Project Appleseed

It's a rare thing to have a sunny November weekend in Washington State.  Students and Instructors alike had prepared for cold, wet, and windy - but we got one of the nicest events we've had all year. 

Thirteen Shooters joined us at the Jefferson County Sportsmen's Association and were told of a time when Thirteen Colonies united together to form an independent nation.  Shooters learned all about the events of April 19th, 1775. We also happened to teach them a few things about rifle marksmanship.

We started our weekend with Thirteen rounds!  Shooters engaged a Hits Count target, and we found that very few among our group would have qualified for Morgan's Rifleman.  Just 2 shooters managed a shot on that shingle.  Instructors did what they do best, got down in the dirt with our shooters, and started working on turning these Americans into Riflemen.

Because it was November, shooting light was somewhat limited both days.  Shooters kept up a great pace, and we were able to finish all our planned strings on fire on Saturday.  We asked shooters to score their own AQTs and bring them back Sunday morning.  One returning Rifleman showed he still knew what he was about!  Kevin scored a 223 on the first AQT of the weekend!

The rest of our shooters were clearly inspired, and got to work on Sunday.  Shooters proved they had mastered the 6 Steps of Firing the Shot, NPOA, and their Steady Hold Factors in various positions, and scores climbed all day.  By the end of the day, we got to award 4 more Rifleman patches!  Congratulations to Karl (223), Debra (222), and Clancy (213) for earning your Rifleman patches!  A special Congratulations to Steven, who has returned time and again to earn his Distinguished patch, and did so this weekend with a 241!  Huzzah!

Shooters, thank you for such a good weekend.  I know you could have done a lot of things with your time, and I'm truly grateful that you chose to spend it on improving yourselves and deepening your connection to our shared history.  Whether it was the history we told or the marksmanship instruction we shared that made your weekend worth it, please consider sharing a small piece of what you learned with a friend.  Bring them your next Appleseed!  In the meantime, don't forget to dry fire regularly (and safely)!

Instructors, thank you for volunteering your time.  I am honored to get to work with you to help our fellow Americans improve themselves.  To Gunsmoke Music, Shadow Catcher, Jamison, Iborche, and BirdDog: thank you for showing up to do the hard work of preserving Liberty.

A special thanks to Jefferson County Sportsmen's Association!  This range is incredibly generous to host us as often as they do, and it's a pleasure to get to shoot at such an amazing facility.  Shooters, if you're local to the area, please consider becoming members at this range!

And now, the moment you've all been waiting for:  Pictures!

Shooters engage targets in Prone:


Shooters listening to what their targets are telling them:


Jamison teaches IMC at the Target Line:


Gunsmoke Music is awarded her 10 event pin!


Kevin scores Rifleman:


Karl scores Rifleman:


Debra scores Rifleman:


Clancy scores Rifleman:


Steven scores Distinguished Rifleman!