The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - State Fair of Texas 2007 Fanny Packs Observation

Double Naught Spy · September 28, 2007, 08:28 PM

I have read the threads about how gun folks assume anyone with a fanny pack is carrying a gun. I work in Fair Park, Dallas, which is where the Texas State Fair is hosted. I am sure some of y'all have gotten the update from the TSRA saying that the same policy is in effect that if you are carrying and have a license, you have to wait for a supervisor to inspect your license and all that other garbage. From what I understand from folks at the park, that see a fair number of CHLs, but not really a lot.

This was opening day. I had some time to kill today because of the wreck on I-35 (fatality that is on my route home) that had traffic at a standstill, so I hung out. Between my lunch out and later in the afternoon, I spent nearly 3 hours roaming the park. Because so many people (usually men) don't like fanny packs or claim they are indicators of gun carry, I did an informal visual survey after I realized that there were quite a few people there with fanny packs. I spotted 73 fanny packs in the 3 hours. Of those 73, only 1 appeared to be a gunnysack, complete with extra zippers and pull tab. That isn't to say folks could not be carrying guns in the rest, only they were not of the sort that guns would normally be in that I have seen.

On top of that, most that I saw were carried by women. I was able to spot many in use, mostly by women and most of those were loaded with typical women purse gear. None of the women with fanny packs were carrying purses. None of the men with fanny packs were carrying purses either, but I did see a couple of men with purses.

Interpretation? I saw a lot of fanny packs, but by and large, they did not appear to be containing guns...which is in contrast to gun folks' common beliefs that anyone with a fanny pack is carrying a gun.

Why would I believe most of the folks I saw were not carrying guns in the packs? Mostly because none of the packs looked like gunnysacks and I saw people using their fanny packs as fanny packs to carry necessary items like wallets, phones, keys, coupons, etc. Gun folks are often quite bad about only carrying their gun in their fanny pack and carrying their wallet in their back pocket, keys hanging out of a pocket, phone and wallet on clips, etc. They carry everything that might normally go in a fanny pack anywhere but in the fanny pack. So if they are wearing a fanny pack and carry all their gear everywhere else, then what is in the pack?

For the record, I own 3 fanny packs, two of which are designed to carry guns and one that isn't. The one that isn't has been used for gun carry in the past, but only for my more tiny guns.

As another interpretation, when I did see folks using their fanny packs, they were not terribly clandestine about hiding contents. Most gained access to the large main pockets and so opened up the packs such that contents could be readily seen. To be honest, I was impressed with some of the pack jobs I saw. I was also somewhat impressed by the sorts of wealth they contained. Of course, that could probably be said for most purses as well.

These sorts of open behaviors were mostly spotted in areas where people were buying food with coupons and were fishing coupons out of their packs.

September 28, 2007, 08:28 PM	#1
Double Naught Spy Senior Member Join Date: January 8, 2001 Location: Forestburg, Montague Cnty, TX Posts: 12,717	State Fair of Texas 2007 Fanny Packs Observation I have read the threads about how gun folks assume anyone with a fanny pack is carrying a gun. I work in Fair Park, Dallas, which is where the Texas State Fair is hosted. I am sure some of y'all have gotten the update from the TSRA saying that the same policy is in effect that if you are carrying and have a license, you have to wait for a supervisor to inspect your license and all that other garbage. From what I understand from folks at the park, that see a fair number of CHLs, but not really a lot. This was opening day. I had some time to kill today because of the wreck on I-35 (fatality that is on my route home) that had traffic at a standstill, so I hung out. Between my lunch out and later in the afternoon, I spent nearly 3 hours roaming the park. Because so many people (usually men) don't like fanny packs or claim they are indicators of gun carry, I did an informal visual survey after I realized that there were quite a few people there with fanny packs. I spotted 73 fanny packs in the 3 hours. Of those 73, only 1 appeared to be a gunnysack, complete with extra zippers and pull tab. That isn't to say folks could not be carrying guns in the rest, only they were not of the sort that guns would normally be in that I have seen. On top of that, most that I saw were carried by women. I was able to spot many in use, mostly by women and most of those were loaded with typical women purse gear. None of the women with fanny packs were carrying purses. None of the men with fanny packs were carrying purses either, but I did see a couple of men with purses. Interpretation? I saw a lot of fanny packs, but by and large, they did not appear to be containing guns...which is in contrast to gun folks' common beliefs that anyone with a fanny pack is carrying a gun. Why would I believe most of the folks I saw were not carrying guns in the packs? Mostly because none of the packs looked like gunnysacks and I saw people using their fanny packs as fanny packs to carry necessary items like wallets, phones, keys, coupons, etc. Gun folks are often quite bad about only carrying their gun in their fanny pack and carrying their wallet in their back pocket, keys hanging out of a pocket, phone and wallet on clips, etc. They carry everything that might normally go in a fanny pack anywhere but in the fanny pack. So if they are wearing a fanny pack and carry all their gear everywhere else, then what is in the pack? For the record, I own 3 fanny packs, two of which are designed to carry guns and one that isn't. The one that isn't has been used for gun carry in the past, but only for my more tiny guns. As another interpretation, when I did see folks using their fanny packs, they were not terribly clandestine about hiding contents. Most gained access to the large main pockets and so opened up the packs such that contents could be readily seen. To be honest, I was impressed with some of the pack jobs I saw. I was also somewhat impressed by the sorts of wealth they contained. Of course, that could probably be said for most purses as well. These sorts of open behaviors were mostly spotted in areas where people were buying food with coupons and were fishing coupons out of their packs.