elite shooting sports

Elite Shooting Sports (ESS) has only been open a couple of months, but it gets better every time I return. I am new shooter...recently purchased my first pistol so that I could go to the range with daughter and son-in-law. My initial range experience was at the NRA which is very good...safe, utilitarian and no frills...basically all that you need at an indoor range. The difference, however, with ESS is that you may want to stay awhile to have a cup of coffee, use the simulator room or just watch a ballgame with friends.A recent Washington Post article refers to ranges like ESS as "guntry clubs" which are a growing trend across the US and create a very welcoming feel for anyone looking to improve their shooting skills. New shooter like me who might need some help? Check! Law enforcement or military looking to work on some skills? Check? Hunter needing a place to use that rifle on a target 100 yards downrange? Check!A big positive for me is the visible presence of the range safety officers (RSOs) who really provide a high degree of comfort that they are in control and keeping everyone in compliance with the rules. At the other extreme is a range like Blue Ridge Arsenal in Chantilly which give me the creeps with a rather sketchy crowd.Over time ESS will only get better...the retail area will be better stocked and they will offer classes. Definitely worth the trip if you are in the metro DC area looking for a great place to shoot.

I loved the range, although it was a bit chilly not as bad as others I have been to though.The Retail Shop is not quite as big as I would have thought for such a large place but maybe it will get better as they had just opened a few weeks earlier.Location is Great, easy access and the Hours are Awsome!

2nd time there. We will definitely be going back. Everyone was friendly. Only issue I have is that they are sticklers for only having one gun at a time on the lane table. But np. Still it is not as expensive as compared to other ranges in the area. They have many 50yards lanes and some 100yard lanes too. Good times!

Just had a guided tour of this huge, modern, and stylish 65,000 square foot facility that just opened up a few days ago a mile or two off the main drag in Manassas, VA, and is still in the process of being completed. It’s going to have a total of 42 indoor lanes—the 25 foot and 50 foot ranges are up and running, and the 100 foot range is being completed. It’s billed as a state of the art facility, and I believe it. The few facilities I know of in the area and the few I have personally visited cannot compare with this new facility.Entering the facility you are in an expansive, several story high, stylish multipurpose area which includes a long manned welcome desk, a very large waiting area with what looks to be comfortable seating, a large sales shop area, and a cafeteria which is still being set up. Opposite the entrance is a long glassed in wall that lets you observe the shooters. To get to the shooting lanes you have to go through an airlock system which baffles the sound, so that I heard nothing in the waiting area as I observed the shooters shooting. Lead contamination has been a problem at some ranges, but the tour guide said that their air handling and filtration system was also “state of the art,” and that it alone had cost a million dollars. There are also several classrooms spread around the facility, a small dojo, a shoot room (just setting up), and large room where they will have a full time gunsmith. Both basic and advanced shooting instruction are going to be offered, and with a few exceptions their ranges can accommodate pistols, rifles, and shotguns. Firearms can be rented but will not be sold.Ten dollar registration and orientation fee which includes watching a ten minute film outlining the rules, annual memberships are $350, range time without annual membership is $20 per hour on the 25 and 50 foot ranges, $25 on the 100.