Living in the Northeast there really aren’t many options when it comes to ranges to practice at. The only ones close to me are indoor ranges that charge a hefty membership fee for the joy of firing in 15 to 25 yard lanes. Which is fine for pistols obviously but mostly useless when trying to shoot rifles. There is one range near me that has a serious rifle range. They are over an hour away but I was gonna bite the bullet and join but then I am filling out the application and see they require NRA membership. And I just can’t do it. I detest the NRA and the suggestion that they and only they speak for all American shooters. Even before the Russians played them for fools.

Fuuuuck. It’s a private club so clearly they have every right to demand I’m a Freemason who only wears jeggings and purple hats on the range if they want to. I tried broaching the topic with the membership chair and got an ear full of FOX news fueled rage. So I guess I’m stuck shooting REALLY small targets at 25 yards. FML.

That sucks. Surely there must be some option. Hopefully some members in your area will have some ideas. I feel lucky that of the two outdoor ranges in my area, one of them doesn't require an NRA membership. That's the one I joined.

did you try going into the woods around the range and firing at the members targets? true long distance practice!

j/k Im in the same boat. there used to be at least 3 in the 90's now its one and it wants the same. even my property in the mountains has houses and pastures encroached on it. I got 300+ good yards but cows and barns around 500y.

It’s a conspiracy to lock non-right wingers out of the good ranges so none of us will know how to shoot straight.
One of the few nutty conspiracy theories out there that may actually have some merit. Seems that way, doesn’t it?

Local for profit ranges will keep you shooting at 50 feet, but you can keep your self respect.
There are NRA members on this forum keeping a low profile and hiding their sullied virtue as best they can.
There have been long threads in the past discussing this very issue.

viewtopic.php?f=53&t=40257

After much anguish I finally joined and now I have access to the best, most active range in the area (along with some other LGCers that belong too). I did penance by upping my contributions to the ACLU, SPLC, and a couple others....it helps a bit.
After I joined they went really batshit crazy and I regretted it even more. I sold out, but perhaps you’re a better man than me.

All else being equal, I would not pass an opportunity to join a good club because an NRA membership is required. Actually shooting is too important. I suspect clubs get benefits from the NRA, provided their members belong to the organization. (I don't know that for a fact, but I think I read it somewhere.) Furthermore, we can always hope that the NRA will turn back into what it used to be, and one way to do it is to nudge it from the inside (not a likely prospect in the short term, but perhaps it helps rationalize the choice).

Perhaps you could convince them that they'd get more business if they expanded and accepted membership in any national gun club.

CDFingers

Many of the gun clubs require NRA membership because the NRA will insure them if they have 100% NRA members. Try to get insurance from anybody else when you say we’re a gun club and want you to insure us. See what you get when they stop laughing.

I wonder if they could be sued. The recent SCOTUS Janus case limits compelling people to affiliate with organizations they don't like. I would guess this club gets some tax exempt status that they shouldn't be getting with this type of policy. Maybe this is a job for the ACLU.

From what I have heard is these ranges are set up with the help of the NRA and they ask in return for you to require membership.

If you want to start a drink vending machine business you can get a lot of help from Coke or Pepsi. Don't get your feathers all ruffled if they may require some conditions for that help.

Please

The NRA is not as "Right Wing" as many imagine.

They are all about the 2A. That's it !

There are many, many Women and Minorities that are proud members.

And NOTHING would please the NRA (and me) more than having more of them as members.

CaseHardened wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:21 pm Please

The NRA is not as "Right Wing" as many imagine.

They are all about the 2A. That's it !

There are many, many Women and Minorities that are proud members.

And NOTHING would please the NRA (and me) more than having more of them as members.

They are Dana Loesch’s “clenched first of truth”. Oh no, not right wing at all.

I'm not for MORE Guvmint.

But as long as there is a 2A, I am 100% for Government-Supported Ranges.

Yes, Government-Supported Ranges that DO NOT discriminate.

The 2A is a CIVIL RIGHT for EVERY American.

BTW, there are many National Guard Firing Ranges, in every State, that see little use.

Why not allow Civilian Access when the NG is not using them ?

I yearn for the day when the NRA is no longer needed.

Until then, they are the only National Organization with any power that stands between YOU and the Totalitarians.

CaseHardened wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:28 pm I yearn for the day when the NRA is no longer needed.

Until then, they are the only National Organization with any power that stands between YOU and the Totalitarians.

Except for the Liberal Gun Club. We’re better. Classier too.

When you have effective Lobbyists on Capital Hill, fine.

Don't get me wrong - a 2A advocate can be my friend.

