BluCore Shooting Center — Local services in Lakewood

I've shot here a few times, and I keep coming back because it's the only 100 yard indoor range anywhere near me (and by near, I mean a half hour drive on a good day).

I overlooked the poor state of the rifle range, because 100 yard indoor range. I overlooked the lack of any range markings anywhere, and the lack of any kind of modern carrier system (it's a manual toggle switch and nothing more). I overlooked the fact that at least one lane of the 5 antiquated lanes at the range was almost always broken, which means losing a spot for a shooter. I overlooked the higher-than-any-other-range-in-the-area pricing, because 100 yards indoors. I overlooked them charging two shooters that full, inflated price, even on one lane (see broken carrier issue above), because hey, 100 yard range. I overlooked the poor extraction system, even when they let the black powder crew in to completely obscure the entire range.

But pettiness, especially on top of everything else wrong here, that I won't overlook. I showed up early because of weather related road issues. Waited in my car until two minutes to 10, which is their stated opening time. An employee shoveling the walks told me to head on in (which was awesome because nature was calling and I needed to hit the head); but the door was locked. So I rang the doorbell as the sign instructed: no answer. The shoveling guy said to knock, so I did. Finally another employee opened the door. Bear in mind it's now past 10, and they should be open. Inside guy says "we're not ready to open." Shovel guy says "can you let him in to use the bathroom and just wait in the lobby?" Inside guy sighs, says "fine" and to his credit, let's me in to use the restroom.

When I'm done, I go back out to the lobby and start checking in at the computer as is standard. Inside guy says "I let you in to use the bathroom, but you have to go back outside to wait. My manager says we're not open yet." It's now 10:06. But, Inside guy says "you can leave your rifle bag inside." No thanks. I've read other reviews of Blue Core, and I'm not about to leave my bags in there so someone can root through them and record my serial numbers. I'm also not in the habit of leaving rifles and ammo unattended.

So I left. If Blue Core is so badly managed they can't bother to open on time, then make customers go back outside to wait in sub-freezing temps, I'm not going to waste my time or money there. That's just pettiness, plain and simple. They get a star for letting me use the restroom, though. At least I hadn't paid yet.

But I'll never be back, and I'll never recommend Blue Core to...

Generally I don't ever leave reviews, but some of the less positive ones have caused me to write about my own experiences.

Firstly I am a member here and feel the monthly subscription is easily worth the price. Currently they are forgoing the initiation fees as well. With a membership you get range reservations (worth the fee in and of itself) and discounts on classes, friends you bring to the range, ammo, merch, and even gun rentals.

Currently I have attended their Pistol 1 and Rifle 1 classes. These were a fantastic value. They were INCREDIBLY safety conscious and had a great understanding of the fundamentals and how to teach them. I definitely plan on continuing to hone my skills. Remember folks, owning a firearm is a big responsibility and so is being able to safely and effectively operate it.

The staff that is currently working there is quite attentive and I have had nothing but great experiences from them. I was incredibly impressed with an interaction I saw a few weeks ago when I was shooting. A gentlemen was being a little less then safe and it appeared he didn't know his firearm too wel (Get training people!). The employee stepped right in and helped him be safe and taught him a few things as well. This customer also had a child with him with certain physical complications and this employee went out of his way to help the child as well. These are the types of interactions I've had here. They want everyone to be safe and enjoy an awesome hobby. If you get yelled at for being unsafe, it's your own fault.

The Pro Shop prices are very competitive with internet prices from what I've seen when looking at guns. Typically you'll pay a bit more because Internet shops have almost no overhead. It's worth paying a few percent more to keep these guys in business.

No place is perfect though. I would say that in general the range just needs a little updating. Some of the target machines are a little wonky and I feel it needs to be better lit. It can feel a bit like a dungeon down there.

If you want a good place to shoot that is SAFE and fun, I can't recommend this...

Very Dangerous Range. Rude staff, do not go here. 4/12/24. Onsite at 17:00, I checked in as a first-time entrant, and everything started fine. Hearing Pro was janky, which I expect from any range; it’s the standard included bundle gear. This is where our experience went downhill. Employees from the rifle section kept interrupting our shooting session by opening and closing the storage closet right behind us half a dozen times or so—no joke. They asked us to move by saying, "Move!" Or get out of the way! Guy did not say, Please move or excuse me. Any person would take offense to that as a paying customer. There’s no other option to move left or right, so we were entering our shooter's line and had to stop him mid-mag multiple times. This is why the range is unsafe; the private training going on had a sign posted blocking us from entering, which is why we could not move when told to move. The sign was posted backwards, so it was not readable to any entrant. The pistol side is set back 4 feet behind the first booth on the rifle side, so if a misfire happens, it’s sketchy. Midway through our session, they relocated us to the other side by saying, "We are taking this side for training. Move to the other side." When I asked what lane, they said, uhhh? and walked away, then we waited....Wasting even more of our time, then finally answered by saying 6. I looked to find the lane, but it was not clearly marked (photos attached of all this). The shooter next to us pointed a loaded gun our way twice; there was no lane marshal during the hole time we were there, which was over an hour; nothing was said by staff to the individual. Finally set up and just finished to be done. Our group was not charged out correctly, and no care was taken to do what was asked to split our payment. Overall, just a bad experience from other ranges I’ve been to. I would not recommend it for safety or the overall quality of practice. Did not manage to get a photo of the warning sign but the idea of putting up a sign just because they have too and putting it up with out care or attention leaves me...