Saluda River Archery hits the mark while celebrating a 10-year anniversary
Kevin Flaherty gazes across the 25-lane, indoor archery range in Piedmont. Men, women, and children lift their limbs, close an eye, and hope to hit colorful targets 40 yards down-room. “I’m not kidding,” he exclaims. “Ten years ago, I never would have thought we’d grow this big. Hundreds come in each week to learn, practice, and shop. The archery community is welcoming and really awesome.”
In 2013, the outdoorsman had stepped away from running his father’s business and was unsure of the future. He reached into his quiver and pulled out the hobby he picked up as a 13-year-old: bowhunting white-tailed deer in New York. “I liked hunting with a gun, but there’s a lot more of a challenge when you’re hunting with a bow,” he reveals. “I just fell in love with it. You have to be so much closer. Bowhunting is a more intimate experience. It’s a pretty wild feeling to be in a deer’s backyard and be close enough to land an ethical shot.”
Noticing an absence of archery services in the Upstate, Flaherty opened Saluda River Archery. “We’re the only range like this in the area. Folks come from Georgia, North Carolina, and South Carolina,” the 51-year-old shares. “Half our patrons don’t even hunt. They simply come for fun and target practice. We have a lot of first-timers. After one hour of instruction, you can become pretty proficient. Anyone can do it.”
The art of the arrow is anchored in legends like Odysseus, Robin Hood, and more recently, Katniss from The Hunger Games. Arrowheads made of flint, dating back to 20,000 BC, demonstrate how Upper Paleolithic cavemen used bows and arrows to hunt. Control, patience, and precision are all needed to hit one’s target.
Today, bows, arrows, and tips by Black Eagle, Elite, and Mathews fill SRA’s shelves. Flaherty’s dream of providing a customer-service-based business—where rookies can learn the sport and experts can demo weapons prior to purchase—has exceeded expectations. “When we opened, there really wasn’t a good shop for folks to get bows fixed, or where people could learn archery from top to bottom,” he reflects. “What I feel awesome about is that I’ve been able to supply a place for folks to share a great common interest, and come hang out and shoot.”
Lift. Pull back. Relax. Release. Bull’s-eye.
Rock the Saluda River ArcheryRange
Patrons can pay by the hour or purchase a membership that includes unlimited shooting five days a week.
- Single membership: $75 for six months
- Family membership: $140 for six months
- Individual lessons: $40 per hour
Archery Tag
Families, birthday parties, and corporate team-building events utilize the space several times a week for Archery Tag. Up to 16 people take to a course filled with barricades and bunkers, using smaller bows and arrows with marshmallow-like tips. “It’s kind of like dodgeball, or paintball, but nowhere near as painful,” says Flaherty. “Groups from BMW and Verizon come out and shoot at each other for hours at a time. It’s a lot of fun.”
Saluda River Archery, 3318 SC-153, Piedmont, 864.385.4117, saludariverarchery.com
