[APEXDUCK]

Just a poll to see what each of your local clubs charge for a visitor to shoot at your club? My club wants to raise the price for a round of trap , skeet or 5 stand from $5 to $10 . Normal members pay $3.25. If you work on a committe (work one 4 hours shift, 4 times a year) you get a break and can shoot for $2.50 a round. Some one suggested the board raise the price to $10 to encourage people to become members. They seem to think that due to the membership price of $150 per year, plus the first year inniation fee of $100, that non members just shoot as visitors rather than becoming a member because you would have to shoot quite a bit to off set the membership cost. (143 rounds the first year, 86 rounds the following years). There logic is to raise the cost for non members to encourage them to become members. My thinking is we will drive away possible new members to other clubs around that are cheaper.

At $10 for a round of trap /skeet /4 stand, a person could go to the local sporting clays course and shoot for the same price ($20 for 50 birds). Normally sporting clays is more expensive than trap or skeet. It is a further drive to most clays courses.

Our club is bought a paid for. Members dues go to maintance and insurance cost. We have a live in caretaker who cuts the grass and watchs over things for the exchange of living in the trailer on the grounds. Maintance, trappers and shop workers are all member volunteers. We have trap skeet, 5 stand , 3D archery, outdoor pistol range and a 10 acre lake. It's nice but not fancy. We do have a nice clubhouse members can use. And each year we have a members only shoot free day and pig roast.

I'm just trying to get a feel for what other clubs charge for members and non members to shoot. I feel like at the prices for visitors , we are not encouraging new people to shoot and making a greater divide between shooters and non shooters by driving up the cost to learn about the sport and participate.

APEXDUCK

 

[deadapair]

$10 for a round of skeet, trap, or even five stand is ridiculously excessive unless this club looks like the Taj Majal.

Virtually every club that I have ever shot in has a member/non-member price structure like the one you already have in place. I have never, ever, paid more than $5 for a round of skeet, nor would I ever.

Your officers in favor of this price hike are seriously overvaluing membership in your club. Instead of enticing non-members to join, you will drive them away with this proposal.

 

[wwb]

Our prices are going up effective Jan 1..... the new prices will be $3.00 member and $5.00 non-member.

 

[Old Shooter]

Our club is on 96 acres with 2 ponds, skeet,trap,3Darchery,20yrd. indoor range, 150yrd.rifle range.
Membership is $45.00 first year $40.00 after that. We have a work program that can get it down to$20.00 per year.
In this area we may have chased away a number of members when we went to this format. Our membership was $20.00 per year. Like you we own everything and only pay taxes and utilities.We are considering going back to the 20.
Skeet and Trap prices are 3.00 for members and 4.00 non-members. Archery indooris2.00 per hour.
Good shooting George

 

[TexasTon]

Most clubs charge $1-$2 more for non-members, I think that is enough, ours is $2 unless you live 50 or more miles away then you shoot at member rates----which I think is certainly fair.

I can guarantee you, if rates went up here to $10 you might get someone out once, but never again. The club also gets alot of income from dove and quail shooters just before season opens, that would all but end.

It should be up to the club to provide an atmosphere that attracts members, that doesn't mean they have to have a $500K clubhouse, just offer events and discount cards only available to members. If your members are of the sort, have member parties quarterly with targets at cost, a cookout, wild game cookouts etc etc.

One progressive club, or I should say club manager will offer the grounds to any organization that wants a place to meet. That includes bike/car/PTA/business meetings etc etc. This also includes rental guns and shooter education, thought it isn't always successful, it also isn't uncommon to get 1-5 new shooters out of 20.

Offering to host a benefit shoot for a charity organization is another good way to get people interested, the market is there but takes a little work to groom the candidates.

 

[Swamp Yankee]

$200 a year for membership ($250 for the first five years, they break up the initiation fee). A round of skeet cost $2 for members and $2.50 for guests, but non-members must be the guest of a member, we're not normally open to the public.

