Posted: 11/24/2005 5:48:36 AM EDT
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THis sunday I will be taking my old HP computer out to sloan to give it the death it deserves. I plan to set it up, cables and all, and and execute it with my Armscor .12 GA. This will be a public execution so if you ever wanted to just blow the hell out of your computer you're more than welcome to join me. Sunday morning, about 0800 at the first pit off the road. 
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Sloan has been closed to all shooting for nearly two years. Littering and dumping in the desert has been against the law a lot longer than that. Whatever you bring to blast, please be kind enough to haul it out back out and dispose of it properly. Get caught at Sloan by BLM head field officer Ranger Ron Crayton or one of his rangers for shooting and littering and you will be fined. He really likes shooters and hunters, but leaving all manner of trash behind, (in his back yard), REALLY pisses him off, and he won't hesitate to write you a citation. Leaving this crap behind gives all shooters a bad reputation and we wonder why we're looked down on with such scorn. Just because it's already trashed, doesn't make it right to add more and more junk. Several years ago many regular Sloan shooters spent the weekend picking up trash there at the direction of the BLM with the supplied dumpsters and front loaders. A couple of months later, and you couldn't tell it had ever been cleaned. It seems we're our own worst enemy at times, and this sounds like one of those times with all the encouragement members here are giving. Please consider the long rage consequences of your actions. http://www.nevadawilderness.org/news/sloancyn.htm http://www.wilderness.org/WhereWeWork/Nevada/WR88-SloanCanyonNCA.cfm http://www.epa.gov/fedrgstr/EPA-IMPACT/2005/March/Day-25/i5880.htm |
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WHOA! Easy francis! What do you mean Sloan is closed? I'm out there almost every weekend with lots of other people and we've even talked to the BLM guys with no problems. If it's closed, they need to put up a sign or something cuz there's LOTS of people shooting there every weekend. And I planned to haul out the carcass after I'm done. I try not to leave much behind out there, unless it is still worth shooting at, then I leave it for the next guy. But I don't leave my trash. Now calm down and count to ten.......that's it........every thing is O.K.........the bad man is going away now.
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You're certainly free to shoot wherever and whenever you like, and leave behind all the HP computers you can haul and shoot. Please except my humble apologies for politely trying to educate you and others here. My mistake. I hope you enjoy yourself and your Armscor 12 guage at the first pit in The Sloan Canyon Conservation Area at 8:00AM Sunday morning! www.blm.gov/nhp/spotlight/state_info/planning/nv/sloan_canyon_eis/18_Appendix%20G_Litter%20Cleanup%20Plan%20and%20Public%20Lands%20Awareness.pdf |
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Leave it better than you found it, that's my mantra..... And for the record: after reading Leatherpuke's posts here in this forum for some time now, I don't think that he is the type of guy that would "leave it worse than he found it." Once again...... Just the ol' 2 pennies worth. PS: LP, Have a great and safe time removing that HP that gave you countless hours of frustration....
