After retiring from a 25-year career in the Secret Service, Thom Bolsch decided to switch gears and bring a high-end shooting range experience to FM 1488 that was missing in the area.

“We went to a couple of [shooting ranges], and my wife was just was not thrilled,” Bolsch said. “It made me think—it’s the only industry that hasn’t gotten into the 21st century as far as customer service. It made me wonder how there couldn’t be a more comfortable, kinder, lady-friendly, family-friendly place here.”

The 33,000-square-foot Saddle River Range location, which opened Nov. 21, offers 24 shooting lanes, 20 archery lanes, three classrooms for beginner- to advanced-level shooting, concealed handgun license courses and a laser gun training simulator, Bolsch said.

The location features Cafe 2A, which serves sandwiches, salads, coffee and smoothies, and is named after the Second Amendment.

A basic gold-level membership is available for frequent shooters. The highest level of membership available is known as Club Crockett, which grants members access to a private shooting range and high-end lounge. Since opening, the range has registered about 400 members, he said.

“Everything we do here is based on safety,” Bolsch said. “There are cameras behind everyone, and our range safety officers have the monitors where you can see every shooting lane.”

In addition, Saddle River Range sells a variety of guns on-site, including tactical firearms, pistols, hunting rifles and shotguns.

“We want people to know that it’s not just about the shooting—that’s why we built these lounges,” Bolsch said. “We’ve got wide-screen TVs. People can watch the ball game and maybe do some shooting and get a cup of coffee or a sandwich. I really wanted to make it a social gathering place as well as a shooting range.”