Myakka City, FL AAR - Jul 13-14, 2024 - Shoot Boss Camp

[Maximum Ordinate]

In the oppressive July heat, 21 Appleseeders gathered in Myakka City, Florida!  18 from Florida, 2 from Alabama, and 1 all the way from Pennsylvania!  Why would such a group brave the heat and humidity?  For the largest Shoot Boss Camp in Appleseed history!

It's equal parts leadership, marksmanship, and adminstration... but ALL MISSON!

We were hosted by Manatee Gun and Archery Club.  MGAC has been a a huge supporter of Appleseed.  It's a first class range complex and we're very grateful for their support!

We got settled in on Saturday morning and kicked off with some intros.  First, there were a couple of adminstrative things to attend to:

First - Flawyer received his 100 shoot pin, awarded on behalf of our National Coordinator Monkey!

Second - GunGunkie was formally promoted to Senior Instructor!

We quickly got to business.  We discussed our Appleseed Mission and our part in it as Shoot Bosses.  For the next two full days, we discussed leadership challenges, time management (on and off the line), preparing for an event, and mentoring instructors.  One of the very best parts of a Shoot Boss Camp is the sharing of lessons learned among the Appleseeders present. 

Of course, we dedicated to time to Known Distance.  Everyone rehearsed Known Distance presentations as our small group leads coached and helped polish.  We also discussed how to conduct  an effective KD component at a 25m event.

My thanks to everyone who dedicated this weekend and invested in growing our Mission.  With very deep roots, the Florida cadre continues to be strong.  The up & coming shoot bosses in the Sunshine State are going to be awesome!

Special thanks to:  the small group leads - JustKim, TheMenace, GunJunkie, 9mm4545, and Malabar!  Thanks so much for making this an easy weekend.

For those of you still working toward wearing that green hat, persist.  It's the most fun and rewarding job in Appleseed!

Liberty, yo!
MO

And the part everyone is looking forward to... the pictures! (Full sized versions available upon request.)

FLawyer receiving his 100 event pin.




JustKim presenting a grey hat to GunJunkie


BBQ_Bandit receiving a Florida cadre patch from JustKim


More pics from the weekend








Sea_Cup and Sea Pirate sharing a laugh
















Group pic - current Shoot Bosses!


Group pic - aspiring Shoot Bosses!


Everyone together!


And our mascot, courtesy of Mrs. Malabar!

[Roswell]

Awesome! This looks like an amazing event. What a gathering of knowledge in one room! 

Congratulations FLawyer and GunJunkie!

[TheMenace]

Don't ever pass up an opportunity to attend a Shoot Boss Camp for the first, second, or third time. Maximum Ordinate and Google graciously agreed to make the trip to Florida to present the message about the joy of shootbossing. It was a great experience. Thanks!

[FLawyer]

It was a tremendous event. If you ever get the chance to attend a SBC, DO IT!  You will not regret it!
In addition to the knowledge and wisdom shared by Maximum Ordinate, Google and the small group leaders, insights from Malabar and other members of the AOC attending there was a lot of cross pollination and community building among the attendees.
Thanks to everyone involved.

[Louie Louie]

What a great event/experience.

As a relatively new Red Hat, I learned a lot and was thrilled to meet some of the more experienced members of the program and the leadership team. 

It also confirmed what a great crew we have in Florida. Thrilled to be part of the team.

Finally, I learned that you have to be careful what you say and to read the picture captions closely.
You just might end up with a new Forum name 

[ProudPapa14]

Awesome group - what excites me the most about those pics is the 10 aspiring green hats.  10 more who are willing to step up and help spread workload and potentially open new ranges/areas for Project Appleseed and our mission.

Well done to all of you!

[BBQ_Bandit]

Imagine a series of round table discussions covering several points (Good, Bad, and Ugly) on... leadership, mentoring, coaching, etc.

Also the past, present, and future on policies, manuals, AAR/IAARs and the program in general.

Sitting there with Master Instructors, Regional Coordinators, Senior Instructors, DSB and other Shoot bosses, Red Hats (aspiring future SB's) that has a collection of over 100 years of Appleseed experience.

