(https://i.imgur.com/Soq74JF.jpg).
What an awesome weekend with an awesome group of Patriots! And Great weather and even better facilities. As always, big thank you to Sheriff Frank Reynolds and the Cherokee County Sheriff's Office for being such great supporters of both the Second Amendment and Project Appleseed.
After the morning briefing we got right to work with some history. We began with The First Strike Of the Match as told by Captain John Parker, leader of the Lexington Training Band. Next was the Safety Briefing before we retrieved our rifles and hit the range.
The first target of the day was the Redcoat target. We quickly saw there was some work to do, but Kurt (aka Axeman), showed he brought his "A" game as he cleared the target. :bow:
The marksmanship instruction began with an eye dominance test, followed by Sling Use and the Prone position. We then moved to the mats and spent some time refining our position and slings as we shot a square. Then it was time for the first 3 of the 6 Steps of Firing the Shot, which was immediately followed by Natural Point of Aim (NPOA). We again moved to the mats and spent a good deal of time using foam and vet wrap to fit rifles, before checking NPOA and finally rewarding the shooters with a square.
We then did a quick review of the first 3 Steps before learning about the last 3 steps of the 6 Steps of Firing the Shot. This was followed up by a trigger training exercise. We spent some time working those triggers before rolling into yet another square. We then shot 1-2 more squares just to bring it all together before we broke for lunch.
At lunch we continued to work hard. ~~:) We went over Talking Targets and Inches, Minutes, Clicks (IMC). And also continued the story with Strike Two of the Match. After soaking up the A/C we headed back out to the range and did some more shooting
Leadslinger66 telling the Second Strike of the Match
(https://i.imgur.com/4Nd9QB1.jpg)
After lunch we shot 3 strings of fire and used our knowledge of Talking Targets and IMC to zero our rifles from the prone position. Next was the Seated Positions. First we learned about all 4 positions and then we shot all 4 positions to find out which one worked best for each of us.
Upacreek instructing seated as the Shoot Boss models.
(https://i.imgur.com/23uFiuw.jpg)
We then learned about Rifleman's Cadence, before we shot some in Cadence using whichever seated position we found worked for us. Next after that was Standing. We shot one practice round and then rolled right into the Appleseed Qualification Test (AQT). As we got to Stage 2, we covered transitions and did some dry practice. Then worked our way through the rest of the AQT.
Father Jason and daughter Emmaline hammering out Stage 4 of the AQT.
(https://i.imgur.com/9v1evsA.jpg)
We took a break at this point to hear the Third Strike of the Match. Then the shooters had a guest join them as Captain John Parker returned, this time in full regalia. We moved back outside and Captain Parker led us in a stirring Memorial Volley followed by a moment of silence and a presentation of patches.
(https://i.imgur.com/2kNxzBp.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/MgxDw8e.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/AGwquSS.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/5teJhyq.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8QWBcmh.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/8aOyMwb.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/sydPiit.jpg)
(https://i.imgur.com/LIQ7NlU.jpg)
I love this picture of son Nolan admiring his patch as his dad Joe looks on.
(https://i.imgur.com/Z7phhPS.jpg)
It must have got dusty all of a sudden as more than one person was drying their eyes at the end. We moved inside after that. We were greeted by another visitor as Sheriff Frank Reynolds came by to see how we were doing. He was nice enough to spend a little time answering questions and saying some very complimentary words about the program. We concluded the day with some truly powerful quotes from our Founding Fathers as we discussed their Philosophy of Liberty.
Sunday, we began with some history from 1776 and The Crisis. We quickly though moved to the safety briefing before heading outside and tackling the morning redcoat target. Axeman once again cleared the target! Huzzah!
We then shot some sighters before jumping into the first AQT of the day. Axeman showed he knew what he was about! Not only did he re-qualify, but he earned a Distinguished patch with a 243. Huzzah!
We then went inside and did a long review session. Sling use, Prone, NPOA, Rifleman's Cadence, 6 Steps, Seated, Transitions, Standing, Talking Targets and IMC. This took us into lunch, where we heard some awesome Dangerous Old Men, Brave Women and Gallant Children stories. Rejuvenated, it was time to get back to some shooting. The first target back was a mag change/NPOA exercise. Then we had our second AQT of the day. We took another long break to learn about Rifleman's Bubble, Rifleman's Dance and Known Distance Shooting. Then it was back out there for some more AQTs. Jason B qualified with a 212! And we had some more re-qualifiers too. Leadslinger66 got a 223! Upacreek got a 224! And Axeman got a 247!
We finished up with the story of Timothy Murphy and how one man, or woman, can make a difference. The last presentations of the day were the William Diamond patches to our two youth participants and some Road to Rifleman Certificates. The icing on the cake was after cleanup when .416_Rigby decided to take a blue hat! Huzzah!
Thank you to all the shooters and Instructors for coming out! If you didn't patch, don't fret. A Rifleman persists! I hope to see each and everyone of you on the line again soon. Don't forget, we have a Rimfire KD next month and it's another chance to patch. ;)
In Liberty,
Roswell
P.S.
This picture below gives me hope for the future. Instructors 6Bones and his daughter Bug_7 helping Georgia's newest Rifleman Jason B. and his daughter Emmaline with their rifle. :1luvu
(https://i.imgur.com/sDfbtFC.jpg)
Some videos of the Memorial Volley.
https://i.imgur.com/EL2B0Ue.mp4 (https://i.imgur.com/EL2B0Ue.mp4)
https://i.imgur.com/8eocbdB.mp4 (https://i.imgur.com/8eocbdB.mp4)
https://i.imgur.com/FgEXcT9.mp4 (https://i.imgur.com/FgEXcT9.mp4)
https://i.imgur.com/LrR23Qa.mp4 (https://i.imgur.com/LrR23Qa.mp4)
Thanks again to Roswell and all the instructors for a great weekend! This was our first Appleseed, but it won't be our last. Emmaline is already on the recruiting trail rounding up friends for this Fall!
What a great looking weekend! Well done!