Georgetown, IN Apr 27-28, 2024

[Geek]

What an incredible group of American Patriots attended our weekend event at the Floyd County Conservation Club near Georgetown, IN.  The weather was as good as one could want.  We started our Saturday with brief introductions and our safety brief.  After that it was off to see what skills the group brought with them.  Our initial Hits Count targets yielded some good results.  6 of the 13 hit the shingle and 4 had 3 hits on the 400 yd silhouette.  Although good, we had room to improve.  After blocks of instruction on Steady  Hold Factors, Natural Point of Aim sprinkled in the middle of our Six Steps of Firing a Shot, and our First Strike of the Match, our shooters engaged the dastardly squares.  After a couple of runs at the squares, we had good enough data for some sight adjustments.  We broke for lunch and the Second Strike of the Match along with IMC.  Sights were adjusted with the knowledge of how to accurately move them.  Onto the squares.  We then discussed how your target will always tell you the truth.  It is just knowing what it is telling you.  We did an exercise on carding the sight and saw some 'ah-ha' moments.  A practice AQT was shot as we discussed transitions with magazine changes.  After our SHF for Sitting and Standing were completed and the last of the AQT stages finished, A lesson on how to score targets was presented.  We finished the day with some tired participants and the final Hits Count target showed that.  After a rousing benediction, the shooters were sent home to rest and consume some anti-inflammatory if needed.

Back bright and early on Sunday, we started with the story of Prudence Cummings-Wright.  we had a recap of topics from Saturday and had a great conversation around steady hold factors and the improved standing position.  Since we cannot have live-fire at this range until 11 am on Sunday, we used time indoors with laser rifles to discuss NPOA.  More 'ah-ha' moments were experienced during this exercise.  After our safety brief, we put rifles on the line and engaged the hits count targets.  Not only did we have 6 hit the shingle and 4 with 3 shots in the 400 yd silhouette, Jeremy cleared the Hits Count target.  He was presented an unissued George Rogers Clark National Park Quarter, along with the significance, to acknowledge his achievement.  As a couple shooters were using different rifles on the second day, we went back to those dastardly square to get data.  With the knowledge of IMC, sight adjustments were made and data confirmed,  We ran a ball and dummy exercise to help diagnose shooter errors with good effect.  Yet again, more 'ah-ha' moments were encountered.  After an AQT, we broke for lunch to enjoy some more stories of our shared Heritage and a quick session on KD.  After lunch, back to a couple more AQTs and our Hits Count target before prepping for the memorial volley.  Our final Hits Count target yielded 4 at 400, 4 at 300, 4 at 200, 1 at 100, and 5 on the shingle.  3 shooters cleared the target.  It was indeed a great weekend of marksmanship and heritage.

Our AQTs yielded some men that knew very well what they were about.  Aaron hit 214, Jeremy, an first time participant, scored 219 and followed it up with at 210, Titus, who later took an orange hat <Phoenix_Smith>, at 228 and 218, and Rick, another first timer, at 213.  We also had our Applecore, Virtch, requalify with  a 213.  Congrats to all that made the score.

We concluded with the Memorial Volley and the somber memory of those that gave all on that fateful day we become Americans.  Commemorative patches were awarded to all of the shooters along with a Bloody Butchery poster for each household.  It was a weekend with great impact on all of us.

I want to thank the Floyd County Conservation Club for generously allowing us to use the 25 yd range for the weekend.  The club members that we shared the range with over the weekend were very accommodating as well.  I also want to give a shout out to the instructor crew that put on this event, Virch, Papa_Smith, Big John, and JHB presented some of the best instruction and heritage to be heard in Appleseed.  We had multiple participants willing to return just for the stories.  That is a huge paycheck for a volunteer.

[Shadow870]

Sounds like a great shoot. Ill have to get over to IN for one of your events some time this year.

[Snake1775]

Geek - thanks for the great marksmanship instruction and story telling of our country's rich heritage! We learned lots and hope this was a first of many Appleseed's for us.

[Virch]

It was a pleasure spending the weekend with such fabulous instructors and great shooters.  The enthusiasm I saw and heard was infectious.  I appreciate being given the opportunity to learn to be an RSO.

[Geek]

It was a pleasure spending the weekend with such fabulous instructors and great shooters.  The enthusiasm I saw and heard was infectious.  I appreciate being given the opportunity to learn to be an RSO.

Virtch,
It was cool seeing you requalify too.  Just sayin'....

[Big John]

This was a great shoot; full line, good weather, good spirits, good attention to instruction and history, and I believe a good time was had by all.

I particularly enjoyed seeing great marksmanship come out of the woodwork and get a lot of Redcoat clearings and Rifleman patches.

Here are some of the pictures of the weekend.

