Welcome Aboard!!

Welcome to the new Patrick's Gun Range blog. This blog will be about a lot more than just guns or our range. We will have several permanent authors as well as guest bloggers on specific subjects. We will be running the gambit of everything from guns, to shooting, to personal safety and all points in between.

I will start with our permanent staff and their specialties and areas of interest. Starting the blog and the main author is yours truly Matt Harrell. I am the Gun Range and Sales side Operations manager as well as the Rangemaster. I have been shooting for more than 35 years. I was an avid hunter but age and old injuries have put the kibosh on that. I have shot competitively on and off for more than 16 years. I have a background in Executive Protection (body guarding just doesn't sound as tacti-kewl ;) ), as well as a brown belt in judo and extensive training in LaSavate for close quarter combat. I am an NRA certified Instructor with ratings in Pistol, Personal Protection In the Home and Refuse To Be A Victim as well as an NRA certified Range Safety Officer. I enjoy teaching and look forward to sharing ideas and tips from here on.


My Co-Manager Joseph (call me Joe) Scull will be writing as well. Joe was a member of the 1st Battalion 75th Ranger Regiment for 6 years. Joe has had extensive combat tours and is fully versed in multiple weapon systems, technology and combat operations and is well on his way to becoming an FBI agent. I am proud to work with an American hero as well as a great guy and excellent teacher. Joe is an NRA certified Instructor with a Pistol and Personal Protection In the Home as well as an NRA certified Range Safety Officer.

Mark Rudolph is one of our part time employees who will be helping as well. Mark is a true Southern Gentleman (sounded better than calling him a cajun coon a$$) who served multiple combat tours in Iraq with the US Army's 3rd Infantry division as an Infantry squad leader. Mark is an expert with multiple weapon systems and is an expert in the field of survival and equipment fitting. Mark holds an NRA Refuse to Be A Victim Instructor certification and will soon be NRA certified Pistol and Range Safety Officer as well.

Our newest employee and contributor is Justin Ripley. Justin is an avid range shooter as well as competitive shooter with over 25 years of experience. He is currently a commercial pilot who helps us out when he is on the ground. Justin served as an Army aviation crew chief for Special Operations missions in such garden spots as South America and Bosnia. Justin is an expert with more weapons than I can count. He will also be obtaining multiple NRA certifications through the coming year.

With a crew this experienced and knowledgeable I hope we can answer any questions you might have and maybe give you a few points to ponder.