With a recommendation from the task force in hand, Park County is one step closer to being the location of a new state shooting complex. 

It’s exciting news, and the local group that has spearheaded the effort to get this to this point is to be commended. The challenge now is making sure that if the Legislature does indeed vote to approve this complex next session, we’re ready to build what we’ve promised. 

Because what our local group of about 30 people has promised sounds incredible, and the location was clearly grand enough to inspire most of the task force members. 

“One of our key design concepts is to incorporate this beautiful 2-mile by 3-mile site of creek bottoms, ridges, pines, rock formations and gullies into world-class sporting clay ranges, natural terrain long-range shooting and on the level ground, action pistol and Olympic shooting,” said Scott Weber, a local committee member and owner of a local firearm auction company. “We have been working with USA Shooting out of Colorado Springs and they are very enthusiastic about us hosting World Cup clay shooting. No other facility in this region of the USA would boast our offerings. And these Olympic style traps will allow our Wyoming boys and girls to perhaps gain a berth on national and international teams.”  

Getting local youth groups involved with the complex certainly makes me feel better about the complex as something not just located in the county, but a place for county residents as well. That’s going to help in getting more buy-in locally amongst people who may not be affected by the increase in visitors this complex will surely bring. 

This will also help too: Weber said the complex will be “run like a business and generate tremendous funds for daily operation and further phases. We have enough land to vastly expand into the future.”

It’ll be interesting to see how it works with the complex being both a state park and somewhat of a standalone entity, as a number of committee members have previously mentioned, which would allow more local control. 

So there are still plenty of questions, and I’m sure the local committee is still working to ensure the nitty gritty details — including full funding — are answered as they come up. 

But, for now, it’s worth it to take at least a little time and bask in the glow of success. 

“Park County completely dominated the competition from start to finish,” Weber said. “Our 288-page proposal was rated first among nine competitors. After our two-hour presentation with drone footage, maps, testimonials from shooting experts, business plan, range diagrams and explaining the draw, Cody was also rated number one. The smiles on the faces of the Task Force when they viewed our land from a high ridge was worth the price of admission.”