Hoping to learn more about the future of the Michigan State University Demmer Center. It has been a long time since I shot 10m pistol in any organized event and I hoped to go there for some hands on advice. Not sure how long it has been closed, I checked mid-2020, several months ago, and tried to call this week.
https://www.canr.msu.edu/demmercenter/contact
Doubt it would be Covid 19 at this point...appreciate any news or updates.
MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Moderators: pilkguns, m1963, David Levene, Spencer, Richard H
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Here is from the main page of their website:
7/14/2022 UPDATE
We are excited to announce that the Demmer Center is getting closer to reopening. Most importantly, we are pleased to welcome Casey Christman, who will lead the reopening efforts as the new Demmer Center Manager. Casey has a B.S. in Criminal Justice, attended the Mid-Michigan Police Academy, is MCOLES certified, and was co-host and social media manager for American Archer. Casey also has over 16 years of experience working as a MSU Road Patrol Police Officer and Firearms Instructor. We will be posting updates as the reopening date gets closer. Thank you for the patience and support you have shown over the last few years and we look forward to seeing you soon!
Haven't seen an update since then. It says to reach out to their email: demmer@msu.edu
7/14/2022 UPDATE
We are excited to announce that the Demmer Center is getting closer to reopening. Most importantly, we are pleased to welcome Casey Christman, who will lead the reopening efforts as the new Demmer Center Manager. Casey has a B.S. in Criminal Justice, attended the Mid-Michigan Police Academy, is MCOLES certified, and was co-host and social media manager for American Archer. Casey also has over 16 years of experience working as a MSU Road Patrol Police Officer and Firearms Instructor. We will be posting updates as the reopening date gets closer. Thank you for the patience and support you have shown over the last few years and we look forward to seeing you soon!
Haven't seen an update since then. It says to reach out to their email: demmer@msu.edu
New account - locked out of previous account "lyoke2"
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Received email reply. They are opening October 9 for archery only, rifle and pistol program has ended "for the near future"
Disappointing to see a program and facility of that caliber go dark.
Disappointing to see a program and facility of that caliber go dark.
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Agreed Demmers Jr air rifle and pistol program sent many to Junior Olympics, but unfortunately always seemed looked down on in favor of archery. It had many coaches that invested their time and expertise in building up kids love for the shooting sports. It will be missed.
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Has anyone representing MSU or the Center given the reason(s) for closing down the rifle/pistol programs?
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
The Demmer Center is open. Unfortunately it is listed as an archery center and firearms aren't mentioned. New website; https://ipf.msu.edu/demmer-shooting-spo ... ion-center
Additionally, it is still listed on the USA Shooting website as a training center. I guess USA Shooting doesn't do inspections or reviews. It has been closed to firearms since Covid started.
I know ever since it opened there was always a struggle between archery and firearms (not first hand knowledge). A number of years ago they replaced original the firearm team. I thought when then first opened that they would be the place for matches in southern Michigan. Also thought they might start a NCAA team. They started with matches and over the years the number of offerings dropped. The MSU Shooting Team has been shooting at a local gun club for years.
Additionally, it is still listed on the USA Shooting website as a training center. I guess USA Shooting doesn't do inspections or reviews. It has been closed to firearms since Covid started.
I know ever since it opened there was always a struggle between archery and firearms (not first hand knowledge). A number of years ago they replaced original the firearm team. I thought when then first opened that they would be the place for matches in southern Michigan. Also thought they might start a NCAA team. They started with matches and over the years the number of offerings dropped. The MSU Shooting Team has been shooting at a local gun club for years.
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Just received the following email from the Demmer Center. No mention of firearms. Unfortunately I cannot attend and ask about firearms.
Come join us Sunday October 9th from 10am-4pm at the DEMMER CENTER for our Grand Re-Opening!
Bring your bow and a quiver full of arrows and shoot for FREE on one of our indoor or outdoor archery ranges!
Or test your archery skills on our new TechnoHunt 400 Video Archery System!
The Demmer Center is now home to two state-of-the-art TechnoHunt 400 video archery systems. Come enjoy a virtual hunt with your friends or family with a system containing over 700 scenarios and shooting scenes.
