Situated outside of Horace, North Dakota, The Shooting Park has been a popular destination for area shooters for many years. Just 20 minutes from Fargo, North Dakota, the club has long attracted some of the best shooters from surrounding states, as well as from Canada. Built in the late 1970s, 13 trap fields were installed to facilitate large shooting competitions from the start.
Today, The Shooting Park offers trap, skeet and 5-stand clay target shooting, along with pistol and rifle bays. The range is also the home of the North Dakota State High School Trapshooting Tournament each June. With over 30 years of history, the club itself has seen its share of ups and downs over the years as shooting sports trends have come and gone.
Owned by Mark and Karen Erdmann for the last seven years, The Shooting Park is the bedrock of a highly active shooting community in the Fargo area, one that many other shooting facilities would be envious of.
“Nearly 900 members take part in local leagues that we host here at the club,” said Mark. Of that 900, a good percentage of them are students and their parents that continue shooting through the summer. “That’s probably the real plus that I see for the sport in general,” Mark added. “Whatever kids are involved with, the parents want to be a part of it, too. This is a family sport, we have whole families—husband, wife and a kid or two, and this sport works for families.”
Since the start of the North Dakota State High School League, Mark and his wife Karen have watched the League’s growth expand from just four teams in the first year. This year The Shooting Park is expecting to be the home club for as many as 300 students on eight high school teams.
“It’s fun to watch the camaraderie of the kids. They’re out there, they’re enjoying it, and it’s better than sitting on the couch and playing video games.” ✪
http://www.theshootingpark.com
