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  1. #1
    Junior Member
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    Range recommendations for the Lower mainland?

    looking to join a range in the Vancouver area, any suggestions?
    Gun control is how steady your aim is.

  2. #2
    Member 94sahara's Avatar
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    Bump, I'd like to know this too, 'cept for surrey area.

  3. #3
    Token Female Moderator Candychikita's Avatar
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    i'm partial since i'm now PR for Abbotsford Fish and Game Club. yes, i liked it that much my comments though, for what it's worth because i did shop around the other ranges before making my decision.

    AFGC good all-around club, lots of space, no one really bugs you when you're on the line if you're looking to just shoot - well worth the drive, LOTS of members from out of town and it's always increasing. got some good things going with the drop-in events if you're looking for a more social atmosphere:

    drop in .22 rifle on monday nights for $5, Ammo and guns provided
    drop in steel challenge practice on tuesday nights for $5, BYOGear
    drop in archery wednesday nights for $5, Bows and arrows provided
    drop in pistol skills and drills on most friday nights with one of the top IPSC shooters in canada for $20, BYOGear

    psst - open house is july 21 10-3 *shameless plug* free food, free ammo, we supply guns - come check us out. bring your friends.

    abbotsford also has ridgedale, on the matsqui flats. they have a very active black powder following and the abbotsford police department use their facilities. jun 24th they're having a free youth day. damn, i just saw i missed the may 12th ladies day event. that sucks, their ladies event was well put together and is good for photos.

    i like DVC for their gun rental ability when i can't find someone who owns a particular gun i'd like to try and their free ladies' nights on friday nights free is nice, great for date nights. the mechanical target mover things and no-cease fires is a real treat, so's the A/C and the heat in extreme weather. from the members i know there, there are complaints about waiting though due to limited space. they have an experienced gunsmith on site, which i think is a really good selling feature if you're having issues with your guns. this range also sells ammo. excellent ongoing marketing campaign too - just converted a very vocal anti radio announcer to a very vocal pro-gun radio announcer good job boys

    vancouver gun club - this is a strictly shotgun range only. good for meeting people in the trap/skeet shooting world, lots of experienced souls here. found lots of cranky old men here too, who have problems with black and pink shotguns and female shooters in general.

    mission range - heard great things about trap and steel challenge, never been. apparently they've got an excellent 3D archery trail, one of the best in the lower mainland if that's your thing. bit far too travel for myself personally.

    thompson - heard great things, very active in steel challenge and IPSC matches. never been, though i should because i hear it's close by. mind the $4 toll on the golden ears there and back...

    i've heard things about the city of po co/coquitlam passing bylaws about shooting. not sure about how this effects the po co range (which is a public range) or other ranges in the vicinity but i would suggest doing your homework about this. i love the po co range (it was my first) but there is now quite a bit of construction and waiting on the way up, because there is severe development happening in that area. i'm not a patient person for construction traffic. big pro is that this is a public range.

    semiahmoo is really big on hosting weddings, and for me there were concerns about closures and such for weddings. might not be a big issue, but again, homework. i've dealt with enough wedding drama that i would like to stay as far away from that stuff as possible; my need to shoot a few rounds vs. bridezilla is not something i'd like to even entertain.

    langley, even though they are the closest in proximity to me, had the worst attitudes towards female shooters of any range i've been to in bc by far. went to their last open house and will not be returning.

    that's what i've got.
    Last edited by Candychikita; 05-23-2012 at 10:57 AM. Reason: edited for accuracy

  4. #4
    Owner - Tundra Supply jonanddad's Avatar
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    Edmonton, Alberta
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    Very Nice write up candy!
    Owner - Tundra Supply

  5. #5
    Junior Member The Yodelling Brakeman's Avatar
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    They sell ammo now at PoCo? That's news to me---is this a recent development over the last few months?
    Last edited by Candychikita; 05-22-2012 at 08:43 PM.

  6. #6
    Token Female Moderator Candychikita's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by The Yodelling Brakeman View Post
    They sell ammo now at PoCo? That's news to me---is this a recent development over the last few months?
    heh, well everytime i go there's usually a guy selling ammo...if he's not supposed to be there, he's making a KILLING off of me bahhaha

    EDIT - i found the guy's card that sells the ammo. must be a lucky coincidence, because he isn't there often. edited OP for accuracy - thank you for that. (heh i'm still buying ammo when i see this guy though - can never have enough and he gives me great deals!)
    Last edited by Candychikita; 05-23-2012 at 10:59 AM.

  7. #7
    Member bccanadian's Avatar
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    Maple Ridge, B.C.
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    Mission has an excellent rifle range starting at 25 meters then 100, 200 meters and out to 300 yards. The clubhouse has a catering company in the kitchen so some food is available at certain hours (sorry but I don't remember what their hours are).

    Cowboy action is another discipline complete with a mock up tombstone shooting area.

    Skeet and trap on the shotgun fields.

    The Shooting benches on the pistol range are covered. I've even been shooting in January.

    You can find mission here www.missionrodandgun.com
    Support our troops.
    If you can't stand behind them, stand in front of them

  8. #8
    Junior Member
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    Jun 2012
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    Poco (PDHFC.com) is very well organized however until they finish building their second public range it will remain very busy on weekends. Before I became a full member I sometimes had to wait 2 hours to get in after driving up from Vancouver. As a full member now I can be there at opening at 9 while the public waits until 11.

    It's a victim of having a large membership (I think I heard 3800 members), allowing public to pay day cards and that it absorbed the membership of closed ranges such as Barnet. It is also the closest gun range to Vancouver and Burnaby except for DVC (pistols and shotguns, no center fire rifles) and Richmond (Vancouver Gun Club -- shotguns only I believe).

    As one of the most high profile clubs Poco also has some of the more stringent rules. It was explained to us in orientation that the CFO holds Poco up to very high standards and that is why they have a lot of supervision and safety procedure classes for becoming members, for being allowed onto outer ranges and for holster policy. The ROs can scold newbies (or oldtimers who feel above the rules) but after a few visits it feels very laid back. I've had hardly any problems with the rest of the membership. Poco has IPSC (and hosted the BC Championship last year), trap and skeet and a couple other pistol clubs. Membership is pretty multinational.

    That area of Burke Mountain is also undergoing a lot of development up the slopes so it is a question if it will survive longterm though I would not hesitate signing up now. The closest development so far is still out of gunshot hearing and Poco shares the mountain with hikers and mountain bikers. I've never had any trouble with the construction traffic with the devleopment but I usually only go up on the weekends. Whenever I've spoken with board members they felt fairly confident they would remain for a number of years. Someone mentioned that development couldn't, for some geographic reason, go up much farther than now.
    Last edited by silveragent; 06-17-2012 at 02:26 PM.

  9. #9
    Token Female Moderator Candychikita's Avatar
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    great info you guys thank you

  10. #10
    Friend To Newbs DougPeach's Avatar
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    Oct 2012
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    Abbotsford, BC
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    Thanks for all the great info, I am smack dab in between ridgedale and abby fish and game so I think it will be a tough choice for me. Most likely I will be joining Abby and later this year ridgedale.
    Any thoughts, opinions, or comments expressed by the user "DougPeach" are the user's intellectual property and may not be used or reproduced outside this forum in any way without writtem consent from the user.

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