The weather if far west Texas in October is generally beautiful, and this weekend was no exception.
Nine shooters converged upon the Ft. Bliss Rod and Gun Club's Range 9 on a lovely fall weekend, with just enough breeze to cool us down and provide a little challenge. Huzzah!
The shooters were a good mix of cadre and students for this event, with my two AppleCore, LoanerRifle and LuckySouthpaw, getting lots of practice with RSO duties and Line Bossing. Ladies, I couldn't have done it without you!
The rest of the cadre got some work in, too, I promise, with setup and tear down being a pretty big job at this facility. All target stands and shade have to be imported, so to speak, and they made light work of getting everything where it needed to be.
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HNHArmory took a chunk of the weekend's instruction, handling the big Saturday morning block of IMC, trajectory, and come-ups.
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A lesson on managing wind followed, then it was time to tackle Morgan's Shingle. Everyone made their sight adjustments according to their starting zero and what they learned from HNHArmory, and settled in to take their one shot.
Sure enough, someone rang steel!
Our youngest shooter, only just 18 year old Eric, hit his mark on a borrowed rifle. This was his FIRST TIME ever handling an AR-15, and he took right to it. Welcome to Morgan's Riflemen, Eric!
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In the course of the day those assembled heard about the Battle of Alamance and the War of Regulation. The colonists in colonial North Carolina learned the difference between leadership and GOOD leadership in the course of those events, and gave that handful of modern Americans something to stew over.
Back to work! The day was spent shooting sighter strings and gathering valuable data, while also shooting the first KDAQT of the weekend.
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At the end of stage 4, we had TWO qualifying scores!
Mr. Smith requailified, and Richard is a brand new Rifleman!
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That's one heck of a good way to end a day at the range ^:)^ Each of the other shooters learned how to gather good data (and how to use it!) and got into a good AQT rhythm. Tomorrow is a new day!
We closed out our day with a discussion of the importance of taking that 7th step, and a promise to meet again in the morning.
Day two!! A little more breeze, clear sunny skies, and students ready to soak up new instruction!
After morning welcome and the Safety Briefing we brought rifles to the line and learned how to range distance to targets using the sights on our rifles and some basic Rifleman's math. (I neglected to take a photo of our awesome Range Estimation board. use your imaginations :cool2: )
HNHArmory shared with us the Tale of Two Riflemen, and the repercussions of taking a critical shot, or not, in the course of history. This led us back to Morgan's Shingle.
Everyone made the necessary adjustments needed from the previous day's fire, and settled in to take their critical shot.
Ding! Once again, steel rang and Morgan's Riflemen gained themselves a new member.
Congratulations, Mateo!
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We reviewed Battle Sight Zero, and the shooters were instructed to shoot the next AQT with that process. We ran that one "Australian" style, starting at 400y and going forward.
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Yes, there ARE targets down there :))
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First AQT of the day done, and BAM! Another KD Rifleman!
Nick drove 6 hours to earn his patch O0
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At lunch we talked about shooting on an angle, and the Battle of King's Mountain. What a stark difference solid leadership makes, and a lesson in threatening able men who just wanted to be left alone.
It was a welcome break from the sun, and time well spent.
We shot one more AQT, and then called it a weekend. Everyone was safe, enthusiastic, and well aware of our duty as Americans to take part in the process of government. It is, after all, that time of year.
Thanks to my crew and my students for pitching in and helping out, and making two days in the desert sun some of the best two days one could hope for.
Special shout out to the staff at the Ft. Bliss Rod and Gun Club: Melinda, Carolyn, Jared, and their team are the best! Also props to Richard and Sportsman's Elite, a Range and gun shop in El Paso's upper valley, for supporting the program by spreading the word whenever they can. :bow: to all of you.
On behalf of Appleseed Texas and the El Paso Cadre, Adiós, muchachos. ¡Hasta la próxima!
The only thing better than working a shoot with this crew is being a shooter too. Thanks for the support and a great KD. :F :snipersmi
Had a blast. Look forward to seeing more events! O0