RAPID CITY, S.D. — A new state-run shooting facility with free public ranges, electronic targets and a 1,200-yard long-range deck will open to the public Nov. 8, officials with South Dakota Game, Fish & Parks said during a recent tour.
A ribbon-cutting is scheduled for Nov. 7 (invite-only), followed by a public open house that evening at 5 p.m. in the Hunting and Shooting Education Building, featuring NRA-sponsored raffles and demonstrations.
“We designed this to feel like our state parks—clean, organized and, above all, safe,” said John Canty, a section chief with Game, Fish & Parks who has worked on the project since 2019. “Our goal is to ensure a bullet never leaves the property.”
What’s free to use
- Five 50-yard pistol bays (10 shooting positions each)
- Five 100-yard bays (10 positions each)
- One 300-yard bay with 40 positions, steel silhouettes and “acoustical” electronic targets that register hits to a shooter’s phone
- An archery range
These amenities are open to the public during operating hours at no charge. The complex will be open year-round, starting daily at 8:30 a.m.; it will remain open until 7:30 p.m. in summer and close at sunset in winter.
Shotgun sports and memberships
The shotgun area overlays multiple disciplines in one zone, including bunker (Olympic) trap, skeet, five-stand and sporting clays. Shotgun access requires a membership, with individual annual dues of $100. Officials said fees are kept minimal and will be reinvested in operations and maintenance.
Long-range, tech and training
The complex features 20 firing positions out to 1,200 yards and a two-story shooting deck (upper level for observation during general use, with elevated firing allowed during special events). Electronic/QR-enabled targets allow shooters to log hits on a smartphone.
Seventeen action bays—11 measuring 30×50 yards, three at 30×75 and three at 30×100—are designed for dynamic “run-and-gun” courses, tactical practice and competitive setups. A versatile training bay will support law-enforcement drills, cowboy-action stages and archery, among other uses. Outdoor classroom shelters will host safety briefings and instruction.
Safety and accessibility
Engineered berms, baffling and site topography—the department moved nearly 1 million cubic yards of soil—form layered backstops across the 400-acre site. The grounds include concrete pads and firm gravel paths for wheelchair access, developed with input from adaptive-shooting advocates.
Location and hours
The facility sits roughly 10–11 miles from the interstate and, according to Canty, is “close enough to Rapid City to be convenient, but far enough out to avoid being a nuisance.”
Canty said the department began prioritizing shooting-sports access in 2018, evaluated multiple properties beginning in 2019, and purchased the current site in late 2021.
For updates, search “Pete Lien & Sons Shooting Sports Complex” on Facebook or online.