Boaz, KY, July 24,25, 2010

[dond]

HOT! Oh my was it HOT! Near 100 degrees and high humidity. And no cover on Saturday. We had to take frequent rests and work in a much more relaxed form than usual because of the heat.

I didn't really expect many shooters because of the heat. There were no pre-registrants. But a soldier from Fort Campbell had been emailing me about bringing others with him. Three of these fine soldiers showed up. As a result of their experience, they will be returning and bringing more with them.

Their performances and groups improved considerably on Saturday. One achieved a 204. Sunday the scores fluctuated up and down. Up until this point they had been using my LTRs. In the afternoon, two of them zeroed their battle rifles and  went to the KD range where 265 yard and 328 yard berms were available. The one with the 308 HK shot at the 265 berm while the one with the AR shot at the 328 berm. Making slight sight changes to account for the odd distances, they both hit well on their respective targets. Then they switched berms and made the appropriate sight changes and hit well at their new distances, thus proving that what works well at 25 also works at larger distances. They found this very gratifying.

Afterward all returned to the AQT grind. Unfortunately they still came up short of Rifleman requirements, but respectable scores were achieved: 190, 191, 205. But they all want their patches and promised to return and bring more with them. Most probably they will attend the forthcoming Puryear, TN, shoot, and return to Boaz in October. Two other soldiers from different locations have already pre-registered for the next Boaz shoot, and I expect a larger turnout then because of cooler weather and also as the reputation of this fine facility becomes better known. Perhaps some of you reading this will also join us.

[Johnnyappleseed]

Looks like when it's time for the GIs to qualify . This event will get lots of credit !
^5 Don
JA

[Slimjim34655]

Well, Don certainly covered all of the bases, the heat was insane.
All complaints about the weather aside, this was the first Appleseed for myself as well as my two buddies. For the next week after that was all we could talk about at work. Okay, allow me get military for a second.

Objective: Instruction of rifle marksmanship, revolutionary history, and the ultimate goal of achieving the score of "Rifleman" without any incidents.

Results: Large increase in both accuracy and historical knowledge. The achievement of self correction in all three participants. Scores were "respectable" however the goal of Rifleman was not met by any of the participants.
Deficiencies were found on one participant's PTR91, as well as his Ruger 10/22 (sights were not sufficient). The slings the participants brought would have sufficed for the hasty as well as the hasty-hasty, but not for the shoulder loop. The instructor provided weapons for each participant in order to conduct training.

Improve: Better weather conditions would have doubled or even tripled trigger time, possibly allowing for the completion of the goal set before the participants. This not being in the instructors control he worked with what he had. Notification in the flier about the conditions of the firing line would help mitigate this problem, as participants provided a sun shade for the second day which increased overall trigger time throughout the day. The only way to improve is practice, therefor subsequent training is required.

Sustain: The instruction on both the weapon and history were very well presented, and in such a small group the instruction was very personal. A ratio of 3-6 participants to instructor seems ideal for this type of training. The proper level of hydration was maintained as well as proper weapon safety. The explanation of MOA, NPOA, and the sling were very beneficial.

Overall I was very happy with the training, unfortunately I feel that we, as participants, did not live up to the standards of said training. We'll be back though to try again.

[Johnnyappleseed]

Slimjim,
We like to mention becoming a Rifleman is a journey ,rather than a goal . The 210 is a high bar and everything has to work very well for the entire AQT.
Your post tells me ,you have the heart of a Rifleman  That is the most important aspect of reaching the score .
Best Wishes +Semper Fidelis
JA