Almost got mugged...

Out at a state park by a lake and im down on my knees with headphones on digging away. Out of the corner of my eye was this 20 something punk just about crept up behind me, I immediately stood up and faced him. He asked if I found anything I said "junk". He asked what my probe was as he was getting closer to me. I look down aways and I see his buddy being lookout. The punk gets closer still and I can see he has wild eyes, his adrenaline must of been pumping so hard that his heart was gonna explode. Thats when I grabbed my Lesche like digger and showed him that while we were still talking. The conversation got awkward, like, I knew all his questions that he was asking were fake and he didn't care what the answers were(my investigator training I guess). Then there was starring and silence(a very scary moment). I can tell he was going to make his move(Either grab my CTX out of my hand or pull a knife) I reached down and kept my left hand on the digger ready to gut him if I had to. Just then my father(who was watching and coming toward us the whole time) came out of the woods and asked if i found anything. The punk said "well we got a two hour drive, so we better get going" and walked away. I told the park ranger and described him best i could. There may not have been any intent to do wrong, but my feelings, instincts, and training told me otherwise(I made sure that I made this clear to the ranger). I know that this is gonna start the whole "I carry a gun" thread all over again, so I ask that you don't. Just be aware and be careful out there, I never thought this situation would happen to me.

Bey

That is why I never wear full size headphones.. They block out too much. I like to hear what is going on around me. I also try keep an eye on what is going on around me. The last thing I want to do is look like a victim. Glad things worked out for you.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2015 05:44AM by Philb.

Beyonder-Pa Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Out at a state park by a lake and im down on my
> knees with headphones on digging away. Out of the
> corner of my eye was this 20 something punk just
> about crept up behind me, I immediately stood up
> and faced him. He asked if I found anything I said
> "junk". He asked what my probe was as he was
> getting closer to me. I look down aways and I see
> his buddy being lookout. The punk gets closer
> still and I can see he has wild eyes, his
> adrenaline must of been pumping so hard that his
> heart was gonna explode. Thats when I grabbed my
> Lesche like digger and showed him that while we
> were still talking. The conversation got awkward,
> like, I knew all his questions that he was asking
> were fake and he didn't care what the answers
> were(my investigator training I guess). Then there
> was starring and silence(a very scary moment). I
> can tell he was going to make his move(Either grab
> my CTX out of my hand or pull a knife) I reached
> down and kept my left hand on the digger ready to
> gut him if I had to. Just then my father(who was
> watching and coming toward us the whole time) came
> out of the woods and asked if i found anything.
> The punk said "well we got a two hour drive, so we
> better get going" and walked away. I told the
> park ranger and described him best i could. There
> may not have been any intent to do wrong, but my
> feelings, instincts, and training told me
> otherwise(I made sure that I made this clear to
> the ranger). I know that this is gonna start the
> whole "I carry a gun" thread all over again, so I
> ask that you don't. Just be aware and be careful
> out there, I never thought this situation would
> happen to me.
>
> Bey


this is exactly WHY you have to be prepared!..you can liken it to
riding a motorcycle,all it takes is one flip,and you are "fu*ked!"
situational awareness comes to mind! can't be careful enough these days!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

Your instincts were correct, you were about to get mugged and possibly beat and maybe to death. We would never have known what happened to Bey. Good thing your pops was there and threw their punk plans into abort status.

I'm guilty of feeling safe and comfy in a park that's in a good area...not smart. The creeps shop at the high end stores where the goods be plenty and of a higher quality.

Lesson for us, don't become complacent or the next thing you'll be waking up with a terrible headache.... or worse.

I always say

"dude will look mighty funny walking around with my Lesche sticking out of his skull if he tries some BS with me"!

I just ordered a new Hermit Pick too (shown below) so unless some idiot is packin heat = from now on he/they will be sorry SOB's if they try to rob me out in the field B/cuz they'll look even funnier with THIS one sticking outta their skull!

PS = that's a 6" spike of 1/4" steel on the end of the pick and very intimidating to say the least ;-)






Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2015 10:25AM by MichiganRelicHunter.

if you had a handgun strapped on would he have come near you at all ??

I've often joked that I AM the bad guy at the park, but I recognize the topic here is very serious. I too think of my 31" t-handle digger as a weapon of self-defense, to that end, every time I am out on a hunt I try to remember to swing it 20 or 30 times. Not on a overtly menacing way, but just so that I am comfortable with swinging it fast and with some degree of control. I know we all think that swinging something is a natural thing to do until you actually have to swing it. If you are lucky, you will connect but if you don't have power and accuracy, it is very likely you will loose your weapon and get beat with it instead.

Whatever you choose as your self-defense weapon, please practice every day with it. Most of us are very lucky not to run into this kind of a situation but if we do, just carrying something won't do the trick.

Congratulations on being aware of your surroundings and avoiding a potentially life-threatening situation.

