Last weekend we kicked off the fourth year of Appleseed at Burro Canyon, close by in the scenic San Gabriel mountains in Los Angeles County, California. Needed here now more than ever? Could be. Was it a great start to a great year? Definitely! ..:..
We had nineteen of the Golden State's finest turn out in the gloriously hospitable weather -- such a welcome change from the snow and gale force winds of last year! Our line was packed from berm to berm with eager patriots, there to drink from the firehose of instruction. I had it easy with stalwart Psych Doc and two sweet Oranges (Valencias, I think ??? ) in Gunman Doc and Athena 1775 there to keep everyone safe, entertained, and on the road to becoming Riflemen.
The initial redcoats got bruised up a bit, but there was still plenty of fight left in 'em. So... off to work! By the time lunch rolled around we had our slings figured out pretty good, sights dialed in, everybody starting to get a feel for NPOA and the precious Rifleman's Bubble. Then we took a break and took in the tale of where it all started, on that cold April morn eight generations gone, our reminder and our honor to the patriots who fought, and bled, and died so that our rights would remain much more than just a footnote in some dusty history book.
After lunch, we tucked back into instruction, where some of our students found the seated position works pretty darn well... and shooting from standing position is tougher than it looks in the movies! But now the targets were starting to whimper, and our closing Redcoats would have done Colonel Fremont proud. O0
Sunday the winds had picked up a bit, but we had twelve on the line hungry for more, and we were reinforced by Penny's Dad to boot. Our shooters included an old friend still nipping at the heels of that elusive patch, and another who had his but was going for 250. &) Sunday everybody was all business, and between the shrinking groups and the attentive questions it was clear we had a special group with us indeed.
Our two returning Riflemen cleared the bar, with the Cisco Kid knocking down a 211 and humbling the Redcoats all day, and Mike F scoring "Expert" on all four afternoon AQTs, topping out with a stellar 232. :cool2:
But best of all, our new students distinguished themselves as well -- new rifle shooter Nancy cleared her Redcoats with authority ;) and Mike L put together a 212, joining the ranks of the California Riflemen at his first 'seed! Huzzah!
Quite a few folks in the 180's and higher... quite a few more only a step or two behind that. We'll be back next month to give it another shot, do some more fine tuning, and maybe hand out some more patches. For now, thank you all for coming out, making it fun, keeping it safe. Let's keep it going. This year's going to be a great one. :))
My pictures from the shoot. Drop me a PM for a copy in higher resolution.
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sun_timber_zpsfacef511.jpg)
Ahhhh... Our home away from home, under the gentle and snowy gaze of Mount Timber
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sat_setup_zps3b638e00.jpg)
Setting up the line. 25 meters is a pretty fair distance to hit something the size of your thumbnail...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sat_line_zps2543e404.jpg)
Psych Doc runs the line as we tear into the Redcoats
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sat_oranges_zps96076708.jpg)
Nope, look again -- that's not Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner (though if y'all are reading, you're welcome on my line)
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sat_left_zpse3919bb8.jpg)
Left side of the line, getting serious, getting better...
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sat_center_zps57979a51.jpg)
And the center of the line -- don't forget, trigger knees up
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sun_inthedirt_zps601f58ea.jpg)
Real instruction happens in the dirt, as Jacob helps Mike and Dave work through Ball 'n Dummy
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sun_a_l_zps02acd032.jpg)
Lawrence and Ambrose work together -- both of them definitely have a Rifleman score in them, just need to quit sharing targets (we've all done it, admit it)
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sun_c_l_zps5345d619.jpg)
Family fun as Chris and Luke help each other out
(http://i781.photobucket.com/albums/yy96/as_rocketman/Azusa%20CA%2023-24%20Feb%202013/sun_rifleman_zps2b762d11.jpg)
And... our new Rifleman! Mike L accepts the patch, and joins the family. Well done!
See you all at the next one!
