Ruger - Tell the CEO

Mr. Mike Fifer,
I enjoyed your leopard hunt story and thought you might enjoy the surprising role my LCP played on a recent father and son Gulf Coast fishing trip. Wanting to show off my new Ruger LCP, I selected it for the trip.

We all met in Biloxi, MS and over dinner discussed our next morning's plan - going after grouper, snapper, and cobia. As we discussed any last minute gear or supplies that might be needed, I introduced the LCP. Everyone was surprised by the LCP's size, light weight and how it was not noticeable in the pocket of my shorts.

Early the next morning we were greeted with news of a tropical storm brewing in the southern part of the gulf. The Captain headed out towards the platform rigs listening closely to the weather reports. After catching several small fish we relocated to avoid the worst of a rapidly moving squall. Despite getting drenched we rigged our lines and continued fishing, suddenly my son Michael yelled that he had a big one on. We all turned our attention to him in time to see a large fish leap twice giving us a wonderful show some 40-50 yards from the boat. The Captain immediately identified the fish as being a shark and proceeded to coach Michael on how to fight the shark.

After fighting the shark for over an hour the shark started circling the boat allowing us a good view and opportunities to take some pictures. The Captain commented that he wished he had brought his gun so that we could shorten the fight due to more squalls headed our way. I informed him of my LCP and he advised me of where to place my shot. Michael managed to bring the shark close to the boat. As it came to the top of the water I placed a shot just in front of it's dorsal fin and the shark immediately seemed stunned for a few seconds. As we all watched with amassment, the shark took off in a rapid run away from the boat. The Captain commented that it was a last run. After a short run the shark stopped, allowing Michael to bring the shark in to be gaffed.

After cleaning up from our outing we enjoyed shark steaks. What a great ending to a stormy day! This will always be a memorable adventure for Michael and I. Ruger firearms have always been a centerpiece to my family's hunting and target shooting outings. It now will be viewed as a valuable part of our fishing trips as well. Please express my sincere appreciation to the Ruger Team for these quality American-made arms.
- David

Customer Letters: Bear Encounter

Hello Again,
Just wanted to use this Message from Mike to remind you all that hearing from you is key to making firearms that meet your needs. Not only do we want your ideas, but we also like to hear your stories of using your Ruger on the range or in the field.

For this installment, I wanted to share an incredible story a customer (just like you) shared with us – he had his Ruger with him and, as it turned out, it was lucky he did! Below you will find the story, in it's full original form.

Read on,
Mike

Friends,
Have I got a story for you guys!

King season is over, and since I had a day off before silvers start, I thought I would go for a walk! This occurred at 11:16 am this morning, just 2/10 of a mile from my house on our road while walking my dogs. For the record, this is in a residential area, not back in the woods. No bow hunting, no stealth occurring.

I heard a twig snap, and looked back. Full on charge, a huge brownie, ears back head low and motorin' full speed! It came with zero warning. No woof, no popping of the teeth, no standing up, nothing like what you think or see on TV! It charged from less than 20 yards and was on me in about one-second! Totally surreal, I just started shooting in the general direction, and praise God that my second shot (or was it my third?) rolled him at 5 feet and he skidded to a stop 10 feet beyond where I was shooting from. I actually sidestepped him and fell over backwards on the last shot and his momentum carried him to a stop past where I fired my first shot!

It was a prehistoric old boar. No teeth, no fat, weighed between 900-1,000 lbs. and took five men to drag it onto a tilt-bed trailer! It was a big bear. It's paw measured out at about a 9 1/2 footer!

I never ever thought "it" would happen to me! It's always some other (guy), right? Well, no bull, I am still high on adrenaline with my gut in a knot. Feels like I did 10,000 crunches without stopping! Almost puked for an hour after and had the burps and couldn't even stand up as the troopers conducted their investigation! It totally wiped me out. I can't even put that feeling into words, by far the most emotion I have ever felt at once!

No doubt that God was with me as I brought my Ruger .454 Casull and some "hot" 350 grain solids just for the heck of it and managed to draw and snap shoot from the hip! Total luck shot!

