A shooting range "what if"

[1Admin]

So let's play the "what if" game here.

Say you had some land, figure 20 acres, rolling topography, secluded, gun friendly area, no hassles with zoning, regs, etc.

You were going to build a range. Definitely not an "open to the public" type range, but some place you could bring in other instructors and host classes at.

Would love to say money isn't an option but everyone who says that is full of crap. :)

Work could be done incrementally, improvements done incrementally.

If you were to travel, say a couple hours drive to a range to attend a class, would attributes would you look for in the range itself?

With the above parameters in mind, what features would you design and build for the range?

"What if's" can be both fun and educational ;)

[Spock]

well i've actually seen someone take raw land and turn it into a great range, the volusia county gun and hunt club.

here are things i think are important:

known distance rifle range. BRM is extremely important IMHO. its what all other skills are based on. i'd want a 300-500 yard range. a thousand would be AWESOME but i don't know if its feasable on 20 acres.

270-360 degree tactical bays. with existing vegatation in place. trees, a kill house , a ditch dug in it, all enclosed by a backstop.

[Rmplstlskn]

If you plan on bringing in instructors, you would need the obvious... Wide 50yd range, open & clear. Straight, long one for distance classes.

Personally, I'm bored with open, clear, cookie-cutter ranges... I'd rather see fields of fire ranges that keep the vegetation as is to make it real... Targets placed at various ranges within the woods, behind concealment in areas, hidden until the patrol sees them revealed. Vegetation removed or trimmed down just enough to make it workable. Walkways lead to the targets, and the target area is cleared out just enough to change/repair targets and see results.

Hidey-hole & OP shooting stations for those training to guard their land, shooting from cover...

A shoothouse would be nice too, but that can get overboard, as we are not training to be SWAT or DEVGRP. Just the basic house clearing...

I feel the man hours already ticking up, and the need for a big tractor... LOL!

[Grand58742]

Rmpl is on track with his ideas. A woodland setting with pop up and moving targets would be nice to have. Another idea would be a 500 yard minimum long range...range with the possibility to go out to 1000, but then you have to worry about backdrop and whatnot. Frankly, there aren't enough long range ranges and that in itself could just about pay itself off in a minimum amount of time.

Another idea that not many ever do or teach is an elevation change range. Shooting up and downhill is different than your standard prone shooting techniques. A longer range elevated or depressed firing line would be able to teach the fundamentals of shooting on a grade.

A shoot house could be a good training tool, but there are a lot of safety concerns with live fire and also environmental concerns. However, with simunitions, this isn't as big a deal as live fire. Depending on the class size and frequency, those (Simunition weapons) are a long term investment that could sell itself. And they even make them in AK for those who love those worthless Commie rifles :D

I liked the look of the running course in that video that Hawkeye had up. Possibly even a team dynamics course with shoot move and communicate. In the woodland setting? Utterly awesome might be a good way of putting it.

[blackhawk]

HOW ABOUT A 3 GUN COURSE AS BIG OR AS SMALL AS YOU WANT, WITH A TOWER AND COVERED STAIRS TO SHOOT FROM.
KNOW MATTER WHAT THE COURSE LOOKS LIKE IT HAS TO HAVE THE RIGHT TRAINER. ITS LIKE IF I HAD TIGER WOODS IN MY BACKYARD OR A SO SO TRAINER ON A GREAT COURSE. WHAT ONE WOULD YOU PICK.
P.S. A SNACK STAND JUST PLAYING

[qrprat77]

RMPL and GRAND ARE IN MY HEAD!
Oh,
and what about having a multiple station where you run between the stations. Set it up as a circle with say, eight positions, and you could do some interesting things with running from position to position.

[Hawkeye]

100 yd max distance KD area for doing stationary line drills, the rest of it set up to do scenario type shooting/drills, preferably in a 200 + deg radius, including a wooded area.

[610Alpha]

With regards to the popup targets I know when I was a kid they had this sort of thing for my Grandpa's archery club....

