Rolling through ranch — in a tank
If you have a few grand to blow through and want to make a really, really big bang then you might want to look into DriveTanks, located at the Ox Ranch in Uvalde.
The sprawling ranch bills itself as the only place in the world to drive and shoot fully functional tanks and major artillery without having to actually enlist in the military or join some sort of militia.
DriveTanks calls itself a living military museum. Whereas other places will let you look at weapons of war behind glass or a velvet rope, DriveTanks offers a first-hand experience that you might still feel the next day.
Visitors also get a free safari tour onsite, as a large number of exotic animals live on one side of the property that doesn’t sound like an episode of HBO’s “Band of Brothers.”
The prices to experience the tanks in the company’s fleet run from $650 to $2,395, and go even higher depending on add-ons like extra artillery and passengers. For $799, you can run over a car with one of the tanks.
Simply driving a tank is a little cheaper if you aren’t firing off any rounds, which can cost a lot of dough.
Anti-tank guns and mortars are also on the menu at DriveTanks. Mortar shoots start out at $125.
An array of machine guns can also be rented for use on the complex’s range, like the Barrett M82, an M60 E4, an M4 Carbine MG and the ever-popular AK-47.
There is also a starter, sampler package of sorts that starts out at $650 if you want to start off with a smaller tank and some machine gun fire.
Ammo for all the tanks and other large weapons can get pricey considering its expensive and sometimes rare.
Of course the high rollers will likely find themselves attracted to the $8,250 all-day Allies & Axis package featuring weaponry that was used in the Second World War. The “Sherman” package starts at $3,495 and allows you time in the Sherman tank on a firing range and some small arms fun with an M3 Grease Gun.
Those partaking in the fun at DriveTanks will need to sign extensive waivers before they get behind the wheel of tanks or shoot off any firearms or weaponry.
CEO Todd DeGidio with DriveTanks says that they do all they can to keep the prices for the experiences within the range of affordability, from the high rollers who want to roll in a tank and down to the regular folks looking to shoot a machine gun.
“We see everyone from single moms bringing their kids for their birthday to the top 1 percent income earners. We made sure that we have price points as low as $40 for the machine gun experience,” he says. “This allows our demographic to open up to virtually everyone, and we are very happy to have been able to do that.”
As some of the staff are military veterans themselves, Drive Tanks also does work with disabled vets groups. They routinely help these groups raise funds by auctioning off some of the higher-end military experiences.
“We try to get some disabled veterans out here to get them doing things that they would not be able to do elsewhere. We call our program “Back on Track” as one of their primary enablers is the tracked wheelchair,” DeGidio says.
DeGidio says that the site’s costs are mitigated by having knowledgeable personnel on hand with real world experience with the artillery so that things can be done safely.
“We do not shoot powder puff light loads for theatrics. Our clients shoot the real things. This is what sets us apart from anyone else in the world,” he says.