We had a terrific Appleseed weekend in Proctor. If you're only doing one event in a year (thanks, 2020), you want a great one, and this was. A perfect mixture of the nicest Appleseeders - old friends, intermediate shooters on the Rifleman trail, and smart beginners who raced up the learning curve, on the most beautiful weekend of the year in central Vermont.
Neal, Ellen and Cory went from learning how to operate their rifles to shooting proficiently in near-perfect form in all three positions. Each had standing scores in the mid-40s and some silhouettes with expert-level groups. I think all will qualify as Riflemen much faster than the average student.
Both Branden (212, 212, 214 and 221) and Jake (215) qualified for the first time. Congratulations to you.
Three repeat Riflemen earned Distinguished patches this weekend: Dan (241), Shari (241), and Maisey (242, 245, 246).
Remember, we teach marksmanship to develop your personal connection to the great Americans who used that skill to win your freedom and who created our constitutional system so that we can preserve it. The goal is to inspire and energize you to develop the same proficiency and confidence about participating in public affairs as you have in marksmanship - in the same way that the Americans of 1775 did. Our country is now in the hottest part of the most contentious election season since Jefferson and Adams went at it in the 1790s. The greatest risk we face is losing the Republic as founded; as Franklin warned in 1789, "…if you can keep it." The real enemy is not the other party, but the three-faced demon of Ignorance, Apathy, and Sloth. It takes time and effort to get involved in local, state and national politics. But even with the long days of hand labor which 18th-century Americans faced just to maintain their lives, they were knowledgeable and active in the management of their towns and cities, states and country. Your challenge and mine is to keep alive that spirit of the Founders and carry on their legacy. I hope that you all will follow through after this great Appleseed weekend by being active not only in electoral politics but in supervising and communicating with your representatives continuously.
The biggest constraint we have in trying to hold more events in Vermont and upstate New York is a lack of instructors and shoot bosses. I hope that each of you Riflemen will consider taking a hat and joining us as an Appleseed volunteer. It's the key to growing the program so that we can spread the message of freedom to more Americans.
Thanks to you all for an outstanding event.
On behalf of the Proctor Fish & Game Club, and myself, I would like to thank FiremanBob for making the long trip to our range and being the Shoot Boss for this event. It was a beautiful if chilly fall weekend. We had a great group of students and wonderful instructors. Bob's depth of knowledge about April 19th and Cannibal's professionalism on the line were a delight to experience. Both were a joy to work with. I hope we can get you back next year. Once again, thank you both.
Thank you to FiremanBob for running the shoot and GMB74 for hosting on a perfect New England fall weekend (Hoodie and vest to t shirt back to hoodie and vest in 8 hours).
Great bunch of shooters and it was great to see the new people listen to the instruction and improve.
Can't wait to get back to Proctor and break out the rifle with a healed wrist!
A big thank you to everyone who made this event happen!! Such a great way to spend a beautiful fall weekend in Vermont, shooting, talking about history and spending time with friends. - Maisey
:F :snipersmi