The future direction of New Mexico

[Devnull]

Howdy folks!

In case you haven't heard, I've stepped up to be the state coordinator. (A special thanks to those who kept emailing me asking "Hey, why don't you be the SC!") 

As a state we have several BIG hurdles we have to overcome. First we live in a state where people's "pride" keeps them from admitting they need to learn how to be a better shooter. Second a LOT of ranges restrict how many shoots we can have there a year and others just won't return our correspondence. In some cases this is due to being very protective of what they consider the "tricks" to marksmanship, or they only focus on other types of shooting sports. I am sure in some cases they just plain don't want to fiddle with having an event.

Whatever the issues are, we need to come up with a plan on how to break into new ranges and expand our capacity of shoots at existing ranges.

So our first step is to start finding more ranges! I would like each and every person on this board to "adopt" a new range over the next couple of weeks and start working on them. By spreading the load we can all be more effective in bringing more ranges online. Also remember that we can use BLM land if need be to do a shoot. (Does anyone have more info on whats required on BLM land to run an event?) This year I believe we have had shoots at 12 different ranges.

The second step is to start promoting these shoots more effectively. Currently in remote areas we rely on the range to promote the shoot and occasionally someone there if we have BOTG in that area. This is still a very effective method, but we need to increase the types of people were reaching in our communities.

I think that what we need is someone who is dedicated to the Appleseed project to step up as a "promotions" coordinator. This person would look for opportunities to promote AS (Like gun shows, radio shows etc.), send letters out to businesses in areas were holding Appleseeds requesting to send them some fliers to share/post as well as scheduling people to run different types of promotions. Posting shoots on websites (Maybe craigslist or some other bulletin board activities calendar type stuff?) Don't worry, you don't have to call the radio shows, but you can setup a time for someone else to do it if your shy or what have you.

Ideally I think this would be a perfect place for someone who cannot be as active in instructing Appleseeds to really step up and help us 7th step. Maybe the spouse of an instructor? Or perhaps you've been to a bunch of Appleseeds but haven't yet stepped up to the orange hat? Then again maybe your an instructor who has a lot of free time. Are you good at art or designing fliers? Well WE NEED YOU!

Also we need to brain storm of other places to advertise. With a program like this the last thing we should do is depend on one person to promote our shoots. This is a job all of us are responsible for doing. We all want to save our nation right? Well it's time to roll up our sleeves and delve into the gritty work of telling others about Appleseed. We need to look past just putting fliers in gun stores and having booths at gun shows. The message were teaching is for EVERY American to hear! So where else have you been advertising? Do you have an idea of somewhere else to promote us at? Are you talking to your friends about Appleseed and the events of April 19th, 1775? No? Well this is the perfect time!

At present we have enough Shoot bosses to have 4 shoots simultaneously. (That's assuming TG and BF are working together of course otherwise it's 5) Now other than April 19th the odds of us running 4 right now at the same time are pretty slim, but that doesn't mean we won't be making more shoot bosses in the coming months either! It's time to start shaking the bush and get next years shoots lined up!

I don't want to detract from what we still need to accomplish this year, however I think it is time to start looking forward and planning for 2011.

Since were planning for next year we need to be all thinking about how many Appleseed can you do next year? How many as a state can we support?

You see what I'm getting at here? We need to come up with some hard goals to meet next year. Fred's stated goal is for us to at least double the amount of shoots each year. Is this something we can accomplish in 2011?

I'll post a thread on Goals for 2011, Promotional Ideas and one on Ranges. If your wearing an orange hat or higher I really want you to adopt a range/county to get on board for next year. (Sam started this idea while back so let's continue the excellent work he started!)

PS: If your interested in stepping up as the Promotions Coordinator, please PM me.

[Stimey]

Thank you and congratulations for stepping up to be SC!

North Carolina salutes you and pledges to help you in any way possible.  We are facing some of the same challenges and have come up with some interesting solutions.  If you need some new approaches sometime, PM me.

Stimey

[PHenry]

Devnull,
Kudos to you sir. 

I would also suggest that you look for your most experienced instructor and ask that person to take over staffing, IIT upgrades / mentoring, etc. That way you can focus on finding venues.

As to Stimey - take him up on his offer - he's a good man to know.

