Oak Harbor girl picks Camp Perry for bachelorette party

The Civilian Marksmanship Program is known for its broad footprint in marksmanship safety and education across the country, but the organization’s lesser known offerings include exciting activities right in Northwest Ohio – available to anyone, near or far. 

Its facilities are open daily to the public and accessible for rentals to businesses, friends, families or maybe even, like recently, a lively bachelorette party. 

Mary Ann Snider, a resident of Oak Harbor, is gearing up to marry her fiancé, J.R. Cipiti, who proposed on Christmas morning in 2021. Their wedding date is set for July 2022, in nearby Port Clinton, which also happens to be Mary Ann’s 50th birthday. 

With the wedding date inching closer and closer, Mary Ann and her co-workers at Oak Harbor’s Ottawa County Job & Family Services began discussing the idea of a bachelorette party for the bride-to-be.

“We were talking one day about how fun it would be to have a social event for the agency, for whomever wants to participate,” Snider explained. “They told me to keep my calendar open on a particular date and told me later what was being planned.”

They collectively chose a local place many of them had been to before that made a positive impression – the air gun range within the Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center, located near Port Clinton on the grounds of the Camp Perry National Guard Training Facility.

The Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center is filled with several unique and fascinating features for guests to enjoy. The building houses remarkable displays of authentic Olympic memorabilia and other items from the career of celebrated American marksman, Gary Anderson, and holds a CMP memorabilia store, large classrooms and a sizeable common area. 

The north end of the building is home to CMP’s own state-of-the-art, 80-point indoor electronic air gun range. The entire facility is available to rent for company outings, conferences, parties, family reunions and other social events and is open to more spontaneous plans – including a ladies’ night out.

“I love unique ideas and thought it was a great location,” Snider said of the spot for her bachelorette party.

The climate-controlled range also hosts daily open public timeslots, where individuals of all ages are welcome to bring their own air rifle or air pistol to fire for practice or fun. Those who are new to the sport and may not own an air gun are welcome to rent one from the CMP during their visit. The air guns used inside the range are powered with small pellets for firing and are easy to handle, with no noise or kickback – perfect for enthusiasts of all ages and physiques. Staff members are always on site to ensure safety and are happy to answer questions for those visiting.

Snider had been to the range before, when other businesses she was affiliated with had rented the range for themselves. She was familiar with the air guns within and was excited to get back to the CMP facility to give them another try.

“My upcoming wedding made a great excuse to gather at the range,” she said with a smile.

On the evening of April 28, Snider’s group of around 15 arrived at the range – a mix of those who had been there before and those who were seeing it for the first time. The range was expansive enough to accommodate a separate space just for the bachelorette group, in addition to the other community members that came out for the open range session. The common area offered an additional spot for food and socializing.

During their two hours at the range, the women kept it casual – allowing guests to come and go as they pleased between enjoying the snacks at the tables just outside of the range and relaxed entertainment on the firing line.

“Everyone had a great time,” Snider said. “Some even went back to the range the following week with family that were visiting from out of town.”

She went on. “I highly recommend it, especially as a great rainy-day activity for anyone coming into town looking for something to do. It’s super kid-friendly as well. If anyone is looking for a unique party venue, this is definitely a great one! The staff are great to work with and are very knowledgeable and helpful.”

The Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center is open Tuesdays and Thursdays from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Guests may also visit by appointment Monday through Thursday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Additionally, the CMP hosts Monthly Matches for those who are ready for competition , or are interested in viewing a true marksmanship event, along with National Match Air Gun events held in July and August. 

To learn more about the Gary Anderson CMP Competition Center, visit http://thecmp.org/air/cmp-competition-centers/. For rental information, call Catherine Green, North Range coordinator, at 419-635-2141 ext. 704.