Bristol, WI June 26-27, 2010

[Gopher Boy]

What an amazing shoot.  These shooter and Instructors made my first shoot as a Shoot Boss SMOOTH.  Thanks to ALL.  

I had a couple of shooters ask if there would be an AAR, so I wanted to get this post ASAP.

I'll post more later, but right now, I've got to get that truck unpacked.

[EEL]

Unpacked?  Unpacked?  As SB, you now have what we call a DAV.  Dedicated Appleseed Vehicle.   

Why, that baby should just stay packed up for the next shoot!!

Glad to see the shooters took it easy on you    I'll be waiting for more.  From what I've heard so far, you did an outstanding job.  Made The Guy (and others) proud.  Good work G.B.

EEL

[AFTERMATH]

Unpacked?  Unpacked?  As SB, you now have what we call a DAV.  Dedicated Appleseed Vehicle.   

Why, that baby should just stay packed up for the next shoot!!

Glad to see the shooters took it easy on you    I'll be waiting for more.  From what I've heard so far, you did an outstanding job.  Made The Guy (and others) proud.  Good work G.B.

EEL

Yeah, I've given up on the whole unpacking thing...

Sounds as though Illinois has successfully annexed Bristol!  Good work!
Keep 'em occupied.

So, shooters?  Tell us your side of the story!

[Trisha]

Sounds as though Illinois has successfully annexed Bristol!  Good work!
Keep 'em occupied.

Aftermath, Deacon was there the whole time, aware of his surroundings and protecting our boarder. Haven't you heard? He is able to hit a 20 inch target out to 500 yards...

[AFTERMATH]

Sounds as though Illinois has successfully annexed Bristol!  Good work!
Keep 'em occupied.

Aftermath, Deacon was there the whole time, aware of his surroundings and protecting our boarder. Haven't you heard? He is able to hit a 20 inch target out to 500 yards...

Yes, but remember, IL is probably not even 500yrds from the range!  One man can't possibly fend off the entire swarm of Illinoisians.
You just left him hangin'! 

[Strong]

This was an excellent shoot. I had a great deal of fun. Two riflemen at least. (Perhaps more after I left)

I was pleased that the weather bascially cooperated and allowed us to have so much fun!

I learned a great deal (less like taking a sip from a firehose) and I look forward to my next shoot. Perhaps September 11th, maybe even sooner.
I'm glad to say my scores went up!

[Strong]

I forgot to say I joined the RWVA today.

Thanks to all who made this happen.
Gopher Boy
Patiot Girl
Dangerous Old Man
Castle Mountain
Deacon
Gumballhead
Robvious

(Did I miss anyone?)

[Boba Fett]

I forgot to say I joined the RWVA today.

Thanks to all who made this happen.
Gopher Boy
Patiot Girl
Dangerous Old Man
Castle Mountain
Deacon
Gumballhead
Robvious

(Did I miss anyone?)

ROBVIOUS? Robvious was there!  .. OK, now I'm jealous. I just love the smell of that pipe of his. 

I was busy border raiding to the east over in Cloverdale IN, and was just wondering... was is like 96 degrees and 127% humidity with no breeze anywhere else this weekend, or we the lucky ones?  How was the weather in the land of cheese?

BF

[Gopher Boy]

This was an amazing shoot.  Once the sheer panic wore off from being my first shoot as a shoot boss I was able to get down to business.

19 Shooter on Saturday Bake in the sun and humidity of Wisconsin and most returned on Sunday (17 on sunday)  The weekend was HOT.  But the sweated right on through it.

Every shoot showed marked improvement on the Redcoats on Saturday, we knew we would have Rifleman on Sunday.

Congrats goes out to Brian who was able to pull it all together and shoot and impressive target.  Not to be out done Buck showed us that a 210 on a day like Sunday was a blessing.  This is the first time I actually heard a shooter being drenched with North Bridge water say, " AHHHHH".  The good news is Buck backed up that 210 with a 211 and proclaimed, "I'm not a 210 anymore."

The range Officer from CCKC were great even letting us use the meeting room during one of the brief storms to do a little history.

I want to Thank Tony and Bill for bringing their Sons and Daughter out to an appleseed.  All three are knocking on the door.