I am especially proud to have African-American 2A advocates as my friends, because Democrats work so very hard to disenfranchise them of their 2A Civil Rights.

I would even accept Muslim-Americans as my 2A friends. As difficult as that would be.

Any Muslim-American that would proudly support the 2A has got to be on the right track.

The NRA is not the only game in town. I'm not a member of he NRA because people like Dana Loesch spend so much time bashing liberals for simply being liberal, but I am a member of the Second Amendment Foundation, and Texas State Rifle Association. They are no doubt just as conservative as people in the NRA, but they don't trash talk liberals and instead they stick to guns.

HuckleberryFun wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:38 pm

CaseHardened wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:28 pm I yearn for the day when the NRA is no longer needed.

Until then, they are the only National Organization with any power that stands between YOU and the Totalitarians.

Except for the Liberal Gun Club. We’re better. Classier too.

How so if you prejudge people and try your hardest to exclude others from being here?

Imagine if AR15.com or M4Carbine.com or The Firing Line did what you are doing and called you a troll and made you feel unwelcome because you vote a certain way.

I really hope that the forum moderators and owners here don't have your priveleged class of exclusion mentality that you seem to be displaying. This seems like a nice forum. I hope I'm right and I hope it's tolerant enough to include people like CaseHardened and anyone else who wants a forum for gun content and other discussions.

willjr75 wrote: Sat Oct 20, 2018 1:25 am

HuckleberryFun wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:38 pm

CaseHardened wrote: Fri Oct 19, 2018 11:28 pm I yearn for the day when the NRA is no longer needed.

Until then, they are the only National Organization with any power that stands between YOU and the Totalitarians.

Except for the Liberal Gun Club. We’re better. Classier too.

How so if you prejudge people and try your hardest to exclude others from being here?

Imagine if AR15.com or M4Carbine.com or The Firing Line did what you are doing and called you a troll and made you feel unwelcome because you vote a certain way.

I really hope that the forum moderators and owners here don't have your priveleged class of exclusion mentality that you seem to be displaying. This seems like a nice forum. I hope I'm right and I hope it's tolerant enough to include people like CaseHardened and anyone else who wants a forum for gun content and other discussions.

I love how right wingers (and Russians) have turned into such whiny little (rhymes with witches).
Oh no, I made you feel unwelcome because your buddy-troll outed himself by joking about machine gunning refugees at the border and you lept to his defense. CaseHardened is a good guy that I made feel unwelcome like the closed-minded exclusionist intolerant privileged latte-sipping liberal that I am. I hurt your feelings.
Boo fucking hoo.

(Hint: I’m not a fucking Liberal. I’m worse than that. Way worse...)

Because we're Schrödinger's Liberals, who are at once both snowflakes and dangerous leftists, we hold that trolls are always sort of fun in a sporting way. Especially such obvious ones.

CDFingers

HuckleberryFun wrote: Sat Oct 20, 2018 8:32 am
I love how right wingers (and Russians) have turned into such whiny little (rhymes with witches).
Oh no, I made you feel unwelcome because your buddy-troll outed himself by joking about machine gunning refugees at the border and you lept to his defense. CaseHardened is a good guy that I made feel unwelcome like the closed-minded exclusionist intolerant privileged latte-sipping liberal that I am. I hurt your feelings.
Boo fucking hoo.

(Hint: I’m not a fucking Liberal. I’m worse than that. Way worse...)

"Boo fucking hoo" - I love that. I'm also way worse than just liberal. Well said. I don't get out west too often, but next time I do the beers are on me.

Schrodingers’s Liberals...I like that...

I might be mistaken, but I think sometimes the trolls bring out some of what's best from some of the members on here.

joemac wrote: Sat Oct 20, 2018 10:06 am I might be mistaken, but I think sometimes the trolls bring out some of what's best from some of the members on here.

Yeah. Closing ranks against the forces of darkness is a good thing. It beats sniping at each other. More fun too.

willjr75 wrote: Sat Oct 20, 2018 1:25 am
Imagine if AR15.com or M4Carbine.com or The Firing Line did what you are doing and called you a troll and made you feel unwelcome because you vote a certain way.

Have you actually spent any time on barfcom? Gods that's a wretched hive of scum and villainy. Talking about shooting as many liberals as show up isn't enough to get banned there- so yeah, we have a space all our own, and kick out people who come here to troll. Especially when they talk about shooting immigrants at the border.

Was October 19 a special day for Trolls to come out from under their pile of crap and try to spread their Orange Stink around like their Glorious Orange Stain Idol.