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This is where my man purse comes in handy. I have a Jansport shoulder bag similiar to the Maxpedition bags but a little less tactical, (other than it's OD green and has 2 pockets on the strap that fit magazines). I actually used Gorilla Glue to install one of the Glock sport/combat holsters on the inside. That way, I always have a secure, fitted holster to slip my edc in if I need to... Thanks for having the courage to post your story. Everyone needs reminders to be super-duper-friggin careful with firearms.

If your looking at used bikes from the majors in the low-mid price range they are all going to be pretty much the same. I would buy based on fit more than anything else. You might also look at Giant. I've never actually owned one (although I sold them at one point), but they actually produce bikes for a lot of the other companies. They are a huge souless Tiawanese conglomerate so you so what that means??? That's right; a great value for your dollar. You're exactly right that the 29er thing is the opposite of what you'd want. Honestly I can't emphisize the fit thing enough. A well fitting bike will be more comfortable and handle better for you. You'll be more likely to enjoy it and then you'll just end up either upgrading parts as you go or getting a higher-end bike later. Jamis is another company that offers a lot for your dollar.

13" is really, really small. If you're 5'9", I'd say you'd be roughly in the 16"-17" range depending on the geometry of the particular bike. The best thing to do is visit a bike shop and test ride some bikes. I raced for many years and sold bikes before I completed my education. Don't let any bike shop guys sell you on 29" wheel bikes either. They are the big thing right now and at your size the bigger wheels are definitely going to make the bike slow handling/too stable. They can have benefits for bigger riders but I really don't like them for smaller riders.

Seems pretty accurate for such an inexpensive rifle.

I don't think there's any mistake that the .357 Sig is a hot round. It's just the lack of cheap practice ammo that keeps me away from it for a carry gun. If I were a reloader it would definitely be appealing.

I was intriged with the idea for awhile, and I still think it would be fun to try, but I'm not sure what the .357 Sig offers that can't be replicated with a 135 grain .40. I've only been involved with shooting a few years and I don't get to shoot as much as I'd like (kids, work, other hobbies) so I'm staying with major calibers for now. If I were to decide to get into a niche caliber, it will the the 10mm.

I've got a few personal stories that I won't share on a public forum. Here's the gist: 1. I work in the legal system- this means I often interact with people I wouldn't often interact with; sometimes I ask them difficult questions or ask a judge to do something they might not like. It also means I occasionally get out of my office and drive to parts of town I wouldn't normally travel to to ask the difficult questions. A few LEOs have told me they think it would be stupid to do what I do and not carry. Most of the LEOs I interact with are generally pretty good guys, even when I'm on the other side of things from them. In short, I may not always agree with everything they do but they have a tough job, they mean well and they generally aren't dumb. If their experience indicates that I have more potential to need to defend myself than the average person, they are probably right. 2. I have a wife and kids.

I'd suggest you get the Maxpedition or similar. I've never open carried except hiking and no one has ever said anything in the woods. You'll be far better protected with a platform you've practiced with.

I've found one of these that works for my P3AT:Revel Sports® FuelBelt Wachusett Belt I wear it high enough to be covered by a loose T-shirt and a pocket holster fits pretty securely into a spot where one of these small bottles would go. Lately I've switched back to cycling which is even easier. Just slip a pocket holster into jersey pocket which is even easier. Either way I can work with a 5:00 position so everything feels familiar.

Agreed.

This is precisely why, after seven years in the legal system, nothing surprises me. I hear stories all the time that I may doubt because something doesn't sound right. I don't often call B.S. on something though, because sometimes I find out the stories are true. In other words I may not believe something, but I don't necessarily not believe it either.

