Something GOOD to talk about for Indiana shooters, especially southern Indiana.

[NotRocketSurgery]

Greetings Hoosiers ...

I have some news which I think will be welcomed by almost everyone.  No more will we be exclaiming, "I have nowhere to go to shoot with my airgun". 

I know you don't like long posts, and I do have a lot to say.  But, I will try to keep it short and to the point.  Here is the story.

I would like to introduce you to Precision Gun Range.  Precision is only two years old but already has an incredibly loyal following.  It is the qualifications of the owners, and the services that they offer in addition to the shooting that make this place really different.  Precision has a web site ... www.precisiongunrange.net.  And, they have a Facebook page.  If you spend only a few minutes at either of those sites, you will understand the incredible qualifications that come along with the owners.  You know that this is a great place when you discover that the Training Room is twice as big as the owners offices and the range store combined.  Precision is a range, but the real purpose for its existence is training, education, skill building and socializing among like minded souls.  If you look at the photo on the web site, the entire building to the left of the two American flags is one, large training room.  Or, social room.  Or, catered dinner room.  Or, dance hall.  Or, exhibit hall, for that matter. 

The range was started with the firearms shooter in mind.  That is understandable when you see the incredible background of the owners in firearms safety, training and personal protection. The entiere place is purpose built from scratch, even the berms are custom made. They claim to be a "family" and they want to create a "family place".  So, there are opportunities for everyone, from seasoned and skilled shooters to the young beginner.  And, they are interested in completing their offerings by including the airgun family in with any other interested shooter.  "A shooter is a shooter", they said.

Here is what make this place so special to me.  Kim, one of the owners, told me this afternoon, that everything that shoots on the range is a firearm, airguns included.  That means that there are not two classes of safety ... there is no such thing as firearm safety and airgun safety.  The is only safety.  All shooters, airguns and firearms, are expected to follow exactly the same set of rules while on the property.  This is a great idea.  It makes enforcement simple, and it exposes everyone to the same set of safety requirements.  In return, airgunners and firearms shooters alike, have equal status here, the same rights and the same obligations. The key word is "equal". There is no distinction ... a shooter is a shooter and everyone is expected to follow the same set of procedures.  I like this very much.  I feel very, very comfortalbe with this condition.  If I had children, and I wanted to start them off with training as a shooter, I would definitely want a place like this to go to. 

A little about the range ... it is new, only two years old.  The owners built it with their own money, so there are some odds and ends that need some love.  There could stand to be a coat of paint on the ceiling in the pistol range, for example.  But, this suggests that the pistol range actually has a real ceiling.  And a roof.  And, insulation.  And, doors that close.  So, pistol shooters can shoot all winter, paint or no paint.  Neat.  And, the same goes for the rifle range.  The rifle range is designed in such a way as to permit rifle shooting at what others would consider very short distances.  So, 7, 8 and 10 meter rifle is very possible, on the rifle range.  Both the pistol range and the rifle range have "steel targets at various distances".  This means that there is a minimum need to stop the shooting to change paper targets.  However, if it is work with paper targets that you need, it is done. 

Can you tell that I really like this place?

The range is located less than 3 miles from the oldest State Park in the Indiana State Park System...McCormik's Creek State Park. There you will find the Canyon Inn, with beautiful rooms, an incredible restaurant, and sites for any kind of camping you can think of.  The range is located about 10 minutes east of Spencer, Indiana, and about 20 minutes west of Bloomington.  It is just south of the intersection of Hwy 46 and Hwy 43.  If you need better coordinates, let me know.

How do I see GTA members using this place?  Well, I have decided to be a member there. So, that means that any GTA member with an airgun can shoot there as my guest.  There will be a little charge, but it isn't much.  Anyone living near by, like you Bedford guys, and Martinsville people, will want to give serious thought to joining. 
But even better than that, I will see that anyone who wants to be included on a name, address and email/contactd list will be on one so that we can pick up the phone and say, "I am going out to Precision, would you like to meet me there?"  Or, how about asking 5 or more friends to meet you there and have a whole day of informal competition.  I am absolutely positive that, as time passes, everyone will find more and more things to do there from meets to competitions to social acivities. 

That is the good news.  Over the following weeks, I will be spending more and more time at Precision as I am the one who has always lamented the fact that I don't have a proper place to go to shoot.  Well, those days are over.  I will keep you posted on developments.  In the meantime, stay in touch, ask questions, I'll try to answer them and I am looking forward to seeing you guys out at the Precision Gun Range.

John
NotRocketSurgery
Bloomington, IN