so you have a gun, but do you have a range?

[singlestacksig]

There is a large political effort to protect our gun ownership rights, but I think sometimes people over look the issue of ranges.
As shooters we need to make sure there are good ranges for our use, our children , and for new shooters to learn the fun of shooting sports.

large complexe ranges that offer many types of shooting are rare and very expensive.

A public owned range is nice because it is "cheap" and you generally do not have the hassle of having to deal with membership..
we have to keep our public ranges open and funded. Even if a member of a 'private' range , one should make a trip to a public range a few times a year so the state knows they are being used.
Also we should try to stay abreast on funding issues for the up keep & staffing of public ranges.

A private , membership required, range is probably when one would find the best in a range experience.
there are several types of them;
the fully private for profit range usally operated by a gun store.

A non profit club.

and a not legaly formed group ....

The private for profit range is probably the most expensive to operate , and the most threatened with being shut down.. But since they are subject to lots of market forces it is hard to do much other than try to keep income going to them.

Most larger outdoor clubs that i have been involved with are not for profit corporations that you become a part owner when you join.
these can be the 1 member 1 vote type, or the share type ( more shares you purchase the more votes you have)

Besides all the extrnal threats to the existance of the range, a lot of not for profit corporations fall apart do to bad government. ( internal not state)

Members do not attend meetings, the same person hold a office for years and get tired of it..
poor funding leads to problems with up keep....

and so on...
If you are a member of a NFP club try to go to meetings a few times a year, consider serving on the board once a decade..
A large amount of income for clubs like this comes from events, IDPA - trap - USPS and so on, try to get out and help with events , even if you don't shoot that type.. you are helping to keep the range open...

consider financial gifts.. if the club is a 503c corporation you can give $ and deduct it on you taxes..
even if it is not a 503c they probably could use a little extra ....

if we don't keep the clubs open & healthy , they might not be there next year....

 

[BE Mike]

The Indiana State Rifle and Pistol Association (Indiana State Rifle And Pistol Association - Home) is responsible for pushing favorable legislation that benefits gun owners, including the fairly recent "Range Protection Law". If you are not a member of the ISRPA, you should join. I have belonged to private clubs when I have been able and do so now. My experiences at the public ones are not that great, and I probably won't shoot at one unless there is no other option. Outside of the club politics, clubs have the most to offer for me, including sponsored events (shooting matches). I agree that it is hard to get good folks to run for office. Many times the private club ends up with someone holding office who is not the most qualified or desirable, but that is because most folks don't want the hassle and aren't willing to commit the necessary time. I am guilty of not attending club meetings. I generally hate meetings. There is a lot of off-topic talk and not much gets done, so for the most part I consider them a waste of time. They are a necessary evil, I suppose, but it seems to me that unless there is a special project that needs attention, meetings should be restricted to quarterly. The day-to-day operations should be able to be run by the members of the board and permanent committees. My basement air gun range is very handy for me and one of the reasons for buying my house with the large basement. We do need to always remain vigilant, lest the antis sneak in and take away our ranges, guns, and ammo. "Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing!"

 

[singlestacksig]

Clubs that have open buy in membership are at high risk of a political shift..
a group could buy up memberships and stack a meeting and vote for something drastic...
i have seen it happen..

 

[MilitaryArms]

I don't have to worry about it anymore. In 2000 when they passed a bill banning machineguns from state ranges, I bought my own private 60 acre range. Now I don't have to worry about it for the rest of my life.

 

[Bubbajms]

Yeah, there's something nice about having your own range

It would be nice to have an indoor range nearby, just for those rainy/snowy day shooting lulls..

I find it odd, though, that there aren't more ranges (profit, non-profit, gov't) around. I'm used to having at least a couple profit and non-profits around, but in my area there just doesn't seem to be a lot of options. My brother brought over his rifle this summer and we had to drive up to J/P to shoot. I'd love to join a club, but this type of shooting is not a frequent thing for me. Of course, gas keeps going up like it is and it may be a better deal to get a membership..

 

[possum_128]

I have my own range at my house. So no worries for me.

