Wow, what a great weekend. We had the largest number of shooters ever seen at a Michigan event (41)!
It was surprisingly warm (mid 80s) and humid, and very foggy each morning. We had a great group of shooters, including 25 under the age of 18. The weather slowed everyone down each afternoon, but we gutted it out and had a great weekend.
Typically, the larger the group, the slower the progress through the weekend. But not this group! We were able to knock out all of the points of instruction, and even fit 2 AQTs in on Saturday. Everyone was safe and efficient, and for that the entire instructor crew was grateful.
While we didn't have the honor of handing out any Rifleman patches, we saw a lot of scores above 180. Keep practicing and dryfiring, and you'll get that patch.
Congratulations to Rangerat67 and P7 for earning their Red Hats!
Please post up any additional pictures. And we look forward to seeing everyone again on the Appleseed trail!
Sunrise - time to make the Riflemen!
(https://i.imgur.com/9DK5j0l.jpg)
Saturday morning around the flagpole for the Pledge and safety briefing
(https://i.imgur.com/Y1rh9id.jpg)
Bringing rifles to the line
(https://i.imgur.com/tgBTj2L.jpg)
Going over the line commands
(https://i.imgur.com/hB96bxq.jpg)
Getting down in prone...
(https://i.imgur.com/yGPrufY.jpg)
P7 doing First Strike
(https://i.imgur.com/wAyANsr.jpg)
P7 teaching seated
(https://i.imgur.com/YAsAnTB.jpg)
Our home for the weekend
(https://i.imgur.com/jeAO7Sd.jpg)
IMC
(https://i.imgur.com/QtGoFw8.jpg)
Talking targets
(https://i.imgur.com/qaQxDxv.jpg)
T.Wolf presenting Second Strike
(https://i.imgur.com/1SngHkY.jpg)
East half of the shooting line:
(https://i.imgur.com/PA4ELjd.jpg)
Target check
(https://i.imgur.com/o4fm2qe.jpg)
P7's new hat:
(https://i.imgur.com/HtBesgq.jpg)
Rangerat67 receiving his Red Hat from Super Trooper Sunday afternoon.
(https://i.imgur.com/cgcOcYB.jpg)
New and shiny
(https://i.imgur.com/hVQQhT2.jpg)
Your instructor crew.
L to R top row: T.Wolf, P7, Super Trooper, mrsurplus, AK, rangerat67
L to R bottom row: Joey, ITB, Shooter 30-06
(https://i.imgur.com/JAnIbs4.jpg)
This was a wonderful opportunity for AK and I to border raid. This was a great group to work with. Many thanks to the Michigan instructor cadre and ITB for their warm welcome to a couple of Illinois travelers. I think there was 25 youngsters on the shooting line and you would be hard pressed to find a group more well mannered and courteous than we encountered here in Kingston. Both the young folks and their parents should be very proud of themselves. Another thing which stood out to me was the toughness and endurance of the shooters. It was hot and humid but I never heard so much as a single complaint. Michigan instructors and Michigan shooters all rock!
Looks like an amazing event!
That line is AWESOME!!!1! :F
Way to go, Cadre'!
What an amazing event! I had the good fortune of drawing registration check-in duties on Saturday morning and I was blown away by the enthusiasm of the shooters who were arriving in Kingston. It was really inspiring to see so many families coming out to spend the weekend together. It was immediately apparent to me that we were surrounded by Good People. And as 30-06 said, the heat and humidity were downright oppressive, but the shooters kept us going all weekend. Phenomenal energy.
There was a lot of promising talent on the line, and I want to encourage everyone to keep at it. Enjoy the journey! Come and see us at another event this year and keep honing those Rifleman skills. I can tell you from personal experience, it feels amazing when everything finally clicks. Practicing your NPOA at home is key.
I want to give a quick thank you to RangeRat67 and the Marlette Sportsmen's Club for letting my stepson Joey and I sling our hammocks up on the range and camp out for the weekend. We felt right at home and your hospitality was really appreciated.
Thanks to my fellow instructors for all that you did to make this event so special for everyone. Thanks to AK and 30-06 for making the drive up from Indy (awesome history stories, by the way). And a special congratulations to P7 and RangeRat67 for earning those red hats - very much deserved, you guys are excellent instructors and it's a pleasure learning from you.
I'm not as good with my camera as ITB - but here's a few shots from the weekend:
(https://i.imgur.com/MLtYJKI.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/V4oeP83.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/zpsfCyw.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/moK8xb5.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/g5fCY8R.jpg)
(https://imgur.com/R5KLOXB)
(https://i.imgur.com/grSdkVq.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/Kx2jhlp.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/HPH3HfU.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/K28Rxbx.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/62QqOHv.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/APALT6x.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/NG2q5uW.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/aW5CAyd.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/zMBU7Iu.jpg)
Congratulations, Rangerat67 and P7 on your Red Hats! That's a big accomplishment.