The TechnoHunt 400 system is the world’s finest virtual shooting/hunting system with real life scenarios on big and small game.
Bring your bow, some arrows, your friends and we’ll provide the rounded arrow tips!
If you don’t have your own archery gear, the DEMMER CENTER has equipment for you to try!
Hope to see you there!
Come join us Sunday October 9th from 10am-4pm at the DEMMER CENTER for our Grand Re-Opening!
Bring your bow and a quiver full of arrows and shoot for FREE on one of our indoor or outdoor archery ranges!
Or test your archery skills on our new TechnoHunt 400 Video Archery System!
The Demmer Center is now home to two state-of-the-art TechnoHunt 400 video archery systems. Come enjoy a virtual hunt with your friends or family with a system containing over 700 scenarios and shooting scenes.
The TechnoHunt 400 system is the world’s finest virtual shooting/hunting system with real life scenarios on big and small game.
Bring your bow, some arrows, your friends and we’ll provide the rounded arrow tips!
If you don’t have your own archery gear, the DEMMER CENTER has equipment for you to try!
Hope to see you there!
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AManWearingAHat
- Posts: 29
- Joined: Thu Mar 26, 2020 8:18 pm
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
I was on that team that won the Intercollegiate Club Championship in March 2012 under Keith Hein, and I can tell you exactly what happened to us and how we were treated by the staff of that facility... to sum up, poorly. Very poorly. The person who ran that facility (into the ground) cost MSU an NCAA shooting team. All the ducks were in a row after we won that year to transition to an NCAA team, we had the athletes, the coaches, the facility and the reputation and it all fell apart because of facility staff and how the center treated the team. The University didn't really seem to care unfortunately, so our complaints fell on deaf ears and that was that. No money in shooting I guess.dakota308 wrote: ↑Thu Oct 06, 2022 9:39 am The Demmer Center is open. Unfortunately it is listed as an archery center and firearms aren't mentioned. New website; https://ipf.msu.edu/demmer-shooting-spo ... ion-center
Additionally, it is still listed on the USA Shooting website as a training center. I guess USA Shooting doesn't do inspections or reviews. It has been closed to firearms since Covid started.
I know ever since it opened there was always a struggle between archery and firearms (not first hand knowledge). A number of years ago they replaced original the firearm team. I thought when then first opened that they would be the place for matches in southern Michigan. Also thought they might start a NCAA team. They started with matches and over the years the number of offerings dropped. The MSU Shooting Team has been shooting at a local gun club for years.
It's a terrible shame because it is a beautiful facility and a wonderful range ruined by shear incompetence. None of us wanted to leave, but there was a very good reason we found another range after the 2012 season. Though the original team was never the same after due to the departure of our coach (again due to Demmer center treatment). We spun off into a more general shooting club and had a ton of fun shooting two gun and IDPA locally and actually brought in a lot of members because we could open up to centerfire. I kept up with air gun my whole time at MSU and made the Camp Perry open almost every year I was in school. The replacement team / coaches they brought into Demmer after we left never did anything of note and the whole thing fizzled out and died with COVID unfortunately. I doubt they'll ever have a shooting team again, I was told the University's reputation is pretty much irreparably damaged as far as the NCAA shooting community goes and I don't think anyone in a decision making position at MSU gives a hoot anymore.
I have very fond memories of my short time with the team under Keith though, I'm the shooter I am today because of it and its how I discovered 3P and air rifle, which I love to this day. Oh what could have been....
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Sorry to hear your story, hat wearing man. Based on observations from my 3 children going through 3 different universities over the last 6 years I fear any shooting activity will struggle to survive.
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Hey All, I saw this thread and would like to share my experience with the MSU Shooting Sports club as well. I was on the rifle team and in leadership of the club for a few years. I graduated in 2019 so AManWearingAHat is a little before my time.
When I got there the MSUSSC had a rifle team, pistol team and a shotgun team. Most of the club was on the pistol team, the rifle team hovered around 5-10 members and the club as a whole had about 20 members. Most people on the rifle team had experience with firearms before but hadn't done smallbore or air rifle before and were quite intimidated. When I joined, I was the only one with smallbore experience; and I was the only one with a shooting coat.
