This weekend we held another Appleseed Event at the amazing South Bay Rod & Gun Club in Dulzura CA (5 mi from the Mexican border). Despite the 100 degree weather, we had nine enthusiastic students that were truly interested in becoming Riflemen.
The success of this event was largely due to Eric, who brought 4 friends and Monique who brought 3 friends. Eric was 7th-stepping and Monique was 7th-stepping before she knew what 7th-stepping was!
A few highlights of the weekend:
Eric was knocking on the door of qualification with a high score of 201. This was his second Appleseed. Since he was the only student that attended an Appleseed before, he was deputized as my assistant and held the line so I could present instruction at the target line. He has the persistence of a rifleman, and we hope to see him reach Rifleman at the next event. Great job Eric, and thanks for all the help! This event could hardly have been a success without you.
Our lunchtime history/heritage talks were well received. We even had one student, Kira who came specifically for the history.
Finally thanks and appreciation goes to Monique for bringing a group in good spirits. We ran out of AQTs and the heat started getting to us, so we cooled off and had some fun by having Erics team and Moniques shoot out a "star" target. That seemed to lift everyone spirits and get everyone in a good mood for the final Redcoat. No students were bayoneted during the final Redcoat.
Again, thanks all for coming out this weekend. Hope to see you again with your 7th-stepped friends in tow!
Remember we are just simple Americans teaching other Americans about Marksmanship, History and Heritage.
Mike "caseten"
I just wanted to commend Caseten for grabbing the bull by the horns and running this shoot. :sos:
I have worked with him back when he was an IIT at Rainbow, and knew he had the stuff back then.
I am glad he had a solid foundation learning the ropes from 4Posterity. ~~:) &)
Good job, my brother.... Good Job!!! O0 :bow:
Mike did great job (as far as I can tell -- it was my first Appleseed) with instruction and it was a very positive experience all around. On the line, however, we were pretty much on our own since Mike didn't have any helpers and obviously had to run the line. Before showing up for the 2nd day I did a bit of reading and sorted out my prone position on my own. So it worked out fine, for me at least.
If I had to do it over again I would have opted to sit out a round between each of my AQT's. The fatigue wasn't that apparent while I was shooting but after a 20 break I came back and did far better than I had been on the final redcoat.
We ran out of AQT targets early on the 2nd day so I only got a chance at three AQT's. While I probably wouldn't have quite made rifleman it would have been nice to have at least one more shot at the AQT.
Mike, thanks for taking the time to run this for us. It won't be my last Appleseed...
-- Nathan
Nathan,
Thanks for coming to the boards and sharing your experience. It means a lot to us, that dedicate a weekend away from our families, wifes, kids, ect. that you take the time to register on the boards and provide feedback.
It was a pleasure to instruct you and your friends. Your group really helped to make this a great weekend.
Please make sure that Eric, Kira and the rest log onto the boards and share their experience. It really us make Appleseed a better program when we can get your feedback and then can turn around and be proactive in making adjustments at the next shoot.
Take care. Hope to see you at the next Appleseed!
I'll make sure we don't run out of AQTs next time.
If I had to do it over again I would have opted to sit out a round between each of my AQT's. The fatigue wasn't that apparent while I was shooting but after a 20 break I came back and did far better than I had been on the final redcoat.
Good thought Nathan,we have seen this before at AS .
One shooter stated " I'm done with ball and dummy, I'm done with NPOA " she went and napped in her chair.
Next AQT she shot a Rifleman score .