Hinesville Oct 3-4 Appleseed!

[cannonman61]

Well folks, Another great Appleseed is in the books at the Rye Patch range is,or arter near Hinesville Georgia.

As always we had some of the nicest collection of Americans I am please to meet eacg time we hold one of these events.

We had 22 or 23 on the ine Saturday and 17 on Sunday.

There were the usual time eaters on Saturday of odd equipment failures and stiff letharic bodies usused to the positions, but the students pushed through all that and listened to some of the best rifle instruction on the planet and THE best American history presentations anywhere courtesy of Georgia's own MI, Som!

We had great lunches of BBQ, no dead buffalo this time, and perfect shooting weather.

On Sunday afternoon we awarded 4 Riflemen patches to men who really knew what they were about. Mark, Joe , Steven-aka-Estevan, and Jim, congradulations!

Any and all who wish to add to this thread their personal expriences and observations, please do so. Pictures forthcoming!

CM61

[GoJohnnyGo]

I regretfully wasn't able to make it to this shoot.  I'm glad to hear that it was a success.  I know the weather was amazing this weekend.

[Appalacious]

Some of the best shooting I've seen came from a first-timer (Joe).  I was very impressed.

Lots of good instruction was presented and further instilled to the shooters.  I especially liked seeing the young guys there.  We had at least 3 teenagers.   Keep shootin' guys.

J

[DrJohn]

Hinesville was my second Appleseed weekend and was a great experience.  The shooting instruction was absolutely superb, the weather cooperated, but best of all, I got to meet a number of genuinely heroic American patriots, both shooters and instructors.  I cannot praise the instructors too much.  My goal is to get my rifleman patch next Appleseed weekend, and to start hauling buckets as soon as I can thereafter.  Many thanks, fellow Appleseeders!

[Victor]

I would like to thank all the instructors and members of Rye Patch range who hosted the Appleseed shoot this weekend.   I'm a disabled veteran from Athens, GA and it was a long tough day but the shooting instruction was the best that I have ever received.  Considering that I served 12 years in the Army and most of that in the Infantry I hope it gives you some perspective on how good the Appleseed program and its instructors really are - superb.

Not the least of the experience was the  heritage talks given by the chief instructor that focused on the events of April 19th , 1775 at Lexington and Concord.   His detailed knowledge of the battle and his vivid storytelling inspired me to order the book Paul Revere's Ride from the Appleseed store as soon as I got home.

My firing position was on the far left of the line most of the day till another shooter joined us in the late morning and I didn't fire very well.   What I did do was take really good notes and learn how to use the sling properly (the first time anybody has shown me how to actually use a sling by the way).  I also learned what to expect and what the standards are to achieve the coveted rifleman patch.   I have fired Expert numerous times when I was on active duty but that was a long time ago now and on the Army's pop up target qualification ranges.  The problem with the go/no go pop up target qualification is that you have no idea where you are really hitting the target so you never really master your rifle.   Yes the target goes down but it can go down if you ricochet into the 300m target or if you kick a rock up.  Now I have no idea what the Army does now and my experience dates from the 1980s and first half of the 90s but if the Army's marksmanship program is still as basic as it was I would encourage any active duty person to get involved in the Appleseed program to improve their skill level.

I highly recommend Appleseed to anybody who wants to improve their shooting skills, meet great people and stand up for our liberty and heritage.   Yes it vexes me that I am still a cook but I would rather be a cook in the company of the good people I met at the Rye Hill Appleseed shoot than be another sheeple in thrall to the socialist.  I also have no intention of remaining a cook as I plan to practice the lessons I learned at my local range especially the Natural Point of Aim drill.  My intention is to keep working at my skills till I can meet the Appleseed Rifleman standard.   Hope to see some of you again either in Toccoa or Augusta.

[cannonman61]

It was great to hear from Victor and Dr.John and get their feedback.

It was a pleasure working with these two patriots.

I hope to hear from more of thos at the shoot.

Keep bailing and pass a  bucket to a friend!

CM61

[cannonman61]

Here's a few pictures.

I was sort of busy. I saw a few attendees with cameras. How about posting some of yours?

CM61

[caseyblane]

I had a great time at my first Appleseed and looking forward to more. Until then, I'll be dry firing down the hallway!

[.220swift]

My first Appleseed was a great pleasure.  I learned things they never mentioned in school from Ron's talks on the Revolutionary War. (He's a great speaker) How could most Americans have ever forgotten those men from long ago and their deeds?  Ron also mediated thought provoking discussion on current politics while making sure to steer the direction in positive, constructive ways.

All the instructors were very helpful and willing to share their knowledge and expertise.  Even though I am a shooter of considerable experience, I learned several techniques that will enhance my skill-set.

Just a few of the things I learned:

The importance of shifting NPOA between targets
The proper use of the GI sling
The proper leg position for sitting (I'd been doing it wrong forever)
That if I fire it fast enough, long enough, my rifle will get hot enough to require a glove for my support hand to prevent burns

I really enjoyed the company of like-minded enthusiasts pursuing the same goal.  I never would have thought earning a Rifleman badge would give me such a sense of pride.

I came away from the shoot hopeful for the continued success of the Appleseed Program and looking forward to the next time I can try for a 250 on the AQT.  The shoot reinforced my confidence in my ability and equipment.  Thanks to all involved for a great weekend.

[Son of Martha]

Another great weekend completed.  The Rye Patch range got a facelift before this event and is now more "Appleseed friendly", with a 200 yard range available for Sunday.  We did have to share the range with a pistol class due to a scheduling mixup, but the men running that class were easy to work with and there was minimal interference to both sessions.

There were 22 shooters on Sat and 19 on Sunday.  Everyone dealt with the south Georgia sun and heat (we were reminding them to drink lots, concerned about heat casualties), and Cannonman provided water each day since there is no potable water on the range.  Students brought a teachable attitude with them and showed improvement as expected.  We had the normal history presentations, and on Sunday I was able to work in a short block on the philosophy of the Founders which led to some interesting discussion.

As always, Sunday evening is the sad time, when you have to tie the ribbon on and say goodbye to some of the best people you will ever meet.  I suspect we will see some of them again though, as several expressed an interest in stepping up as instructors and helping us bail...I will see you gentlemen on the Appleseed Trail.

Practice dry firing and positions, and teach your fellow Americans the story.

SoM

[Bladerunner41]

I'd like to thank Son of Martha for giving me the Mental Motivation to wear the "Ugly Orange Hat" of the IIT..it was a honor as well as a fashion felony .