Suggestions: LEO preferences when using private ranges

[Sacramento Gun Club]

EDIT:

New Hours of Operation beginning Monday, July 6, 2015:

Monday through Thursday 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Friday and Saturday 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Sunday 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM


Hello, all. First off, thank you for your service to the public. I understand that you do what you do because it has to be done and not for the praise. It is an honorable thing to do.

We are a recently opened local indoor range in Sacramento and in the process of fine tuning. If you are familiar with the area, we are affiliated with California Tactical or CalTac which specializes in LE specific equipment.

Our rifle range is 50 yards and our pistol range is 25 yards. We have LE specific gear and offer discounted rates for LE and Military. We have a VR simulation room that utilizes a reactive AI, infrared OC, infrared flashlight, infrared Glock and a blowback Glock for running scenarios. Additionally we are in the process of building a tactical range to run live drills.

We are looking for feedback from the LE community regarding what you want or would like to see when visiting a private range. I understand that you have your respective agency ranges, but may want something a bit different. Is there anything in particular that you would like to see?

I encourage you all to post your suggestions and/or visit us to provide feedback. There is a link to our main comments/feedback thread in my signature if you choose to participate there.

Thank you all in advance and stay safe.

[SDDAVE56]

LEO only hours would be nice. Me personally, I don't like shooting next to some one I don't know. I have been to a few suicides at one of our local indoor ranges. I don't want some guys brains landing on me.

[Sacramento Gun Club]

That is unfortunate to read. . .

I can completely understand the desire for an additional buffer of officer safety. Please understand that no one will know that you are LE unless you advise them, with exception to the staff.

We have an RSO in every room to monitor behavior and safety. Our RSOs have a blended history of military, LE, medics, and other public safety organizations. They will not allow anyone to shoot if they feel that something is off.

LEO hours may be considered in the future once we have more LE traffic/members to utilize the facility, however this may be difficult considering the dynamic schedules of individual officers. It would be best to revisit once we have sufficient feedback from the LEOs that visit.

Thank you for the feedback. It definitely helps.

[TripleThreat]

My first comment is to be nice to LE, which I can tell will happen with your establishment based on your opening statements. Places like Reed's seem to get all freaked out when you let them know you're LEO and are armed. That doesn't make sense, but that's how they operate.

Places like Target Masters, allow LEO's to shoot rapid fire, and as such, you'll typically have your badge exposed to alert staff you are LE. This does allow the general public (GP) to know that you're LE.

I'm personally not overly concerned with shooting side-by-side with the GP, however extended hours such as early morning or late evening would suit many LEO's, but, it could take years before those extended hours were utilized enough to warrant the additional hours. Looking forward to checking out your facilities.

Good luck with your new business!

Triple

[Sacramento Gun Club]

Thank you, TripleThreat.

We will not mandate LEOs to expose their badges, however we do ask that you show your LE identification to our staff to confirm your status. Once that is done, you're free to enjoy your time as you intended. The RSOs will advise you of anything that you need to know for your activities.

We do not restrict anyone from drawing from the holster or rapid firing. LE and CCW holders are generally cleared to do so and "uncertified" (by official documentation) shooters have the opportunity to show that they can properly control their firearm under those conditions. This will all be at the discretion of the RSOs on staff.

We understand that holding a certification does not necessarily mean that the person can handle what they intend to do and at the same time we understand that there are highly experienced people who simply aren't officially certified.

We want to treat everyone fairly without affecting safety and prefer to treat each situation different based on the totality of circumstances.

Thank you again for the suggestions.

[Petro6golf]

Heres what I would like to see:

Decent customer service. I know alot of people are idiots and idiots mixed with guns are bad but dont assume im a dumbass just because you deal with dumbass customers from time to time. I have been to a number of sac area gun stores and ranges with rude staff that act as if im a bother for asking a question or being at the business. That is a number one issue that will make me not return. I dont need to be coddled or hugged when I arrive but treat me like an adult. Go to Sts guns in folsom or Sierra Gun Exchange in Cameron Park so you can see what customer service and decent employees are.

I hate shooting at a range with people that are range tourists. Typically people that know nothing about a gun, rent one and take their girlfriends on a date or a group of their bro friends. I feel its unsafe and ive seen a number of these places rent to anyone with a credit card and a 2 minute class on how to load and fire. Cater to these people fine just dont put them in the range next to me.

and lastly, is it too much for me to draw from my holster to fire? Ive yet to see a range that allows this.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

I a an LEO but in So Cal. I cn tell you that LEO's don't want to be a stall over from a group of gang member types. But then again I don't think anyone does, really. Novice male shooters there on a date to impress even more novice female shooters are also a no-go. I guess we get spoiled on LE ranges where you get torn a new one for unsafe behavior to the point where it is almost non-existent.

