Carson, New Mexico. Where the West Remains at the CSD Range! Nov. 14-15, 2015

[TaosGlock]

This was Carson, New Mexico's last Project Appleseed shoot for the winter.

Can you hit a target at 25 yards? How about at 500 yards? Whether you are new to the shooting sports or a seasoned shooter Appleseed will be able to teach you a thing or two.

For the new shooter we can teach you to use your rifle safely and also be able to hit your target. For the seasoned shooter we can teach you to shoot more accurately - even out to 500 yards.

Project Appleseed can help transform you from a man with a rifle into a Rifleman. A Rifleman is more than a man (or woman) with a rifle. A Rifleman understands that owning and mastering a rifle is part of his heritage as an American. And he knows why: This is a nation founded by Riflemen -- men and women skilled in the use of arms.

Those skills served the colonists well when they stood up to the British on April 19, 1775, at Lexington and Concord, and routed the British forces that tried to seize the colonists' arms. They did it with grit, with determination, and with superior skill in marksmanship. They pledged their lives, their fortunes and their sacred honor to the task. And they didn't stop until they had won. Throughout history, Riflemen have embodied personal responsibility and been pillars of their communities, characteristics that are becoming ever more rare in our nation.

At Project Appleseed, we want to return America to being a nation of Riflemen. And we want you to join us.
Check the New Mexico schedule for our next shoot at this range!


A big thanks to Greg and Pam Busick for the use of their land to make this fantastic range for Project Appleseed!
In Northern New Mexico, the snow dictates we usually shut down in October but this year we said, "what the heck, let's try a November shoot this year".

Last year was the first year for this range so we quickly cleared the weeds and set up a line.
This year it got graded/tamped and next year it may even be covered.
Which means more shoots!

The week before we had 10" of snow in the hi country and the snow was still on the mountains giving a nice view from the range.
Shooters were greeted with 6 degree weather on Sat and it was 0 degrees Sun.
But by 9:00 the Land of Enchantment gave us the usual sun such that we were able to shed our heavy down jackets.

By Sun noon, a storm came in and brought more snow to the hi country and rain/sleet to Carson.
We finished just in time but not without having an incredible event. 3 hearty shooters showed up and were ready to go.

And we got 2 Riflemen!! Double Huzzah!

Carson, NM Pop 105 more or less. 
Actually 110 this weekend, 2 instructors from Tres Piedras, 1 shooter from Taos and 2 made the long trip up from Albuquerque!
Huzzah to Joseph and Justin.

Welcome to Carson!



The CSD Ranch and Range is owned by Greg and Pam Busick. The view from the range:


Pam-Pered Pets is a full on grooming and boarding business.
The flags of our Founders fly proudly as a reminder of the sacrifices made to birth this Nation.

Through Project Appleseed, the Revolutionary War Veterans Association is committed to teaching two things: rifle marksmanship and our early American heritage. We do this for one simple reason, the skill and knowledge of what our founding fathers left to us is eroding in modern America and without deliberate action, they will be lost to ignorance and apathy.

Is there a direct relationship between understanding our country's founding and civic virtue? The answer should anecdotally be quite clear. As our citizens' knowledge of founding principles has declined, so too has our involvement in this government 'of, by and for The People.' Instead, our citizens seem all too content to relegate governmental decisions and knowledge to those that have been elected, all the while assuming these officials' abilities and agendas are working on their behalf. We believe that if this trend continues, our country will be left with an expansive gulf between the populace and the government.


Yes, you can get here from there.


The other General Store:



The Church where...


Downtown Carson, NM. Yes, they have Pizza. 


The CSD is a working ranch.
BlueFeather assists in the TPI of the steady hold factors for the prone position.


The 25/200 yard range portion.


...more later.

[TaosGlock]

The long and proud history of the Taos dates back to August 29, 1540 when Capitan Hernando Alvarado as
part of the expedition of Francisco Vasquez de Coronado arrived in the Taos Valley for the first time.
They saw the magnificent ancient towering pueblo structures of the historic Taos Pueblo, and the peaceful Tiwa Indians
who had inhabited the area for centuries. It was a peaceful meeting, and gifts were exchanged.
That first meeting was the first of many cultural exchanges that were to forever change the valley we know as Taos today.



Just two miles north of the city of Taos New Mexico, stands the centuries old Taos Pueblo,
one of the longest continually inhabited communities in the United States.



The cemetery and it's old structure still has impact holes from previous conflicts:


Throughout its early years, Taos Pueblo was a central point of trade between the native populations along the Rio Grande
and their Plains Tribes neighbors to the northeast. Taos Pueblo hosted a trade fair each fall after the agricultural harvest.

At the time of the American Declaration of Independence in 1776 according to the census taken by Father Dominguez,
the Taos Valley area contained 67 families with 306 Spaniards.

Taos and it's surrounding communities are overflowing with a long proud history, three cultures living side by side,
and a heritage of colorful people. Its diversity makes Taos a very interesting and desirable place to live and do business.

[TaosGlock]

A rare moment when we shed our down coats.
Snow is visible on New Mexico's highest peak: Wheeler Pk at 13,161 feet.


You will hear the call of the line boss, she calls insistent and clear, like the clarion call of a trumpet, echoing far and near.
BlueFeather calls the line.


Shooters used a variety of rifles.
An M1 Garand in both 30-06 and 308! An AK, an AR an M1A.

Our forebearers committed their lives to eight years of war so that their sacrifices would never require repeating. They would endow us, their posterity, with a republic from which our freedoms would be given enduring life.









Lots of brass...

[TaosGlock]

Old Betsy, the Betsy Ross flag, starts to wave as the wind picks up....


and the snow moves in closer to the range starting with a bit of rain....


...so the Riflemen simply put their down coats back on and get on with the show.
After all it is KD time. Steel at 200 yards with the center fires shown above!
What is learned at 25 yards can be applied to 200 yards and beyond.
All shooters made numerous hits at 200 yards on both the 4 moa steel and the 2 moa steel.




...more later.

[TaosGlock]

Classroom instruction using transparent overlays for sight alignment


Scope use chart for newbies...


The calm before the storm at one of the most remote and beautiful ranges around.
Admin/break out table at equipment line.


Mrs Paul Revere is really Pam Busick and she knows her heritage as she attended the inaugural shoot for this range.
A colonial recipe? Thanks so much Pam for the fresh warm cookies!


AQT time!

[TaosGlock]

A Rifleman can take a rack-grade rifle and hit targets out to the Rifleman's quarter-mile. If a Rifleman can see the target, he can hit it. Come to one of our shoots and score 210 or better out of 250 on the AQT (Appleseed Qualification Test) and you can earn your Rifleman's patch.
Our course is heartily approved by the CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program). Each attendee receives a certificate that enables him/her to purchase a M1 Garand rifle and ammo.




During breaks, we'll teach you the true story of the nation that was founded on April 19, 1775, and why liberty was so important to the founders that they would risk everything for it. Project Appleseed believes that the essence of being an American is living up to the ideals of our founders and fanning the flames of liberty.

[TaosGlock]

As the sun sets and winter sets in we finish another great season of Project Appleseed here in northern New Mexico.

The snow comes in just as we finish up the season....


and is reflected nicely in the sunset on the road home...


See you all in 2016!