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Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 6:46 pm
by gun_fan111v2
I am looking for advice from the current or prior Dakota County club members. I joined their waiting list last time it was opened up and my turn came up. Thing is, I have joined the Pine Island White Pines club in the meantime and have been enjoying it a LOT.

Dakota County is about half hour closer of a drive, but I have never been there.

If any of you have been to both clubs, I would appreciate your feedback.

How busy does Dakota Club get?
How is the current atmosphere in the club?
How is the pistol range? Can one select what distance they shoot at?

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 7:00 pm
by Ghost
Do you know what you wait list number was from last year? I'm hoping to get in sometime before I die and have been on the list for a couple years or so. Curious to see how close I am.

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 8:02 pm
by gun_fan111v2
Ghost wrote:Do you know what you wait list number was from last year? I'm hoping to get in sometime before I die and have been on the list for a couple years or so. Curious to see how close I am.


All I remember is that it was less than 90

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 8:11 pm
by Bitter Bastard
I'm a member of DCGC but never been to Pine Island. DCGC can be a bit fudd-ish but not super bad. It rarely gets busy. I often go around noon on Saturdays in the summer and the rifle range will have 1 or 2 other people there, typically. The pistol range is also usually pretty quiet. The nice thing is, there are two pistol ranges plus the bowling pin lanes. You can shoot at whatever distance you want on the pistol ranges, out to I think 25 yards max, maybe a bit less. The pistol target holders are small, though, not big enough to hold a silouette target. I think 2' high.

Oh, in my experience, there is a greater chance the range is shut down for ladies day, kids day, something like that, than actually too busy to shoot at. Just check the calendar for those.

I think overall it's a good value for the cost and work hours. I'd say try it for a year and see what you think. Considering the long wait times, it may be a long time before you get another chance.

Bitter Bastard

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 9:44 pm
by Ghost
gun_fan111v2 wrote:
Ghost wrote:Do you know what you wait list number was from last year? I'm hoping to get in sometime before I die and have been on the list for a couple years or so. Curious to see how close I am.


All I remember is that it was less than 90

Me also, maybe I have a chance.

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Thu May 19, 2016 10:12 pm
by gun_fan111v2
Thanks BB! I would have definitely gone for it if it was not for the volunteer hours. I am not sure I will have a chance to spend more than 8 hours at the range through the summer... :)

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Fri May 20, 2016 6:31 am
by Ron Burgundy
I will be mailing in my acceptance today to DCGC. I'm also a member of Pine Island. I plan on keeping both. Pine Island is about 1 hr from my house but the people and facilities are so great I don't want to give it up. I'm going to give DCGC a try but I really like PI.

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Fri May 20, 2016 12:15 pm
by Ghost
Got my letter, I finally made it :D

Check sent

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sat May 21, 2016 5:40 am
by ttousi
How does the 200 work credit thing work?

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sat May 21, 2016 6:27 am
by Rodentman
I also have joined.

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sat May 21, 2016 6:34 am
by gun_fan111v2
ttousi wrote:How does the 200 work credit thing work?


The way I read it, it works like a deposit that you get back if you ever leave the club.

- pay $200 upfront
- if you did not work 8 hours, pay $25 per hour during renewal to get your deposit back up to $200

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2016 8:48 pm
by Bitter Bastard
gun_fan111v2 wrote:Thanks BB! I would have definitely gone for it if it was not for the volunteer hours. I am not sure I will have a chance to spend more than 8 hours at the range through the summer... :)


Volunteer hours are EASY to get if you try at all. There are numerous events that you can help with - ladies day, the family, various work days, and the big one - deer rifle sight in, which is the last 4 weekends before deer season. 8 days to choose from to get your 8 hours in.

Re: Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2016 9:27 pm
by Ghost
Bitter Bastard wrote:
gun_fan111v2 wrote:Thanks BB! I would have definitely gone for it if it was not for the volunteer hours. I am not sure I will have a chance to spend more than 8 hours at the range through the summer... :)


Volunteer hours are EASY to get if you try at all. There are numerous events that you can help with - ladies day, the family, various work days, and the big one - deer rifle sight in, which is the last 4 weekends before deer season. 8 days to choose from to get your 8 hours in.

What kind of time blocks do you sign up for? 1, 2, 4, 8, whatever you want?

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2016 10:40 pm
by gun_fan111v2
Well, I ended up bowing out today. I hope whoever gets my spot will enjoy it much more often than I could!

Thanks for the feedback everybody.

Joining Dakota County club - should I?

PostPosted: Sun May 22, 2016 10:44 pm
by gun_fan111v2
Ron Burgundy wrote:I will be mailing in my acceptance today to DCGC. I'm also a member of Pine Island. I plan on keeping both. Pine Island is about 1 hr from my house but the people and facilities are so great I don't want to give it up. I'm going to give DCGC a try but I really like PI.


Definitely looking forward to some comparison feedback once you get to try Dakota County club.