Missing velociraptor target a major bummer for community-supported Colorado archery range
You might not know it, but Summit County is home to one of the more vibrant archery communities in Colorado's mountains, and that community is on the hunt for something that's been taken from them.
Cam Shrum, owner of C&K Archery in Frisco, said it was just a couple of friends hanging out who liked to shoot with bows before he opened up shop, but they started to add targets to the Dillon Archery Range for everyone to use, in hopes they could make a nice place for everyone. Now, they've semi-adopted the range and work to keep it nice.
"Every year we don't just do a couple of things, like clean-up parties," Shrum said. "But we add to it too. (It) started out as just a couple of bag targets, then Katie and I put 3D targets. The Eagle Scouts have done a good job doing some cool things like a tower to shoot off of."
Shrum is quick to point out other people who are pitching in to help make the range a good place to be, including one of his friends who donated a large velociraptor target, which has sadly gone missing.
"It's one of the coolest archery targets you can get. Everyone loves a velociraptor," Shrum said with a laugh. "We got it in, put it out there, and then less than two weeks later, we got messages saying that it was taken."
He's not sure who ran off with their target, but they don't come cheap; Shrum estimates the target costs around $1,500 and was out there for everyone to use, so it's especially sad that someone took it.
"A big part of why we get goblins and stuff like that is that kids love shooting things that look like what they read about in their storybooks," Shrum said. "That was a real bummer for us this year."
Colorado Parks and Wildlife will chip in to help fund the range too, if the archery community in Summit County applies and successfully is given a grant for targets, but aside from that, it's just people who love to share their love of archery.
The goofy targets on the range have more than archers taking aim at them, photographer Stephen Johnson said it's one of his favorite spots to capture the Milky Way not only because of the scenery but because the targets add something to his photos that people love. One of his more famous photos includes a big foot target, seemingly sauntering through the range at night.
He said when people mistreat the targets and the range, it bothers him: "I hate to see stuff like that because these are kinda neat! Very neat!"
Shrum was quick to tell CBS News Colorado that the community up in Summit and those who come to visit are more than welcome at the range, that's the whole point. But he wishes they would have a little more respect for the time and effort and cost that goes into making this a free place for everyone to enjoy, at their expense.
"There are people who come out to use the range inappropriately like air pellet guns to shoot it where the rifle range is more designed for that," Shrum said. "Our targets are not designed for that, we will get people coming from outside our community to use the range, which is awesome, and they'll shoot broad heads or bring crossbows out and none of the targets are really rated for those types of things to be shot at. You can do that if you bring your own targets but if you are shooting ours, they're not really designed for that."
As for the missing velociraptor target, he said he's ready to turn a blind eye to whoever took it. He just wants to see it come home.
"If you want to bring it back, just bring it back," Shrum said. "If you have something to get off your chest, we don't care who it was, if it just shows back up, we would be pumped, because they are fun to shoot."