I've only been shooting for a few years myself and what I've learned is that I can't shoot at all compared to everyone on the interweb's representation of how they can shoot. What's funny is that when I'm at the range and I look at my targets they are actually better than the majority of the people there. As for the 9mm vs real man calibers: I shoot .40 just as well as 9mm (sometimes better for some reason) when I'm trying make nice groupings. It's when I try speed things up or do double taps that I'm a little better with the 9mm. Since I can't imagine a SD scenario where I would use slow aimed fire, I carry a 9mm most of the time. My other observation is that people get caught up on caliber when platform seems more important. To me nearly any full-size gun is far easier to shoot quickly and accurately than a pocket gun. It's silly to say one caliber is more controllable or better ballistically when the platform is often overlooked. It seems any caliber works better with a longer barrel and issues like the recoil of a .40 or limited capacity of a .45 are really mitigated in bigger guns. More on topic: I'd keep the Glocks. For me my Glocks are SD tools. And I prefer to spend my ammo dollars and time practicing with them. I can respect the craftsmanship of high-end 1911s but I don't have any urge to own one. If I didn't have other expensive hobbies, and had more ammo funds and more time to spend shooting, I guess I'd like to have one but I'd put it in the same category as a nice revolver. Something that would just be nice to have. For me, and the amount of time I spend shooting however, my Glocks are fun enough for me, and they are cheap to shoot because they all work with whatever ammo I put in them.

I've owned both an LCP and a P3AT. They are same gun except the Ruger has a nicer finish. I handled a Hellcat in store and, to me, it was considerably "rougher around the edges" than the Kel-Tec. I'd stick with the Ruger or the KT as I believe either is more tested than the Hellcat. I currently have a P3AT with no real plans to replace it. It's not an easy gun to shoot well but it is so light it that it's tolerable to carry it excercising in really hot weather or in other situations when I probably wouldn't otherwise carry. The only gun that appeals to me as a replacement would be the Ruger LCR.

I have a Gen 3 G19 (my first gun and primary carry when it's not so hot outside), and a Gen 4 G17 (favorite range gun). I like the feel of the 4th Gen guns a little better and the larger mag release a lot better. I'm happy with my Gen 3 19, but if something happened to it I'd probably replace it with a Gen 4.

As for carry methods, I can't carry on my waist when I carry a large backpack with a kid. I resort to pocket carrying a baby Glock in highly populated areas,or else I use a drop leg rig in lesser populated areas.

Does anyone know if KOA facilitie(s generally speaking) have postings?

Agreed. I've never driven it, but I wouldn't hesitate to take my Pathfinder up there. I'll obviously drive up there when we do the hike. It's a long hike so it may be awhile before I can talk my wife into doing it with a baby and a 3-year-old. We'll definitely drive to the trailhead so we don't make a long hike longer.

That's a good point about the direction. We've usually done Parson's Branch in the winter, when it is often closed to automotive traffic, (hence the snow comment) so the the direction didn't matter. As far as taking all day, I've done both on a bicycle in a loop with the Foothills Parkway (55 miles or so) in 4.5-5 hours several times. I was thinking a Grand Cherokee would certainly be faster than my bicycle*... I guess it depends on how you define "all day". Of course in the mountains, you should always have enough, stuff (food/water/clothes/lights) for all day, regardless. *Edit- I'm basing all my time estimates on winter or weekday traffic flow. Obviously on a fall Saturday it can take all day just to drive the CC loop.

Are there news stories on this?

The way to do it would be to do Rich Mountain, go through Cades Cove, and then do Parsons Branch all at once. Or, (even better), drive Foothills Parkway to the end, go left on 129 toward the dragon, and take a left on Parsons Branch to do it all in reverse. The last time I did Parson's Branch (I've done this on a bicycle several times), we saw two bears. I've even done it in the winter with a couple inches of snow. Also, the Gregory Bald hiking trail is accessible from Parsons Branch road and it supposedly has some of the best views anywhere in the Smokies. It's one of the few trails on the Tennessee side that I haven't done yet....

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Absolute truth.

Very true indeed!

I don't have one, but I just freakin love the Vettes. I've been telling the wife since I turned 30 that I'm planning to have a mid-life crisis and buy one when I turn 40. She's on board so I've just got about 7 years to go...

Would you mind PMing me the name of the Attorney you used? I always want to know who doesn't want to try cases. On the original topic, I was never a gun guy until I got involved with a profession where I deal with drug addicts, emotional outrage, and violent people on a day to day basis. And for the record, the divorces definitely tend to be nastier than the criminal matters. I don't carry any extra magazines but one nice thing about using Glocks for carry is that I can keep extra magazines in the car and around the office and they will work for whichever size Glock I happen to have on me.