What a wonderful weekend! It was great to work with all of you, and I hope to see you all at a future event. Here are some more pics:
Practicing sitting positions on Saturday
(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-Qk0y9_pe-cc/USxQtpeF5vI/AAAAAAAAAHA/gB7KZUNnSYY/s926/Seated%2520Positions%2520%2528Saturday%2529.jpg)
Talking to the Targets (Saturday)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-IqMbIjS81aw/USxQw3aGZuI/AAAAAAAAAHQ/XuS4N7DpjDM/s926/Checking%2520Targets.jpg)
More sitting... (Saturday)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-AmPUQC_YWG8/USxQ0qIDoII/AAAAAAAAAHY/XksafmrYOOw/s926/Seated%2520positions.jpg)
Ambrose takes a rest in the standing position (Saturday)
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-hSK2Q6Tu2m4/USxQ1J8Q8PI/AAAAAAAAAHg/tpUxcR89Ht0/s926/Standing%2520%2528Saturday%2529.jpg)
Prep period before shooting in prone (Saturday)
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-KxtfqBupFzg/USxQ1useggI/AAAAAAAAAHo/gQ6L7IZ9Ntk/s926/Prone%2520%2528Saturday%2529.jpg)
Redcoat Cookies, all packaged up for transport... with a couple "special" ones for the range personnel on the right (Sunday)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-aO1y7-06opY/USxQ2IWVHJI/AAAAAAAAAHw/2j6Yr155Bqs/s926/Redcoat%2520Cookies.jpg)
Prone position on Sunday - check out those trigger knees!
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-NyTLDmHcP78/USxQ3XqrY8I/AAAAAAAAAH4/ScsWRKzPxv0/s926/Prone%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Pennys dad (Jacob) offering some tips (Sunday)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-m8JOVWWCTuw/USxQ3xj39yI/AAAAAAAAAIA/DK8ez53xbfI/s926/Coaching%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Ball and Dummy drill (Sunday)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-wL_Gtdl5jew/USxQ4aHcZCI/AAAAAAAAAII/7JwrULGYoNw/s926/Ball%2520and%2520Dummy%25201%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Carding the sights (Sunday)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-8J6iyzXua8c/USxQ4hCUFyI/AAAAAAAAAIQ/Yltl4XTiLLg/s926/Carding%2520Sights%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
More Ball and Dummy drill (Sunday)
(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-9JNgrhjDtfU/USxQ4_y219I/AAAAAAAAAIY/pqYledF3D4Y/s926/Carding%2520Sights%25202%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Checking out the first AQT's of the day (Sunday)
(https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-dLRQMRcFgv4/USxQ6vEBs_I/AAAAAAAAAIg/WfTX190rnD0/s926/Pulling%2520AQTs.jpg)
Stage 1 of the AQT (Sunday)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-0G1-MO0JLvM/USxQ7L9KENI/AAAAAAAAAIo/72ymqBv5e0g/s926/Stage%25201%2520of%2520the%2520AQT%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Stage 1 of the AQT (Sunday)
(https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-vRFCaQqMuOw/USxQ7Rj3WwI/AAAAAAAAAJI/gst7vOx1750/s720/Stage%25201%2520of%2520the%2520AQT%25202%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Stage 4 of the AQT (Sunday)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-f3Lm4w8qd7I/USxQ7zc7wtI/AAAAAAAAAI4/fbM3fw-cqxU/s696/Stage%25204%2520of%2520the%2520AQT%2520%2528Sunday%2529.jpg)
Congratulations to Mike, our newest Rifleman! ^:)^
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-6Tku5522VCI/USxQ9cRtkLI/AAAAAAAAAJA/HvHFMoVWUqg/s696/Congratulations%252C%2520Mike%2521.jpg)
I'm going to start signing up for all of Gunman Doc and Athena's shoots, just for the cookies! O0
Great looking group!
Quote from: Jester on February 26, 2013, 03:11:27 PM
I'm going to start signing up for all of Gunman Doc and Athena's shoots, just for the cookies! O0
Great looking group!
Trust me. They taste as awesome as they look.
ShadowMan
This was a great shoot! Good weather, great people, scenic venue. What a great way to spend the weekend. O0
Hope to see you all again soon!
I had a great time out there this weekend. The weather was perfect, traffic to-and-fro was non-existent, and the wind that threatened to show up in the morning never came. Most of all, though, I was happy to see 19 dedicated Americans who got up off the couch and came out to enjoy the Appleseed extravaganza. It reaffirms my faith in the people of this country every time I go to an event and see both the number of participants and their enthusiasm. So many people expressed a desire to come back that I think we can make this a record-breaking year for Appleseed at Burro Canyon.