Raahauge shooting range

[DMotivate]

$30 is high for range fees, but for me the conveniences outweigh the cost differences. I get to shoot outside and by myself right off the tailgate of my truck. Don't have RO over my shoulder and get to do holster work. For me though the best thing is it is a 10 minute drive from my house. On the weekdays you could stay all day if you wanted to; the only limits would be your inventory of ammo, daylight, and free time off work.

[baranski]

Trying this place out next week.

I have high hopes.

[tnlrat37]

I've been there a few times, yes its a little pricey but I like how they leave you alone once your setup. Last time I was there with my kids I backed up into my bay with the Jeep setup an easy up and tables (there tables are pretty thrashed) the RO told us a couple things complemented some of our guns and he asked our range experience. After telling him mine (I was a shooting coach and DM in the Marine Corps) he left us alone. I only saw him come back once to ask us if we needed anything and left again. We had all of us up on the line shooting at once, rapid fire, and even moving and shooting, no issues at all. There was no one waiting so we stayed 3 hours, kids loved it. Afterward the old Nam Vet RO (Hawk) was his name and myself swapped some war stories, it was a great time. Its very close to home and the freedom to not have an RO up your a.. all day makes up for the price. YMMV. That being said I want to check out WEGC also.

[GeeZer81]

Been considering a look at Burro.

What are you guys hearing/seeing out there that's detracting you? Safety?

[CGT80]

The private bays at Raahauge's was a nice feature, but their prices got quite high for bays and for matches. Some of the staff sucked and had an attitude like they were doing you a favor. Hawk was a cool guy and Ron had some very creative matches, but I didn't like how they were ran (from the perspective of myself and others helping and as a shooter). Eventually, it was time for something different and I went and tried 3 gun at WEGC and was immediately hooked on the range.

WEGC competitions are very well run and the RO's on the main range are cool guys. The main range is much nicer to shoot at than Lytle Creek, where you will find people from all walks of life, including some of the less desirable ones. It wasn't bad when I was there, but I felt much better with a second person to help me keep an eye on gear. In three years, I have not seen anyone around WEGC who makes me feel like I have to watch my stuff or personal safety like a hawk. The atmosphere is great around the range.

I made it out to one calguns shoot at Buro and we were on a big private bay. It was fun, but the public areas didn't entice me. Prado felt too much like an indoor range, but is nice for skeet.

The lawsuits didn't effect my shooting experience (I joined as a full member in Jan 2013) at all, at WEGC and it has been well worth the money. There was a bunch of hype about the lawsuits here and people at Raahauges bad mouthed West End for a few reasons, but the range wasn't any worse than any other range around here.

The debate on steel ammo, on calguns, got me interested in how that was going to be handled, so I attended the board meetings. I got roped into helping at a meeting (OK......I went willingly) and found myself on the Range Development and Planning Committee and then agreed to be the Range PRIDE Volunteer Coordinator since I have a construction background and wanted to volunteer around the range. We now have events where members get together and help with projects around the range.

The Project Director of the range has worked very hard to help make improvements to the range with some of those being visible to, or used by shooters and some being related to how the club functions. There are some very dedicated people on the WEGC board and I will be joining them next month as Sergeant-At-Arms.

Things are looking up at WEGC and it is a great place to shoot, even if you only get a limited membership. All members of WEGC do have to be NRA members as well. If anyone needs more info regarding West End, I will do what I can to help. Our web master does a great job at keeping the web site up to date and there is a ton of info on there, so be sure to check it out if you are thinking of joining the range.

[SuperSet]

Considering you get your own private bay to have your way with, $35 for 2 hours is nothing.
I travel for a living and very rarely ever see any range offer the general public the ability to do this.

[bubbapug1]

WEGC is top notch. I'm glad chris helped me make up my mind to join.

The place is kept up like an expensive country club. Matches are well run, challenging, well attended, and tough to place high in as the skill level at the club is stiff.

That said you still get the occasional dicks who will try to intimidate you off the rifle bays or refuses to vacate a back bay per the rules favoring long range shooting.

WEGC is similar in size to the entire burro facility, but unlike Burro it's well maintained and on most weekdays you are sharing the entire facility with at most four other shooters.