I could go on and on about the new friends I made, but thanks to all of them.  Brian, Buck, Cheave, Catfish, Tony, Jack, Dana, Bill, Billy, Steve, Everette, Ross, Mr. Anderson, Brad, Chic, Don and the others that I know I'm forgetting their names, but can still see their faces.  

Keep up the hard work, becoming a Rifleman isn't easy, but well worth it.

G.B.

Almost forgot.  Special Thanks to all the instructors: Deacon, P Gal, C.M. D.O.M., Gumballhead.  

Now I get to explain to my wife that she has lost her truck to Appleseed.

[Gopher Boy]

OOPS.

Yep  Robvious was there too and helped.

B.F.  I agree, reminds me of my Dad. 

[dragonfly]

Sounds as though Illinois has successfully annexed Bristol!  Good work!
Keep 'em occupied.

Aftermath, Deacon was there the whole time, aware of his surroundings and protecting our boarder. Haven't you heard? He is able to hit a 20 inch target out to 500 yards...

Yes, but remember, IL is probably not even 500yrds from the range!  One man can't possibly fend off the entire swarm of Illinoisians.
You just left him hangin'! 

Great job Guy's   

I have full confidence in our very own Deaconator   

As always Robbvious has his back 

D-fly    Keeping the Faith

[Gumballhead]

Hi Everyone,

Congrats to Tan-Boonie  & Buck!     .  We had a hot and humid weekend, and I'm sorry DOM and I had to leave early.  Sounds like we left you in great hands!  You guys were certainly very dedicated, and I am glad everyone braved the heat with us!  To those who are knocking on the door, remember to dry fire practice at home, and get into the positions you learned.  Dry fire by the numbers, find your NPOA, and build your position using the steady hold factors.  

It was great to see some old friendly faces again.  Both from our shooters and our Instructor corps.  Working events is great when we have a solid team!  Good job Patriot Gal & Castle Mountain with those demos.  Good to see you Deacon.  Good job on SB too GB!

I hope to see you on the trail again soon!  We will be in Ottawa 7/10 & 7/11, and back in WI for Racine 7/31-81.  PLenty of time to get pre-registered now...600 yards is calling...

[Patriot Gal]

Speaking of dedication!!!  What a great group of shooters.  AQT after AQT after AQT....well, you get the idea.  Everone improved in their shooting skills and made progress on their target.  Quite a few knocking on the doors of Rifleman.  One more Appleseed and they should be there.  Congrats to Tanboonie (Brian) and Buck!!!!!    

Good job Gopher Boy on your first solo flight as shoot boss!!!!!

CM and I certainly enjoyed our first border raid to the north, oh but by the way.... we are adopting Deacon, just so ya know!!!

More later. Looking forward to hearing others report and I look forward to seeing everyone back on the trail over the months ahead!!

Thanks everyone for all you do for AS  
Patriot Gal

[Keystone]

Hi guys, it's Tom from the shoot today. This is a write-up I did last night after I slept through some of my exhaustion from the day's shooting.

I didn't quite make rifleman today, but that just means I have a great reason to come back for the next Appleseed! I met some great people, heard some rousing tales, and had a great time I'll be telling people about for a while.

[Begin last night's write-up...]

The shooting event today was a lot of fun. Tiring, difficult, hot, but
fun. I got there around 8am expecting to help set up, but despite the
fact that it doesn't start until 9am everything was already done and
there was a line at registration! I'd pre-registered, so it was simply
a matter of finding my name on the list and being given a t-shirt and
some reading material.

I got my gear out of the car, leaving the rifle there in its case per
directions. I set up the folding chair, got my hat out, put sunscreen
on, and walked around saying hi, shaking hands, and learning names
which I mostly forgot pretty quickly (as I tend to). There were
probably 30 people there to shoot, and 8 or so instructors.

