The cost of building the state’s new shooting range north of Rapid City more than doubled from its original projected price tag of $9.9 million. Luckily, use of the range has also more than doubled from projections:
The Pete Lien & Sons Shooting Sports Complex has logged more than 30,000 total visits since opening in early November.
In 2024, officials with Game, Fish and Parks guessed the site would see that many visits annually.
“We’re there in 5 months of operation,” the agency’s John Kanta said during a meeting of the state’s Game, Fish and Parks Commission.
Kanta said a rather mild winter helped. He said the complex has also sold 700 memberships and brought in nearly $100,000 in total sales.
The 400-acre complex is roughly 15 miles north of Rapid City and 25 miles southeast of Sturgis. It includes areas for long-range shooting, clay target shooting and tactical training [Joshua Haiar, “South Dakota’s State-Owned Shooting Range Exceeds Annual Visitation Estimate in First Five Months,” South Dakota Searchlight, 2026.04.10].
Memberships cost $100 for individuals and $150 for families. Day passes cost $20. Shooters pay $5 per round of skeet and bunker trap and 30 cents per clay target. Helice, which replaces traditional clay targets with winged plastic whirlibirds, costs $90 per round and $15 for five birds. If you can afford those recreational costs, the $8 you’ll spend on gasoline driving 17 miles drive out to the range from Rapid City’s Hotel Alex Johnson and back to town will be a trivial expense.