So, what's the problem? I saw no loss of muzzle control.
There may be rules in place controlling such activities. The RO was probably just seeing that those rules were adhered to.
Not all ROs are Nazis, Karens or control freaks. I wouldn't want to do the job given the long lines of dolts that show up with a gun in hand.
I have no love for the rangemasters at my range but with 3500+ members, a lot of them pretty damn new shooters, you see stuff you can't believe. I got written up last year. I was the only person on the 200 yard line and had the audacity to violate the rules by having a gun out of the case prior to the 0800 opening time and to not have an empty chamber indicator in it (it was a Ruger #1).
I was a menace.
I recall the days of being able to shoot at a small private range fondly, alas, not likely to happen here but our leaving MD clock is ticking.
I got banned from my outdoor gun range/club for three months last year for starting to shoot 22 minutes prior to official opening time (I accidentally arrived early, thinking the start time was an hour earlier than it was). I was at the facility completely alone (members get the combo to the front gate), but they have security cameras that the grounds keepers can monitor from their cell phones, that apparently alert them to the sound of gunfire.
Control freaks is right. It's like friggen 1984 there since they installed those things. Of course, my dues for those three months weren't returned to me, either, so you can add that as a de facto fine on top of a three month ban,
for starting to shoot 22 minutes early. And I'm a 20 year member there. You'd think I'd get a warning about a first rules violation in 20 years.
I had to join a different range for those three months (and, fortunately, the other range lets you join month to month), so basically paid twice for shooting during that time. I don't like the other range as well, which is why I didn't just switch permanently.
