AAR: Wears Valley Ranch, Sevierville, TN 21NOV15

[Guardian]

Twenty shooters arrived at Wears Valley Ranch (WVR) to learn the fundamentals of marksmanship, our uniquely American heritage, and that jewel we call LIBERTY! The morning air was a crisp 27 degrees, but the skies were clear.

Jim Wood, the founder of WVR, convened the event, gave us a little background on the venue, and prayed for a safe and prosperous event before turning the venue over to Project Appleseed for the remainder of the day.

We got started with an introduction to what Project Appleseed is about (marksmanship, heritage, and LIBERTY!), expectations for the event, and the safety protocol. After getting rifles to the line, we engaged the redcoat target to see what our effective range was prior to instruction. While the results were certainly respectable (1 cleared target, way to go Trent  ), we had room for improvement.

Following the redcoat, the nozzle on the fire hose of instruction was opened! We learned how to use our slings, the steady hold factors for the prone position, and the six steps of firing the shot. The Instructors were impressed with the participants' groups! Everyone was on paper from the very beginning and most were shooting groups of 8 MOA or less, though we didn't know what MOA was yet. We paused our marksmanship instruction and heard the story of the British Army's march to Lexington, how the Colonists spread word of the march, and the fateful events on Lexington Green.

After the First Strike, we learned what natural point of aim and rifleman's cadence are. CokeGuy then taught us how to interpret what our targets were telling us, and speaking to us they were! We had textbook examples of diagonal, vertical, and horizontal stringing. Shotgun small was also evident, but this may be the first time the Shoot Boss couldn't find an example of shotgun large at an event. Excellent! 

We retired to the bunk house for lunch and to hear the story of the attack on Concord. We heard how the militia implemented three agendas since there was not concurrence on one idea of how to defend the town. We heard how Concord was pillaged and accidentally set ablaze. We also learned of a blacksmith named Isaac Davis, his work to equip his team, his lead to defend the North Bridge, and, ultimately, his death in the initial volley fired by the Regulars. The militia were not deterred by Isaac's death, however, and set the Regulars to running. Once the threat appeared to be contained, the militia allowed the remaining Regulars to pass unmolested.

After lunch, we learned that MOA was minutes of angle, a fraction of a degree and generally equaling one inch per 100 yards. We learned that adjusting our sights wasn't as complicated as it sounds, it just takes a lot of words to describe it. Following some strings of fire for sight adjustments, we moved on to learning the four sitting positions and then standing.

DrJohn regaled us with the Third Strike of the Match, the one that started a fire! He told us how the Regulars ran from Miriam's Corner until meeting up with reinforcements, enduring a little payback by the folks in Lexington as the Regulars passed through again. Then he told us how General Heath kept the Regulars constantly engaged by the militia all the way back to Charlestown Neck. He finished by telling us of the sway to public opinion in England by the story of the Colonial plight being received two weeks prior to that of the British Army!

We got back to work on our marksmanship and prepared for an AQT by learning about and practicing transitions from standing to sitting and standing to prone. After that, we were able to get one AQT in before daylight was beginning to wane. While no Riflemen were made evident, everyone seemed to appreciate the opportunity to test their skills.

We concluded the marksmanship portion of the day with a final redcoat. The average effective range of the group had improved substantially! Trent, they guy who cleared the target in the morning, let his target get away, though. He got ready to engage it only to find it had run off! Thus, we learned keeping our eye on the target is important.

Our benediction included a ceremony to award our four youth participants with the Luther Blanchard patch. We considered the sacrifice made by our ancestors and what we are doing worthy of their efforts. We also pondered what it was about LIBERTY! that made it worth pledging their lives, fortunes, and sacred honor to secure. We then heard of ways to get involved, such as seventh stepping and volunteering.

Thanks to all of the shooters for taking the time out of your busy schedule to attend this event! You were a great group to work with and the Instructors appreciated the opportunity to be a part of your journey to becoming Riflemen. I appreciated your attentiveness and engagement throughout the day. We know it's a lot of information to process and more than a little physical stress. I heard no complaints from anyone, just witnessed American's doing their best to improve. HUZZAH! to all of you for your efforts! The Instructors certainly saw the improvement and we hope each of you are encouraged by that improvement.

I apologize for not having photos to post. Hopefully, someone will have some. I always forget

It was a great event and I hope to see each of you on the line again!

[OhBoy]

This was my first Appleseed event and I was really impressed.  The instructors and material were really great and deserve a lot of kudos.  I also have to agree with Guardian that the entire group of shooters were great to shoot with - everyone was really into it.  I've always been a plinker and I feel like what I learned yesterday has started me on the path to be a rifleman...it's kind of nice to know what I'm doing for a change!   I've already recommended Appleseed to 3 or 4 of my friends and will continue to recommend it to anyone who will listen.

[oldworldgirl]

 This was my first Appleseed and, I have to say, I really surprised myself, both with how well I did and how much I enjoyed it. I honestly wasn't that enthusiastic about attending prior to the event, but I'm glad I did now! I'm even looking forward to the possibility of attending a bootcamp in the future. While I certainly have lot's of room for improvement, I feel inspired to hone my skills. I also really enjoyed the history and values that were taught. It was a great reminder that our liberty isn't granted by any government, but by God, and no person or group of persons has the right to take it away. The instructors were all awesome! 

[CokeGuy]

It was a challenge for only 3 instructors to tend to 20 participants. But, Guardian did an outstanding job as Shoot Boss to not only deliver a safe event, but also to be sure time was managed and proper tasks were performed to deliver the most information, instruction and practice possible during a one-day event. It was a pleasure to serve with him, and I personally look forward to another opportunity again soon.
Here are the two decent pictures I took.

[DrJohn]

My heartfelt well done to Guardian and CokeGuy for running an outstanding event, especially under the conditions of short daylight hours and only three instructors for the 20 gallant students, most of whom were first time Appleseeders. But most of my appreciation goes to the 20 students who were so receptive not only to the marksmanship lessons, but more importantly, to the message of Liberty. It was a memorable experience for me, and certainly a learning experience from Guardian's magnificent After Action Report. I wish I could write half so well and so thoroughly. I shall look forward to returning to Wear's Valley Ranch, and especially to seeing our wonderful students again. Huzza and thanks to all!