We started by going over the safety rules: always keep the gun pointed
in a safe direction, do not load unless given instruction to do so,
keep your finger off the trigger until you are on target, and watch
those around you to ensure safe activity. They also reviewed the range
commands -- exactly how each "course of fire" was going to be
executed. For each course there is some description, then declared
prep time where I consider the line "warm" meaning that nobody may go
ahead of the firing line, weapons may be handled, but nobody may load.
The prep time is generous, and those who made the most of it were
encouraged to practice trigger control by "dry firing," or firing the
empty weapon. Once once the prep period had ended and the range safety
officers have reviewed and confirmed that the line is prepared the
command to load is given and the range is hot. Everyone loads. Once
that is complete for everyone, THEN the command to fire is given and
firing may proceed until anyone on the line (usually the line boss,
but anyone has the authority) calls a cease fire.

Ok, so we knew the rules and the order of operations. After that we
fetched our rifles from our cars. I pulled the whole case up to the
line and uncased the rifle. My rifle tends to kick the spent casings
out pretty far, so I set up all the way on the end (that also allows
me to not have to think about which target I am). Next to me were two
military (Navy), named Buck and Monte, Monte's son, Caleb.

As I was set up already, I walked the line and took a look at what
people had. A lot of people were shooting .22 caliber rifles -- what's
called a "rimfire" type with virtually no "kick" or recoil. There were
only a few shooting high-powered rifles like me. Many had optics
(scopes) mounted -- I'd find out through the day that despite better
visibility in many cases they were actually no more accurate with the
scopes than I was with my "iron sights" or the metal posts on the gun
for aiming.

We were given targets -- the red one in the pictures. We fired 13
rounds, two in each "redcoat" and one "head shot" in the small square.
The 13 rounds represent the 13 original colonies. There is a lot about
the program tied back to the revolutionary war and the days when all
men (and many women) were trained marksmen because they needed to
hunt, defend themselves from Indian attacks, and so on. There weren't
any police back then, and the townspeople together WERE the military.

All of the shooting in the morning was in the "prone" position, lying
down. This is the most stable position as you are strongly supported
by the ground and have up to six points of contact with the ground:
both elbows, left hip, left foot, right foot, and right knee. They
describe the ideal positioning and the hows and whys behind each
element that adds stability. They also cover the use of a GI sling --
the same kind that was (is?) issued to the US military for over a
hundred years. My rifle is not set up to handle the GI sling (it tends
to work best on wooden stocked weapons) so I used an adapted "hasty
sling" hold which worked well for me and brought no corrective action
from the instructors. All of this stability comes together to allow us
to find a "natural point of aim" -- essentially the natural position
our body will move to unless we use muscle to move away from it.
Rather than use that muscle to move the point of aim to the target, we
take advantage of the consistency that a natural point of aim gives us
and move it, our NPOA, to the target.

We spent the next six courses of fire "sighting in" our rifles. We two
targets which consisted of five one inch black squares, spread across
the page like 5 dots on a die. We fired 5 rounds at a time, aiming at
a different target each time. In between, we walked forward to see
where we were hitting, and between a couple of the courses we did a
"chalk talk" where the instructors shared the concept of "minutes of
accuracy." We measure things in inches, but inches are a linear
measurement which don't work so well when what you can hit with a
rifle is more of a semicircle (and assuming safe handling, generally
shaped like a piece of pie with your shooting position at the point).
Circles are measured in degrees. Degrees are measured in minutes, and
minutes, just as in time, are measured in seconds. When shooting we
are concerned with the minutes of accuracy -- a hairsbreadth of
difference at close range, but potentially the difference between on
and off paper as that line continues out to longer ranges.

If you can keep your rounds within a one-inch box at 25 yards, then
you can keep them within a 4 inch box at 100 yards (which is roughly 4
minutes of accuracy), an 8 inch box at 200 yards, and a 20 inch box at
500 yards. That's just under the size of two pieces of paper side by
side the long way. So if you want to be able to hit something that
size at 500 yards, you better be able to put your shots in a 1 inch
box at 25, because getting out that far has additional complications,
like the ballistics of the bullet and such.

Something they said during all of this must have made some sense to me
-- on the third set of 5 sighting rounds I put all 5 rounds within the
black box. I was very pleased with myself, but at the same time, I
feared that I'd set the bar pretty high for myself and that I'd be
constantly disappointed by lesser performance through the rest of the
day. It didn't end up being that bad, but I did develop high (and
frequently unmet) expectations because I knew what I and my rifle were
capable of, even if I didn't yet know how or why.

