With knees slightly bent and neck stretched forward, 22-year-old Cam Alexander aimed his 50-year-old shotgun into the sky.
“I’m ready!” he shouted.
His friend Ben Syslo, standing 30 yards away, threw a neon orange clay pigeon into the air. The flying target soared for a moment and then – pow! – it shattered into pieces, scattering about in the sand. A direct hit.
Mr. Alexander pumped his fist as a red spent shell flew over his shoulder. “Finally,” he said. “It’s satisfying when you hit it.”
Mr. Alexander and Mr. Syslo were practicing their shooting skills at Goodale’s Construction site in Oak Bluffs. Also known as “the pit,” the construction site doubles as an informal shooting range every Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m.
“This is really the only place we can do this on the Island,” Mr. Syslo said.
“We’re kind of amateurs at this,” Mr. Alexander said. “We like it as a hobby.” The two men also have their pilot licenses and like to fly small planes.
On any typical Saturday in the fall or winter it’s not just pilots who visit the pit. There are professionals, including police officers, Army veterans and trained kinetic instructors. And there are a fair number of first time shooters — gardeners, firefighters, landscapers and housewives.
The pit is open to the public and anyone legally allowed to use a weapon can participate, but they must sign a waiver of liability release, a form introduced to all shooters last month.
“The only other thing we require people to do is to clean up targets and brass and shells,” said Peter Goodale, vice president of the company.
Michael Blake, an Army veteran who returned to the Island last year after serving four tours in Iraq, comes to practice precision rifle techniques with Greg Arpin, another firearms instructor. Both men work at the sheriff’s department. Mr. Blake also trains law enforcement and other professional shooters through a business he founded last December called Offshore Kinetics MV. He said he started the company because he wanted to use the existing skills he learned in the military.
“I’m here to help local law enforcement with some of their hard skills and also help responsible civilians be more safe with their firearms,” he said. “It makes me feel good that I’m using my skills, and that I can pass on information that can help someone be safe.”
Mr. Blake goes to the pit every Saturday. But rather than shooting guns for fun, it’s all business for him. “For fun, I would rather go fishing,” he said.
“Shooting is work. Responsible work,” he added. “The pit is a good place to shoot. Everyone is safe and mindful of each other.”
Although a shooting range may not seem typical Vineyard, at the pit there are always familiar faces, Mr. Blake said. “It may not look like it to some, but it’s actually very Vineyard here compared to other venues and I’m grateful for that,” he said.
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