Good luck sir and give my best to BF and TG. I met them at our first event in NM, at the NRA Whittington center, south of Raton. Sure would love to go back one day.

PH

[Devnull]

Devnull,
Kudos to you sir. 

I would also suggest that you look for your most experienced instructor and ask that person to take over staffing, IIT upgrades / mentoring, etc. That way you can focus on finding venues.

As to Stimey - take him up on his offer - he's a good man to know.

Good luck sir and give my best to BF and TG. I met them at our first event in NM, at the NRA Whittington center, south of Raton. Sure would love to go back one day.

PH

I think I will take him up on that. It's always a great idea to share what has worked and to discuss ideas with other people.

Phenry, come on down man! I'm sure once we get past the winter we will have more shoots up at Whittington. Of course you'll have to beat the Colorado folks on signing up to work it... 

That place holds a special place in my heart too. That's where I went to my first Appleseed. Ah, memories!

[colycat]

Congradulations on becoming the new state Coordinator of New Mexico!  You know some day soon being a SC will be the most prestigious job in Appleseed.

As to a promo coordinator,  you may have to ask someone who you think will do a great job.  People don't always volunteer, but will serve if asked.  Worth a try anyway.

Good luck and I volunteer our SC, Deacon, to help you in anyway he can

[hawkhavn]

Congratulations and thank you for your service(in advance)!
I'll recommend you contact Yellowhousejake, the new Indiana SC, as he has proven to be a range generating machine here.  (Although I think Niecie is the secret weapon).

Also, contact Auntie Bellum and take a look at the AppleCore program to develop your folks that help on ANF off the range.

HH

[nmmi9100]

Congratulations, Chris!...I think....

Can't shoot Appleseeds on BLM or Forest Service lands unless you don't charge a fee.

If you charge a fee for ANY shooters, you have to get a special use permit.  Would likely require an Environmental Site Assement, public comment, etc, etc.  So essentially, you can only have 100% FREE shoots on public lands.

-David
Edgewood, NM

[Devnull]

So where could we have a normal shoot outside of private land?

We have a lot of areas without ranges or with ranges that won't respond. I really would like to find a way to have shoots in those areas.

[nmmi9100]

So where could we have a normal shoot outside of private land?

Can you find some say around Gallup, ft sumner and maybe somewhere up north like farmington? (Though a shoot at Navajo lake would be neat!) Those are our under served areas right now.

Just thinking outside of the box!  

Simple answer is the WE CAN'T hold a shoot on other than Private Land OR on established ranges.  That's it.  Plain and simple.  There is no "Out of the Box" on this one.

-David
Edgewood, NM

[Devnull]

Well darn... 

[Fred]

   It might be worth it, to get the ball rolling in an "Appleseed-free" part of the state, to do an "All-Free AS".

   Understand, a lot of people who register will tend not to show up, so you have to lay it on thick - something like "one and only Free AS" and "don't make the mistake of not coming" - and maybe ask Western Rose on this site to send out a final email to registrants on or about Thurs-Fri before the weekend, emphasizing to "show up, so you can take advantage of this one-time event!"

    So twenty-five pre-reg, and only 12 show up? No problem - recruit ten of those twelve, and you've made GREAT PROGRESS.

    In fact, that'd be true if you only recruit SIX of the twelve.

[nmmi9100]

As I see it, right now we have shoots in the following locations:

Northeast NM:  NRA Whittington Center near Raton
Southeast NM:  Roswell and Carlsbad
South central NM: Alamogordo and Las Cruces
Southwest NM:  Deming (only a few so far)
Central NM:  Albuquerque, Rio Rancho, and Socorro
Northwest NM:  Farmington (only one so far)

While it isn't the official line, as I see it, we need to get shoots going at all these locations on a quarterly basis.  Then we need to expand into what I see as our three most underserved areas:  West central NM (Gallup/Grants), East Central NM (Santa Rosa, Clovis, Portales, Ft Sumner), and north central NM (Chama, Los Alamos, Santa Fe, Las Vegas, Espanola).

If we could get one or two venues at each of these three geographic areas, we'd have the state pretty darn covered.  No one would have to drive more than 75 miles or so to an Appleseed.

Farmington has only had one Appleseed and the club seemed really open to more.  I don't think any BOTG really took off up there...did they?  If they did, we need them working the club up there.  All the other shoots are kinda clicking along.