 

[TOM-M]

With an annual membership of $100 (family) and buying 2, 25-punch cards at a time, our cost per punch is $3.85. Skeet and trap are one punch, 5-stand is a punch plus $1 and SC is 7 punches. I think non-members pay $5 for skeet and trap, $6 for 5-stand, and $32 for SC...punch cards are not available.

If I did my math right, the member/non-member breakeven for our club is at about 85 rounds of skeet or trap...goes by really quick if you shoot a couple of times per week.

Personally, I wouldn't show up knowing I was about to cough up $10 per round, so the chances of getting me there the first time would be nill. Also, even if I was a member, I don't think my conscience would allow me to take a guest, knowing that they were going to pay those kind of prices.

 

[vetteman]

Our clubs annual membership is $60.00/Single or $70/Family.It offers 100 and 200 yard range used for rifle,silhoette,and Black Powder.Two pistol ranges used by all pistol disciplines(IPSIC,PPC,etc)Archery range and walk through archery course.4 Trap fields,2 skeet fields and a 5 stand course.We also have two ponds,one of which is stocked with trout for kids to catch on family event days.The other is home to various species of waterfowl.
A round of trap cost $3.50 for members or non members alike.Skeet cost $3.75 a round,member or not.
Dave

 

[deadapair]

Our clubs annual membership is $60.00/Single or $70/Family.It offers 100 and 200 yard range used for rifle,silhoette,and Black Powder.Two pistol ranges used by all pistol disciplines(IPSIC,PPC,etc)Archery range and walk through archery course.4 Trap fields,2 skeet fields and a 5 stand course.We also have two ponds,one of which is stocked with trout for kids to catch on family event days.The other is home to various species of waterfowl.
A round of trap cost $3.50 for members or non members alike.Skeet cost $3.75 a round,member or not.
Dave

That's quite a setup, and reasonably priced!

 

[jeff-1873]

One club I am a member of is $10 for 50 SC targets ($11 non member) trap is 2.50 and skeet is 3.00 (member and non member). Membership is $75 the first year and $50 after that. http://www.geocities.com/bigwalnutcc/

Another local club which frankly is the taj majal is $6 for skeet and trap and $8 for 5 stand. If you become a member ($150) it goes down to $4.50 and $6 respectively. This pricing strategy has lessened the number of shooters at the club while I do not think that the membership has increased greatly. http://www.blackwingsc.com/

And the other local club I frequent is $4.50 for skeet and trap and $5.50 for 5 stand. http://www.lancasterairportgunclub.com/

 

[vetteman]

Deadapair,
I'm also the member of another club located about an hours north of where I live.It cost $50/Single and $60/Family.This place is set on 170 acres of lakefront property.In addition to rifle,pistol and archery facilities,it will soon start to build 4 trap fields and 2 skeet fields.The potential for this property is enormous.It also offers lakefront camping for it's members,with the option of adding serviced sites being discussed.We have a private boat ramp with lots of moorage space on the beach available.The private lagoon has a few wharves where we can tie boats up as well.There is a cordoned off swimming area with several floats and the whole bay is protected by a log boom that has one opening to access the lake which is 12 miles long and offers great fishing for rainbow and cutthroat trout.The club looks across the lake at a fully developed rock climbing area and we also have some of Vancouver Islands best downhill and crosscountry mountain biking in the area.Whereas my home club has about 1100 members,this clubs membership peaks each year at about 2200.I can't wait to have the shotgun facilities finished.Hopefully in 2006.
Dave

 

[12GA guy]

Dave, that sounds pretty darn nice! Is that the CRR&GC? Sounds like the place you were telling me you went for holidays last year?

Your home club is really a nice setup. Never saw the ponds, but the grounds are beautiful!

I can't wait to move over there! Lots of clubs to shoot at. Even the P&QGC has a nice little trap range.

