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Tuscaloosa, AL February 6-7, 2016

Started by EddieB, February 11, 2016, 01:23:45 AM

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EddieB

A beautiful but chilly day greeted seven motivated Americans for the inaugural Appleseed event at the newly relocated Tuscaloosa Shooting Sports Club range.  A great big thanks goes out to the range owner Barry!  We are looking forward to many more events at this fantastic venue. 

After a welcome speech on Saturday morning, we jumped right in to history with a retelling of Strike One and the massacre on Lexington Green.  We proceeded to cover safety, then it was time to bring rifles to the line.  Our first thirteen shots of the day were at the famous Red Coat targets, helping to establish a baseline that we could compare to after a full day of instruction.  We then jumped into the instruction, covering sling use, the 6 steps of firing the shot, natural point of aim, and the prone position.  After a variety of drills to practice these skills, we broke for lunch.  The Second Strike was told, ending with the battle at the old North Bridge in Concord.  We continued drills and learned how to self-diagnose with Talking Targets, and how to use Inches-Minutes-Clicks to efficiently zero our rifles.  After learning how the Revolutionary War broke out in earnest at Merriam's Corner in the Strike Three story, we shot our final Red Coat and called it quits for the day.

Sunday morning came with a repeat of the previous day's great weather.  We did a quick review of the instruction covered on Saturday, then got right into drills.  We covered sitting, kneeling, and standing positions, then transitions.  During lunch we heard stories about several Dangerous Old Men (and Women), and had a taste of what an Appleseed Known Distance event is all about.  Finally we were finally ready for the AQT grind.  By the day's end, we had two new Riflemen:  Barry with a score of 218 (and then 229 and 221), and Jay with a score of 210!  Huzzah!  Jay took his baptism with North Bridge water in stride in spite of the cold day.  Ignacio requalified with a 223, one of my favorite numbers!  Dennis, John, Adriane, and Courtney, it was gratifying to see your groups continue to improve throughout the day.  You came very close!  Remember, a rifleman persists.

Shooters:  T.J. 8, AlabamaPatriot, and I thoroughly enjoyed the time we spent with you.  Please think about the instruction we gave you and remember to practice your natural point of aim as often as you can!  Also, think of our founding generation and the high price they paid to preserve Liberty for us.  We honor them by remembering them.  Don't let their struggles be in vain.  It is up to us to preserve Liberty for our posterity as they did for us.

We hope to see you again soon at another Appleseed, and bring a friend!  In the meantime, please spread the word with your friends and family about your Appleseed weekend.

The view from the Firing Line


T.J. 8 runs a tight Firing Line!


Dennis


Courtney


John


Jay is our first Rifleman!


Jay finds out how cold North Bridge water is!


Barry qualifies as an Expert Rifleman!  (The first time)


Ignacio requalifies!


More photos can be seen here:
http://s288.photobucket.com/user/EddieB_AS/library/Tuscaloosa%20AL%20Feb%206%202016

Please feel free to leave your comments, suggestions, and photos here!