March 29, 2024

Indoor archery coming to Quarry Springs in Colfax

New range to open mid-January

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COLFAX — Archery enthusiasts in Jasper County will soon have a new place to shoot in comfort during the cold winter months. Volunteers at Quarry Springs Park in Colfax have been hard at work building a new indoor archery range aimed at both the casual shooters and serious archers.

Snipping wires with a pair of electrical side cuts on Wednesday, Quarry Springs volunteer Greg Rhames works on installing the range’s LED lighting while two other volunteers measure fiberglass insulation down range.

Rhames is the lead volunteer on the indoor archery project, and he hopes the range at Quarry Springs will bring shooters from all ages and skill levels from throughout central Iowa.

“Not only can someone come here to shoot, get scored and develop there handicap, but also be a part of the community and hang out in the local businesses afterward,” Rhames said.

Although developed and operated by the nonprofit Colfax Park and Recreation Auxiliary Board, Quarry Springs is city-owned. The Colfax City Council unanimously approved the project at its December meeting after the archery range was cleared by parks auxiliary and city insurers.

The range will open to both casual shooters and archery league players in mid-January, but a firm date has not been set.

Operating hours will be Monday through Friday 4-7 p.m. for open shooting and 7-9 p.m. for league and team play. On weekends the range will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Rhames said the hours were determined by a survey conducted on the Quarry Springs website aimed at league archers.

Shooters will pay $10 per hour to shoot at the indoor range. Memberships will also be available at $60 for one month; $100 for a quarter; and $200 for a 1 year pass. Rhames said memberships will also bleed over into an outdoor 20-lane range at the 480-acre Colfax park, planned for development in the spring.

The range will be staffed by four part-time employees. These will be the first paid workers at Quarry Springs and since the park is city-owned, employment will run through the City of Colfax. Parks auxiliary board president Doug Garrett said the staffing still needs city council approval.

But all labor on the range — as with every project at Quarry Springs thus far — has been on a volunteer basis. Colfax citizens, park goers and enthusiasts from around Jasper County have been helping hang interior framing, cut and install insulation and do electrical work. Materials were purchased by donations from Colfax and Newton-area clubs and businesses.

When complete, the interior of the once naked pole barn will have sheet rock walls, four mounted heaters for comfort, tables for archers and LED lighting.

The range itself will have eight lanes on opening day. Targets will be flatted-faced with standard league distances of 20 and 30 yards. The range will be open to both compound and recurve bows and field tip arrows.

Down range, rubber will line the walls from the floor rising eight feet. The material once made up conveyor belts which would transport rock form the pits for processing and shipping at the one-time gravel quarry. The rubber was cut by the property’s former owner, Martin Marietta, Inc.

Quarry Springs planners hope to start league play at the range. Rhames said local businesses are already stepping up to sponsor teams. The indoor and outdoor ranges are just the beginning of a 15-year masterplan for the park which will include adventure sports, RV and primitive camping, a cable park and retail space.

Rhames said park planner would eventually like to see a third-party vendor operating within or adjacent to the range to sell targets, equipment, supplies and other needs to archers.

“We’re hoping to generate a lot of interest. We’re hoping people will come out frequently. It’s not the prettiest range you’re going to see at this point but its functional,” Rhames. “We hope to development it even further and have more down the road.”

Contact Mike Mendenhall at mmendenhall@newtondailynews.com