My home club charges $5.00 for a round of trap or skeet, if you buy a 10 round card, you get an extra free round. Sporting clays is $10 for a round of 50 (very nice course). Members pay same as visitors, except visitors must pay an additional day fee of $10. Membership is $100 per year. Expensive, but taxes are high

 

[marist89]

trap & skeet: 2.75 members; 3.75 non-members. Non-members have to be a guest of members. I've been to some clubs where you shoot as a non-member 3 times. If you like it, become a member. If you don't like it, don't come back.

 

[vetteman]

Hi Bill,
Yup,its the Courtenay club I'm talking about.I'm looking forward to using the facilities again this year.There are BIG rainbows to be caught in the lake in early spring.In Nanaimo,the big pond is on the left as you drive in along the driveway.The trout pond is just across the bridge on your right,just before the archery range.
Dave

 

[APEXDUCK]

Thanks for all the feed back. I personally feel that our board is over pricing both the membership price and the cost for visitors to shoot and your feed back seems to confirm this. My club sits right in the middle of a major business center, but we are well buffered and the state has us protected from any possible trouble from the neighbors who may want to shut us down. Unfortunately although the club is close to work, I can not have a firearm even in my vehicle at work. Should I get caught I would be fired, even if it locked in a case. No storage available at the club either. So close to work only means I still have to drive home to get my stuff to shoot.

Thanks again for the feedback.

APEXDUCK

 

[12GA guy]

I can not have a firearm even in my vehicle at work. Should I get caught I would be fired, even if it locked in a case.
APEXDUCK

Do you work at a bank or a prison or something? I would think that would be against your civil libertys. The gun is legal, your car is your personal property...I don't get it. If they fired you I would think you could sue them for unfair dismissal...

 

[APEXDUCK]

No don't work at a bank or a post office. Normal policy for most in corporate America is no guns even in your cars. Although there are some places where this is being challanged, it becomes a tough issue to fight. The in your car thing is really the gray area. Personal property on the property of the company. Most corprate policies (required to sign for employement), state the no guns on the grounds. I like my job and like the $$$$, so I have to bite the proverbial bullet. I have tried to get the club to purchase some gym lockers so I could stop on my way to work and leave the barrel or stock and take the other with me to work. Thus I do not have a gun, just a part of a gun (none working) and the only thing at the gun club that could get stolen is a 1/2 of a gun. Not much good on the pawn shop market if a guy has a barrel for a shot gun.

If any of you folks have a good suggestion to this delema let me know.

APEXDUCK

 

[marine one]

apexduck, unless you are living in beverly hills or in orange county california where the cost of living is at its hightest! i live in corona ca. wich is about 40 minutes from Los Angeles and i go to a club wich is in san bernardino. my memer ship fee is 50 $ for the year and i pay 4$ a round of skeet trap or five stand. can shoot at the rifle range or pistol range for just 5$ visitors pay 6$ a round on trap! you are getting riped off unless they are serving you starbucks mocha frape latte with lowfat skimmed milk made with miniral water and they bring it right to your station! where do you live and what is this club like?

 

[APEXDUCK]

Marine One,

Live in the Raleigh NC area. Other then this club there is nothing close. Sporting clays courses are around. There is another gun club north of Raleigh (Sir Walter Raleigh Gun Club) but the cost is high to join, plus it is 35 miles from me. Price is $100 per year, $50 one time initiation fee, plus you must purchase at lease one share in the club ($660). Cost to shoot is $2.50 a round. Limited to 300 members. They do offer skeet, trap, rifle and pistol ranges (including falling plate and cowboy shoot setup). My current club offers skeet trap 5 stand and very limited pistol shooting and rimfire rifle.

So I'm either stuck joining a private club that is farther away that offers more options on non-shotgun shooting or dealing with the current situation at the Durham County Wildlife club. Or scrap it all and just shoot the local sporting clays courses.

To me my my current club is pricing themselves out of business.

APEXDUCK

 

[ras1500]

My club charges $20 for 100 sporting clays targets; non-member price is $25. Membership is $25 initiation fee + $85 per year dues.