 

[singlestacksig]

even if you have your own 10,000 acre range..
overall it is in your interest to support public / group ranges..
by keeping ranges open we allow others to actually get to use a gun, and then some of the myths about them are broken....

If people don't get to go shoot then they don't need ammo, then it does not sell.. your local supply might close...

costs wil go up..
if your neighbors don't shoot much they might complain about the noise.. and you might spend $ defending your property...
Don't write off group / public ranges just because you own enough land right now..

I am sure some of the land owners near fishers thought they had plenty of land a few years ago..

 

[epsylum]

even if you have your own 10,000 acre range..
overall it is in your interest to support public / group ranges..
by keeping ranges open we allow others to actually get to use a gun, and then some of the myths about them are broken....

If people don't get to go shoot then they don't need ammo, then it does not sell.. your local supply might close...

costs wil go up..
if your neighbors don't shoot much they might complain about the noise.. and you might spend $ defending your property...
Don't write off group / public ranges just because you own enough land right now..

I am sure some of the land owners near fishers thought they had plenty of land a few years ago..

Not only that, with that stupid bill introduced and shot down here in Indy last year, they were trying to restrict shooting even on private property, even if there was adequate land for shooting and a properly setup shooting range.

 

[SavageEagle]

Not only that, with that stupid bill introduced and shot down here in Indy last year, they were trying to restrict shooting even on private property, even if there was adequate land for shooting and a properly setup shooting range.

Link please?

There's something wrong when there's an established shooting range that gets neighbors and then those neighbors complain. If you don't want the noise, don't move there! Simple. I don't know about you guys, but when I go to buy a house or rent somewhere, I usually check out the neighborhood and surrounding area. If I don't like it I find somewhere else. Complaining about a shooting range nearby after you move in is like a burglar complaining to the owner of the house there is nothing good to steal!

I try to support all ranges. *small ashamed voice* Even Don's. *small ashamed voice off* As much as I hate to pay FIFTEEN DOLLARS FOR THIRTY MINUTES, he's the closest indoor range that doesn't care about rapid fire and is very good to test out equipment like my SKS when I put my scope mount on. Places like MCFG and DCC are nice, but don't allow centerfire rifles. I have to drive an hour just to get a good 100+yrd range for that.

If we dont support our local ranges, as has been said, prices will go up, less people will be able to AFFORD to go shoot, and more and more people will lose interest all together. Those with personal ranges or just acreage that they use to shoot on, it would be nice if you opened up to fellow shooters. Most of us don't have places to practice prone shooting, holster drawn shooting, long range shooting, etc. I wish so bad I lived back in So. IN. so I could just step out on my back porch and do some target practice or scare off those pesky coyotes we loathed so much.

Anyway, great discussion, lets keep it going!

 

[singlestacksig]

An existing range might not be zoned as a gun range, so even if it has been around people can complain about it and sometimes win..
I really only know of one private range that is truly zoned as a gun range and not just ag. land. That is Wildcat, they even have a law firm on call just to handle the zoning problems.

If your club has Ag. land or even a variance, it could get problems with zoning..

I don't know If Atlanta is Zoned or has a variance.. I hope they got zoned , given all the $$ they poured into it..

 

[Backwoods]

I agree that we need to support any ranges that we can. There is a lot of ranges that go under every year. Just because you might have a range of your own now, doesn't mean that you or a family member in the future might need a range.

 

[epsylum]

Link please?

I can't remember it exactly. It was before the last round of local elections (the one that Greg Ballard won) and it was drafted by my then city-county council person (can't remember her name). It was the one about "celebratory gunfire". But it had wording in it that would have effected even those who had private property. It was amended several times (because of the stink us pro-2Aers made) before being bought up to a vote and voted down.

My point is that legislation can be passed that can severely limit people's use of private property as a gun range, so buying land does not make one somehow invulnerable to lefty's trying to take away our shooting ranges.

If you have a private range, you still need to support your local public shooting range because they will be coming after your private range next.

 

[singlestacksig]

NRA-ILA :: Legislation

 

[G McBride]

Come and Join Old Trails Gun Club in Richmond. Meeting time is 7:00 Sunday the 24th.