The weather was bright and sunny, with light clouds. The morning
started off humid, as it had rained the night before, and as the sun
beat down on us through the day it was extremely hot. Hydration was
critical, as was sunscreen and hat. The rifles, between courses of
fire, sat out in the sun -- anything black, especially parkerized
metal, was scorching hot by the time we needed to fire the next round.
I and my nearby fellow participants took to covering the front and
rear grips of the rifles with a cloth (the t-shirt we were given in
the morning, in fact), leaving the cleared chamber exposed for safety
checks.

After the sighting exercises we did a couple of team exercises. We
paired off and went through two courses of fire. The first one was
called "sight carding" and focused on finding and retaining your NPOA.
Because the NPOA is your natural position, you shouldn't need to hold
the rifle on it -- it should be there on its own. Your partner was
responsible for holding a blocker (in this case a "Rifleman" patch)
over the sights so you couldn't see what you were aiming at, or the
target at all. Then, they would remove the "card" for three seconds.
If you were not on target and couldn't get a shot off in three seconds
then they replaced the card and gave you an opportunity to reset your
position to move your NPOA to the target. If you maintained shooting
at least every three seconds the card stayed off and within 30 seconds
you'd be through all ten rounds.

I had NPOA when the card was removed and methodically clicked off ten
rounds down range. They were all grouped just below the point of aim,
but tightly clustered. That's another important element of shooting --
accuracy is good, but consistency is better. I'd rather have all
misses in a 1/2" group than one hit with rounds sprayed across the
page. A group can be moved by adjusting sights or technique, a random
distribution requires a random solution, and we want to reduce
randomness, not add to it.

The second drill was the "ball and cap" drill. Here you had two
magazines and your partner was to load one of them, then, with your
eyes closed, help you get one of the two loaded in the weapon and
ready to fire. You don't know which magazine you have -- is there a
round or isn't there? The purpose here is to determine whether there
is any flinching, jerking, or other unwanted movement or strain right
at the most critical point -- the point that the hammer drops.

Following the two drills being completed by both you and your partner,
it was time for lunch. We pulled out whatever victuals we'd brought
with us and settled back to hear Deacon (the nickname of one of our
instructors) deliver a very well told account of the early morning of
April 19th, 1775. That was the Wednesday when the British regulars,
out of fear that there could be a rebellion, marched out to seize the
weapons of the colonists and instead triggered it. At least for me it
is an emotional tale, bringing together a mix of respect for those who
participated and despair that such events had to come to pass -- that
regular men and women were asked to make extraordinary sacrifices and
that , due solely to a lack of political and governmental awareness
and respect, a choice had to be made between disarmed slavery and
likely death. As George Washington wrote, upon hearing the news of the
battle, "the once-happy and peaceful plains of America are either to
be drenched in blood or inhabited by slaves. Sad alternative! But can
a virtuous man hesitate in his choice?"

Those that fought that day weren't fighting for America, they were
fighting for their towns, their villages, their families, and because
if they did not make a stand there then they would not be able to make
a stand again. Most of those who fought, even when it was clear that
they were fighting a war for Liberty, and for self rule, and for an
"America" nobody had any preconceived notion of, would not live to see
that new nation born, but they fought so that their wives, their
children, and their descendants would. Not one of them had to be there
-- not one said "Well, I need the money, so I guess I'll join the
Continentals."

Stepping back from the history into the present day of high power
rifles which make holes a third as small as a musket ball at three
times the range, the afternoon was spent mostly on transitions. We
learned about the sitting position, the standing position, and
practiced fire in each of them, as well as moving as a group from one
to the other (with rifles unloaded and safeties on). At virtually the
same time the concept of timed fire was introduced, which threw me off
a bit. When you are focusing on nothing but your breathing, your
heartbeat, your trigger finger and the front sight it is very easy to
lose the context of time. More than once I was surprised at how little
time 60 seconds is when trying to engage multiple targets, keeping
count of shots placed, reacquiring sight picture, shifting natural
point of aim, not rushing the shot, and knowing where your hits are
landing.

