My oh my, did we have a fantastic shoot!
We had 8, count them EIGHT, fantastic participants come out to play in the Texas heat. This was the first ever public pistol clinic in the great state of Texas, and I must say that it went swimmingly. Participants ranged in skill level, but all showed some improvement over the weekend. Some showed a great deal of improvement. At the end we had one new Pistoleer™, and several of our instructors / orange hats re-qualified as Pistoleer™. Top score of the day was an impressive 237! ^:)^
Of course no event would be complete without the History and Heritage. :F Every participant had previously attended a rifle event, so we were able to bring out a few new facts during the famous "Three Strikes of the Match." I do believe that EVERYONE enjoyed the story of Sam and Sam, and what that meant for us today.
The use of SIRT pistols was a very nice benefit. One of these was obtained by the shoot boss in coordination with Project Appleseed leadership - it's very encouraging to see the program invest in tools and provide opportunities to make these events a real success.
Since this was the first public Pistol Clinic event that the shoot boss had directed - or really, any of the instructors had performed - there was perhaps just a hint of a feeling of "buckle up and we'll see how this goes." Honestly, though, I am AMAZED at how smoothly the entire event progressed. This COULD NOT have happened without the expert assistance from Steck, KProctor, mrakestraw and Badmoose. Thank you thank you thank you, for signing up and making this the great success that it was! :bow:
Finally, we all owe a sincere vote of thanks to the range owner Paul at Goin Firearms and Shooting. Paul is a big supporter of Project Appleseed, and helped us work through how we could best use his range for this new format - including the ability to maximize our time in the shade!
What else can I say except that this first event went so well, that we've already set up the next event for October of this year. Either this was a fantastic shoot, or we're gluttons for punishment - or both! ;D
Thanks for coming out everyone and great improvement!