[oddjob]

I'm a retired LEO. Here's my take.....

1) Cops are cheap. A discount would be nice. Family, Wives and/or girlfriend discount would be nice too (per person though...I know you have to make a profit)

2) As others have mentioned a separate time would be nice. I have a friend who works for an outdoor and an indoor range and they have separate times for LEO's and military folks. But I think its for a contract type deal.

3) Secluded range area would be nice. Some do shoot from the hip, prone & etc and that may cause other non-leo shooters to be startled. Besides I don't think you would want shooters to say "They did it....why can't I?"

4) Don't forget police academy recruits. They always want to shoot. Advertise at the local academies (Sac PD, Sac S/O, CHP).

5) Talk to the training officers at the agencies in the area. Sac PD, Sac SO, FBI, DEA, Calif DOJ, IRS and all the other alphabet agencies. The Sac area has quite a few.

6) Do you allow full-auto fire? SWAT folks may need to train in that arena.

7) Don't ignore retired cops....I have coffee with 10-12 retired cops all the time and only one doesn't shoot guns. We love to shoot.

8) Cops are cheap....See#1........

I've walked through your facility. Its very, very nice!!

[SonofWWIIDI]

I am not a LEO. I just wanted to chime in and say I wish you had opened your range here in San Jose.


If I ever get up that way, I'm gonna check it out!

Good luck.

[hey_scooter]

Are you looking for specific guidance on LE/department training standards and how to best serve agency needs? Or are you looking for how to better serve the individual officer who looks to find a spot he can stay proficient? Maybe both? I'll answer questions from the individual officer perspective looking for range time.

Something I've seen at other ranges is how they handle membership for LEOs: Depending on the fee structure, perhaps there is a possibility for initial membership discount or a certain percentage discount on a monthly fee. So for example, if your range membership fees are $100 to join with a 10 dollar monthly charge, perhaps take off or significantly reduce that initial join up fee. This will attract LEOs that are always looking for that discount. Also, when it comes to LEOs and guests, I'd look into giving LEOs some one time free passes to visitors. If there's anything I've learned, it's that first time shooters come to us all the time asking "can I go to a range with you?" If the range supports that sort of thing, it's easier for us to say "Yes I can take you, I have these passes from an awesome range I belong to etc etc." Could bring in more business.

This also coincides with the "LEO time only" that all of us want. I personally think that while it'd be great to have LEO only range times, that may not make a lot of fiscal sense. So the obvious response is to hold members only hours. Depending on how many bays you have, you could say "normal members over here, LEO/.mil/first responders over here" or something equivalent.

You should have the ability to operate your range in no light/low light conditions. This should be saved for competent shooters only, but if there's anything LEOs always need more time on, it's how to shoot in those conditions. Get a light bar installed near the back of the range to simulate being around those distractions. This can be incorporated into any training packages you offer, and may attract more interest at agency levels.

As far as enhanced training aids, things like shoot houses and force on force facilities are always great, it just depends on your space limitations and other factors. Depending on the followup I could offer some suggestions, but honestly you may be better off hooking up with any agency training officer/rep local to you or that resides in a larger department. You'll get a lot more of these wish lists and insights over a cup of coffee with the right guy rather than the internet.

[Sacramento Gun Club]

Thank you all for your comments and suggestions.

We do offer discounts on initial membership fees for LE and Military. We do not restrict your ability to draw from the holster. We allow, and in some cases mandate, rifles to be shot from the prone position.

Pistol is a little different and would require a controlled room specific to the drills intended. For safety purposes, we'd likely separate you from novice shooters.

Anything range related is at the discretion of the RSO on staff and based on the totality of circumstances. The best thing to do is to come in and advise the RSO of what you'd like to do and they can advise you from there.

We fully understand the desire for tactical firearms practice. Believe me, we are looking into how we can effectively setup barricades, cover, etc... in a closed off section of the range.

I'll see what I can do about contacting local agencies. Thank you all again and stay safe.

[Sacramento Gun Club]

I've confirmed that all membership levels have guest passes included. The number of guest passes increases with their respective membership levels.

The first tier of membership includes 6 guest passes per year.

[Sacramento Gun Club]

OK. We will offer the same LE membership discount to police academy recruits. We understand that recruits need a place where they can consistently practice for the POST mandated firearms qualifications.

Simply, bring in proof of enrollment in a POST Academy and we will honor it.

You are choosing a difficult, but honorable career and we want to support you by making it a little easier.

[hey_scooter]

That's a pretty good idea, never thought of that.

[CBR_rider]

Sounds like a good place to shoot!