The Perham Sportsman's Club's brand new shooting range is almost ready to fire up.
A grand opening will be held Saturday, October 30 for non-club members to check out the club and range.
At the event, the PSC will have range masters', targets, range carts with drivers, and a gun safety instructor will also be on hand to assist on the Rimfire range. Coffee and sandwiches will also be available.
The range consists of six shooting lanes from 25 yards to 300 in length. Each lane varies in width. The shorter lane is 75 feet wide. The 300-yard lane is 25 feet in width.
The club offers Rimfire silhouette shooting, which involves shooting at freestanding steel targets that tip over.
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"This range is for the shooter who is looking for a little more than the standard 100-yard experience that most rifle ranges have to offer," according to a news release.
The range was completed with the help of all volunteers and donations, according to Frank Vorderbruggen, who has been working for the past year to get the range up and running. He was blown away by the amount of community support for the project.
"It's just amazing how much people have stepped up to make this happen," he said. "It's really a state-of-the-art facility."
While the range is intended for club members, which is now about 70, its organizers stress that it is something they want to share with the community as a fun and safe activity.
Safety was key when construction plans were being drawn up for the range.
Twenty-foot-wide berms are being placed between each shooting lane to allow for someone shooting in the 300-yard lane to safely check their targets without worrying about crossfire from a neighboring lane.
The club has also planted more than 18,000 trees around the perimeter of 160 acres of leased land, 40 of which are club owned, and added a 14-foot deep pond.
The project was also supported by the Perham City Council and neighboring landowners, according to Dave Edvall, another who spearheaded the idea.
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"We have had no opposition to the project at all," he said.
Businesses that made the project possible include Perham Sand and Gravel, The Bean Mill, Inc., Kit Masters, Inc., Perham Machine and Repair, Crane Johnson Lumber, Andy Pettow Construction, Ace Hardware, Winkels Carpet, Perham Steel, Menahga Concrete, Strata Corporation, Perham Grain and Feed, Mulligans Pub and Eatery, Ottertail Bean Company, Lakes Area Cooperative, Hammers Construction and Conservation Specialists.
All shooters are welcome, and those age 15 and under must be accompanied by an adult.
The range is located south on State Highway 78. Turn right on Fort Thunder Road, proceed three miles and turn north on Harvest Avenue. The range is a quarter-mile ahead on the left.
For more information on the shooting range or the Perham Sportsman's Club, contact Frank at 218-849-2701 or Dave at 612-597-9644.
