Places to shoot near Jenison / Hudsonville

[Jason12345]

I am just starting out pistol shooting and want to put in range time to improve accuracy and maybe lead to IDPA in the future.

I am looking for recommendations for a place to shoot on the west side of Grand Rapids. I live between Jenison and Hudsonville and work downtown GR. The ranges I've seen mentioned in these forums near me include West Walker, South Kent, Tulip City, and GR Rifle and Pistol.

What I am looking for is someplace to shoot mostly pistol (9mm) and very little rifle. I prefer to find someplace I can drop in for quick but frequent sessions (lunch hours, while out and about, etc)- so ideally this would be an annual fee with unlimited range and flexible range hours (self access would be ideal) as opposed to a pay-per-use arrangement. Indoor would be a plus given the long winters. Also, family friendly would be great as I have a young son I'd like to get some exposure to the sport.

Of the ones I've seen mentioned, GRRP is most conveniently located but seems to focus on bullseye / .22 target pistol. West Walker and South Kent seem like good options but you can't tell too much from their web sites.

Obviously I will be visiting these places myself, but I wanted to get this groups thoughts / opinions about the pistol ranges on the west side of GR.

Thanks!

[jooos]

Silver bullet firarms in GR, on divsion between 44th and 54th street...

http://www.silverbulletfirearms.com/

:thumbsup:

[gsbell]

South Kent just started shooting IDPA this year. Second Sunday of every month, registration at 9:00 AM shooting starts at 9:30 AM

Newbies are welcome just let the Match Director and Range Officer know you are new and they will help you out. For that matter so will your fellow shooting squad members.

[Tack]

You will want to go with an outdoor range if you don't want to pay range fee's every time you go. South Kent is a nice range. If you like it quiet (not many folks around), check out Hamilton R&GC, who are very family friendly. IM me for details on them. Hamilton would be about the same distance (maybe a little bit more, but not much), as South Kent. If you want local, GRRP is probably your only option. You will probably have to pay lane rental fees.

Silver Bullet is a nice place, but they charge WAY TO MUCH for their membership (and everything else), and then charge for lane rental fee too. Forget that. They also will not come down on any prices of guns. I was told that if I didn't like the price I could go elsewhere, so I did. Online. That right there turned me off to anything they have to offer. I bought all 3 pistols in my sig from them. Since then, I have added more to my safe from online dealers.

[Jason12345]

Thanks for the input so far. I have been to Silverbullet and like the facility - but the cost of $200 / year for a membership plus range fees (half off non-member rates of $9/half hour) is a little more than I was hoping.

I plan on checking out South Kent and West Walker as I haven't been to either yet.

Thumbtack - where is Hamilton R&GC located? Just trying to get a sense of how far they would be.

Thanks again all!

[Tack]

They are located at 132nd and 50th streets in Hamilton if you want to map it.

[Deckard]

Jason,
Another plug for South Kent IDPA. We just started shooting down there, but the MD ran a great program up in Cadillac the last couple of years. New shooters always welcome. Come on down!
-Your friendly SO