New archery range set to open in Smoky Lake County

By Haylee Winger

A lifelong passion is taking shape in Smoky Lake County as local archer Dean Cooney prepares to open Prodigy Archery—the areas only full-service archery range. Located at 59213 RR190, just off Highway 28 and next to the Iron Horse Trail, the range sits in a prime location, designed to be accessible for both locals and visitors. For Cooney, the project started from something simple: “I’ve been shooting for 40 plus years now and basically when we moved to this farm we had a nice field in the back and I was shooting all the time here, and we found out that there is a big local community for archery and decided that we wanted to turn our back field into an archery range. ”

With decades of archery experience and having visited numerous ranges across Canada, Cooney brought that knowledge to the design of Prodigy Archery.  Paired with the tremendous support and amazing business knowledge of Deana Sonnleitner, this is surely to be a fantastic collaboration for a successful archery range. “Without Deana helping me, it wouldn’t be possible. Our setup is top notch, targets are top notch and hand built by me, our design and layout are spectator and shooter friendly.” The outdoor range includes stationary targets from 30 yards up to 100, a 3D field course with lifelike animal targets, and even a single crossbow lane to accommodate guests with mobility challenges. There is lots of parking available, and efforts are underway to make the facility wheelchair accessible.

An indoor, all-season facility has also been ordered and is expected to arrive in about six weeks. The new building will be heated and fully lit, allowing archers to train year-round regardless of the weather. Weekly events will include target leagues, hunting leagues, and creative activities like “Countdowns,” a poker-style game where archers aim at marked targets to score.

One of the defining features of Prodigy Archery is its accessibility and flexibility—membership isn’t required to use the range. “If you are driving by for the day, you can stop at our place and you can shoot for a bit, take off and go enjoy the scenes of Smoky Lake County and then come back. If you buy a daily pass, you can come and go all day long.” In addition to daily passes, the business will offer three-day passes, annual memberships, and family pass options.

The range’s name carries a personal story. “The reason we called it Prodigy Archery is because my son was a prodigy archer when he was young, he was super good in competitions and winning all the time and everything. He was the little prodigy, that’s for sure.”

Cooney is also looking ahead to partnering with local schools. “We are trying to get organized so we can have students come in so they can shoot. Instead of filling their auditoriums up all the time in schools, they could come here. We are so close to multiple surrounding towns, our location is very practical for schools. For everybody that wants to shoot a bow, we are going to be there to make it happen.”

Opening the business, Cooney says, has felt like the right move. “This feels right. It feels good. Even though there has been a lot of challenges, it’s been paying off so far. With my experience of being at all these other ranges I am well informed of what our community seems to need. When we get opinions and suggestions from other people, we will implement them too if they fit our needs.”

The business operates under the motto: “Strive for success – aim for perfection.” Cooney emphasizes that the goal is to support and build the local archery community, not compete with others. “Making sure there were no other ranges in the area was important to us,” Cooney added, “because being an archer and knowing how tight knit archery communities are, I didn’t want to step on other people’s toes and take business away from others or cause hardships to other people. Where we are at, it is a good fit.”

Though the range was initially set to open in mid-August, some equipment issues caused a slight delay. A grand opening is now anticipated for the second weekend of September. “It’s getting super close, so we are getting really excited about it,” Cooney said. “We initially planned for mid-August, but we had equipment break down. It always breaks when you need it,” he chuckled.

With a clear vision, hands-on craftsmanship, and a strong sense of community, Prodigy Archery is poised to become a new cornerstone for archers in Smoky Lake County and beyond. You can find more information, updates, and event details by visiting www.prodigyarchery.ca