Toccoa March 6/7

[Flathead]

Just a quick post to get a place for others to chime in I haven't got final numbers yet, but we had a decent turn out with plenty of new shooters and a large percentage of females. One had never held a rifle before Saturday!
4merusmc1803 earned his red hat and got to work with DR John on the line both days and he did a great job.
Will post more when I get a chance to crunch the numbers. Thanks to everyone that made this one work.
thanks Bama and Darryl for coming from Alabama for coming to help.

[flytz]

This is was my 3rd Appleseed and it will be one of my most memorable. My first 2 Appleseeds I was only able to come on Saturday, however on this one I attended only the Sunday. I learned a lot out of Keith's talk about ballistics, and Bama had a talk that really stoked my passion on why we are coming to these events. I was able to qualify Rifleman for the first time, which was incredible.  But what was most memorable is that my 8 year old son, who was very new to shooting, was introduced to shooting in a way that I could have never dreamed of.  Dr John and the other instructors helped him all day, teaching, coaching, and encouraging. They made his introduction to marksmanship fun and safe.  He was elated to show his targets to his mother and grand mother, and I believe you guys have left an amazing impression on a young man. 

[Bama]

[4merUSMC1803]

This was a memorable Appleseed for me, as well.  Flathead's great hospitality, the great venue, the great shooters, the great instructor cadre, Great Patriots!  Dr. John and Jesse were definitely on top of their game, calling the line and instructing shooters.  It was heartwarming to see the ladies on the left side of the line make quantum leaps in their marksmanship skills throughout the weekend, especially when they proved their mettle as the lethal zombie hunters with the most 250 yd head shots. The 3 of them, Jeanne, Lesia, and Jean (aka Mrs. Flathead) are seen in the photos above.  Also, we had an up-and-coming rifleman in Austin, encouraged by his uncle and father, I believe he will persist and achieve his goal. It was my distinct privilege to assist in training these Americans in their quest to regain their heritage!   Congrats to the new Riflemen.  As Dr. John so eloquently stated, ..."was so proud of new Rifleman Flytz" and his son JB, our Sunday DLM, Designated Line Marksman, or Dangerous Little Man (if you saw the groups he was shooting).

[bagel]

I believe we had 28 for the whole weekend, not counting instructors. Three new riflemen.

If anyone has not heard bama's speech on liberty I suggest you go to an event and hear it.

[alex4922]

It's always great to be around a group of gun loving, proud Americans and this last weekend was no exception. Yes, it was great to see the gals out having such a good time shooting. They didn't give up despite the rigors of the day and hung in till the end.
Snaphook and Mike's lecture was really well done. The visual aids, I'm sure, helped new shooters grasp the concepts more easily. Well Done!!

'Bama's talk really knocked loose some dust from between my ears. So many times what you think is based on what you assume to be true. The color of the law is a concept I really need to read about. Thanks Bama.

Davie O did his 1st day as Orange hat. I haven't had a chance to talk with him. I'm sure he learned a lot while paired up with Bama.

Thanks to Dr John, 4mer, Darryl, and all the other folks I'm forgetting.

                                                                   Alex

[mgarr682]

I had a good time.  This was my first Appleseed.  I learned more about rifle shooting in two days than I had picked up in over half a century.  As soon as the skin grows back on my elbows I'll be back to do it again!

[shaftoe]

This was an awesome event.  Thanks to Bama for his amazing talk.  There was a lot of food for thought there.

Thanks to all the Instructors for making this event as great as it was.  Your hard work really makes a difference.

And thanks, Bama, for posting pictures.  These should help me rangle a few people into coming to the next event.

[devil dog]

This was the first Ive heard of appleseed, thanks for the info Alex as a former Marine, I can say, you instructors rock, you have taken a two week course and crammed it into two days and from what I could see, helped many! Darryl, thought you should know, Austin had his first BB shoot for the 4H on Monday, his shooting scores have almost doubled, thanks again for your help. Hope to see you at the next shoot in April at Toccoa, he will need some more help, I think I will probably shoot the next one .

[4merUSMC1803]

d-dog, a big Oooorah! to Austin for his accomplishments at the 4H event!...and to you for bringing him last weekend.  It was my privelege to help a young man such as him. If ya'll can find the time to reinforce with him, at home, 'slinging up', the 6 steps, verifying his NPOA, and dry-firing, I'm confident he will achieve that elusive Rifleman standard.  I really hope you can come back, next time around as a shooter; I just love to see all the 4mer Marines on the line, as you said, trying to do in 2 days what we were accustomed to doing over 2 weeks, every year on active duty.   Looking forward to seeing you on the Appleseed Trail.

[bagel]

Videos I took late in the AQT grind (with permission from the shooters):

http://bambuser.com/v/606875

http://bambuser.com/v/606882

http://bambuser.com/v/606908

I held my phone up near the firing line for some of these, it's the phone at the firing line, me well behind it.  If anyone in the videos would prefer I take these down (and if you can actually discern your blurry self), I will gladly respect that.

[Son of Martha]

Looks like a great weekend.  Wish I could have been there  .

Thanks for the help M, K, A et.al.  Appleseed in action.

SoM

[Bama]

I really had a great time at the shoot, and will be back to Toccoa in the future. Many new friends were made and it was good to see the familiar faces as well.

I'm really proud of the guys on my line as they all had an excellent attitude, and proved their diligence. There was some talent on my line, and I am not only refering to marksmanship. The guys just radiated ability. I hope to work with them in the future on the seventh step!

It was a delight to work with Mason and Kevin on Sunday afternoon. Those young men have intense focus and great attention spans for their age. Future riflemen!

You always have a good time when you work with Flathead, and this time was no exception. It was also a pleasure to meet the Superwoman that is able to put up with him. 

This was a particularly satisfying Appleseed for me. My friend (and Big Boss Man) Darrell earned his redhat. It's been a huge blessing to have him there to help push the cart. Thank you sir! 


A few more photos which were forwarded along to me to share: