RA Gun Club
Well, lets just stick to the facts, rather than bizarre notions of my motives.
The RA offers a convenient and safe environment for shooters at all levels, as well as an armory that includes a wide variety of handgun types, available to all.
For those with demanding careers and family commitments it's a pretty convenient location and an easy process, as opposed to EOHC, which is at least an hour round-trip, and confined to daylight hours. (Great for weekend shooting though).
RA Membership includes a wide range of ages, ethnicities and professions. People bring their kids, wives and mothers to shoot there.
The RA is particularly convenient for winter shooting. Outdoor target shooting in winter is over-rated. The novelty wears off pretty fast, and then you're spending time trying to be warm, rather than actually shooting.
Regarding costs, RA fees are similar to EOHC, about $250/yr, I believe (... and frankley, who cares. We would pay hundreds more in any case, since club membership is a requirement to shoot handguns).
As for $600 firearms; sure you could that. You could drive a 1983 Pinto, or marry an ugly woman, or work for minimum wage. But who would want to settle for that?
Two grand for a gun is average. A mid-range 1911 is $1500 to $1800, and by the time its fit to your hand and shooting style, and the kinks are worked out, another $1000 can get spent real quick. I have Nill grips on a revolver that cost $200 alone. Its worth it to me, so that I can shoot the gun in comfort for the next 20 years.
As for ammo, 45 caliber is getting near to a buck a shot, retail, and 9mm about 40 cents. I must have 3 or 4 thousand dollars worth on hand at any time, of varying calibers, bought when available and priced right. Most folks I know buy them a few thousand rounds at a time to keep the cost down and the convenience up.
So, all in all, suggesting that shooting is not a ridiculously expensive past-time and that the RA Gun Club is a sub-standard range is just foolishness.
I think its rather sad to settle for driving an hour to shoot a Chinese knock-off in the cold a few times a month. Most folks I know have a much, much better time of it, because, like me, they shoot the guns they love once or twice a week amongst friends and colleagues whose company they enjoy, in a safe and convenient environment. The RA Gun Club allows us to do this in a way no other club in the region can.
i don't think that a hard-core shooter should really go to RA. other than location and being indoors, it has few redeeming qualities. membership fees are horrid, buncha doors & hallways limit what you'd bring with you, and there's only one 25y range with maybe 10 positions?
if you're hard-core and compete, it would make sense to be at Connaught / NCRRA (6 pistol ranges [25y & 50y] with 14+ positions per range, lower membership fees, federal LTATT) and probably EOHC (good rates, enough space, very flexible shooting times). i live 5mins from the RA and i'd rather drive to Connaught. and if you really are a hard-core shooter, snow shouldn't bother you so no need for an indoor range in the winter. indoor would only be a real plus if you could shoot 24/7, as in 3am on a sunday or tuesday.
your prices are out of whack. $500 for membership if you join two and that's TOTAL, and max (if you make reasonable choices). brand name gun for $2k? LOTS of brand name guns for $600+ are available - and you did say PER gun. do you buy your guns from the RA centre itself at inflated prices??? i'd say even your ammo price is off by a fair bit if you're talking MINIMUM. using 9mm, 200 rounds per week every week is around $2k. the 22LR will be maybe another $500.
either you're oblivious to the other choices around, or you enjoy paying too much to have elite status, or you're trying to scare newbies with the massive costs involved. it's really not THAT expensive of a sport / activity to get into.
I shoot year-round, and after a while you just harden up and get used to it.
