Project Appleseed

Our 2nd shoot at Pioneer Gun Club, and last MO shoot of the season.  My thanks to Pioneer for being excellent hosts as usual.

Saturday was overcast and drizzling, but the rain held off and 28 shooters showed up despite it being opening day of deer season.

We had a great group of shooters, who started out shooting well.  This allowed us to proceed rapidly and get 2 AQTs in on Saturday.  We made 3 Riflemen on the first day, and everyone showed improvement on the redcoats.

Sunday the weather was not as kind.  It was raining steadily and about 40 degrees all day, and only 10 shooters braved the conditions and showed up to persist through the cold.  Numb hands and soaked clothes kept many shooters from doing their best.  Yet they persisted and we made one more Rifleman with a 210.  He was so wet there wasn't much point in soaking him.

By lunch the weather had taken its toll on the shooters, and only 2 returned after lunch to shoot more AQTs.  Unfortunately, we didn't make any more Riflemen. 

I was pleased to be able to hand out my first youth patch to a young man (maybe 7?) who really impressed us all.  He shot all day Saturday and had a great time.  He came back with his Dad on Sunday and shot in the cold rain.  He struggled with the cold and had to take a break to warm up.  I figured he was done for the day, as we were losing shooters pretty rapidly to the weather.  But he came back all by himself to shoot with his family.  He was a real trooper and I was glad to be able to recognize him with the new patch.

My thanks to the MO Instructor Corps, who as usual did a great job and made being Shoot Boss pretty painless.  Also thanks to all who braved the weather this weekend and came out to the shoot.  Without you guys, we instructors wouldn't have much to do.

I know there were some pictures taken, and I'm sure someone will post them soon.

Greg

As promised, a few photos from this weekend (PS Luke is 8 , Heck of a kid!)

It's not raining, so it's Saturday morning.  Ben1775, Cookie Lady, Mama Bear


GregInMo does IMC


Ben1775 & Cookie Lady demo the seated position


Checking effective distance on a red coat


Jack (PCG President) earned his Rifleman patch with a bolt gun!


Megan did that too!


This is what happens when you have one shooter and six instructors!  Everyone gets one SHF!

Thanks to all the shooters who came out and made this a great shoot! I would especially like to thank those returning Appleseeders who brought friends and family with you. Thank you for spreading the word.

It was wonderful to see the improvement in marksmanship, and the level of effort put forth by the participants. A special congratulations to our 8 year old shooter. I didn't hear a single complaint out of him on Saturday, and his main concern on Sunday (other than cold hands) was that his rain gear was making it hard for him to get into position. What a trooper!

Once again, Pioneer Gun Club was an excellent site to hold a shoot. The members/staff made us feel very welcome, and it was a great joy to come inside to a hot lunch each day. Thank you, thank you! A big thank you also goes to those shooters who pitched in (during the cold pouring rain) to pull down the line when it was time to go.

Mister Anderson - thank you for posting the pictures. In the end they show clearly how much instruction you can get if you're willing to stick it out through the tough times. Congratulations to Sheila for sticking it out the longest.

I look forward to having more events at this site, and hope to see all the shooters back again - maybe with a friend or family member in tow.

Robin

Cookie Lady,

I wasn't able to make it out on Sunday, and I missed the opportunity to pay my range fee, which I didn't have in cash on Saturday.  Should I send the $10 to the Pioneer Gun Club, or was it covered and do I have to reimburse an Appleseeder?

"RB"

Well, it's three days after the shoot and most of my gear has dried out.   

Note to self: Waterproofing works both ways.  Range boxes and waterproof backpacks make excellent buckets.  Anyone know if soaked .22 rimfire ammo will still shoot?

This was my second Appleseed, and it was great to see so many familiar faces under the red and orange hats.  Many thanks to all the instructors for making the shoot safe and fun, even under the dreadful weather conditions, Sunday.  I want to especially thank Greg and Chris for their passion and commitment to Appleseed.

BTW, Greg, I bought "Paul Revere's Ride" Monday night, and have read it up to the evening of April 18, 1775.  There is a lot of information to absorb, and it may take several reads to get it all.

Three of my family members came with me this time.  My son improved his shooting dramatically, although he did not get a patch. 

My son-in-law shot a 210 on the second day, with a new Marlin 795.   He is fairly new to the shooting sports, but now seems to have an elevated enthusiasm, and said he has at least 3 people in mind for the next shoot.

My grandson is 8, and was pretty excited about the youth patch he got.  He and I partnered up for the blank-and-ball drill.  He had a lot of fun trying to fool grandpa, and was successful at it several times.   His rifle is a Savage Cub, which is a great youth firearm.

I am looking forward to the next shoot.  Maybe by then I will be able to get in the groove and break 210 with my 03A3 Springfield.

Howard

Welcome aboard Howard!  Kudos to you for bringing 3 people with you to your 2nd shoot.  That is what Appleseed is all about, spreading the word and waking people up.

I hope the next time we see you we can put an orange hat on your head.  You have a great attitude and I think would make an excellent instructor.  Glad to hear you got the book.  It is fascinating history.

You will master that Springfield if you keep working at it.  Remember, dry practice is even less expensive than reloading!  Tell Luke that he is welcome on my line anytime.  Kids like him give me great hope for our future.

Hope to see you in the not-to-distant future!

Greg

I wanted to try the Sunday session but my timing didn't work out. Based on the AAR sounds like it worked out ok. When will the first one be in 2010? Signing off from Olathe...

We are still waiting for the range to give us official dates for next year, but it should be no later than April 17-18.  We have now had 2 shoots at Pioneer and we are hoping to at least double that in 2010, if not triple.

Greg