Gorka Ibanez and Lloyd Cornelious have taken ownership of the Volusia County Gun and Hunt Club in Florida, and since taking control over a year ago, have worked at building the club up by adding new bays and long-range rifle shooting areas. The club is a private membership one, which offers training, as well as a calendar chock full of fun shooting activities. Located in New Smyrna Beach, Fla., the range can be found 10 miles west of Interstate 95.
There are now over 35 bays for members and shooting competitions to take place in. This is nice for the membership, since the range runs many weekly matches. Members will still have designated bays where they can shoot. The additional bays also provide for all eight official Steel Challenge stages set up at all times. These bays, similar to others on the range, have tables and cover built on the bay to help provide shade during sunny Florida days.
There are several training classes offered at the club, including a Concealed Carry Class. The class is billed as the NYA (Not Your Average) Concealed Carry Class because they cover more than many of the other classes in the Florida area. The class is valid for the applying for the Concealed Carry Permit for the State of Florida. It includes safety, function, use and handling as well as covering state laws. It is a live-fire class for which firearm and 200 rounds of ammunition are included. The Florida Concealed Carry Permit is valid in 34 states, all of the instructors are Nationwide Firearms Instructors and certified through the state of Florida. The one-on-one class takes about four hours to complete. The range does offer a standard CCW Class as well; it is not one-on-one or as in depth, but it does give you the required training for the Florida Concealed Carry Permit application.
There are also other training classes, such as Introduction to Rifle and Carbine, which cover basic topics. This class is designed for those thinking of buying a rifle (or already own one), but limited shooting experience. Students gain the knowledge and skills necessary for a solid foundation for owning and shooting the rifle of their choice after taking this four-hour course, which includes explanation of the platform and live-fire exercises.
On the competitive shooting side of things, there are one-on-one Steel Challenge and competition training classes offered. The Steel Challenge training is conducted by Greg Kerce, who has over 30 years of experience, and focuses on the skills and techniques of shooting steel at speed. The Competition Classes are taught by Gorka Ibanez and start with a two-hour class, culminating in a full-day experience. The classes are structured around the shooter’s needs to get to the next level—focusing on draw, accuracy, trigger control, reloading, movement and shooting while on the move.
The VCGHC Range Safety Officer (RSO) training program a one-day class on becoming a certified range safety officer. Participants receive the NRA Student Handbook that is reviewed in the classroom, and there is field training on site as part of the class. RSOs are encouraged to work at the range in return for reduced membership and additional privileges at the range for doing so.
Volusia County Gun And Hunt Club recently partnered with SIG Sauer Academy, which offers courses for civilians, law enforcement and the military. There are several classes now offered at the club by the SIG Sauer Instructors, including Handgun courses 101, 102 and 103. The courses are built around the teaching principles of the SIG Academy and build on each other. Course 101 is focused on new gun owners seeking familiarity and comfort as well as those wanting to try something different and learn a new skill, with hands-on training around the knowledge and skills to safely handle a firearm—both in the classroom and on the range. Courses 102 and 103 build on the basic skills learned in the 101 and add working from a holster, reloading and trigger control for accurate shooting. There is also a new class that has been added, Mission: Red Dot. This is a class designed to take advantage of the growing popularity of using a red dot on a handgun, and helps learn the proper way to shoot one. Here, students will also have access to the P320RX to use during the range training session for the day. A quick look at the website also shows two different Bullets and Bandages style courses now being offered.
While you are on the Volusia County Gun Club website, check out the 900-yard-long range that is available. There are certain days and other requirements for using this range explained on the website. There is a covered raised structure on this range, as well as various shooting platforms and obstacles for PRS matches.
When looking at the Volusia County Gun Club event calendar, I didn’t see a day that didn’t have something going on—ICORE, IDPA, USPSA, Steel Challenge, PRS, GSSF, Action Steel and Pro-Am matches—just to name a few. Those are just the regular club matches and don’t include all the other sanctioned events the range hosts throughout the year.
If you are looking for a place to shoot or train, check out Volusia County Gun Club. Bring the family down, drop them off at the beaches in the Daytona, Fla., area and spend the day shooting a match or two, or attending a training class.
—Volusia County Gun and Hunt Club
4845 East SR 44, New Smyrna Beach, FL 32168.
Article from the January/February 2021 issue of USPSA’s FrontSight magazine.
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