Pinpoint twice, dig once

diggers Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> if you had a handgun strapped on would he have
> come near you at all ??


Its a state park. I dont think thats legal. Is it? Thanx all for the support!!!

Bey



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 05/01/2015 01:47PM by Beyonder-Pa.

Happened to me on N.J. shores twice.....luckily I carry a floral shovel and made it plain I was going to take a head off of the one that tried. Sort of like one of those weapons used by the gladiators. Never had a problem on land but your digging knife makes quite a weapon also. Good reason to detect with a buddy. Of course no gun as can't carry in Jersey being from Pa. Indeed be careful as even in a deserted end of a local park one is a target....Many variables and theories on carrying even in Pa. and that's your call...

That's a scary situation, Bey. Glad you're OK. And a good reminder for all of us to be careful and stay alert while we're enjoying our hobby.

I don't want to hijack your thread talking about what you don't want to...so I'll mention a habit I got into years ago when I had a F5 that would go crazy with EMI whenever the coil wasn't in motion.

I slip off one cup whenever I dig. Needless to say, I'm harder on headphones than most.

Firearm, knife, digger, it doesn't matter what you carry if you are alone and someone with bad intentions is able to creep up and take you by surprise.

Good instincts and good reactions, you just never know....

Cliff

Beyonder-Pa Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Out at a state park by a lake and im down on my
> knees with headphones on digging away. Out of the
> corner of my eye was this 20 something punk just
> about crept up behind me, I immediately stood up
> and faced him. He asked if I found anything I said
> "junk". He asked what my probe was as he was
> getting closer to me. I look down aways and I see
> his buddy being lookout. The punk gets closer
> still and I can see he has wild eyes, his
> adrenaline must of been pumping so hard that his
> heart was gonna explode. Thats when I grabbed my
> Lesche like digger and showed him that while we
> were still talking. The conversation got awkward,
> like, I knew all his questions that he was asking
> were fake and he didn't care what the answers
> were(my investigator training I guess). Then there
> was starring and silence(a very scary moment). I
> can tell he was going to make his move(Either grab
> my CTX out of my hand or pull a knife) I reached
> down and kept my left hand on the digger ready to
> gut him if I had to. Just then my father(who was
> watching and coming toward us the whole time) came
> out of the woods and asked if i found anything.
> The punk said "well we got a two hour drive, so we
> better get going" and walked away. I told the
> park ranger and described him best i could. There
> may not have been any intent to do wrong, but my
> feelings, instincts, and training told me
> otherwise(I made sure that I made this clear to
> the ranger). I know that this is gonna start the
> whole "I carry a gun" thread all over again, so I
> ask that you don't. Just be aware and be careful
> out there, I never thought this situation would
> happen to me.
>
> Bey

Yes,being aware is the best option. Good thing your dad was keeping an eye out and made his presence known. While being heavily armed may not be a bad idea, the best option is not letting it get to the point of confrontation. I hope others do what you did by being with someone that keeps an eye out.

He was probably a goot boy just wantin' to go to college.

I think the future is only going to cause more problems with our hobby it would be a good thing to take a dog seeing my cat would't do anything..then if he attacked me and didn't have aknife or a gun I bet I would be in jail...the law sucks

LowBoy

TAKE A LITTLE TIME KICKBACK AND WATCH SOME OF MY DETECTING VIDEO'S BELOW ON YouTube

[www.youtube.com]

If you don’t dig it, then how are you going to know what you’re missing!
How can you have your pudding if you don’t eat your meat!

Lawrenzo Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I think the future is only going to cause more
> problems with our hobby it would be a good thing
> to take a dog seeing my cat would't do
> anything..then if he attacked me and didn't have
> aknife or a gun I bet I would be in jail...the law
> sucks


That sounds like a good idea. The dog would have to be able to run free as in stay close to you without being chained.

MichiganRelicHunter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I always say
>
> "dude will look mighty funny walking around with
> my Lesche sticking out of his skull if he tries
> some BS with me"!
>
> I just ordered a new Hermit Pick too (shown below)
> so unless some idiot is packin heat = from now on
> he/they will be sorry SOB's if they try to rob me
> out in the field B/cuz they'll look even funnier
> with THIS one sticking outta their skull!
>
> PS = that's a 6" spike of 1/4" steel on the end of
> the pick and very intimidating to say the least
> ;-)
>
>
> [i461.photobucket.com]
> sures/3186083_orig_zpskd7ykamr.jpg

Yeah that would ruin someone's day. I have mine ready but more likely hurt myself on accident before having to use it as self defense. Be careful with that thing.

