August 4, 2026

Freedom Armory Uses National Shooting Sports Month to Advance Competition, Hunting Presence

By Jade Moldae

It’s been a summer of milestones — first with America 250 and now, here in August, National Shooting Sports Month^® has returned to mark its 10th anniversary. This year’s National Shooting Sports Month tagline, “Let Freedom Plink” commemorates the traditions of marksmanship, responsibility and freedom that have brought generations of Americans together through participation in the shooting sports.

Freedom Armory, which operates two range and retail facilities in south-central Pennsylvania (Elizabethtown and Glen Rock), is gearing up for a busy August to ring in National Shooting Sports Month. Ethan Witmer, Freedom Armory’s Retail Sales & Marketing Specialist, shared Freedom Armory is hosting several events during National Shooting Sports Month with the aim of growing its base of competition shooters — including an introductory course on how to shoot United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) matches and other competitions.

“Competitions represent one way to drive people to the range,” he said. “We want to get our name out there in the competition world. Our advantage is we’re holding these events in our ranges, so we can do them year-round and support this industry in every season. It aligns very well with National Shooting Sports Month.”

A platform Freedom Armory is using to create a streamlined experience for those signing up for its competition events is PractiScore.

“We’ve been using the PractiScore platform for a little bit at both locations, and it’s really going to start ramping up soon with our employees getting involved in the shooting sports as well,” Witmer said. (The range recently started sponsoring a couple of its employees to serve as brand ambassadors at local matches.)

Social Media Influence

Freedom Armory is active on social media, using it as an avenue to promote the popular #RangeChallenge during National Shooting Sports Month — encouraging followers to stop in and ask for the target to win one of the eight $500 gift cards available through the nationwide campaign.

To enter the #RangeChallenge, all a person needs to do is download the official target (or, if already on hand at your range — they can get it direct from you), shoot it at the range and upload a picture or video of themselves and their target to their Instagram feed using the hashtag #RangeChallenge. Participants can also enter by uploading through the #RangeChallenge entry form here.

Freedom Armory also created a digital ad to celebrate National Shooting Sports Month to increase awareness and encourage its customers to take part.

As a follow-up to National Shooting Sports Month, Freedom Armory’s digital media team will introduce videos on ballistics, intro to USPSA shooting and other beginner-focused content later in the fall.

“We’re looking to do some in-depth videos to help those who have never competed before,” Witmer said. “These types of videos are great for community engagement.”

An Emphasis on Fun

Other ways Freedom Armory is looking to elevate attendance at its ranges this summer is by regularly hosting events. It hosts a weekly date night package, held Tuesdays, where couples receive two boxes of ammunition, a pair of gun rentals, an hour of range time and two targets. On a larger scale, Freedom Armory will host a special event sure to generate excitement: a machine gun shoot at its Glen Rock location in late August. Partnering with DNA Guns of Bunker Hill, W.Va., this event will feature a lineup of several popular machine guns.

“We had a machine gun shoot in March at our E-Town (Elizabethtown) location, and it did very, very well,” Witmer said. “For the upcoming Glen Rock event, people will be able to buy different ammo packages. We’re bringing back the M249 and more, partnering with DNA Guns to make it happen Aug. 29.”

A Nice Lead-Up to Fall Hunting Season

Based in Pennsylvania, where the tradition of hunting runs deep, Freedom Armory does brisk business equipping hunters in The Keystone State. In addition to its two range facilities, Freedom Armory operates a retail-only location (Freedom Outfitters) located in nearby Mount Joy, Pa., with a primary focus on hunting.

Witmer shared Freedom Armory is hosting a hunting sale during National Shooting Sports Month to serve as a springboard for the upcoming busy fall hunting season.

“We’ll have a Bolts & Bullets Sale at the end of August, a sale on bolt-actions and lever-actions to help prep for hunting season,” he said. “There’s always something going on to bring people in here.”

Not Too Late to Get Involved!

Here in the early days of August, it’s not too late for your business to take part in National Shooting Sports Month. Sign up to appear on the national host map, access campaign resources and receive a free promotional package while supplies last.

NSSF also encourages firearm manufacturers, shooting sports organizations and other industry partners to promote National Shooting Sports Month, share campaign materials and encourage their audiences to participate throughout August. Promotional resources are available through the National Shooting Sports Month toolkit.

For information about participating businesses, the #RangeChallenge, campaign resources and ways to celebrate, visit ShootingSportsMonth.org.