Gun range aims high, as in exclusive
$6 million facility will be a blast

By Dolores Tropiano
The Arizona Republic
March 11, 2002 12:00:00

Scottsdale, where tourists laze away the days, soon will have a club that will let them blaze away with machine guns on desert Humvee trips and blast away at mock invaders in mock-ups of their own homes.


The Scottsdale Gun Club, described by its owners as the world's largest civilian indoor shooting range, will open in September at the Armory, a 3-year-old firearms retail outlet in Scottsdale Airpark with $750,000 worth of gun merchandise for sale and rent.

It will feature 32 computerized shooting lanes in a country club atmosphere. Eight private lanes will be reserved for elite members.

"It's exclusive," said Nadine Little, property manager for the club.

The $6 million club, which will extend over two stories and 30,000 square feet, also will offer machine gun adventures, including outings in a Humvee.

Customers will be able topractice in a tactical shooting house.

"For people from New York or the East Coast, we can reproduce a Western atmosphere," said Little, who will market to Japanese and German tourists who enjoy dressing up in Western attire and using old revolvers.

Those worried about night stalkers will be able to use the shooting house to recreate duels in models of their own homes, complete with walls and furniture.

"We will teach you, in the exact same flow of your own house," co-owner Terry Schmidt said, "how to protect yourself and your family and escape and evade."

The club is designed to draw people like Richard Cracroft, 37, a retired telecommunications executive from Phoenix.

Cracroft fired machine guns out of a Humvee at the Armory, which will become the Scottsdale Gun Club in September.

"It's just incredible. It's very, very safe and it's extremely exciting. And it's flat-out fun," he said. "I've gained a lot of respect for people running around in Afghanistan with machine guns and Humvees."

The club is the brainchild of Schmidt and Arnd Wussing, owners of the Armory.

"The Scottsdale Gun Club is going to be something you compare to country clubs and golf resorts," Schmidt said. "It will have that type of feel and service."

Gerry Anderson, executive director of Citizens of Arizona to Prevent Gun Violence, was somewhat supportive of the club, now that development has edged out many outdoor ranges.

"For the most part, an indoor range is a good alternative to an outdoor range," Anderson said.

But Anderson was skeptical of adventures featuring Humvees and machine guns, which she described as "pseudomilitary scenarios."

"This could encourage possible terrorists to get weapons, join clubs and do this exact thing," she said. "Is there a screening process? I don't think this is the best thing to do in the world of September 11."

Pre-opening membership at the Scottsdale Gun Club will range from a $250 fee with $20-a-month dues to a "titanium" membership for $5,000 with a $200 monthly fee. Titanium members will have access to a lounge with a pool table, home entertainment system and library.

Club owners chose the Scottsdale Airpark because of its nearness to resorts and the airport. "We have a lot of clients who have private planes," Schmidt said.

[img]http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/gifs/0311shooting.jpg[/img]

That article certainly generated some interest, the next day a rather acidic article by E. J. Montini appeared at [url]http://www.arizonarepublic.com/arizona/articles/0312montini12.html[/url] but his argumentation is so weak that I consider it to be almost a pro-gun club article for readers willing to  ignore Mr. Montini's logic.

The Machine Gun rentals are already available throught their existing retail store, The Armory.

When the gun club site is finished, they will have their own ranges to fire on; right now the "machine gun adventures" are being conducted at Ben Avery shooting range. Since they have to travel off-site with the guns, you need to make arrangements 48 hours in advance.

Details on the machine gun rentals can be found at [url]www.scottsdalegunclub.com[/url]

As a side note, my best friend is visiting from Cananda at the end of this month, and we plan to rent the 10-gun package. After we do, I'll post a message on here letting you all know how it went.

Pictures of some of the shoots are at [url]http://www.scottsdalegunclub.com/Gallery/MachinegunAdventuresPics.html[/URL] and more stills plus some AVIs and MPEGs will be uploaded tonight.