To feel the intent, purpose, and the clearest idea (the mother of all firehoses) behind  the undiluted truth from the top people from the organization... did not want to get something "lost in translation".

After the end of each day (Sat/Sun)... had a spontaneous moment of IAO with representatives of Adapted Appleseed -  regarding Rifle and Pistol possibilities

Was definitely worth the time and energy...for this Red Hat from Pennsylvania to drive over 1,000 miles each way... an investment in Appleseed.

Priceless!

[JustKim]

This was a very memorable event.  There was such a vast amount of knowledge in that classroom!

Congratulations to FLawyer for receiving his 100 shoot pin.

And a VERY SPECIAL CONGRATULATIONS to Gunjunkie on receiving his grey hat!  So very, very well-deserved!!  CONGRATS SWEETIE!!!

Thanks to Maximum Ordinate and Google for making the trip, and sharing your extensive knowledge with all of us.  You made this a great event.  Also BBQ_Bandit for traveling all the way from PA - it was a pleasure meeting you and working with you!

I can't wait until the next one!

[Miss Conduct]

I'd like to give a special thank you to Maximum Ordinate and Google for taking their time and giving their expertise to our group from Florida. This was a great event, an excellent opportunity to improve our skills and share our combined knowledge. I think everyone learned something.

Congratulations to FLawyer for receiving the 100 event pin. Also, I was so excited to see Gunjunkie promoted to Senior Instructor. What a great guy, he certainly deserves it.

Thanks to all of the instructors who showed up for this event. It's really an honor to be around people with such exemplary character. They certainly know what they are about.

[rambo granny]

Recognizing FLawyer and Gunjunkie early in the event is certainly "taking care of your people" which was emphasized as an important  duty of the SB & goes far in retaining volunteers.
Whether one intends to don the green hat now, later, or perhaps not at all, this is an enlightening experience for Red Hats too. After 13+/- years 9mm4545 and I have spent in Appleseed, there were great tips to adopt from a room packed with experience won in the trenches.
The anatomy of a failed shoot exercise was both challenging and enlightening as to the importance of team to the SB as well as providing our students rewarding experience. It also drove home the what, why, how and necessity of early communication and planning. Thanks all!

[9mm4545]

Outstanding in every way! I am so glad I can be a part of Florida Appleseed and will most certainly incorporate the best practices learned at this event in the future. Thanks to everyone who helped make it happen.

[Pirategirl]

First and foremost, thank you goes out to Google and MO for making the time to hold this event in FL.  Secondly, congratulations to Gun Junkie and FLawyer for receiving their most well earned achievements.  I strive to be as good as you both are one day.  Being a relatively new SB, I learned so much from the combined experience in the room.  I will definitely take away these lessons and apply them to my shoots in the future.  Thank you to all who traveled so far to be here.  The knowledge that was held in that room cannot be replicated in 50 shoots individually.  What a great experience.  Thank you all.

[Mrs Waky]

Thank you to the range for hosting the bootcamp. Thank you to Maximum ordinate and Google for spending the weekend with us.
This was a tremendous event! So much experience and knowledge in one room. I attended this event to explore the option of becoming a green hat and left knowing that is what I want to do.
Spending the weekend with like minded individuals, learning how to progress in Appleseed from the best was amazing.
The master and senior instructors, as well as green hats and aspiring green hats presented a wealth of knowledge that was invaluable.
Thank you to everyone who was there. I learned a lot and I'm ready to learn more.
Thank you all for attending and sharing. I look forward to seeing everyone again soon.

[gunjunkie]

I would like to thank Manatee Gun and Archery Club for hosting the event and providing first class accommodations.

I would also like to thank Maximum Ordinate and Google for taking the time to make this happen.

This was a weekend well spent and a very well organized and executed agenda. I really liked the open discussion on most topics presented and felt this was an extremely effective format. I know everyone took something away that will make them a more effective shoot boss, I know I did.

Congratulations Flawyer on your 100 shoot pin, what a milestone.

It was great seeing everyone and hope to work with you all soon.   

[Sarea_51]

I agree with everyone, this was time well spent.  The round table discussions were insightful and helpful.  Most beneficial are the lessons learned from the experienced crew.  Thanks again for pulling this together.  Sara