1. Firing line in prone with Rick with a family heirloom tube fed rifle with which he did well.
2. Shoot boss and students discuss the Hits Count Redcoat at the firing line.
3. Jeremy and Sawyer practice the standing position at that stage's first try-out.
4. More standing practice.
5. Rick and Darren prepare for transition to prone stage.
6. Prone firing. Rick moved to a modern tube rifle as he still wanted a challenge.
7. Practice scoring of the AQT we used for position training.
8. Explanation of the AQT by JHB.
9. Sunday morning instruction by Papa Smith on the finer points of support hand in prone with Titus modeling.
10. The students paid good attention to the review before we went to the line.
11. Good hustle in the middle of the AQTs.
12. Jeremy and Virtch clear the Hits Count Redcoat and pose with the shoot boss.
13. Jeremy made Rifleman on his first shoot.
14. Titus also made Rifleman.
15. The shoot boss discusses the CMP and their mission and the U.S. Rifle, M1, Caliber 30.
16. Rick made Rifleman on his first shoot.
17. Virtch requalified.
18. Aaron requalified.
19. Patriots' Day Volley Patch ceremony with the shoot boss and Jeremy.
20. with John.
21. and with Aaron.

[Big John]

22. Patriots' Day Patch ceremony with shoot boss and Gabric.
23. with Titus.
24. with Sawyer.
25. Shoot boss awards the Bloody Butcher publication to the heads of families with Darren.
26. with Joe.
27. Sawyer contemplates the youth award.
28. Gabric and Joe, being the youngest and most senior, received the volley targets.
29. Papa Smith receives 25 shoot pin from the shoot boss.
30. Titus takes an orange hat as an IIT.

[Geek]

More pics from the weekend: https://imgur.com/a/TcQWCcT

[Market Farmer]

Last weekend (April 27 & 28) I attended my first Project Appleseed event, held at the Floyd County (Indiana) Conservation Club. I was invited to attend by Virch, a Blue Hat and, proud to say, my Son-in-law. The first instructor that I met there was JHB, who made me feel welcomed and provided kind words and support throughout the event. JHB, along with Papa Smith, Big John, and the Shoot Boss, Geek, were well prepared, considerate, and extremely helpful in teaching this old dog new tricks.

Having taken American Colonial History classes in college I was familiar with the broad strokes of the events leading to the battles of Lexington and Concord. The instruction at the Project Appleseed weekend brought down to a personal level the stories of the participants on that April morning in 1775; their motivations, resolve, and sacrifices, and how important they are to us today.

The antique, though serviceable, rifle I started with did not serve me well. The iron-sighted Marlin loaned me by Virch was a little better, but my shot groups still fell victim to my 70-year-old eyes. On the second day of shooting the Shoot Boss, Geek, loaned me his scope-equipped Savage auto loader. After a few sets of shooting at the squares we were able to get the cross hairs and point of impact to coincide. The use of the sling was new to me. Before, the sling was just the means of carrying the rifle to my hunting stand while using my hands for the important task of holding my coffee thermos and flash light.

I thank those who put on the event and appreciate the history lessons and rifle shooting instructions. This was my first time, but most likely not the last.

[Jayshoneybunny]

The first instructor that I met there was JHB, who made me feel welcomed and provided kind words and support throughout the event. JHB, along with Papa Smith, Big John, and the Shoot Boss, Geek, were well prepared, considerate, and extremely helpful in teaching this old dog new tricks.

It was my pleasure.  I'm so glad you enjoyed yourself AND made rifleman!

[Indy]

I sure wish I could have made it to this great event.  I'll be looking forward to future Appleseed events in Georgetown, IN!

[American Metal]

This is Daren, just signed up today. My handle is a play on the Judas Priest album "British Steel." I chose the name for two reasons 1. I am a big fan of that group and metal music and 2 and perhaps even more important, we broke away from the British! Being at the event this weekend gave me a greater understanding and value of being an American.

I want to thank the crew for their dedication and hard work. I often times get anxious and that leads to frustration. I am grateful for the kindness and patience that was shown to me this weekend. I am also grateful for the knowledge. When I got home I looked up more about "natural point of aim," a term I never heard before this weekend. Just like any other sport, shooting has its own fundamentals to master. I doubt I will but hope to at least become a more proficient shooter. Being in my mid-forties I hope and plan to have another fifty years to do that. I am lucky enough to live on property that affords me room for shooting and I shot some more this weekend. I am practiced more hasty sling in particular and look forward to implementing that in more real world hunting scenarios.

When I go back to work after vacation  I plan to tell anyone who is interested about Appleseed and to look up more about it. I also plan to tell my neighbor who is a father of two young boys about the program.

Thank you all again for kicking off my vacation week with a few days I will not forget. If all goes well I am thinking of returning next year too. 

[Geek]

From a shooter's email: "
I wanted to see if I as a 75 year old man could finish the course. Come heck<edited> or high water and as sore as heck<edited> I went back the second day and on the last target my gun quit running so I had a DNF. I learned a much better way to use a sling! The history lessons were OUTSTANDING (I hated history in school)! I would go  to one of the classes on just the history that was presented. And these history lessons should be and to every school history course.

To all the instructor at the event outstanding work. Again thank you, Joe"

It was a privilege for us to share marksmanship and our shared heritage that weekend.