It was a bit humid when the cadre arrived to finish setting up on Saturday. The forecast called for a warm but overcast day. We did get one little rain shower, but the shooters were not to be deterred (plus we had popups). Thirteen patriots arrived for an awesome day of Appleseed! After everyone settled in, we opened with the official welcome speech, discussing what Appleseed was all about as well as what would take place over the weekend. Then Roswell presented the first strike.
Next up were the most important blocks of instruction - safety! Then it was off to the line to show those redcoats what we were about. We discovered there was room for improvement, so we were off and running with the marksmanship instruction. We covered sling use and prone, then the three legs of the marksmanship tripod - the six steps, NPOA, and steady hold factors. We also covered eye dominance and did a trigger exercise. Then we shot squares.
Next up was a very important block - lunch! However, we enhanced that with a most excellent presentation of the second strike by Corgi Mom.
After an exciting lunch break, we went right back to work. We shot some more squares, covered talking targets, and IMC. We eventually made some sight adjustments, then moved on to instructions for the sitting and standing stages, as well as some mag change drills.
We took an afternoon break to hear Cleveland tell us the third strike.
Then it was time for an AQT. We covered transitions in conjunction with the first AQT of the weekend. We confirmed some shooters who knew what they were about. Lucas requalified with a 226 and Everett requalified with a 211. Huzzah! The last string of fire was used to chase away those redcoats again.
We presented William Diamond patches to the youth shooters. We love to see young people on the line! Then we closed out with the benediction.
Sunday morning was cloudy again and we did have another short rain shower. Eleven shooters returned despite losing an hour of sleep to Daylight Savings Time. We started off the morning with a presentation on Nancy Hart by Roswell in honor of Women's History Month.
Using TPI, we completed a full review of the Saturday instruction. We reviewed safety, then took on those pesky redcoats once again with marked improvement over the Saturday string of fire!
After presenting Gator0246 with his shiny new red hat (congratulations!), the shooters got to retire the orange one. Then it was time to try the AQT again. We got one in before lunch!
During lunch we talked about KD and how a shooter can take everything we learned this weekend out to the rifleman's quarter mile.
Then it was back to the AQTs. We got three in. We closed up shop with some words of wisdom and encouraged all to seventh step.
We ended the day with two more requalifications, Rick with a 211 and Ross with a 218 (Huzzah!), plus Lucas backed up his Saturday requal with a score of 223.
Catherine, you had some great groups. Keep practicing. Ellie and James, ya'll put up some impressive scores shooting from the bag. Connor and Benjamin, you guys improved substantially throughout the weekend. Ray, although you were plagued with equipment issues, you soldiered on through the weekend. Steve, you were knocking on the door. Look forward to seeing you qualify soon. Dustin, you are always a pleasure to have on the line. Keep pushing forward. Carla, you shot well, and thanks for all your help. Kayla, you will definitely qualify soon.
Everyone keep practicing the steady hold factors, six steps, and NPOA. I know you can all qualify and we look forward to seeing you on the line again. Remember, a rifleman persists!
Pictures coming soon! As soon as I can figure out what's gone wrong with my laptop.... or finally get a new one!
What a great group of people! Thank you to the TN Cadre for being so welcoming to the GA group that came up. And thank you to the beautiful ranch for being so accommodating.
Congrats again to Gator!
Go Gator! Congratulations! It sounds like a great time.
Congrats Gator!
Congratulations, Gator!!
This was a great weekend for sure. It was an absolute pleasure to work with and watch the shooters progress over the weekend and I hope to see you all on the line again soon. A big thanks to Liberty Ridge ranch for hosting us and the Instructors who have coached and mentored me along the way. I look forward to working with all again soon.
Ok, here they are. Sorry it took so long. Please feel free to save/use any photos.
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Palousie, thanks for the awesome pictures!