Maryland had a very successful year bailing the ship! Thanks to all the students, instructors, and volunteers that made the year a success.
Some statistics to put 2019 in context:
- 20 shoots held with 5 events sold-out and 5 more nearly so, a 50% rate! Always sign-up early for the shoots you want to attend.
- Nearly 200 student attendees (about 10 per event)
- 69 qualified as Rifleman out of those 200 students, for an unheard of rate of 35% - huzzah! To put this in perspective, our average from 2014-2019 was 19% and never exceeded 23%.
- To go along with the superb Rifleman rate, we had 14 shooters score Distinguished scores with Iron Sights or Scopes, for a rate of 20% of all of our Rifleman (typically more like 6% in past years).
- We added a new Perfect 250 to our Maryland Cadre - 1 of only 4 people to do it in the history of the Maryland program.
- Unfortunately (or fortunately from your perspective) we had no Winterseed qualifying events in 2019. Looking back historically, it looks like we have only had about 5 Winterseed events total. So if you want that beautiful Winterseed patch, you will need to sign up for one of our Winter events and pray for inclement weather - we shoot rain, shine, sleet, or snow.
- 3 long-range events (200-yards) - two rimfire, one centerfire - with 15 qualifying using the "hits count" method on steel, including at least two qualifying using iron sights on 22s at 200 yards!
- 53 cleared Red Coats; we often emphasize that it is harder to clear a Red Coat than to earn Rifleman and the data shows that this year. If Morgan's Shingle is your nemesis, make it a point next year to show you belong with Timothy Murphy (http://"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timothy_Murphy_(sniper)") rather than the cooks.
The very high Rifleman and Distinguished rates are a testament to the quality of the instruction AND students that we attract to our clinics. Even if you know how to shoot, you will learn something new and can prove to yourself that you "know what you are about". We did have a lot of returning students - and we certainly want you back next year as well! Shooting is a perishable skill, one that requires a lot of dry fire and live fire practice.
Thanks to our dedicated volunteers and instructors this year. We had a few folks from 2018 move away and the rest of the cadre stepped up in a big way! We were able to maintain our 3 students per instructor average across all our events due to dedicated instructor participation, which allowed for substantial attention to safety and quality of training.
We also grew the Maryland cadre of instructors and volunteers:
- 1 new Shoot Boss (Catch-10-22)
- 1 new Red Hat Instructor (Etervigila)
- 3 new Orange Hat Instructors in Training (Agent711, X All Out, Powder Monkey)
- Several instructors coming back the program after absences (welcome back!)
Finally, throughout the year we try to provide some other content in addition to our announcements and AARs to both promote the program and help folks on their journey to Rifleman and beyond through MDShooters and the Appleseed Forums :
How Much Does a Rifleman Patch Cost? (http://"https://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?topic=54812.0")
200-yard Rimfire Iron Sights Challenge (http://"https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=239009")
North Carolina Known Distance Event AAR (http://"https://www.mdshooters.com/showpost.php?p=5637210&postcount=75")
Tippmann M4-22 Review (http://"https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=234156")
CZ 455 Scout Review (http://"https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=235733")
BRN16A1 with CMMG conversion kit review (http://"https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=235076")
A huge thank you to all of the ranges that hosted us this year!
- Anne Arundel Fish and Game Conservation Association (AAFG) in Annapolis
- Associated Gun Clubs of Baltimore (AGC) in Mariottsville
- Sanner's Lake Sportmans Club (SLSC) in Lexington Park
- Delmarva Sportsman Association in Suddlersville
These ranges not only offer fantastic facilities for shooters of all kinds, but their commitment to Project Appleseed reflects their commitment to expand and enhance the community of shooters and actively engaged citizens - we can't thank them enough for the support.
We are always hoping to add new ranges - both indoor and outdoor - and re-introduce ourselves to clubs where we have previously been active. If your club is interested in hosting an event, we can make it happen!
We are always looking for new ways to enhance the experience of our students and instructors as well as to bring new people into our community. If you have questions, comments, or feedback, we are absolutely open to suggestions.
If you know anyone who could benefit from Appleseed, please suggest our program to them - we want to continue to grow the shooting community in Maryland while also helping folks understand the value of their rights and responsibilities.
We also hope to roll-out some cool new concepts in 2020, so please keep an eye on this section as well as our other forums for special announcements.
Hope to see you on the line!