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The Division of Wildlife recently finalized $20,000 in shooting range grants to assist clubs throughout the state with everything from shooting benches to archery and 3-dimensional targets. Division officials chose 21 ranges in mid-September on the basis of their use for hunter education students and public target practice availability, said Mike Stone, the Division^s hunter education coordinator. Having available and safe ranges across the state is vital to hunters about to take to the field, Stone said. "It^s one of the final things they do when they take their hunter education course in Colorado," Stone said. "They all go to the range and they^re required to fire 10 rounds. This needs to be done in a safe environment and that^s why the Colorado Division of Wildlife cooperates with these shooting ranges. We need safe places for hunter education students to prove themselves. "Not just anybody can go hunting in Colorado. Anyone born after 1948 has to receive formal training and graduate from a certified hunter education course." The grants, awarded each year, come from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service excise tax levied on firearms, ammunition and archery equipment under the Pittman-Robertson Act. They typically amount to $1,000 per selected range each year. The Colorado Springs Ben Lomond Gun Club, Golden Gun Club and the Division^s Hot Sulphur Springs range are three of the most popular ranges receiving money. Some of the projects officials at those ranges will complete include installing safety warning systems (Golden), and repairing benches and securing target frames (Hot Sulpher Springs). Other ranges on the grant list include the Walden 4-H Shooting Range, Sedalia Columbine Archery Range, Bayfield Lions Club Range and the Gunnison Beaver Creek State Wildlife Area. The Lamar Rifle & Pistol Indoor Range, Pueblo West Sportsman^s Association and Basalt Christine State Wildlife Area are also receiving money for repair and replacements. An estimated 18,000 Colorado citizens complete hunter education courses each year. The shooting range experience is often the most memorable aspect of their study and stands as a sort of symbol to their right of passage into the hunting tradition, Stone said. "It^s the most popular part of our course - when aspiring hunters get to shoot real bullets from a real gun," he said. "People remember that."

Uploaded: 10/15/1999