Really nice shoot!
For those who haven't been to Lander, the trip is worth it. The scenery is something else.
The range (Lander Valley Sportsman's Association), just a few miles northeast of town, is really nice, with two ranges (one pistol, one 1000yd rifle) butting up to each other at 90 degrees inside of a canyon which helps keep some of the sun off.
Charlie, the club rep, was most helpful, popping in and out all weekend, asking questions and wondering how better to help promote us for next year. He mentioned the club had around 350 members; very impressive given the low population numbers for the area (Lander, pop 8000).
The club was also kind enough to waive range fees for the weekend.
Four of the seven preregistered shooters showed representing two family groups. At least two shooters bowed out for health reasons.
The first group (of three) had JT, a refugee from California, who had attended an Appleseed in Worland about ten years ago, was driving attendance. Lynne, his wife and an old farm girl, showed plenty of grit in shooting the weekend through despite some painful previous injuries that required some working around.
Allison, a family friend of JT and Lynne, was motivated enough to outfit herself from the ground up to attend. And most impressive for a new shooter, chose to leave the comfort of her 10/22 for a lever-action family heirloom.
Sophie, related to most of the shoot staff, is an old Appleseed hand at age eleven. I have little doubt an orange hat will be her thirteenth birthday present.
We had no Rifleman scores this weekend, but all shooters showed improvement, with some scores coming up into the 190s.
The simple fact that all the shooters stayed thru a very hot & sunny weekend says a lot!
One of the great rewards of working shoots is "old home week"; getting to spend time with good friends without having someone die to provide the occasion.
This was marathongirl's first shoot as a shoot boss; you'd have never known it to see her in action.
Wildman57 did yeoman work, despite recent/current health issues which almost prevented him from showing. His coaching, as always, drove much of the improvement the shooters showed.
Traveling the farthest was oldfartoo. His presence always adds insight and stability, as one would expect of a retired staff NCO. His Third Strike of the match was the hit of the history presentations.
Making arrangements for the range was ndeining. He threw himself into all aspects of the shoot with enthusiasm, while also juggling some coaching for Sophie. Much appreciated was him being the token Vanna, demo-ing positions & transitions on behalf of this collection of old gimps.
Long drives & brutal heat aside, who could ask for anything more?