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From the Star:
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`Real guns! Real bullets! ... The whole family will enjoy!'
At West Edmonton Mall, shoppers tired of cruising La Senza and the Gap head to the trendy Wild West Shooting Centre,
where men, women and even children can blow off steam behind the trigger of a restricted weapon — no questions asked
Jan. 28, 2006. 01:00 AM
BILL TAYLOR
FEATURE WRITER
EDMONTON—Inside the mall, all you can hear is the rumble and roar of bargain hunters in mid-feeding frenzy. But outside, around the back of the building where few people go unless they're lost, there comes the faintest "tock... tock... tock..." Gunfire? Surely not.
In fact, that's just what it is.
West Edmonton Mall, the largest in the world, would be high on the list for anyone compiling a new Seven Wonders. Big enough to warrant four highway exits and boasting a water park, triple-loop roller coaster and a rink where the Oilers practise sometimes. In the Phase 4 section, there's a tattoo studio and a head shop — Two Guys with Pipes — next to a store selling RCMP souvenirs.
On the upper level of Phase 4, next to the Fantasyland Hotel, is the Wild West Shooting Centre, a firearms store and range. In a shopping mall. When you're tired of cruising La Senza and the Gap, the Wild West promises, literally, a blast. ... "Real guns! Real bullets! Real Fun! We cater to first-time shooters. No licence necessary. So, you've always wanted to shoot a handgun. Here is your chance! Shoot with your friends! The whole family will enjoy!"
The family that slays together stays together? All you're putting holes in is a thick paper target. You can bring your own but anything "which management considers in poor taste will not be allowed." No life-size photos of your boss or former lovers.
Youngest customer to date has been a 5-year-old who came with his parents "and fired a little .22, almost a popgun," says range safety officer Andrew Do as he's kitting out a 21-year-old first-timer, Jason Okishita, with a long-barrelled .44 Magnum revolver that erupts like a cannon. Even with heavy-duty earmuffs, everyone in the range feels as much as hears Okishita's shots. Blue smoke swirls and the whiff of cordite is heavy in the air. When he's done, the palms of his hands are raw and tingling.
"That," he says, choosing his words slowly and carefully, "was ... awesome!"
A lot of gun stores are cramped and dingy, with staff who are leery at best about media attention. But Terry Kaupsch, who manages the place for his brother Ken, is as wide open and welcoming as the store itself.
"Hi! You guys wanna do some shooting? We can set you up right away. Why don't you look around first?"
It's big and brightly lit, with rifles and shotguns stacked along the wall and handguns in the long glass counter. A few are plated and gleaming, seductive as a cobra, but most are silver or black, simple and efficient.
A .50 calibre Desert Eagle automatic pistol will set you back $2,395 or $70 a month. It's too big to fire in the range, which can handle guns between .22 and .45, "what the cowboys used to shoot," says Kaupsch.
A Glock automatic, similar to police issue, is $895 or $30 a month. Want something less deadly? How about a fully automatic BB gun? There are little pistol-motif pins that say, "I don't dial 911." A video: "Shooting UZIs the Israeli way." And an ad for add-on handgrips: "When it comes to defending yourself with a handgun, Lasergrips are the best option you've got ... lightning-fast target acquisition ... proven as a less-than-lethal alternative ..."
The Wild West has been in the mall for almost six years, says Kaupsch, "and we've never had an accident or even an incident. People come here from all over the world to shoot. They often don't have the chance at home. Ted Nugent, the rock star, was here when we opened."
A session on the range, a spacious bunker out back with bays for more than a dozen shooters, costs $18 and the price of a box of 50 bullets, which varies according to calibre. Choose the popular 9mm Beretta automatic — perfect for the budding 007 — and the whole thing will set you back less than $50.
Earmuffs and safety glasses are de rigueur. There's a range officer at your shoulder the whole time. Do, 24, who spent five years in the army and is planning to join the RCMP, runs newcomers through everything from where not to point the gun, including the floor and ceiling, to how to load the 10-shot magazine and what to do if it jams. He shows you the correct stance, relaxed with arms slightly bent, and how to squeeze the trigger.
You're still not quite ready for the explosion, the way it kicks in your hand, the cartridge case flying out as the next round loads. The floor in front of you is piled high with brass casings — "maybe 8,000 at the end of a good day," says Do — but once in a while one flies back and bounces off your shoulder.
"There are lots of indoor ranges," says Do. "But I only know of three that rent out firearms — handguns, which are restricted weapons — to people without licences. And in a mall? That's got to be unique. But it's 100-per-cent legal, 100-per-cent safe."
Blasting a handgun in Toronto is a different story. Bylaws prohibit the discharge of firearms within city limits, and while the city does have a handful of shooting ranges, only private members are allowed in, says Larry Whitmore, executive director for the Canadian Shooting Sports Association.
The people who buy guns from the Wild West "are the same as anywhere," says Kaupsch. "Collectors, target-shooters, gun-club members. They have to go through a safety course, prove they have secure storage, fill in a lot of paperwork and provide references. But the system is all over the place; there's no consistency. I have two daughters — Kasha, she's 20, and Shawna, 19 — and when they got their licences, no one bothered to contact their references. As far as we could see, there was little or no background check.
"Gun registration doesn't stop anything; it doesn't even slow the criminals down. Having tougher laws on gun control only hurts responsible citizens ... invades your privacy."
Okishita, a motor hand on an oil rig, says he and his buddy Gavin Thacker, 21, only came in because they had some time to kill. "I like the idea of shooting some guns you can't buy on the street. I'll be back for sure. Maybe this afternoon!"
