No matter how snowy or cold it gets in winter, there always seem to be shooters at the Bountiful Lions Club Rifle Range near the "B" east of the city in the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains.
More than 10,500 shooters utilized the facility's 100- and 200-yard rifle ranges, 25-yard pistol range and trapshooting ranges last year and some 500 of them came up to the range in December.Among the diehards who have braved cold and snow at the range is Frank Glore, 28, Magna, a production worker at Hercules Aerospace Division and a Marine Corps Reservist.
A longtime shooting enthusiast, Glore shoots a 6mm Bench Rest cartridge in a custom-made heavy-barreled rifle that is capable of putting five shots into a single tiny hole at 100 yards.
Glore said he doesn't mind driving all the way from Magna to Bountiful to shoot because of the fine facilities at the Lions Club Range and its accessibility during the winter.
Range masters generally keep the range open from 10 a.m. to dusk every day of the year, weather permitting. "And a few inches of snow doesn't seem to put a dent in their schedule," Glore said.
When temperatures hover near the freezing level or below, Glore said, "I dress appropriately. I like to shoot, so I don't let the weather stop me if I can help it."
He said his wife, Shawnie, 25, a licensed practical nurse at Pioneer Valley Hospital who is studying to become a registered nurse, also enjoys shooting.
"We both recently joined the Lakeview Rifle and Pistol Club, which uses the Bountiful Lions Club Range as its home base," Glore says. "Shooting is great family fun and joining a shooting club means meeting new friends and learning more about shooting from others."