I'm not the SC and I have no interest in being but I would think we should look into realistic goals of having a shoot at all of our existing ranges quarterly, with maybe one quarter skipped in the northern and southern extremes (i.e. no July shoot in Carlsbad, no January shoot in Raton).  If we expand into one or two ranges in each of the three underserved zones, then we can really move the program forward.

We just don't have the shoot bosses, instructors, and IITs necessary to run one shoot a month in every range in the state.  This isn't Vermont, West Virginia, or Tennesee where you can drive across the state in an hour in one direction or the other.  It takes about 6-7 hours to traverse this state from north to south and about 5 to travel it east to west...and both only if you use the interstates...longer.

Right now our shoot bosses are all in the southern 1/2 of the state.  Devnull (Albuquerque), BF, TG (Las Cruces), Sam, and Milt (Alamogordo).  Once I'm qualified, probably by December, I'll just make Albuquerque have two.   

-David
Edgewood, NM

[PHenry]

We have one venue in FL that offers us monthly and we take them up on it. It has lowest turn-out of all venues and is a drain on staffing. Is there a correlation? Me thinks there is. It's that old emeny "procrastination". "I'll go next month" - a repeating mantra for many.

On the other hand, it's very convenient for the locals. Best solution may be the local SB concept, where all staffing is recruited locally and events are staffed by same, in order to reduce impact on staffing and cost to program, making the low # events more cost effective in terms of dollars and sweat.

Saving a country is such a hard sell! 

[Fred]

We have one venue in FL that offers us monthly and we take them up on it. It has lowest turn-out of all venues and is a drain on staffing. Is there a correlation? Me thinks there is. It's that old emeny "procrastination". "I'll go next month" - a repeating mantra for many.

     Well, let's look at that common-sense notion.

     Were it true, no church should be open more than once a month - and better, every six months. Expecting people to go "every week" is simply butting your head against human nature.

      How about mowing the grass? I never see anyone mow the grass once a week - once every six weeks is fine.

      And how about weekly newspapers (forget the "daily" ones - they don't have a chance)?

      And how about Monday night football? What dopes those people are - to think people would watch once a week!

     No, this is just part of a phenom I've notice for decades - which has little to do with how often you do something - heck, I used to go shooting every day - nope, long ago I noticed for the vast majority of gunowners, "gun" stuff comes LAST on everyone's list.

     Absolutely, we should NEVER have an AS on the first day of hunting season - even tho I've never noticed hunters on our firing lines to any significant extent.

      BBQ Festival in town? Better not sched an AS!

      In fact, let's be real smart about figuring this - let's have one AS each year, with 20,000 people this year - and 40k next year - at it. Saves a lot of time!

       Better yet, let's just wait until 2016 and have the ONE AND ONLY Appleseed - with ONE MILLION shooters.

       I think we'd be disappointed with the results.

       Do I have answers? Yes. Persist. Keep pushing. Eventually, we'll prevail.

[Devnull]

Realistic goals are a good thing to have and I do think we need to look at what we are currently "capable" of doing. That being said if you look at big corporations (I know I'm going to get flamed for saying this...) the CEO makes EXTRAORDINARY goals for his company. Do they ever really meet them? No, not really. But the company certainly works it's tail off to try and meet those goals. The bar has been set by Fred and we need to see if we can attain the goal.

Doubling should be attainable I think. So far this year we are looking like were going to be approximately 6 shoots short unfortunately. So what can we do to rectify that?

I can't seem to get free on a first Tuesday evening of the month to drive down to Socorro to get another shoot there due to work. I would LOVE to have one there in November or December if we can. Perhaps another instructor can trek down there next Tuesday? Hopefully we can get some better numbers at the next shoot there...

Farmington is another place I would like to see more shoots at. NMMI, you were involved in getting the first one setup, can you see if they will give us a couple more dates? Again I would like to get at least one there before the years end. (And no, the BOTG didn't pan out. I haven't heard a thing from anyone at that shoot. Not one peep.)

Raton is limited on the shoots we can do due to the fact they close down the ranges during hunting season. I'm not sure how many months that is exactly but it sure impacts how many we can do there in a year...

I think having a winterseed in Alamogordo and maybe one in Deming would be FANTASTIC! Perhaps add yet another one in Roswell for December too?

