down and they know who they have to keep an eye on....they already know....
Everyone is a safety officer.


The chair is against the wall
The chair is against the wall

Its better to correct the action the moment you see it. You can usually spot someone who is careless the time they step foot onto the range.....
The ROs have it down and they know who they have to keep an eye on....they already know....
Everyone is a safety officer.


The chair is against the wall
The chair is against the wall

Sometimes it's those that think they know it all, think they are safe that are the worst.  "I've been doing this my whole life holstering my 1911 from the slide with my pinky in the trigger guard".  "I've been trained by the military/scouts/etc and have been doing this for years".