We finished up with an AQT -- Army Qualifying Test. This is a set of
four timed stages consisting of different positions and effective
ranges (i.e. each successive target is smaller to simulate greater
distance). These we scored, and I was both disappointed and pleased
that after such success in the morning that I had plenty of room to
improve on Sunday. [and improve I did -- but more importantly further
developed my skills and gave myself a goal for next time!]

That finished the day -- we met again to listen to a bit more of the
story of the battles of Lexington and Concord, and then fired one more
course of fire at our initial "redcoat" targets to see how much we had
improved. I had not done poorly on this set in the morning, and I was
pleased, especially after the disheartening AQT results, to see that
my afternoon fire showed slight improvement.

After everyone had cased their rifles, we all packed up and headed
home. After a shower I fell into bed and slept for the next six hours.
It was a great, tiring, sweaty experience, but one I'm looking forward
to repeating tomorrow.

[Mogget]

Hey, nice write-up, Tom.  Six hours naps after an Appleseed are a Good Thing.  Tells you just how rigorous an experience it can be for those who take th challenge.

Just so everybody knows...here's the Wisconsin area of the forum:

http://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?board=224.0

It's your one-stop shop for information on Colycat's Plan to Save Illinois and more Appleseed events in Wisconsin.  And for you border raiders, here's Illinois' area.  Don't forget the Waterman 300 in September, either.  If you're into rifles and heritage, that's gonna be the event of the year:

http://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?board=188.0

Mogs

[Old Glory!]

CM and I certainly enjoyed our first border raid to the north, oh but by the way.... we are adopting Deacon, just so ya know!!!

aaahhh hhhem!  You MAY, under limited circumstances to be determined by an impartial judge, have VISITATION rights, but WI is signing no adoption papers.      
Robbvious will make SURE of that!      (closest thing to a smoking pipe smiley)

You've heard of Wisconsin's hard-nosed trade with MN, right?  MN gets Favre, WI gets Mogget!  

Sounds like another WI/IL battlefortheborder collaboration, with success in the Appleseed mission.  Great job everyone; thanks for making it possible to have 2 Appleseeds in Wisconsin on one weekend.   Bristol and LaCrosse.  

Modified: With all those Wisconsin Appleseed students in Hinkley, that means we can claim 3 Wisconsin Appleseeds this weekend.      Thanks to Aftermath and the Hinkley contingent of Minnesconsin  

[Shooterer]

So..... while packing up my gear after the train wreck they call a High-Power match at the Bristol range on Sunday (that is what happens when in the heat of battle you spin you sights the wrong way) I see a sign that said "Appleseed".

Appleseed? I like Appleseeds I think to myself. So I finish packing up the truck and I follow the signs down the 1 lane gravel road (I'm glad I didn't walk). As I pull up everything looks like a normal seed shoot until I see this guy barking line commands and looking like he is straight out of GQ. Now I now that this shoot was going to have a lot of boarder raiders at it, but I didn't think IL'ers were that different.

As I walked closer it hit me "Holy #%*@, that guy is Deacon" standing there in his pleated kakis and collared RWVA polo (Mrs. Deacon must layout his clothe in the morning). As I walk up I look for the Green hat and ask if I can hang out and watch. I would have asked Deacon, but I didn't want to get him dirty.

I was impressed with the history lessons and the 1 on 1 instruction I was seeing. The best part was seeing the faces on the youngsters as the waited for their AQT to be scored and the joy when they find out that they shot a high score then before.

I just wanted to say thank you to all the instructors for brightening my day after its dismal beginning.

Breathe, squeeze and shoot safe.
Shooterer

[Reveille]

Great job by all the shooters and Instructors.

GB, congrats on the inaugural SB event.
I knew you would nail it.

[AFTERMATH]

Modified: With all those Wisconsin Appleseed students in Hinkley, that means we can claim 3 Wisconsin Appleseeds this weekend.      Thanks to Aftermath and the Hinkley contingent of Minnesconsin   

Interesting prospect....
Considering a Red Hat and his orderly(sorry Kevin) was just in LaCross, and well, that Red Hat will be be commanding the forces at Hinckley in a couple of weeks.....
Hmmm....  I wonder how many of those at LaCross were from the Land of 10,000 Appleseeds?

