As state agencies construct and improve more shooting ranges, many different types of shooting activities can be offered

This $192,205 Project Grant, awarded on January 1, 2024 by the U.S. Department of the Interior Fish and Wildlife Service under the Multistate Conservation Grant program (CFDA 15.628), will fund a study led by the United States Sportsmens Alliance Foundation (Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation) to examine public preferences for different types of shooting opportunities at state-operated ranges.

The goal is to identify the shooting disciplines, on-site services, and range locations that best attract both avid and new shooters, including across demographic groups and geographic settings. The results will be shared broadly to help ensure future shooting range development meets public demand and supports efforts to recruit, retain, and reactivate participants in hunting, archery, and recreational shooting. The Sportsmen's Alliance Foundation may also leverage this research to develop educational materials and outreach strategies that promote greater public engagement in wildlife conservation and outdoor recreation.

Public ranges generally consist of the typical 25-yard rimfire and 100-yard centerfire ranges, along with some form of shotgun sports. But just as preferences for restaurants, movies, and music varies, different people are attracted to different types of shooting opportunities. This begs the questions: are we constructing ranges that best meet public demand and do our ranges offer the types of shooting activities that will attract the most new shooters and keep them returning in partnership with the association of conservation information (ACI), this project will examine emerging preferences regarding shooting opportunities. The results will identify the types of shooting that best attract avid and occasional shooters, as well as new participants. Results will be provided by demographics (age, gender, race ethnicity, ET AL), shooting disciplines (shotgun sports, archery, rifle handgun), and urban suburban versus rural locations. We will also explore preferences for on-site services, the importance of convenience and distance people must travel, indoor ranges for growing suburban urban communities, interest in emerging shooting opportunities such as interactive targets, barriers to under-served communities, and more. The results will be shared broadly with states and non government organizations, as well as the private sector to help ensure future ranges reach their full potential use. This R3 (recruitment, retention, reactivation) project also has a relevancy component as IT will explore the shooting opportunities, on-site services, and locations preferred by under-represented demographics and communities.