Link to Pictures: https://imgur.com/a/UtG6yHI
It was a great weekend on the range in Kingston MI with perfect weather for an Appleseed Rifle Event! Thirty eight patriots arrived on time and were eager to get started. Of these thirty eight, sixteen were first time Appleseeders and ten were sixteen or younger.
I will admit, for me, this event was like going to an open house on the rifle range. I knew everyone except for two people brought as "guests". It makes it really easy to learn the names of thirty eight people when you already knew thirty six of them!
What made this a great event was not the weather, it was the students in attendance and the instructors. The attitude, enthusiasm, safety, attentiveness, and focus, was unmatched. Everyone present, young and old, made this weekend an enjoyable experience. Think about it, thirty eight students and we started on time, both days, and stayed on schedule all weekend. Everyone was happy and safe with just a couple of steps to a safe rifle missed all weekend. Push-Ups were performed, rather quickly I might add! I cannot thank all of you enough for being such great students. The same sentiment applies to the instructors. Thread & Lead "TL", MrZeke, Macula Momma, Hardcase, Pocket Watch, mrsurplus, and Pookie. With this crew the entire weekend ran flawless!
I normally talk about the highlights for each individual, however, with a group this large, it was difficult to keep track. All of you made great progress through the weekend. Many of you went from under 100 on the first AQT to pushing 200 on the last. You are all rockstars and becoming skilled marksman.
Learning marksmanship skills and our American heritage is the goal of Appleseed. Earning a Rifleman Patch is just a bonus. It takes focus and persistence! All of you did indeed focus, persist and showed great improvement.
Some earned the coveted Rifleman Patch. Earning a Rifleman patch requires a score of at least 210 out of 250. Congratulations to Mike for a weekend best of 235! Congratulations to three brothers, Joshua, Joseph, and Toby, for earning Rifleman Patches. I am not sure who has bragging rights as some of you qualified multiple times, but I trust one of you does know! Congratulations are due to Mother and Daughter, Sara (somewhere between 221 and 233 - i.e. extra holes were on the target and we had to throw out a few fives for fours and threes) and Mila (216), as both earned their Rifleman Patch! Rounding out the individual efforts, congratulations are due to Daniel with a 213 and Matt with a 211. Great job to all the Rifleman. Several are knocking on the door of the coveted patch! Dry fire and find the next event near you! (Lapeer in January will likely have the special edition Ice Blue with Icicles Rifleman Patch!)
A Know Your Limits (KYL) target was posted for a fun shoot. Many were disqualified as they did not know their limits. But not Angela and Chris! They tied by each earning 150 points. Matt also had a 150 points but the scoring instructors huddled and determined that based on group size and how points were acquired, Angela and Chris were co-winners. Nice job Angela and Chris!
I would also like to recognize the winners of the Cookie Challenge. This was the most hits out of ten shots over one minute on a Orea cookie. The eight winners of a small sleeve of cookies were Angela (not the same as the KYL Angela), Daniel, Joseph, Mark, Matt, Mike, Mila, and Sara. Congratulations and enjoy eating or sharing your oreos.
As a shoot Boss, the highlight of this event for me is welcoming two new members to the Appleseed family. Megan (forum name TBD) and Jason (icecoldkidd) have stepped forward and volunteered to help accomplish the Appleseed mission. It is my privilege to present Megan with a "Blue Hat" as she begins her "Applecore" journey. Megan is just the type of enthusiastic young patriot that make our program a succuss. Jason has accepted an orange hat which designates an instructor in training. Jason has completed the journey to become a Rifleman and has accepted a new challenge, to become an instructor. I look forward to seeing and helping you make progress to becoming a full instructor, i.e Red hat. Welcome Megan and Jason to the Appleseed family!
In conclusion, thank you to all the students as your desire to learn, attentiveness, and persistence made this an enjoyable event for all the instructors. I look forward to seeing you at a future Appleseed event.
Thank you to the Marlette Sportsman's Association for hosting this Appleseed event. This is a great venue, and we look forward to returning next year.
Finally, thank you again to Thread & Lead "TL", MrZeke, Macula Momma, Hardcase, Pocket Watch, mrsurplus, and Pookie. The Appleseed instructor cadre are some of the best people you can ever meet, and it is a pleasure to know and work with all of you. Your dedication to the program is clear by your willingness to travel many hours to share your wisdom. Thank you!
A link with pictures is attached below. It contains a lot of pictures! Feel free to post your own pictures and share any comments you have about this weekend's Appleseed event. Tell your friends or better yet, bring them to a future event!
Best regards,
Rangerat67
(Rick)
LINK TO PICTURES
https://imgur.com/a/UtG6yHI
I was there! What great weather we had. I had a great time and was one of the guys that brought a new person (Chris). This was the biggest event I have been to so far and it was really neat to see all the families with youngsters this time. I have been to several events and I am trying hard for distinguished patch. I did not get it this time which was disappointing but will actually do some practicing this winter so I can get it next year. Its amazing even after several events I still learn something to improve every time I attend. The instructors are excellent! Love it!
Things I need to work on:
1. Getting my elbow directly under the rifle in prone. I struggle with this but I think I got it figured out now thanks to some tips from Pocket Watch. I actually have been practicing this in my basement this weekend and think I got it figured out now.
2. Sitting position is my worst position and where I lose most of my points. I can get seated fine and its comfortable quickly. My problem is I can see my heartbeat bad in the scope so I have to time my shots and I often run out of time due to that. I have tried adjusting my back, loosening my belt... I still have not figured this one out so I will practice this as well this winter. Any tips are welcome on this one. My dad told me to not drinking coffee before a shoot. I might try it!
Thanks Rangerat67 for a great weekend. Also big thanks to all the instructors that have infinite patients to work with us! - Thread & Lead "TL", MrZeke, Macula Momma, Hardcase, Pocket Watch, mrsurplus, and Pookie.
This was a well run event and the weather could not have been more perfect. It was my second Appleseed of many more to come!
I continued to learn more rifleman's skills and am encouraged to keep practicing.
With many young patriots in attendance, I was happy to hear of the young children who made a huge impact during the war. My takeaway? You are never too young (or in my case, too old!!!) to learn rifleman's skills!
I don't know that I have much to offer as it comes to sitting position since this is a very personal choice but I will offer this. I am a coffee fiend, I french press ~60 ounces every morning. To that end, I drink no caffeine the days of an event.
No Coffee, No Red Bulls, No other energy drinks. Straight "hydrates better than water" Zero Sugar Gatorade all weekend.
As it would pertain to sitting, if you can find a comfortable position, practice being as still in that position as possible. One thing I struggled with at the beginning was getting behind my optic in sitting (and at times still do) You want to be as relaxed as possible and as firmly planted as possible to keep you as stable and solid as possible.
Another thing I do at events and take everything out of my pockets, short of leaving a wallet.
Even as an instructor, I've found it convenient to empty my pockets. One can avoid some moments of surprise discomfort that way.