[Chief Buckshot]

Chief Buckshot here!    I had to pick my own nickname because y'all were too busy enjoying my "baptism".  Thanks a bunch RWVA instructors!  You guys are FIRST CLASS and you make the program what it is!  Such Patriotism and volunteerism.

I thoroughly enjoyed the entire weekend, the instruction, the history, the passion, and the friendship and camaraderie. 

For a while I felt like this while trying to qualify....

Once I settled in with my NPOA and focused on the true meaning of the Appleseed, placed myself in the time of April 19, 1775, I became less-stressed and the cadence came and my scores reflected that.

I want to thank all the RWVA instructors, but especially Deacon, Castle Mountain, and Gopher Boy for the extra encouragement and support.

I am so very proud to be a Rifleman, but even more proud to be an American who loves our heritage, can handle my rifle (yes the rifle-not the gun-keepin it PG), and will share this with everyone.  I've posted the link to my Facebook page and already started spreading the news throughout the Naval base at Great Lakes.

I met some great people and will continue a friendship with Keystone.  YOU CAN DO IT (RIFLEMAN) TOM!

I hope hundreds (even thousands) more come to an Appleseed.  If they do, they will undoubtedly LOVE it!  I signed up for the 9-11/12 shoot in Waterman, IL.  I hope my son will come this time.

Again, many thanks and God bless.  See you soon!

[Johnnyappleseed]

GBOY
Nice wisc. shoot 
JA

[colycat]

Anyone have some pics.  Not even of GQ Deacon?  He must look at me and think, If only someone could groom him a little (or Lot ).

Great Job to all the instructors and we will annex ILL soon.  But not Chicago, not that we dont want it, but it would be too hard at first to get them to think like us.  Maybe later.

[Gopher Boy]

Annex...  Annex...

I thought we merged last year...  We just hadn't settled on the name.  As I recall Illiconsin was winning in the vote.

Now your talking Annex.

The truth comes out.   


I agree with you on Chicago.

G.B.

[Shooterer]

Anyone have some pics.  Not even of GQ Deacon? 

I didn't have a camera along to get any pics  . When I said Deacon looked good, I didn't mean we wasn't working hard and getting dirty. A storm had rolled through in the morning and when I saw him he was laying next to a shooter giving guidance and support. 

I know the management doesn't like instructors in camo, but.......



(just mess'n with ya D)   

[Mogget]

As I walked closer it hit me "Holy #%*@, that guy is Deacon" standing there in his pleated kakis and collared RWVA polo.

You have no idea how long it took us to break him of the habit of wearing a tie... 

[Deacon]

I found it just to darn hot to wear my button down oxford and tie with a Isaac Davis and the American flag on it!

Thanks Shooter for letting everyone know how GQ I may have looked.  By the way, what does GQ mean anyway?   

We had a whole line of great shooters including some awesome young adults who made thier parents proud.  I look forward to seeing some of you down at Waterman "300" shoot on September 11/12th.  I think Chief Buckshot already has signed up to shoot!   Now Keystone, you don't want to get to far ahead of you!  And Waterman is probably pretty close to you......sign up early!

Another great Appleseed weekend, and although it completely wiped my out physically, it mentally "charged my batteries"!

Deacon

[Boba Fett]

...By the way, what does GQ mean anyway?   

Gentleman's Quarterly: a monthly men's magazine focusing upon fashion, style, and culture for men.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GQ

Boba 

[Gumballhead]

 

[Patriot Gal]

LOLOLOL   

[Keystone]

Anyone have some pics.  Not even of GQ Deacon?  He must look at me and think, If only someone could groom him a little (or Lot ).

Great Job to all the instructors and we will annex ILL soon.  But not Chicago, not that we dont want it, but it would be too hard at first to get them to think like us.  Maybe later.

Better late than never...right? I found these few snaps I took with my phone.

I just registered for Sunday of the September Waterman shoot, though I plan to be there both days. Rather than shoot the skills portion I'm thinking of bringing my big camera and "shooting" the event that way. I'll provide the pics to the RWVA as my way of "doing what I can" for the program.

Cheers,
Tom