Throop NY, Sept. 11 & 12 2010

[Another D.O.M.]

I am proud to have been involved in a milestone Appleseed event nearly one year from the first I had ever attended.  What made this one special is that I ran it myself, start to finish, soup to nuts; and by all accounts it was a total success.

The instructors consisted of myself and vibbit.

The Throop (pronounced Troop) range is a private range near Auburn NY, almost directly in the center of New York State in the Finger Lakes Region.  This is truly beautiful country with complex weather patterns that can change from Calm, bright sunshine to gale-force snow squalls in a matter of minutes.

Saturday morning dawned clear, calm and sunny.  Our shooters began arriving around 7:45, eager to learn what we had to teach them about rifle marksmanship and our country's history and heritage.  They didn't have to wait long for the history, as I dove right into the First Strike immediately after the Welcome Briefing.  We had seven total shooters on Saturday, six pre-registered and one walk-on; and three of the seven were Saturday-only attendees.  I knew already that we would have several one-day shooters, so I created a course of fire that would provide them with all three strikes on Saturday.

After getting everyone's attention with the tale of the events on Lexington Green, we went right to work on the marksmanship skills.

The lunch break included the Second Strike, and then right back into the marksmanship instruction.  All but one of the shooters were experienced with rifle shooting, including three who had attended at least one Appleseed previous to this one.  One shooter had never handled a rifle in her life.

The weather remained fair and sunny, a very comfortable day for an Appleseed.  We took a break around 3:30 for the Third Strike, continued our instruction with Carding the Sights, Ball & Dummy and Rapid Fire Cadence drills, then rolled right into our first experience with the AQT.  We were able to fit in two Stage-by-Stage AQTs, and then shot the afternoon Redcoat Target.  Upon returning from retrieving the Redcoat targets, our one shooter who had never fired a rifle in her life blurted out, "I killed me a BUNCH of Redcoats!"  After beginning the day with the usual shotgun pattern of a new shooter, Therese had landed at least two of three rounds in each silhouette except the 400, and she had nailed the all-important postage stamp - almost dead-center!

Everyone left that evening with my reminder echoing in their ears - consider the choices and sacrifices that were made by these total strangers on April 19, 1775 to ensure that you and I might continue to regulate our own affairs.  Be sure that these sacrifices are not wasted!


The weather forecast called for continued scattered showers throughout the day on Sunday with increased gusting winds and temps in the mid-60s.  The showers began around 4 AM, but did not continue for long.  By 8 AM, despite the heavy clouds, it looked as though the showers would hold off, or at least not be as pesky as expected.  We gained a third IIT on Sunday morning when Genmain arrived, providing a 2-to-1 ratio of shooter to instructor.

Sadly, of the four scheduled Sunday attendees, two did not return.  The two remaining shooters were both multiple-Appleseed veterans who were there as much in a support capacity as they were as shooters - vibbit's daughter Jessica and my wife Kris.    After discussing and considering the options, it was decided that the mission of the Appleseed Program would not be furthered by remaining, and so we broke down the target line, packed our gear and headed on home.

I'd like to thank Krisker for the pictures below.  She took time out from the firing line on Saturday to get as many as she could, and I greatly appreciate this, as under the circumstances there was no time to take them myself.  If anyone else has any photos they'd like to share please feel free to do so.



ADOM tells the First Strike


Some shooters relax while listening to the history


How to use the loop sling


Sight adjustments after IMC


ADOM assists with scope click values


Evaluating the effect of the sight adjustments


Standing position Steady Hold Factors - vibbit demonstrates while ADOM instructs


Sitting Steady Hold Factors - place the back of the elbow on the front of the knee


The shooters try different sitting styles

[sgtrock]

First of all, I'd like to thank A.D.O.M. and Vibbit for being there for us.  Considering they are both IIT's they did a totally AWESOME job from start to finish.  A.D.O.M. managed to get all three strikes done on Saturday as WELL as doing the marksmanship training.  Vibbit showed his experience in the shooting sports by whipping off instruction to the shooters.  These two guys should be commended for doing an Appleseed by themselves with no red hats and no shoot bosses in sight.  Even though it was a small shoot, it was quite effective and well paced.  I would also like to thank Ed for checking up on us on Friday evening (B9 is your "handle" I think).  Also, Josey Whales checked on us Friday night and Saturday.  It felt like he was there with us.  What a totally sweet guy.  I got the feeling if we had said the word, he would have driven the 6 hours to be there with us from the Big Apple.  And Stoner...  what can I say.  Stoner is definitely "the rock".  He checked on us Saturday night (until A.D.O.M.'s cell phone died  ) and touched base on Sunday evening as well.  I guess like the British who thought the "old men and women" were not to be feared, the Appleseed program should take note of these two experienced IIT's and reconsider the "red hat" rule about rifleman requirements making a red hat rather than the overall dedication and knowledge that was offered at this shoot.

quote]I wish I had been in the loop on this one,,, But to say the least, I believe you guys did a Suburb Job on pulling this one off, I Thank You,, and I could not agree more with you Kris, on the redhat requirement, experience and dedication are worth a lot more than a score, all too often good people are not recognized enough just because they are not allowed to lead once in a while, that is how leaders are made, by On The Job Training, and in this case it was "Classic" "Sink Or Swim",,, Well you can take this to the bank,,, You guys swam a marathon and did it,,, Let no man say any different,,
   
 Your Friend,,, Stoner,,, aka sgtrock