Obviously make as much of the range modular (so that you can be flexible in the classes) and have a decent long distance range to teach range estimation as well as long distance shooting.

Obstacle shooting course that has to be ran....like in one of your vids 1Admin...where the person is running away...stops has to fire a couple of rounds....then runs some more and fires at targets that require breathing control.

Would be great to do something like they did in basic with live fire overhead and the explosive barrels to simulate...but that would require a whole lot of insurance ;)

Plus what everyone else has already said...the main thing would be to keep it flexible. I second the snack stand.

[1Admin]

Great replies, keep em coming. TIA

[Patriotic Sheepdog]

I guess it would depend on what type of classes you want to have. If it is for the prepared citizen, then 100-200yd dynamic range where foliage and brush/trees left in place. Maybe a few other obstacles/hidey holes and the such. You see many ranges that run classes/comps and have to build obstacles. They put up barrels, wooden walls and the such to create something to shoot over or around. Now, they don't have much choice due their range design, but most things I've seen doesn't get you thinking about cover vs. concealment. The "course" is staged and you have to shoot here, run there, shoot again, etc. If a range was left "virgin" then you not only have to worry about your target, but now which tree is wide enough to take cover behind, or what log can I crouch behind and will I have to fire from off-hand side. Not to mention, in the wild there will be lions, tigers and snakes, oh my, to worry about as well. This provides a lot more critical thinking by the participant while adding the real world effect.

I don't think many armed citizen will be doing really long distances, but maybe 300-500yds would be nice to have for those that want to learn long distance skill...but don't devote a lot of space to it. I mean, we all think we will hit the zombies hard a long way away, but in reality will we be able to tell friend or foe at a 1000yds. Like another poster said, there's not many around, so you could get some draw just because you have one.

Since I'm medically trained, some place to do medical skill training in conjunction with group fire/tactic training would be helpful. I'm not saying a classroom per se, but outdoor work where scenarios could be run to hone medical skills while in a firefight type scenario.

If you want just another range, then build clear lanes, throw up some dirt mounds, make some benches and overhead cover and don't let anyone double tap or fire more than once per second.

Also, one more thing...having the SHOT girls there on opening day might get a big draw.:rolleyes:

[Mjollnir]

In addition to what others have said, I like having back stop berms on three sides. Allows ya to shoot safely 180 degrees or more.

[Lowdown3]

I second the snack stand.

How about a night vision kiosk instead? A free Coke Zero and protein bar with every PVS 14 purchased? ;)

Great ideas everyone. Who knows, this may become a reality ;)

[Lowdown3]

Since I'm medically trained, some place to do medical skill training in conjunction with group fire/tactic training would be helpful. I'm not saying a classroom per se, but outdoor work where scenarios could be run to hone medical skills while in a firefight type scenario.

Things would be put in incrementally to avoid a (more) major cash outlay right at the beginning. However a covered area that would do double work as both a classroom, briefing area, registration area, place to get in the shade and eat lunch, etc. would definitely be early on in the list. The one thing the site does lack right now is a lot of shade. Not a huge detriment if people are taking care of themselves- drinking enough, taking short breaks, etc. but their is always "that guy" and unfortunately you have to be ready for "that guy."

The little pop up sun shade/picnic thingees could solve some of this. I have a GP small and GP medium but would rather not cart them all the way down there and put up and takedown is not an easy nor quick task.

More than likely a 40' sealand would be brought in, half of it used for target and misc. range equipment storage, then a shed roof and 8' wide slab put off the side of it and screened in. This would give some shade and offer a place for lectures, to have lunch, sign in, etc. I don't live anywhere near there so I'd want to be able to leave heavier items like steel targets and be able to keep them locked up on site.

[Grand58742]

How about a night vision kiosk instead? A free Coke Zero and protein bar with every PVS 14 purchased? ;)

If it has been Diet Mountain Dew and we might have had a deal :D

Great ideas everyone. Who knows, this may become a reality ;)

I get the distinct impression this is more than just brainstorming lol