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I evidently pissed in someones cheerios with out knowing it.  I'll pack out as much of what's left of the computer as I can, I promise.  Seriously though, I shoot with a Henderson PD officer and a Las Vegas Marshall at sloan quite often. If it is off limits to shooting, BLM needs to post it as such. I don't feel like paying a fine for trying to have some fun. THere are plenty of other places to shoot, I just like sloan because of the convenience. Vegas-SMG, I wasn't trying to piss you off, really. If you know something that I don't,please enlighten me. THe link you posted above won't open for me. |
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Dont take it as a personal attack, just a friendly reminder. I myself have had to reform and amend my ways over the years, I am getting better but am a long way from perfect. I have an affinity to laying waste to anything shootable, so, I find the "dumps" out in the desert to be a natural focal point for my outings...... Sadly, the "Dumps" are also the focal point of our Liberal gun hating emenies, and litter in the rural areas surrounding LV will be one of the main leverage point they will use against us. Shooting is one of my great loves...ANY type of shooting. Long range, pistol, shotgun, suppressing fire, plinking, organized matches, buddies out for a good time...I love'em all, and I know Vegas does too. I say, go blow the shit outta that rebelious PC of yours and take no prisoners and have a good time doin it. And let all of the other folks out there see you clean up after you are done cause actions speak louder than words. Wish I could go with. "G" |
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OK kids, calm down. What we have here is a clear case of "local terms" vs "Map & Compass". I have been in this argument before, with a mis-informed BLM guy too! The Sloan Canyon NCA has very clear boundries, and IS posted to reflect the "No Shooting" rules. The locals here in Las Vegas seem to refer to the 2 flood control pits just south of the sloan turnoff (east of LV blvd south) as "Sloan". This area is NOT within the boundries of the NCA. Look at figure G.1. in the link posted above. The NCA does not even come close to the blvd, and the "pits" are barely .25 miles off of the LV blvd south pavement. The "pits" as refered to in the beginning of this thread are under near constant use by shooters. The pits ARE full of junk, usually dumped by others... BUT when shot full of holes the gun folks DO get the blame for it! I wholeheartedly agree that we should remove trash from ANY shooting area, even if we did not bring it. I personally fill my pickup with junk from the pits when I am there, and haul it back to the dumpster. Perhaps we should organize a day to go pick up trash in the pits - the transfer station is not far, and we can dump there for free if someone presents a current trash bill..... Anybody with a trailer interested? Lem. |
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.....I may be confused, and I'm concluding all these location references are regarding the "old" Sloan; not the "new" Sloan off of Lighthouse Rd.........which further leads me to conclude the "old" pits are legal and available for shooting (again....). No "need" to travel further south off Lighthouse, anymore....... at least according to "Lem's" post.......am I correct?????? 
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Like I said before, "map & compass". I have been re-distribuiting lead & copper in the NV desert since 1971. I learned of the acceptable shooting locations from others when I got here.... long before GPS. I admit I have never bothered to take my gps & record the proper co-ords, but I will in the future. As an old mining sort, I learned to navigate with some vague descriptions. Exiting I-15 at the Sloan exit, head south on the old highway - this is the same as LV Blvd S. You used to pass the old motel (now gone) but you still pass the go-kart race track. Continuing south, on you left (east) you will see a BLACK area, about 100 feet above road grade. This was an area where black sand (like for ashtrays) was quarried, a long time ago. This area was described to me by locals (in 1971) as "Black Spot" and I have continued to use that designation. As far as my map & compass tell me, this area is just outside the "No Shooting" area marked on the map provided at the BLM office. Up at the quarry area, you are in plain sight from the road, but you are just past the .25 mile required distance from the paved road. I do not know if some members of this board call this a "pit", but I never have. I do have pics of my 1964 caddy parked up there in 1972 or so - the road is not in that kind of shape anymore. If you continue south, there is a turnoff, complete with asphalt pad, on the left (east). This dirt road travels east about .3 mile to the first "pit". At about .5 mile you will encounter the second "pit" Both of these appear to be excavations, and I believe they may have been used for fill during freeway or railway construction. Currently, they help to serve as flood control, and catch the runoff from the hills to the east. They are usually filled with junk, and stolen cars - since they are accesible with almost any passenger car. I am not familar with the term 'Lighthouse' - if someone can explain I would appreciate it. I apologize for not posting co-ords & pics, but as soon as time permits I will tidy up my descriptions with facts and pictures. Lem . |
Ya' know, I tried. It seemed you didn't like what I said, so I had to be wrong. You called me Francis, told me to calm down, count to ten, and then tried to impress me with your choice of shooting partners. As is usual and customary on this board, I'm a dumb-ass with a low post count and judged wrong before the facts are investigated. Pretty typical lately... I personally spoke with BLM field officer Kevin Routsong who patrols most of Clark County including the area we call Sloan. The Sloan area has been "officially" closed to shooting since 1998, (something I didn't know), but was not enforced for many years. The no shooting signs you suggested they should post were in fact put up shortly after the Secretary of the Interior dedicated the NCA at Sloan. They were promptly shot up and torn down. Nice huh? Anything east of Las Vegas Blvd. AND past mile marker 21 all the way to the state line is OK for recreational shooting per our conversation. If you'd like to contact me, I'd be happy to provide you with Ranger Routsong's BLM desk phone number, pager number, and cell number so you can contact him and confirm this information yourself. You may not like the answers he gives you and he surely won't be impressed with HPDs incorrect answers concerning HIS jurisdiction over Federal land which includes Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area. On a side note, it's refreshing to see someone is actually out shooting instead of merely posting about the activity. I had the good fortune to take an impressionable young man out today and he thoroughly enjoyed himself. I hope the weather, companionship, and shooting is just as good and safe for your outing tomorrow. Go kill that computer! 
