I came to Robin Hood in 1982 when the camp had 125 boys enrolled. Much has changed in the last thirty four years. When I first worked at riflery we had a small program with a few worn rifles. The campers would lie down on old mattresses and fire at paper targets. There were no bipods, red dot sights or colorful swinging targets.

In the past seven years I have worked to improve the riflery program and to make it more camper friendly.  The old mattresses have been replaced with modern foam mats.  We have over a dozen rifles sized for our Jr. Campers, including four pink laminate rifles with the latest red dot aiming sights.  We also have a dozen traditional target rifles for our more diligent shooters.  The rifle range now offers a variety of targets including two inch and three inch self-sealing swinging targets.  Our paper targets are equipped with stickers that change color when hit, making it possible to see the tiny .22 caliber holes from the shooting line.  Removable bipods help the younger shooters learn the basics of marksmanship without struggling to hold the target rifle steady.  Our traditional bolt action .22 rifles are augmented with some classic lever action and pump action guns.

We began an air pistol program six years ago as a way to keep the range open on rainy days.  The air pistols proved very popular with our Sr. Campers.,
so popular that we now offer air pistol shooting as part of the daily riflery program. Perhaps the most enjoyable part of my summer are the periods of riflery intensive. These special activity periods allow those campers most interested in riflery to have five days of dedicated hands-on training.  The intensive schedule permits me to offer shooting disciplines not available during the regular camp day.  “Intensive” is my favorite time in the first half of camp.
Rilfery is never busier than on Parents Visiting Day when the range is open to campers and visitors.  In the past few years I have seen many parents and grandparents make the short trip past the tennis courts to riflery to challenge their young campers to the spirited contest of “hit the swinging targets”.   Parents please note: your child likely has spent every rest hour in the past four weeks shooting at nickel-sized bullseyes.  He/she may be just a Jr. Campers, but our Jr. Campers are exceptionally good at riflery.

Overall, it has been and continues to be an absolute joy to run Camp Robin Hood’s riflery range.

Sweet dreams from The Realm,

Steve