Always smart to be aware of your surroundings. I've been lucky in the fact that I don't look approachable to most people. Kind of a big, over fed, long haired, leaping gnome like the song goes, but that doesn't mean that there's not some desperate fool willing to try his luck.
HH
John

Pepper spray or bear spray. Might not be much but it would let you get away from most people if they did pose a threat. When I go to and from work, I keep a can of wasp and hornet spray in the truck. I use to carry my pistol and leave it in my truck when at work and stuff but then thought "what if somebody broke into my truck...then they would have my things AND my pistol". So the hornet spray took its place and most of it packs an aimable stream to about 20 feet distance.

Glad you're ok. I keep a " kimber pepper blaster" in my pocket. It's got 2 shots of pepper stream that comes out at 90mph.

Well, if you do have to defend yourself...and your a white boy like me...better hope the culprit is white too, or you may have Al Sharpton showing up.

Dan has got it---the wasp/hornet spray has been proven to be Many times more effective than mace.

I have heard of some having trouble in are Chicago parks which are full of Gangs. But I must be lucky or at my age don't give a damn anymore as never had a problem really. One time a guy did come up as I was hunting a park I saw him long before so I was ready and He acted like he was thinking about getting into the hobby asking all these B.S. questions about detectors and where to get one. I may be wrong,But I think he was sizing me up and decided it wouldn't be worth it.

I have a friend who was mugged while night beach hunting, he ended up in hospital with a concussion, but was able to fight them off by swinging his scoop.

I know another was mugged On Miami beach, they took his detector, scoop, wallet and all his possessions when he was mugged.

While night hunting I had to retreat to waist deep water to discourage 3 shady looking characters following me everywhere i went....

Personally, now, unless I'm going in the water over mid calf in depth I'm always armed with a .45 pistol.... Always carrying at night and carry over 95% of the time all other times...... legally...

Treasure_hunter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have a friend who was mugged while night beach
> hunting, he ended up in hospital with a
> concussion, but was able to fight them off by
> swinging his scoop.
>
> I know another was mugged On Miami beach, they
> took his detector, scoop, wallet and all his
> possessions when he was mugged.
>
> While night hunting I had to retreat to waist deep
> water to discourage 3 shady looking characters
> following me everywhere i went....
>
> Personally, now, unless I'm going in the water
> over mid calf in depth I'm always armed with a .45
> pistol.... Always carrying at night and carry over
> 95% of the time all other times...... legally...

As the OP stated- "I know that this is gonna start the whole "I carry a gun" thread all over again, so I ask that you don't." I think what is the most important factor is that the OP had someone with him that was observing what was going on. While I think it is a good idea to for people to be armed I hope the lesson learned here is one of doing what a person can to keep a confrontation from happening.

glad to hear your ok bud. sadly enough i see the bad in folks every night and after 20 yrs has it makes you not trust anyone at first....now a days it's a good idea to have a hunting buddy.

ozzie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Your instincts were correct, you were about to get
> mugged and possibly beat and maybe to death. We
> would never have known what happened to Bey. Good
> thing your pops was there and threw their punk
> plans into abort status.
>
> I'm guilty of feeling safe and comfy in a park
> that's in a good area...not smart. The creeps
> shop at the high end stores where the goods be
> plenty and of a higher quality.
>
> Lesson for us, don't become complacent or the next
> thing you'll be waking up with a terrible
> headache.... or worse.


i would have shot the (s.o.b.) and gone to court! f**k it!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

ozzie Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Your instincts were correct, you were about to get
> mugged and possibly beat and maybe to death. We
> would never have known what happened to Bey. Good
> thing your pops was there and threw their punk
> plans into abort status.
>
> I'm guilty of feeling safe and comfy in a park
> that's in a good area...not smart. The creeps
> shop at the high end stores where the goods be
> plenty and of a higher quality.
>
> Lesson for us, don't become complacent or the next
> thing you'll be waking up with a terrible
> headache.... or worse.


worse! in a situ like that, YOU don't count for very much!
money's money..i'm just sayin!


(h.h.!)
j.t.

MichiganRelicHunter Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I always say
>
> "dude will look mighty funny walking around with
> my Lesche sticking out of his skull if he tries
> some BS with me"!
>
> I just ordered a new Hermit Pick too (shown below)
> so unless some idiot is packin heat = from now on
> he/they will be sorry SOB's if they try to rob me
> out in the field B/cuz they'll look even funnier
> with THIS one sticking outta their skull!
>
> PS = that's a 6" spike of 1/4" steel on the end of
> the pick and very intimidating to say the least
> ;-)
>
>
> [i461.photobucket.com]
> sures/3186083_orig_zpskd7ykamr.jpg


"NASTY!" (hot damn!(

(h.h.!)
j.t.

doc holiday Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> He was probably a goot boy just wantin' to go to
> college.


yeah! on HIS dime!

(h.h.!)
j.t.

deathray Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Well, if you do have to defend yourself...and your
> a white boy like me...better hope the culprit is
> white too, or you may have Al Sharpton showing up.


good point! you DON'T want "sharp al" on your case!
for sure!

(h.h.!)
j.t.