The Corpus Christi Appleseed came and went over the weekend. It was a good time for all. I was fortunate to have 3 willing and able instructors with me. BDG, Jethro and Respiratory Pop aka Pop.
Saturday we had 4 shooters on line. What can I say, Corpus Christi's annual line dancing contest was on this same weekend, guess everybody went there.
The 4 shooters had really good positive attitudes and this made for a productive day. Rich, Jeff, Don (I think it's Don, anyhow he's Jeff's brother-in-law) and 17 year old Josiah.
I did the intro and safety briefing. BDG started things off with the 1st strike and continued as line boss. Jethro, Pop and I worked with the shooters.
During lunch I gave the 2nd strike and then it was back to the line. Pop took over as line boss. By the end of the day, there was a great deal of improvement. The 3rd strike was given along with some 7th stepping. Rich stated he could not attend on Sunday but did say he would attend another Appleseed.
Sunday morning started with 2 shooters. Don could not make it back. This left us with Jeff and Josiah. When Pop saw there were only 2 shooters, he went to this vehicle and returned with a mat, a rifle and ammo. Pop became the 3rd shooter on line ^-^
Jethro was the line boss for the day. We spent the morning going over Saturday's instruction and broke for lunch. During lunch, Pop and Jethro told the shooters about the Dangerous Old Men. After the stories, it was back to the line and then we started the AQT Grind.
By the end of the day, we had a lot of improvement and 2 shooters well on their way to becoming Riflemen.
Jeff had expressed some interest in becoming an instructor and Josiah wants bring his friends. For passing up the line dancing contest and attending Appleseed, Jeff and Josiah each received an Appleseed coin O0
So that's it for the Corpus Christi Appleseed. I'm sure BDG will be posting some pic's soon.
Until next time, keep those actions clear and I'll see you on the beach.
Mark
Now a little about Pop:
Pop is a tireless promoter of Appleseed, I have seen him approach strangers and talk to them about the Cause, I have seen him handout flyers, and I have heard him on The Riflemen radio show a number of times. Pop, you are doing a great job, keep it up and someday Corpus Christi will be a sold out event ;) Thank you for your hospitality and say hello to Sally.
http://www.blogtalkradio.com/AppleseedRadio Tuesdays @7:00pm central
:) I had a great time and learned more than I thought I needed to know O0 and discovered that I all I really only knew was how to load, aim and pull the trigger :~ .
BTW Mark, my brother in law is George not Don ^-^ I know he's been called worse so you're still good!! <:)
Also lots of thanks to BDG, Pop and Jethro, 3 men I would want on my team anyday!!
Jeff
I have instructed with as many as 40 shooters on the line who's skills starting out varied from highly advanced to first time ever to shoot a fire arm.
This 'ere shoot in Corpus Christi with its four shooters was different. Each shooter started with about the same experience level. All had experience on .22 and high power, hunting and target, and a teachable attitude.
Black Bear: Thanks for Posting. Don't forget to look at the schedule for College Station for 30-31 May. If you will go to that shoot, I will go to that shoot (I already talked with Mrs. POP and Respiratory PUP). There is an Ugly Orange Hat waiting for you there. Working with you and George makes Appleseed worthwhile. :~
Rich had to work on Sunday so he made great improvement on Saturday and at least got to get in one AQT. After his SKS firing pin malfunctioned he borrowed my AR and did well. Rich is another shooter I expect to return and, next time with family.
I have to save the best for last. Our nation's future lies with its YOUTH. Which brings us to shooter number 4. Seventeen year old Josiah is a home schooled young MAN; cool, calm, confident, polite, educated, and with analytical skills we wish all youth would acquire by graduation time. Josiah borrowed my .22 Saturday and brought his custom AR on Sunday. Josiah has a good understanding of our nation's history, its current problems, and the stakes involved in this movement to save our great country. He anticipates that he will bring some of his friends to the June 20 Appleseed. And, Josiah is thinking about that Orange Hat.
In addition to the four shooters we had a couple out to observe for a couple of hours Saturday morning who listened to alonso1's 1st Strike and the first few courses of fire. Saturday afternoon another friend of mine came out to observe late in the day as did Josiah's grandfather, Fred (Fred? Different Fred but, just as concerned about America) who came back Sunday afternoon to listen to the closing remarks and watch those pesky Redcoats who arrived unexpectedly from over the Target Berm. Fred said he would be here to shoot with grandson Josiah and friends in June.
IIT Jethro stayed over Sunday night. He, Mrs. POP, and I drove out to PINS (Padre Island National Seashore) and to the Packery Channel jetties so that Jethro could do a little reminiscing about times he had been here surf fishing. We ate lunch at SNOOPY's at Marker 37 Marina. Uh OH, here comes the 7th Step again. I'm wearing my Appleseed shirt so the cashier asks about it. Jethro, Sally, and I spring into action and before we left we have 3 more shooters signed up for June. I think I'll post this pic of Jethro at the restaurant. His eyes say it all. ONE MIGHTY FINE End to ONE MIGHTY FINE Weekend.