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Thanks for the info. I'll have to locate mile marker 21, never seen it befor. I'm off to germany in a couple weeks so this was probably my last outing. But I can pass the info along to the guys I shoot with. THe computer in question died peacefully at sloan on sunday morning. I brought the camera along intending to film the mayhem...............but forgot to check the batteries.  But I can assure you that the HP died with honor. Even refusing a blindfold and final smoke.But the old POS computer taught me a valuable lesson befor meeting his maker. I learned that the outer shell of an HP tower cannot be penetrated by #7 birdshot. In fact, the pellets will ricochet all the way back to the shooter and cause serious pain when they impact your left wrist and left cheekbone.  No damage done, but it hurt like the dickens and reminded me why safety glasses are important. Oh, and the carcass was removed and given a proper burial............in a walmart dumpster.  |
Computer------>  <----------Leatherpuke
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Leatherpuke: Congrats on a sucessful PC execution! Vegas SMG: With all due respect, your ranger pal is wrong. The NCA boundary does NOT run all the way to I-15... not even close. I spent yesterday afternoon at the BLM field office, and they all agree - as does the map. I spent the evening putting together a page to detail the BLM closures in the Sloan area, to help clear this confusion up. Here is the LINK to the page of maps and NCA boundries.... We should be able to continue shooting south of Sloan for several years. The environmental impact study for the proposed Ivanpah Airport is not due until after 2010, and even then the sloan area may remain open... Lem |
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Nice work Lem and many thanks for your efforts! The links to maps I've posted in the past didn't seem to agree with what I was being told by the rangers I've spoken with, but I considered them to be the experts on the area. I based the information I passed along on what I was personally told by two of the area BLM rangers. I apologize for any hardship or confusion it may have caused anyone here. I will continue to shoot further south as I'm comfortable with that area. I'm sure the area known as the pits at Sloan will be the subject of another one of BLM's now frequent land actions at some future date. That frontage along Las Vegas Blvd. is extremely valuable, and it's sure to be purchased by developers such as the Focus Group for very large dollars. As far as the proposed Ivanpah Airport goes, It's so far south of Las Vegas that it's not likely to be an issue for a number of years as far as shooting is concerned. www.reviewjournal.com/lvrj_home/2004/Oct-20-Wed-2004/business/25038398.html |
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Vegas SMG: No big deal - the rangers are likely to say anything, and some govt. employees have an anti-gun personal position that colors their words.... Just like calling the ATF - better get it in writing. The proposed airport will extend the county's "responsibility" all the way to the airport. The people I talked to felt that Clark County would try to close the corridor to shooting once the airport was operational - citing bullshit safety concerns with the increase in surface traffic.... Currently, the BLM has no plans to sell the land between the NCA and the highway - they wish to maintain the buffer zone. The small squares of land in sector 30 were acquired by various means decades ago. Stay safe, have fun, and shoot LOTS. I really think the more we shoot out there, the less attractive it is as a dump spot. What criminal wants to dump anything if someone is always hanging around - with a loaded gun? Lem |