I have been to many shooting ranges, but let me tell you, my experience at Pocono Pistol Club left much to be desired. After buying two new handguns at Dunkleberger's, I was entitled 2 free hours of range time at Pocono Pistol - a $36 value. This does not include the MANDATORY safety class that comes in at a whopping $9.95 per shooter. All costs aside, I wanted to check out the new venue and see what Pocono Pistol had to offer.
It was a Saturday night, and their website stated the operating hours of 10:00am to 8:00pm. I picked up a few of my friends, some ammo, and ventured to their establishment. The parking lot was near empty. I found out why in a few moments. Walking in, my group was greeted with a, "Sorry, we're closed." I explained that the hours online said we had another 2 hours and we had driven quite a while to get to their business. The attendant explained that he was aware of the discrepancy online and that "they will have to change it." So, a little disturbed, we left.
The next day, we wanted to try again. We arrived at 3:00pm and were greeted with, "I don't think we're going to get you guys in today, but if you want to wait 1.5 to 2 hours, maybe an opening will arise." I explained that we had come the night before and were driven away as well, and felt that I would never be able to use the 2 free hours that I was entitled. The attendant shrugged, and said, "It is what it is. Lots of people want to shoot here, and we can't accommodate everyone." We waited, because there was no other range open, and luckily something became available. We took the training class, bought expensive targets and rented hearing & eye protection. And then the real fun began, that is to say, the real stress began.
Being a long-time user of firearms, I am aware of most venues having a policy against rapid-fire shooting. Never before have I experienced what I did today. After burning through roughly 75 .40 S&W rounds at normal speed, I accelerated my shooting to what I thought was still in reasonable fire-rate. Not so! As soon as I let out two shots, the attendants were banging on the glass and yelling to me, "Stop rapid firing!" Then, a gentleman burst through the door, looked me in the eyes and said "Next time, you're out!" - not even an ounce of respect from this guy, didn't care what I had to say about it. The whole time, range officers were no more than 5 feet behind us.
As we were wrapping up, the attendants turned the lights out on our lanes before telling us our time was up. Very rude, and downright dangerous. We went to return our hearing and & eye protection to the same gentleman from before grunting, "Leave your stuff and take your licenses." Something that could have been a fun, stress-relieving experience turned into a stress-causing experience leaving me with a bad taste in my mouth and giving shooters a bad name.
Needless to say, I will NEVER return to this shooting range, and will advise all others to stay away. If you like being disrespected, treated like a child, and having range officers breathing down your neck, try Pocono Pistol Club. read more