- Greg

5x5 Elk:

Hello,
Last month I finished an elk hunt in the mountains near Park City, Utah with Big Mountain Outfitters. Here's my elk story:

We were hunting in the mountains across the valley from Park City, Utah, at about 8,000 feet. I used the .300 RCM in stainless/synthetic and a 150 grain Hornady GMX bullet. Both were good choices, given the weather and the size of the animal, and the amount of climbing we did. After 2-1/2 days of climbing up and down mountains, really vigorous climbing, I finally said I was too tired to do it anymore that afternoon – we had climbed up and down for 9-1/2 hours straight that day - and asked where they took their old, out-of-shape clients who like to smoke. None of that described me, but I said I'd be happy to climb again tomorrow, but just not anymore that afternoon; I was exhausted. The guides laughed and my guide took me over to a pasture down at 6,000 feet that the Elk often come to at sunset.

After an hour of waiting and squirming, with another hour + still to wait for sunset and the elk to start moving, both the guide and I decided we probably couldn't sit still much longer. He started calling and bugling, and soon a Boone & Crockett class porcupine wandered in, to within one yard! He got so close I was actually scared of getting stabbed when he finally saw me. But he finally trundled off, and the calling continued and brought a response from a bull elk. A loud response! And we could hear him coming. Within about 10 more minutes of calling, he busted through the pin oaks and came to halt 19 yards from us. He looked right at us and snorted loudly. I had trouble getting an answer out of the guide on whether to shoot him or not, and finally the guide replied that he was only a 5x5. That was good enough for me, and I put one through the boiler room! The guide was hesitant because he really wanted me to have a big 6x6, and we had seen a monster earlier in the day (and about 2,000 feet higher in the mountain!) that he thought would score 350. I was happy though. I like a good, representative animal and I don't need to set any records. Plus, now I have a good reason to come back and try again.

The mountains were spectacular and I felt pretty good about keeping up with the vertical hiking. I learned my "waterproof" gear was not as advertised. But I had enough layers on and we moved hard enough that I never got too cold. Often I was soaked, but couldn't tell whether it was the rain and snow or just from exercise. The guys on the trip with me, and the guides, were all a great group and we had a good time. It was a great hunt.

Best regards,
Mike

Summer Travels:

For this installment of Message from Mike, we asked Mike to provide us with an update of some of his summer travels. Here is a summation of some of those activities:

Retail Promotions
One of the activities I really enjoy is working "Ruger Days" promotions at great retailers. It gives me a chance to meet you and hear your ideas and get feedback about Ruger firearms. And I have a lot of fun selling too, and I always learn a lot, both about Rugers and about other brands. It's all a part of our Voice of the Customer program to hear and understand what you would like from Ruger.

Recently I gave a dinner speech for guests of Larry's Pistol and Pawn in Huntsville, Alabama, and then worked the counters for two days. You can tell I like my work! And look closely; that's Larry with the big smile in the background behind our three LCR customers; I know he was having fun too.

Hunting in Africa
We try to get out and talk to real users of Ruger firearms whenever we can. And we try to experience different kinds of shooting whenever we can, whether it's shooting trap, participating in IDPA competitions, cowboy action shooting, taking advanced classes at the range, hunting, or experiencing any of the other shooting disciplines. I believe it makes us better listeners, when we can start to relate to what you're talking about with your shooting experiences.

Here's a snapshot of the Ruger management team in mid-August, returning from a week of plains game hunting in Africa. Everyone had a great time, and everyone came back with a much better appreciation of this type of hunting, and all the demands it places on a rifle. We met other hunters, and got a lot of feedback from the PHs too (a PH is the acronym for a professional hunter, or licensed hunting guide in Africa).

(From L to R): Kevin Reid, VP and General Counsel; Steve Maynard, VP Engineering; Mike Fifer; Tom Sullivan, VP New Hampshire Operations; Mark Lang, Group VP; Chris Killoy, VP Sales & Marketing


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