****** Dateline Wilmington, OH March 30 & 31, 2019******
This just in!
It has been decided by unanimous consent that Clinton County Farmers and Sportsman Association was THE place to be this weekend due to the overwhelming presence of the best bunch of shooters an Appleseed event could hope for. FIFTEEN awake and ready Americans graced the firing line on Good 'Ole Bay 7 for one that will go down in history not only because of weather conditions that were, shall we say, less than ideal but because of the enthusiasm, persistence and tenacity demonstrated by every shooter on the line!
Two new Rifleman were forged from fresh red, white, and blue clay while two re-qualified to make it official and, best of all, a new Orange Hat instructor stepped up as well. This was a great Appleseed all the way around!
Saturday looked grim as we took to the range. Skies were gray and things got wet. It didn't matter one bit as all the kids, big and little, got down to business. Redcoats fell and squares got busted right up to lunch time when we got our first dose of history to go along with Jon and Angie's mouth-watering yumminess! We danced in the rain most of the afternoon and closed out the day with a couple of Strikes in a straight downpour. Those final Redcoats paid the ultimate price and we all ran for dryer (and warmer) places.
Sunday was a day made for shooting! Every single shooter turned out again to make up for the soggy Saturday experience. We tore up the Redcoats and started from the top. It didn't take long before we took up the challenge of the AQT and Hardy showed us how it's done with a 214. Each attempt that followed resulted in another qualification highlighted by Jack's 223 and 211 combo along with Eric's 220. Hardy did it again as well with a 210. Great job and congratulations shooters!
The fun continued with a team drill. The team of Michelle, Robert, Hardy, Jack, and Eric took on Carter, Paisley, Jackie, Colton, and Nolan but in the and it was Tori, Todd, Greg, Tyler, and Blake who showed them all up and claimed the fabulous prizes and all the glory! HUZZAH!!!
Back to the grind we went and finally it was Todd who broke the magic score to claim his first Rifleman patch with an impressive 212.
Thank you shooters for another excellent Appleseed in Wilmington and it has to be said that it took true grit and dedication on the part of everyone involved to get through this weekend's challenges. We couldn't be more impressed with the improvement shown by the Scout Troop shooters- Blake, Carter, Paisley, Jackie, and Colton led by Mr. Stuart. You guys were great to work with and we truly see some great potential!
Michelle and Nolan are some great shooters, too. Stick with it guys! I know you can be Riflemen someday. You too, Tori. You looked fantastic out there!
Finally, Hardy proved that he is a man who knows what he is about as he accepted the challenge of being an Appleseed Instructor! Thanks for stepping up, Hardy aka BigIron. We look forward to working with you soon. We're hopeful that the other two individuals who expressed interest in helping out will join us as well!
***** From CCFSA in Wilmington , OH- This is Longrifleman signing off*****
Definitely a chicken sh!t to chicken salad weekend. With the various challenges, we were a good half day behind come Sunday morning. BUT, we improvised, adapted and overcame to generate one of my more enjoyable and memorable Appleseed weekends.
Highlights:
- Jeff delivering the 2nd and 3rd strikes in a monsoon that looked about like the final golf rounds in Caddyshack right before the priest got struck by lightning.
- Little kids too small to even hold the rifle up, but who were so excited by what they were doing they figured out a way to make it work and shot really well and did it safely.
- A Sturmgewehr 43? Where did that come from!?
- Rebuilding the sad remnants of the pop-up shelters on Sunday morning
- GREAT food at the CCFSA clubhouse
- Double snowbows!!!
- Every shooter came back on Sunday!!! We were expecting attrition rates like black plague or something.
- Matt found and cleared the first squib that many of us had ever seen. Great awareness from the shooter and the instructor for avoiding a potential bad situation.
The Wilmington instructor corps is the best. Thanks to Jeff (Longrifleman) for another fun experience, and to Darren (RedLeg), Matt (goodoldfriend) and Grandmaster Dave (DGMilty) for the comradery and professionalism that makes us the best.
Thanks kindly Jeff, I'm very much looking forward to working with you all as soon as I can. In the meantime, there is much to learn.
It was a glorious weekend for an Appleseed, rain and snow and all; I mean, what better way to gain confidence in your equipment and yourself than shooting in conditions like that? The next one will be a breeze for everyone who was there. And if the boundless enthusiasm of all the young folks there is any indication, there certainly will be a next one, if not more.
Congrats to all who braved the elements this past weekend. It was no better in Marengo, OH this past weekend so I feel your pain. It was a three season event. Fall, Winter and Spring all wrapped up into two days. With the wind on Sunday, it was worse than our Winterseed in Liberty Center in January. Congrats to all who braved the elements. Just a touch of life at Valley Forge.
Huzzah to all who attended and congrats on a great shoot.
Corvette
Fantastic weekend that epitomized PERSISTENCE! Everyone came with a teachable attitude and the improvement shown from one end of the line to the other over the course of the event was second to none! We got the opportunity to see that persistence pay off with two new Riflemen! Congratulations to Jack and Todd on earning their first patch and to Hardy and Eric for requalifying!
I was going to post pics, but Hammbone already has that well covered and many of mine are virtual duplicates of his.
Looking forward to seeing everyone out there again in June, August, or October!
A big thanks to Longrifleman and all the instructors that volunteered their time. I was very impressed with the level of instruction and how well Longrifleman worked around (and at times, with) the intermittent downpours! I'm already eager for the next Appleseed!
Octopus,
Glad you had a good time at the event. Looking forward to having you back on the line. Remember, Riflemen persist.
Corvette
This was one of the most interesting weekends since I have been involved with Appleseed.
The persistence and determination shown by the crew of shooters at the event were uplifting.
There were challenges as there are with every event but the tenacity and determination of everyone was amazing.
Thanks to the shooters and the instructor corps for showing me what this is all about.