Martin GA March 3-4, 2018

[Morpheus]

It was a beautiful day Saturday morning for our first Appleseed of the year in Martin GA. at the Red Hill Range! The range was a bit chilly but the frost quickly gave way to the sun, and before long we were all in short sleeves enjoying one of the few blue-sky days in north Georgia in recent memory

We started the day with our safety briefing and then posted the first Redcoat target of the weekend. We then spent the morning learning the three pillars of marksmanship; Steady Hold Factors, The Six Steps of Firing the Shot, and Natural Point of Aim. For our lunch break we heard the First Strike of the Match about the uncertain times that our Founding generation faced at that hour. Then it was back to the line for more prone practice of the SHF, Six Steps, and NPoA before moving to the seated/kneeling positions. We took a break in the afternoon to hear the Second Strike of the Match and then went on to the standing position and posting the first AQT of the weekend. We had some great scores (even some over the 200 mark!) but no new Riflemen today. We heard the Third Strike of the Match before engaging our closing Redcoat target. Once again, it was payment in full for this instructor to see the marked improvement on the afternoon Redcoat compared to the morning Redcoat.

Sunday was a carbon copy of the previous day for the weather. We reviewed the safety rules and quickly got to the morning Redcoat. We then reviewed the three pillars of marksmanship, shot some sighter squares, and posted a morning AQT. We then had the shooters pair up for the Ball and Dummy drill. At lunch we heard some true stories of the dangerous old men and gallant women and children of the Revolution. We then went through some more AQTs before moving our firing line back to 100 yards. After shooting groups at 100y and doing the math, we discovered that what works at 25m works at distance too! We ended the day shooting steel at 100y and bringing out some M1 Garand rifles for the attendees to shoot if they wish.

Thank you to the shooters who came out this weekend! It was an honor to spend this time with you all. Even though we didn't see any new Rifleman scores this Shoot Boss considers this weekend a success because ordinary Americans came out and heard about the sacrifices made for our liberty by our Founders. I can't help but think that those who have gone before us would have been proud of this group. (I know I was!)
Remember, a Rifleman persists!! I do hope to see each of you again at another Appleseed soon.

Also, thank you to the instructors who came out and spent this weekend on the line with me and this fine group of shooters. You definitely make the SB job easier than it is supposed to be.

In liberty,

Morpheus