AAR - Sacramento, CA Dec. 18-19, 2010

[BaldDragn]

What is the native term for "much rain and wind"?

Whatever it is that's what we had in Sacramento this weekend. At the AAR meeting all the instructors has bright red windburned cheeks from being out in it all weekend.

I didn't expect many people to show up because I had been deluged with calls on Thursday and Friday from students that were surprised to find out we were intent on going ahead in the face of the dire forcasts.

Saturday worked out pretty well. We had quite a struggle setting up the 10X20 cover that served as our only shelter from the 30 to 40 MPH winds. Thankfully Nukechaser let us tie the whole thing down on his trailer hitch, at times I worried even that would no be enough. We got lucky, the only real hard rain of the day came down while we were taking lunch under the awning on the empty range next to ours.

At the 9 AM safety meeting we had more than half of the original 19 people that had preregistered for the shoot, more than I expected since Friday's storm had run right into Saturday and was predicted to keep going for another 48 hours. I was impressed with the quality of students right away, that often seems to be a perk of hard weather Appleseeding.

The weather continued to take it's toll as we tried to get set up. Every single thing had to be anchored down or it was ripped away, and the wind made it very hard to focus on the task at hand, all of us found that it took a lot of energy to not get side tracked by the conditions. After much effort and from the students and instructors alike we were able to get the line ready to proceed. After a couple hours in the wind everybody hit their stride and it all started flowing like a normal Appleseed. Before the end of the day the wind and rain became more of a side note.

Sunday was a different story. We awoke to lots of rain but very little wind and got lulled into thinking it was going to stay that way so we decided to put up a couple pop-ups. Just as we were starting to tie the pop-ups down a solid 40 MPH wind hit without warning and continued for most the the rest of the day. We managed to break down the pop-ups before they sailed over the berm but not before some damage had occurred.

We were all gratefull to Montana, he brought a bale of hay and we spread it out around the cover to firm up the 4" deep mud that was trying to suck the boots off our feet all day Saturday. It work great and when the range dries up I'll have a good source of adobe bricks if I need them.

Just before lunch the wind shifted, the temperature dropped, and the storm intensified. I had real worries that something ominous might be hiding in the rain so we broke for lunch a little early and returned to the secure cover of the range next door. Just as everybody got settled in for lunch the storm broke.

The wind shifted during lunch and we had to take the cover down, thankfully the rest of the day was rather mild.

We had several people knocking on the door with scores over 200 but didn't get a 210 or better this weekend. I'm sure that Missy is primed and ready, she has shown steady improvement over several Appleseeds and even in the bad weather hit a new personal high score just a couple points short of the Rifleman badge. 

I want to thank all the students for coming out and sharing this weekend with us, I'll not soon forget it.

Thanks to all the instructors, you are the best crew in Appleseed!

[SavageShootr]

It is true BD those that come out in the rain show their mettle.

Thanks for the report.

[PinBreaker]

Thank YOU BD and instructors- It was a wild one for sure! I think my shoes are finally dry

[PinBreaker]

BTW, it's Missy posting, not Pinbreaker. Forgot to change logins

[nukechaser]

In spite of the weather, what a great 'seed!

The perseverance shown by the shooters was inspiring. Even little Casey (6) warmed all of our hearts with his easy smile, joy of jumping in puddles as he and his dad trudged to the targets to check to see how he had done, and his absolute strict adherence to safety instructions and his dad's encouragement. What a gem to have on the line!

The improvement by all of the students, as shown by the Red Coat progression, showed that we had a really determined group. While watching them, Thomas Paine's quote came to mind, "That which we obtain too easily, we esteem too lightly."  Our shooters stuck with it and showed marked improvement in spite of cold wind, rain and mud. They WANTED to be there!

Our crew is the finest selection of people and I am constantly amazed with the maturity shown by the younger instructors and the esprit de corps exhibited by our Appleseed family.  Comments from the students reflect how impressive our orange hats really are.  Our future in is good hands with folks like these!

As usual, the history-telling brought intense contemplation on the part of the students and instructors alike. If not for the history at lunch, I truly believe many of the students would have stayed in their warm beds on Sunday.  The love of liberty has been rekindled and chalk up another victory for "The Mission".

Say what we will about the drowning weather, it was a great way to wrap up 2010 in Sacramento.

- nukechaser

p.s.- something else I learned... The red dye in the red hat doesn't run when exposed to torrential downpours. 

[MacMcM]

"- nukechaser

p.s.- something else I learned... The red dye in the red hat doesn't run when exposed to torrential downpours."

Red Hat: Warmer than Orange Hat and HEAVIER than Orange Hat

Congrats!

[Drommon]

This was the first time out for me.  I must say that I was very impressed with the quality of the instruction that I received.  Despite my hearing aids malfunctioning in the weather and my bony knees being badly banged up from the gravel (I didn't have a mat, just a thin tarp)  I learned a lot.   And I very much look forward to coming out again (most likely Feb) and trying to qualify for the patch.

Thanks to the instructors for sticking it out in the bad weather and for your determination in seeing that everyone learned the material.  And thank you for your tolerance and respect for disabled individuals.

I look forward to seeing you all again,

Adam

[Jules]

Armed with air pots full of coffee and hot water for tea and cocoa, the shooters persevered. They were an amazing group of students. To our IIT's : I am so proud of you. We cannot put into words how much you mean to us. We have become a close family, and we love you very much. Congrats to Nukechaser on your promotion to Red Hat. Thanks to all of the shooters, our IIt's, and BaldDragn as an awsome shoot boss. Our history and heritage burns in our belly, and we have continually watched Riflemen strive for the advancement to Red Hat, with the Green hat in their hearts. It is my prayer they receive the recognition and the advancement that they have worked so hard for. BaldDragn sets the bar at a high level. In doing so, we have well trained IIT's, as young as 12 years old.  They are our posterity. I wish them the best in their journey on the path.

Jules