Leaving Raton out that would be 4 extra shoots this year. Do we have the man power to pull that off? There is yet another big question!

For next year were looking at needing to do a minimum of 52 seeds in order to double our shoots. That's about 4.5 a month. Right now we don't have enough ranges to even DREAM of doing that.

Here is what I think we can do with the ranges we have right now.

Socorro NM: 4 (Limited to one a quarter when they follow through on their end. They will only approve 2 at a whack...)
Rio Rancho NM: 4 (Del Norte range limits us to 1 a quarter. Again if something happens to our contact were sunk! That happened this year...)
Albuquerque NM: ? (PA worked out the next shoot there. Any ideas on how many they will let us have in a year? I'm hoping at least 4)
Farmington NM: ? (We REALLY need to harangue them and see what they will let us do next year.)
Alamogordo NM: 4+ (That's Sam and DD's territory. How many do you think your AO will support in a year?)
Las Cruses NM: ? (TG and BF)
Deming NM: ?
Carlsbad NM: 4ish? (I'm guessing here. Any ideas?)
Roswell NM: 4ish? (Again I have no clue... OL?)
Raton NM: 4 (We did 4 that I know of this year.)

Is there a range I am forgetting?

Assuming 4 at the above ranges next year we could have 40 shoots. That still leaves us with 12 more to find somewhere. (And that assumes they'll let us have those 4!) So 3 more ranges at 4 shoots a year.

We have some potentials. There was a fellow who was working on having a shoot in Las Vegas, but he hasn't returned my PMs or emails. I'm not sure if he is still around... Also there is the range in mountainair I think where we just had a shoot.

Staffing is going to be a MAJOR problem! Hopefully in the near future we will have more SBs. (OL and NMMI are on the schedule as SBIT at upcoming shoots.) Right now were limited by the new SBIT rules which will effect our efficacy on growing the SB pool. Also we haven't had many people wanting to hang around and join the brotherhood of the orange hat either. We will need a lot more IITs and instructors to pull that number off. I think another IBC is needed real soon so we can get those new IITs were going to make up to speed quickly too...

Folks I don't know if these numbers are attainable here in New Mexico, but I am sure going to do everything I can to make it happen. Hopefully we will have a little bit of luck and a large return on our investments here in this state...

I'm open to ideas. Now isn't the time to lament on all the problems and complain about this or that,  but rather to plan and strategize on ways to rectify the problems we know about. Yes were not some east coast state where one cities population eclipses that of our entire state, but that doesn't mean we cannot grow Appleseed here in New Mexico. So lets brainstorm on what we can do!

[nmmi9100]

Farmington is another place I would like to see more shoots at. NMMI, you were involved in getting the first one setup, can you see if they will give us a couple more dates? Again I would like to get at least one there before the years end. (And no, the BOTG didn't pan out. I haven't heard a thing from anyone at that shoot. Not one peep.)

Chris:

I went to that meeting in Farmington at the request of a couple of AR15.com members that joined here and ask for help.  I did not retain any information relating to that range, although it may be documented in SamD's Range Data sticky.  Only reason I presented was that I was up there for work.  I don't have any work on my plate that is in that area of the state.  If you have the range contact info, since you were the shoot boss, I would suggest calling them and finding out when their "Annual Calendar Meeting" is.  They mentioned that they have a meeting where the calendar is hashed out.  Much like my home range in Edgewood, you have to be at that meeting if you want to schedule stuff for the year.

Any hope at all of contacting the BOTG up there?  Or did you piss off the "Tacti-cool" guys with the stripper girlfriends beyond all hope?

-David
Edgewood, NM

P.S.:  We don't have to double the number of shoots we had if we double the amount of attendees at each shoot.  Adding a few shoots next year and increasing attendance would accomplish the same goal.  Want more attendees?  Have more shoots at the ABQ city range.

[Precisely Advantageous]

Congrats Chris way to pick up the torch, man you've gotta be a busy guy!

PA

[oladcock]

Congrats Chris!    Good brain storming going on and yes, our challenges are different than they are in high population densities where folks have allowed their freedoms to be trampled on more so than others. Folks here know all they need to know, in their opinion!   The best way to drag the guys in is drag the ladies in.