AManWearingAHat is correct, the university did not care and the amount of resources was sparse. We were a registered student organization so we were the same as the quidditch club or squirrel watching club in the eyes of the university. I did contact someone at the university to bring us up to a club sport level, but the response I got from the coordinator was 'I don't want to chase down more college kids for more paperwork' and was denied. Our coach went on a tour of the other sporting facilities at MSU and he was awed by how spendy they were, the basketball team had an entire wall of expensive sneakers but we didn't even have shooting coats.
When I was there I was operating with the goal of trying to advance the club to an NCAA team, however that was a bridge too far. I was told that in order to become an NCAA team our organization would have to raise $1 million per year, and that was too much for our small club. I wasn't the club fiscal officer or anything but I did know we didn't have a lot of money.
Although we were not an NCAA team we did compete in the NRA Intercollegiate Club series but were not very competitive. In 2016 I was the only person on the team to qualify for nationals in smallbore and air rifle, but we sent whole teams in 2017 and 2018. Coaching new people and getting new equipment was always a hastle and I know it did negatively impact my development as a shooter.
I have very fond memories of my time at the Demmer Center as well, it is where I met my wife and I will always remember the fun I had. The trips to Fort Benning for nationals were the most fun, and I really hate to see the rifle team not shoot at Demmer these days.
Leadership at the Demmer Center (won't name names) was an issue and alienated a lot of talented people. Hell my academic advisor used to be an advisor for the club and stopped due to how much she disliked the guy! I heard Demmer was changing leadership after I graduated and the new guy ran a successful range in the past but then COVID hit and I'm not certain of what happened. It is such a shame too, the Demmer Center has such a beautiful range.
Go Green!
When I got there the MSUSSC had a rifle team, pistol team and a shotgun team. Most of the club was on the pistol team, the rifle team hovered around 5-10 members and the club as a whole had about 20 members. Most people on the rifle team had experience with firearms before but hadn't done smallbore or air rifle before and were quite intimidated. When I joined, I was the only one with smallbore experience; and I was the only one with a shooting coat.
AManWearingAHat is correct, the university did not care and the amount of resources was sparse. We were a registered student organization so we were the same as the quidditch club or squirrel watching club in the eyes of the university. I did contact someone at the university to bring us up to a club sport level, but the response I got from the coordinator was 'I don't want to chase down more college kids for more paperwork' and was denied. Our coach went on a tour of the other sporting facilities at MSU and he was awed by how spendy they were, the basketball team had an entire wall of expensive sneakers but we didn't even have shooting coats.
When I was there I was operating with the goal of trying to advance the club to an NCAA team, however that was a bridge too far. I was told that in order to become an NCAA team our organization would have to raise $1 million per year, and that was too much for our small club. I wasn't the club fiscal officer or anything but I did know we didn't have a lot of money.
Although we were not an NCAA team we did compete in the NRA Intercollegiate Club series but were not very competitive. In 2016 I was the only person on the team to qualify for nationals in smallbore and air rifle, but we sent whole teams in 2017 and 2018. Coaching new people and getting new equipment was always a hastle and I know it did negatively impact my development as a shooter.
I have very fond memories of my time at the Demmer Center as well, it is where I met my wife and I will always remember the fun I had. The trips to Fort Benning for nationals were the most fun, and I really hate to see the rifle team not shoot at Demmer these days.
Leadership at the Demmer Center (won't name names) was an issue and alienated a lot of talented people. Hell my academic advisor used to be an advisor for the club and stopped due to how much she disliked the guy! I heard Demmer was changing leadership after I graduated and the new guy ran a successful range in the past but then COVID hit and I'm not certain of what happened. It is such a shame too, the Demmer Center has such a beautiful range.
Go Green!
Re: MSU Demmer center - is it gone ?
Yes, as a firearm facility it is gone. A report on Michigan Out of Doors TV on the reopening on the October 6 episode, the new manager Casey Christman said they are transitioning to archery only facility. https://www.michiganoutofdoorstv.com/sh ... ideoID=752