Introduction to the Armed Defense Training Association
Spokane and North Idaho: Gun Training Opportunities
Firearms Lawyer, Mark Knapp, makes a solid case for introducing a nonprofit volunteer gun-training group to Spokane and North Idaho.
Build It & They Will Come
The United States is experiencing a historic wave of new shooters. And with that come new shooting facilities and other firearms related businesses. Bellevue, Washington, Las Vegas, Nevada and Potlatch, Idaho are cities that have attracted successful gun-related businesses. Idaho and Montana are both among a growing number of states that have recognized the economic opportunity created by America’s legacy of firearms freedom.
Las Vegas recently received a large amount of revenue from a sell-off of Federal land (authorized by Congress just for Nevada). The money had to be used on parks, and at least $64 million has been spent on the Clark County Shooting Complex. Las Vegas hosts shooting activities that include opportunities to shoot fully automatic weapons and other equipment that would be illicit contraband in states like California.
Arming citizens properly
Armed citizens from all over the United States are getting trained at places like Front Sight, another rapidly growing shooting complex near Las Vegas. Many new gun owners go to gun ranges like Center Target Sports in Post Falls. The needs don’t stop with instruction. Gunsmiths, holster and optics manufacturers and other retail sales are all examples of economic opportunities for North Idaho counties that are willing to manage zoning regulations in ways that encourage firearms related industries to relocate. Developing policies that promote indoor and outdoor ranges is a key to attracting such enterprises.
Can North Idaho learn something from Las Vegas and Bellevue? Center Target Sports, named as the best indoor range in the United States a few years ago, is already a model for other ranges that are springing up in cities all over the United States. Bellevue, Washington area hosts at least three indoor ranges, and a number of outdoor ranges, all within a short drive from one another. Boise area has at least one range that is marketing to families.
A Little History
In 2011, a group of firearms enthusiasts created the ARMED DEFENSE TRAINING ASSOCIATION (ADTA). The group helped pave the way for a new indoor range in Federal Way with two law enforcement tactical bays and other facilities where shooters can practice target shooting. The range offers shoot-on-the-move practice and competition with pistols, rifles and shotguns.
The ADTA itself started when some members of the local Chamber of Commerce started asking each other what it would take to create a range for the suburban city located halfway between Tacoma and Seattle. We started presenting shoot-on-the-move events and New Shooter Clinics with an emphasis on safety. We quickly transition new and experienced shooters into advanced tactical drills- but always with basic safety first and last.
Members regularly share expertise with other members on the range and in classroom settings or at monthly membership meetings that are open to the public. For example, we focused on stress-fire techniques one week with a live stress-fire event on the range the following week. We have also recently worked with shotgun training and education in how to deal with edged weapons attacks.
The ADTA does not try to take the place of professional firearms training. The group offers a place to get started and to maintain gun handling skills. Formed in 2011, the ADTA, recently recognized by the IRS as a 501©(7) non-profit organization, is ready to reach out to help new chapters form anywhere in the Northwest and beyond.
One advantage of having various chapters will be the increased access to experts from various communities. The all volunteer staff can offer help to other ADTA chapters in other cities and the existing ADTA team can help get new chapters off the ground. The Federal Way group has been busy creating a model and systems that can be reproduced when other communities in the Northwest ask for help.
New ADTA Chapters Planned for Northwest
The new ADTA chapters will attract volunteer instructors and qualified range officers that can help with bigger events. We are expecting to identify volunteers who are also experts in real estate, fund raising, public relations and other fields so we can offer opportunities to participate in unique training events that will make our families and communities safer.
It all starts with contacting us if you want to see an ADTA chapter in the area where you live. The goal is to practice at a range close to where you live- close enough that you can conveniently take your wife and kids or neighbors out for some practice. But with the opportunity to practice in a tactical manner with multiple targets while shooting on the move. It’s like that movie, FIELD OF DREAMS- “Build it and they will come!”
The Law Office of Mark Knapp PLLC 