A special thank you to alonso1, BDG, and Jethro for making the effort to make Corpus Christi a success. O0
More pics coming.
POP
Howdy, y'all....turns out my firing pin was OK 8) , but, there were little pieces of steel inside the firing-pin tunnel in the bolt. The bolt was OK, and the only place I can think of where the little bits of metal originated was blown primers !@#) There was also a LOT of soot inside the firing-pin tunnel, and I remember one cartridge that didn't FLING out, but, rather fell over the side, like Natalie Wood (I can't believe he just said that)...I bet that one was stuck on the firingpin during the bolt's rearward travel, and the ejector just kind of pushed it off, rather than flinging it away.
Next time, I'm bringing one of the AR's, or maybe my Garand. Peepsites are SO much better for middle-aged eyes.
Ditto Pop and Mark's commentary about Josiah. Hope he comes back next month, so that my son (Geddy's Cousin) will have a peer against which to shoot.
Had a real good time hanging out with present-day fellow right-wing extremists, and having the play-by-play of 18/19Apr75 fleshed out.
Gunpowder was made to be burnt, and bullets were made for high-speed travel.
Rich, the "Proud Infidel"
Here are a few selected resized photos of the shooters.
Thanks to alonso1 for running SB, POP, and Jethro for Instructing.
Thanks to the shooters who care about their country. Hope to see you again in a few weeks!
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed001_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed012_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed015_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed028_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed032_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed047_1.jpg)
(http://i73.photobucket.com/albums/i222/BakCompat/Appleseed/Corpus%20Christi%20-%200516/Appleseed054_1.jpg)
Good Closeups BDG! O0
You can look for more from these shooters.
POP
Hey guys,
Sorry about the delay in posting here! I've been super busy these past couple of weeks(school and work) and I had some registration problems that just got cleared up today(thanks Riflewoman O0 :) ).
Well what can I say that the fine gentlemen before me have not? I can certainly tell you that it was the most fun I had in a good while! Good shooting, good people, great instruction and instructors, and most importantly the history of why we have the freedoms we do and what our founding fathers sacrificed to get them. The who, what, when, where, why, and how so to speak. O0
I didn't get my rifle man patch this go around, but I sure learned a lot of valuable fundamentals of shooting that I had never known before and my groupings did improve as the time went on. I'm right now concentrating on practicing my form and getting my breathing and NPOA down(NPOA NPOA NPOA right? :D ;) ) Ordered a shooting jacket and a sling from Freds yesterday as well so I pumped. a Hopefully by June 20-21 I'll be ready and get my rifleman patch! :~ Can't wait to see all of you guys there!
Josiah
Here's something that nearly brought tears to my eyes, way beyond my crummy shooting score:
Mark Alonzo (instructor with the yellow training rifle simulator in that picture up there), gave one or two of the history classes (first "strike", second "strike", third "strike"). He doesn't appear to have one atom on his DNA chain that was anywhere near Boston 234 years ago, yet his narration was, "we" saw the redcoats do this, and "our" response was that, and "our guys" accomplished the other. :need a smiley with a flag here: O0
That's why the concept of America is actually more important than the location of America. America was in Moses's heart 3500 years ago, and America is in Jesus's words from 2000 years ago, and America could only come into existence in relative isolation 300 years ago. Mark Alonzo is the guy that La Raza resents, because he thinks way further under the surface of a story than simple geography. I'm hugely glad to have met him.
There's another thing that has been chewing at the back of my mind. The "Rifleman" philosophy designates more than the ability to place "X" points-worth of holes in a piece of printed paper.
The Rifleman philosophy is a way of life.
To be exacting.
To not be wasteful of a resource (powder and projectiles are just a small portion of our lives, after all).
To follow a tried-and-true procedure, while still being willing to improvise, adapt, and overcome when necessary.
To evaluate fairly, with only a bias towards truthful accuracy, regardless of source (just as our targets won't lie to us, we mustn't be tempted to lie to ourselves on other subjects).
To take the most effective course of action, which is ALMOST never to resort to lethal-force hostilities, until the enemy has removed all civilized options, and then to choose and enact the most effective course of action to minimize the duration of those lethal hostilities, with the ultimate objective being to "....secure the blessings of liberty for .....our posterity", even if the Rifleman does not live to see those blessings secured and passed down.
I've got to work the weekend of the upcoming (6/20-21) shoot, but, I told my neighbor, John, that it would be going on, and would like for my son to attend....he wanted to go to the one in May, but, he and I miscommunicated about priorities.
In our church we've been counselled on "pride", but, I'm perfectly able, and with perfect honesty can use, the phrase "well-pleased".
My fellow Corpus Christi Appleseeders, and the far-traveling instructors (Mark came down from Houston, and Kevin came up from McAllen) are people in whom I'm "well-pleased",and I'm glad to have them in my circle of associates and friends.
:)