We had a fantastic weekend of marksmanship and history at the Anne Arundel Fish and Game rimfire range in Annapolis Maryland.
All but one student came down from Pennsylvania for the weekend and were welcomed with nearly perfect early Fall weather (high 70s, sunny to cloudy, only one brief rain storm). We also had 3 generations of one family on the line, all of which brought Liberty Training Rifles with Tech Sights - Huzzah!
Saturday began with the Red Coat target and right away Bruce B (Yankee Peas) earned his Immortal 400 patch (and the story for the rest of the group). A couple other folks showed they brought some skill with them and we dove into instruction through the whole morning. Catch-10-22 provided the first strike of History at lunch time and we were able to fit 2 AQTs in before it got too late. Brian N, at his second Appleseed, broke through and scored Rifleman on the final AQT of the day with a 214 - Huzzah! Bruce requalified distinguished a couple times as well. To prove they know what they are about, Brian and Bruce then cleaned the Red Coat - Brian was added to the Immortal 400 as well! Instructor Cat Gravity also earned his Immortal 400 patch with a perfect target. Scores across the board were improving - 5 hit shingles in the afternoon versus only 1 in the morning.
Recharged on Sunday morning, we shot the Red Coat and once again Brian and Bruce led the way with clean targets. We then shot more AQTs, had a great "Parkers Revenge" team event (won by "Team Irregulars"), and worked in a "Study Hall" session in addition to other drills and the remaining two strikes.
Bruce was the high scorer of the weekend, topping out at 247 but shooting at least 5 (possibly 6) distinguished rifle scores and cleaning the red coat on each try - that is some darn good shooting. Brian was able to get a personal high score of 220 and several more qualifying Rifleman targets.
Joel P was in the mid-200s all day (205, 205, 204, 202) and looked to have a breakthrough on the final rapid AQT of the day with scores of 47, 46, and 47 before stage 4 toppled him. Tech sights are not forgiving but I know if you persist you will absolutely get there. Joel did clean the final redcoat of the day to earn his Immortal 400 patch!
Andrew and Eric showed massive improvement, particularly in some of the positions we worked on in study hall, and were in the 190s. Gary was a trooper, struggling with a lot of stovepiping the first day and a too small rifle stock the second. But he also showed significant skill and was highly engaged throughout the course.
Our youngest Patriot, Caleb, also showed great improvement once we switched him to a scope. He managed all the positions and transitions safely which is very unusual for his age and beginning skill level. Most importantly, he was HIGHLY engaged in the history - taking notes on the 4 questions and on the answers throughout the course. For his dedication we awarded him a classic William Diamond patch as well as a personal and special patch awarded only by this Shoot Boss - the Sons of Liberty patch. Well earned Caleb.
As we cleaned up brass, Bruce jumped in to tell his favorite DOM story (Samuel Wittemore and the Menotomy Reload) and we told some of our other favorites as well before the call to action, benediction, and wrap-up.
I hope everyone had a good time and that you come to a future Appleseed event. Remember that dry fire practice can really improve your chances for the Rifleman patch at the next event.
Thanks again to AAFG for hosting us and to Cat Gravity for jumping in late to instruct - you were a life saver.