I think I could get the local club to allow as many as 1 per month here in Roswell but June through Sept would draw few if any participants. With limited SB's and Instructors, doing 1 per month between Alamo, Carlsbad, and Roswell appears to be a good plan without saturating any one spot. With one here in Oct and another in Dec, I've already heard some say they're waiting for Dec!   Schedules being posted in advance seems to breed procrastination.

The only other population center that might need some attention is Hobbs. I don't know whats going on in the Midland/Odessa area, shoots in Hobbs might draw some of them.

NMMI9100, I've been reaching out with cards and flyers to the NMMI cadets as we run into them, was trying to contact staff there but haven't got much responce from them. Do you have any contacts being an Alumi? Haven't been able to stir much interest from recruiters of the NG either. You'd think they'd jump at the chance....O.L.

[Devnull]

OL, if you think the area can handle 1 a month (Minus the molten lead ingots in the shade time of year) and you can run the shoots then lets go for it! 

I don't know whats going on in Hobbs either, but we can sure look into it. It appears they have or had a range.
Hobbs Gun Club     
P.O. Box 2295      
Hobbs, NM
505-395-2068          
Outdoor Pistol (50 yds), Outdoor Rifle (200 yds), Pistol Silhouette, Trap, Range Access: Private

Do you want to contact them or would you rather I do it?

[nmmi9100]

OL:

What exactly is your idea with the NMMI cadets?  I've thought about them but unless we could get an ROTC-oriented shoot for the contract cadets, I doubt we could do anything with them.  They've got weekend activities scheduled a year out and don't have any individual rifles.

I'm tied in pretty well with the ABQ chapter of the alumni association and I know a couple of the Board of Regents on a first name basis.  Just not sure how we could tailor a program for them.

They do have an indoor 15-20 lane 25 meter range in DOW Hall if memory serves...that's where the cadets used to shoot 22LR for the rifle team and where all cadets rotate through marksmanship training.

-David
Edgewood, NM

[DanT]

Got some qualifiers right up front:
1. I don't live in New Mexico, my home is outside of Fort Worth although right now I'm on a job in Connecticut.
2. I'm a newbie -- been to one Appleseed event, had a ball, hope to qualify as Rifleman next time.

OK, that's out of the way.

Low density population is not conducive to lots of activities.  This is true for Appleseed as well as many other organizations.  One such organization to which I belong is Mensa, which also happens to have a vocal contingent supporting Appleseed-style aims.  This evening an email has been send to one such group soliciting interest and help ... the thought being that a combined effort might be mutually beneficial.  Don't know where this particular effort will end up, but as a new-found Appleseed enthusiast I gotta try.  I'll let you know what transpires.

[Fred]

   Dan, thanks for doing this. We can sure use some smart people in the program.

   But let's all understand population density can be an enviromental element, but a town of 80,000 is a town of 80,000, wherever you go in this country.

   So in NM, at a range outside of a town of 80,000, we get one or two dozen people to show up.

   Figure out how we get more.

   And the answer doesn't, it seems to me, depend on population density - at least, not the physical kind - maybe "upstairs" a bit - but we should expect that - it's part of the "ignorance, apathy, and laziness" thing.

[ItsanSKS]

First off, congratulations on the new position- you will find out VERY quickly that being a SC will take up every second of your 'spare' time, if you let it. 

One thing I have noticed about most SC's (myself included) is that they are very typically the self-starting, 'get-it-done-right-now' type of person.  You are already exhibiting this trait.  This is both a blessing and a curse. 

Starting with a state that is on the verge of missing its ordained goal for 2010, you are likely feeling pressure to get as much done in as little time as possible, to get your state "back on track".  I know I was, when I first took over the reigns for FL. 

Please, take it from me.  Set a steady pace.  Set specific, achievable goals and, more importantly, develop a plan for meeting them.

Devote a certain amount of time to your Appleseed efforts, and work to maximize your efficiency during that time.  A lot can be accomplished in two hours per day, if you are free from outside interuptions/distractions. 

You have already started down the trail that I took when stepping up to be SC for Florida- that is to say, get new ranges, more events, and NOW.  I advise you to take a step back, and first focus on building your state-level team.  Once you DO start getting more events, more ranges, and more volunteers, you will need a system in place to deal with it all, or you will find yourself very quickly overwhelmed; ask me how I know...