Link to article
`Real guns! Real bullets! ... The whole family will enjoy!'
At West Edmonton Mall, shoppers tired of cruising La Senza and the Gap head to the trendy Wild West Shooting Centre,
where men, women and even children can blow off steam behind the trigger of a restricted weapon — no questions asked
Jan. 28, 2006. 01:00 AM
BILL TAYLOR
FEATURE WRITER
EDMONTON—Inside the mall, all you can hear is the rumble and roar of bargain hunters in mid-feeding frenzy. But outside, around the back of the building where few people go unless they're lost, there comes the faintest "tock... tock... tock..." Gunfire? Surely not.
In fact, that's just what it is.
West Edmonton Mall, the largest in the world, would be high on the list for anyone compiling a new Seven Wonders. Big enough to warrant four highway exits and boasting a water park, triple-loop roller coaster and a rink where the Oilers practise sometimes. In the Phase 4 section, there's a tattoo studio and a head shop — Two Guys with Pipes — next to a store selling RCMP souvenirs.
On the upper level of Phase 4, next to the Fantasyland Hotel, is the Wild West Shooting Centre, a firearms store and range. In a shopping mall. When you're tired of cruising La Senza and the Gap, the Wild West promises, literally, a blast. ... "Real guns! Real bullets! Real Fun! We cater to first-time shooters. No licence necessary. So, you've always wanted to shoot a handgun. Here is your chance! Shoot with your friends! The whole family will enjoy!"
The family that slays together stays together? All you're putting holes in is a thick paper target. You can bring your own but anything "which management considers in poor taste will not be allowed." No life-size photos of your boss or former lovers.
Youngest customer to date has been a 5-year-old who came with his parents "and fired a little .22, almost a popgun," says range safety officer Andrew Do as he's kitting out a 21-year-old first-timer, Jason Okishita, with a long-barrelled .44 Magnum revolver that erupts like a cannon. Even with heavy-duty earmuffs, everyone in the range feels as much as hears Okishita's shots. Blue smoke swirls and the whiff of cordite is heavy in the air. When he's done, the palms of his hands are raw and tingling.
"That," he says, choosing his words slowly and carefully, "was ... awesome!"
A lot of gun stores are cramped and dingy, with staff who are leery at best about media attention. But Terry Kaupsch, who manages the place for his brother Ken, is as wide open and welcoming as the store itself.
"Hi! You guys wanna do some shooting? We can set you up right away. Why don't you look around first?"
It's big and brightly lit, with rifles and shotguns stacked along the wall and handguns in the long glass counter. A few are plated and gleaming, seductive as a cobra, but most are silver or black, simple and efficient.
A .50 calibre Desert Eagle automatic pistol will set you back $2,395 or $70 a month. It's too big to fire in the range, which can handle guns between .22 and .45, "what the cowboys used to shoot," says Kaupsch.
A Glock automatic, similar to police issue, is $895 or $30 a month. Want something less deadly? How about a fully automatic BB gun? There are little pistol-motif pins that say, "I don't dial 911." A video: "Shooting UZIs the Israeli way." And an ad for add-on handgrips: "When it comes to defending yourself with a handgun, Lasergrips are the best option you've got ... lightning-fast target acquisition ... proven as a less-than-lethal alternative ..."
The Wild West has been in the mall for almost six years, says Kaupsch, "and we've never had an accident or even an incident. People come here from all over the world to shoot. They often don't have the chance at home. Ted Nugent, the rock star, was here when we opened."
A session on the range, a spacious bunker out back with bays for more than a dozen shooters, costs $18 and the price of a box of 50 bullets, which varies according to calibre. Choose the popular 9mm Beretta automatic — perfect for the budding 007 — and the whole thing will set you back less than $50.
Earmuffs and safety glasses are de rigueur. There's a range officer at your shoulder the whole time. Do, 24, who spent five years in the army and is planning to join the RCMP, runs newcomers through everything from where not to point the gun, including the floor and ceiling, to how to load the 10-shot magazine and what to do if it jams. He shows you the correct stance, relaxed with arms slightly bent, and how to squeeze the trigger.
You're still not quite ready for the explosion, the way it kicks in your hand, the cartridge case flying out as the next round loads. The floor in front of you is piled high with brass casings — "maybe 8,000 at the end of a good day," says Do — but once in a while one flies back and bounces off your shoulder.
"There are lots of indoor ranges," says Do. "But I only know of three that rent out firearms — handguns, which are restricted weapons — to people without licences. And in a mall? That's got to be unique. But it's 100-per-cent legal, 100-per-cent safe."
Blasting a handgun in Toronto is a different story. Bylaws prohibit the discharge of firearms within city limits, and while the city does have a handful of shooting ranges, only private members are allowed in, says Larry Whitmore, executive director for the Canadian Shooting Sports Association.
The people who buy guns from the Wild West "are the same as anywhere," says Kaupsch. "Collectors, target-shooters, gun-club members. They have to go through a safety course, prove they have secure storage, fill in a lot of paperwork and provide references. But the system is all over the place; there's no consistency. I have two daughters — Kasha, she's 20, and Shawna, 19 — and when they got their licences, no one bothered to contact their references. As far as we could see, there was little or no background check.
"Gun registration doesn't stop anything; it doesn't even slow the criminals down. Having tougher laws on gun control only hurts responsible citizens ... invades your privacy."
Okishita, a motor hand on an oil rig, says he and his buddy Gavin Thacker, 21, only came in because they had some time to kill. "I like the idea of shooting some guns you can't buy on the street. I'll be back for sure. Maybe this afternoon!"