FORT BRAGG, N.C. - Fort Bragg celebrated its archery range grand opening at McKellar's Rod and Gun Club with a ceremonial ribbon cutting Jan. 24.
Col. Stephen Sicinski, Fort Bragg Garrison commander, invited post archers as well as Family and Morale, Welfare and Recreation employees to cut the ribbon and officially open the range to the public.
"I think it is wonderful" said Sicinski. "I think the community is going to love the archery range. We have been talking about it (an archery range) for several months now and found out through surveys that we took that there was a real interest from hundreds of people on post."
The new range consists of 10 targets that are positioned at varying distances of 15 to 75 yards away from archers. The range is designed to meet the needs of everything from the casual archer to the avid bow hunter.
"I love bow hunting and like to use a traditional bow," said Sgt. Daniel Liss, 1st Battalion, 325th Airborne Infantry Regiment, 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne Division. "My dad initially got me into bow hunting. For my dad, bow hunting was an easy way he could continue hunt.
"With bow hunting you have to get really close to the prey so it is a challenge," said Liss. "You have to be comfortable with your equipment so I train for it everyday. My wife likes that I do it," he said.
"Watching the official opening, you have a certain pride in seeing all the hard work it took in creating this range," said June Hickman managing partner of Contracting Services and Supplies Unlimited.
"You want what you build to please the people that are involved," said Hickman. "What pleased me most of all was when we came out here and watching people actually use the archery range. I get to see how it really works. I've never shot an arrow before, so it's great to see others who know how to do so use (the range.)"
Social Sharing