You will need an administrative-type person who can deal with the minutiae involved in setting up a new range, everything from filing completed host applications to event scheduling. 

You will need a Range Liaison for every single venue- preferably one of the BOD, or a range officer for the range itself; if not one of the directors or RO's, then at least a member- someone local to the range, and tied into it in some manner.  Someone familar with Appleseed, and can answer very basic questions about the program.  This is the person who will hold onto spare shoot supplies, and can accept phone calls in regards to directions, local information, etc.

You will need a Promotions Coordinator for the state- someone to coordinate state and local efforts such as gun shows, talk radio appearances, newspaper advertisements, etc.

You will need a Senior Instructor to take charge of all things instructor related- as PHenry mentioned, ensuring that IIT's get promoted, SB development, SBIT mentoring, ensuring that your events are sufficiently staffed, etc.



Establishing this team should be your first priority, IMO.  Otherwise, *you* will be the one doing these things, and, despite your best efforts, you will not be able to do them all, at least not very well.  Things will begin to slip through the cracks.  Emails will go unanswered, ranges will be left in the dark about new developments, and the list goes on...  Spare yourself the heartache, and focus *all* of your efforts on recruiting people for your team.  Once you have a team in place, the rest begins to sort itself out.

I wish you the best of luck in your endeavors, and should you need anything at all, please feel free to contact me.  PM's are responded to in 48 hours at the outside, usually within 2-3. 

-ItsanSKS

[JustJeff]

But let's all understand population density can be an enviromental element, but a town of 80,000 is a town of 80,000, wherever you go in this country.

I believe there are only TWO places in NM fitting this description..... we have a lot of small towns spread out.

[Gideon]

Congrtulations Chris. I hope to see you in Rio Rancho.

Gideon

[oladcock]

Yep Jeff, can't draw a 3 hour drive circle around Roswell and find 80K inside of it!

Chris, I'll see what I can find out about Hobbs, I can tell already the area code hasn't been updated in a couple years.

David, That's what I suspected of the institute, they aren't free on Saturdays. I used to know their rifle instructor but he's not there any more and I've heard they let their program slip....O.L.

[Fred]

But let's all understand population density can be an enviromental element, but a town of 80,000 is a town of 80,000, wherever you go in this country.

I believe there are only TWO places in NM fitting this description..... we have a lot of small towns spread out.

   Actually, in the Appleseed world-view, it would be "We have not one, but TWO places! Are we lucky, or what?"

   A small town? What's small? 3000? 300? Ten percent of the first is 300 Appleseeders - Hmmmm, not bad at all.

   Even ten percent of the small town would still be 30 - still not too shabby.

   What's that you say? You can't get ten percent to show up? You mean to tell me that OVER NINETY PERCENT of people in NM can't be gotten off the couch?

   It may be true, but I wouldn't take it lying down...

[oladcock]

"What's that you say? You can't get ten percent to show up? You mean to tell me that OVER NINETY PERCENT of people in NM can't be gotten off the couch?

   It may be true, but I wouldn't take it lying down... "

Oh we're not Fred, we open carry in banks and city council meetings, if other areas can't, seems they've been on the couch more than others.....O.L.

[JustJeff]

"What's that you say? You can't get ten percent to show up? You mean to tell me that OVER NINETY PERCENT of people in NM can't be gotten off the couch?

   It may be true, but I wouldn't take it lying down... "

Oh we're not Fred, we open carry in banks and city council meetings, if other areas can't, seems they've been on the couch more than others.....O.L.

Exactly.  10% would be a great number anywhere, but I don't see those numbers anywhere else either (ok, I don't have a chart or access to all of the info on attendance).  We plant the seeds,  we add water, we water some more, we make sure the flowers pollenate, we protect the flowers from 'frost,'  we watch the fruit start to grow, we water some more, and then when the fruit 'ripens' we pluck those which are in our reach; and we have some pretty decent step-ladders to increase our reach.   I'm not a "Rifleman" and I hold no position within the program, but I've got a sack of seeds, a big watering can, and a good ladder.  We're doing what we can in an area where there are a lot of 'awake' people who 'already know our history and can shoot.'

[BobABQ]

Devnull, congratulations on the promotion to State Coordinator! I'm sure you will do a fine job!

NMMI9100 seems like an excellent choice to become the Promotions Director!


Again, congratulations Devnull!