OFCC's 1st Annual Party in the Park a great success

OFCC's 1st Annual Party in the Park, which featured Secretary of State Ken Blackwell as keynote speaker, was a great success.

Most attendees would probably agree it would be hard to pick a high point of the Labor Day Saturday. Excellent food and fellowship gave way to an inspirational speech by Secretary Blackwell. Following the Secretary's words, several awards were given, and many lucky picnickers went home with valuable door prizes.

The picnic was attended by a diverse group representing concealed handgun license-holders across the state, from families with young children to members of the Pink Pistols, from elected state officials to hard-working OFCC volunteers.

No matter what else attendees carried away, they went home with the knowledge that despite our diversity, OFCC members and supporters are a close-knit family.

A complete picnic recap will be provided in the next OFCC quarterly newsletter, which is provided to members. If you are not a member, please join now, and ensure that in addition to supporting OFCC's efforts to "reform the reform", you will receive this newsletter, which contains excellent original content not found anywhere else, including on this website.

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Posted at Packing.org September 4, 2004:

It's been some day. I went to an Ohioans For Concealed Carry picnic and
had a great time but didn't eat much as my girlfriend had plans to dine
out this evening. I left the picnic and drove to meet her and she wanted
to take her car, so I rode "shotgun".

We were on our way to the
restaurant driving on a two lane state route and wound up behind a slow
moving minivan. My girlfriend waited until the coast was clear and
passed. Moments later we had a double axle pickup truck with a car-sized
trailer attached on our bumper with its high beams on, beeping the
horn. We assumed he wanted to pass and decided to turn onto a side road
to let him get by. He came around the corner almost on two wheels (even
with the trailer) and was inches behind us again so we turned left on a
small country lane to avoid him but the same result. He turned at an
easy 40 mph beeping and blinking his lights. On this small 2 lane back
road he passed us and slammed on his brakes using his truck and trailer
to block the road.

The next thing we knew he was out of his truck, running toward our car screaming like a maniac. His fists were clenched
and he was irate. My girlfriend rolled down her window and asked if there was a problem. He screamed at her that his grandkids were in the minivan we passed and he felt we endangered them. He stormed up to the window ranting and began addressing my girlfriend heatedly.

She asked me a question and he noticed me in the passenger seat. Then he saw my Para LTC 1911 cocked and locked in my crossdraw holster at 11:00 o'clock on
my belt, in plain sight as the law in Ohio requires. I kept my hand away
from my holster and never addressed him personally. He took a backward step and toned down his verbal assault. He muttered to himself and went back to his truck and drove off.

I wondered how this would have worked
out if my girlfriend had been alone or I had been unarmed. It may have
escalated to violence if he had not had a reality check by seeing the
gun on my belt.

Throughtout I kept my hands away from my holster so he couldn't say I brandished or threatened him with it. I never spoke
except to answer my girlfriends question so I did not even unintentionally escalate the situation and thereby nullify a claim of
self-defense. It was just the sight of that .45 that ended the encounter. This is one time that Ohio's dumb provision to open carry in a car worked to my benefit rather than my hinderance.