Deer Creek Archery, Churchville

The old warehouse didn't seem ideal to house much of anything, but the rent was cheap once George Bennett offered to make all his own renovations. Drawing from a background as a builder, he created his own architectural plans, and he and a friend set to work on construction. For months, George arrived early in the morning to demolish old partitions and install lighting and windows. As the transformation neared its finish, the pair mounted new walls, spread mulch floor covering, and set up targets and quivers in the 8,000-square-foot archery range. George invited the National Shooting Sports Foundation to examine his facilities and received a four-star rating.

Now, more than a decade later, arrows sing through the air, slipping percussively into three types of targets. The targets sprout up from a tree-dotted floor under rustic wooden rafters along the indoor range that spans 45 yards while computer-controlled moving targets in the form of three-dimensional deer, beavers, and wolves trot across the range. Additional animal targets positioned closer to the shooter's area allow traditional longbow and recurve bow users to test their marksmanship. A dedicated indoor crossbow range lurks in the back and an Archery-Tag range invites visitors to engage in a new twist on paintball as they wage battle on each other with string bows slinging foam-tipped arrows.

Special events can be held in the facility's party room, which is equipped with AC, heat, a fridge, and a range monitor to keep guests apprised of the happenings outside. To prepare for successful shooting sessions, the pro shop offers all manner of equipment repair and the chance for visitors to peruse racks of compound bows from the Mathews series as well as Mission gear and Matthews Officially Licensed Products. The shop also has quivers brimming with Carbon Tech arrows, and George and his staff make other arrows by hand, which George sometimes inscribes with Deer Creek's logo with the care of a painter autographing his children.