Virginia is the latest state to embrace the concept. According to the Washington Post, Elite Shooting Sports — which will have a 65,000-sqauare-foot facility — is scheduled to open in October. The facility will have two 25-yard ranges, a 50-yard range and a 100-yard range, a 1,600-square-foot, two-story live-fire shoot house for law enforcement training, a cafe, a lounge and a 5,000-square-foot retail area.
“[We] kind of look at it as the new golf clubs,” said owner Greg Wodack. “It’s a destination range. It’s for everybody.”
Elite Shooting Sports will also have its own gunsmith, as well as a dojo to help train law enforcement, and Ti training, a training simulator which constantly changes scenarios based on real-time outcomes.
“Elite Shooting Sports is going to be another one of these ‘guntry clubs,’” said Zach Snow, manager of shooting promotions at the National Shooting Sports Foundation. “I wouldn’t say these kinds of facilities are trying to compete [with country clubs], but in many cases there’s a lot of overlap with a golfer who is also an avid shooter and vice versa.”
Another ‘guntry club’ has opened in Texas. As the Post points out, the Frisco Gun Club has a 43,000-square-foot facility which includes an indoor gun range with 40 shooting lanes, a 7,000-square-foot retail shop and a members-only VIP club featuring private lanes and lounge areas with a fireplace.
Lock & Load Miami, which is located near South Beach, is yet another ‘guntry club.’ This facility has 24 air-conditioned lanes and a VIP room which can host up to two dozen people. These rooms have six lanes, two flat-screen TVs and private instructors.
“The monster facilities — 40,000 to 60,000 square feet — is a new trend,” Snow said. “Will it continue? I think only time will tell. In most cases, they’re put in markets that are fairly affluent, as well as places with significant populations.”
Read more: http://www.washingtontimes.com
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