I have a question on attending an Appleseed for the first time. There is one near me next weekend that I'd like to attend. From what I read here it's a good idea to practice getting into the positions and some dry firing before attending the class. It was my intent to do that but I've been busy and haven't had the time to. Now it's just a few days until the class so there's not much time to prepare. There is another Appleseed at the same location in June. My question is would I be better of waiting to attend the June class when I can be better prepared for it or will I be ok going to this one with only a very small amount of prep at home prior to attending. As far as prior experience, I got into shooting about 20 years ago and used to do a good bit of shooting. Over the last 8 years or more I have not had the time to do much shooting at all. Now I'm planning on getting back into shooting much more regularly and it seemed like Appleseed would be a great refresher for me. I also do not have much experience shooting in prone or kneeling and no experience using a sling for shooting so I'm looking forward to learning about that. Just yesterday I finished putting the necessary parts on one of my 10/22's to convert it to a LTR and plan on using that for the class.
Go to both
The first one will get you set to do your positions correctly and the proper use of a sling.
Then go home and practice, do the dry firing and the positions.
Go to the second and get your Rifleman patch.
Appleseeds are like potato chips, you can't do just one.
smle
Appleseed is training.
Don't worry too much about training for the training - just come shoot!
Don't worry about training for an Appleseed, you will get plenty there. More important to come, just get off the couch and be there--bring a teachable attitude though, and some determination. I suppose if I just had to suggest somethng to do to prepare then it would be stretching. Simple stuff: bend over and gently touch your fingers to the floor; sit cross legged on the floor as you watch tv. Once there you will be taught the six steps to firing a shot. There is a seventh step that you can skip to now. It is recruit/teach, so bring someone with you. Have fun!
Sage advice above. There is no better time to go to an Appleseed than 'As Soon As Possible'!
You will learn a great deal and will be very thankful that you went to the sooner rather than later.
BTW, it is still not too late to get into the positions each day, from now to then, and reap the benefits of doing so. I highly recommend a minimum of 15 minutes a day, closer to 30 if you can.
Here is a text of the positions, as well as a good bit of other information you might find useful: http://appleseedshoot.blogspot.com/2008/03/basic-shooting-positions.html (http://appleseedshoot.blogspot.com/2008/03/basic-shooting-positions.html)
Go, enjoy, learn......do it today.
More here - http://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?topic=3129.0
If you can get your rifle sighted in at 25 yards and make sure to have swivel studs, that will help a lot. If you can get a GI sling, a simple cotton affair, that is great, most stores carry more expensive, and less useful nylon slings... but we use slings all day, so try to get something.
Just a little practice as everyone said, will get you going. The sooner you get to an Appleseed, the sooner you can work on refining those skills, and you WILL want to go to another! I have met people who don't want to go until they have practiced to get good. You know that kind of tomorrow never comes, so do it now!
It is a lot of fun work, but it one of the most rewarding weekends you will ever have, and you will meet wonderful people!
BlueFeather