Well, Saturday morning was bright and sunny; a thankful sight after the heavy rains of the day (and night) before this shoot. Since I hadn't been to this range before I expected to be knee deep in mud after the first Redcoat of the day, but this range drains well and we had a grassy area to set up for our firing line- thanks to Alchemist O0
The first Redcoat of the day revealed that half of the shooters were able to get hits on at least the 100 yard target, not a bad start for any group of shooters! We then turned on the firehose of instruction and proceeded with a most glorious day. There were brand new shooters and those who had been squeezing triggers for many years, a fun and great mix of people who made this event such a joy to instruct. The improvement made during the day was phenomenal! The Saturday afternoon Redcoat had 20 of the 21 shooters grouping three shots in the 100 yard target or smaller!! :bow:
Sunday's weather was equally as wonderful as Saturday's. With 18 return shooters and the Redcoat behind us we went right into the review of Saturday, an AQT and the Ball & Dummy drill before lunch. The AQT grind produced three riflemen with re-qualifying score: Glenn, Tim and Kevin. Well done! We also found two new Riflemen(woman): Duane turned in a 213 and a 215, and Sarah shot a 217! Huzzah!! I would like to give an honorable mention to 16 year old Erika J. At her first Appleseed she had a number of great AQT scores, including a 205! There were many others who were shooting so well, and the young shooters were a joy to have on the line this weekend. Kendall B., Kyla B., Erika J., Kenzie J., Aaron P., Mikayla S., and Karson S. Thank you for spending this time with us! It is always encouraging to see the youth of this nation amongst us learning about marksmanship and the true events of April 19, 1775! Huzzah!
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I would like to echo the thank you to Escambia River Gun Club for hosting our event. This was the first time for me at their range and I was expecting a wet red clay mess, but was very grateful for the great range condition (especially after the heavy rains the day and night before). Their staff were great and allowed us the freedom to safely conduct our event.
Our attendees were attentive and absorbed the skills presented as well as the heritage lessons. I believe a good time was had by all as they persisted through the exhaustion setting in the second day. There were several who knew what they are about and many more that were awakened. A great group and I look forward to meeting each again on the trail. Thank you for being there!
Don't forget to 7th Step and talk to others about your experience. Bring your friends to an Appleseed and share that experience. The next Appleseed physically close to Pensacola will be at the end of this month in Fort Walton Beach (actually Hurlburt Field). Hope to see you there.
Thanks to all the instructors for an awesome first Appleseed event.
a few weeks later I was fortunate enough to put some perspective on the history presented.
Cheers, and looking forward to future events.
Duane