San Luis Obispo, November 5-6, 2011

[Camljr]

Sure was a great shoot at a very nice facility. Thanks to ArtKat2 (Andy) for helping out with backers and set up and take down AND getting Appleseed in at this range.... You Rock!

13 shooters showed up Saturday to a slightly breezy, but nice sunny day. We had to split the shooters on two very narrow, pistol size ranges, thank goodness they were deep enough! I took one range and Nero, the other. typical equipment issues in the morning, but we solved them early and we sped through the instruction.

Improvements were made and by the end of the day we had Kyle shoot a 200 on the first AQT, Ray Fry shot a 180 and Zac a 186. Knocking on the door, but more work to do.

Sunday the forecast was for a 40% chance of showers all day long..... Great!!  After we got that extra hour of sleep, we had 10 return and had a previous rifleman walk on, for a total of 11 dedicated americans. Early redcoats were better than Saturday, and we got right to the Squares to have them check out their sight adjustments. Some had to be made but most were right on track with less than 4 MOA groups..   AQT's before Lunch???  You bet!

First couple of AQT's allowed me to observe the shooters and let me know that I needed to get down with some for an NPOA one on one walk through.   Scores were climbing, but I-Ray was having trouble with frustration getting into his head trying to shoot his .22 he had since he was a kid (his first rifle.) Just wouldn't shoot straight consistently...
 
So I loaned him a Marlin 795 with a 4x scope on it, and the frustration started melting away as his scores climbed. He went from a 100+ score to a 157 right away...  I walked him through NPOA one on one and he started hitting scores in the 192+ but couldn't top the 210 plateau.

Kyle put it all together and popped off a 220 score with his AR. CAN YOU SAY RIFLEMAN???   

I also noticed Ray Fry was trying way too hard, and I told him to quit trying so hard and just let it happen..... Next AQT he shot a 223 score! Sweet!   

So he shared my revalation with I-Ray.... and he pops off a 222 score.   
Way to go guys. We ended up with 3 Riflemen for the day...

Other high scores on my line was Mike ended the day with a 191, Tony, our youth shooter,  had a 202. Great shooting everyone... I heard our walk on Marty (Helicopter Mechanic) IIT was on Nero's Range and Requalified his rifleman score... Nero can elaborate...

Anyway, I have some pics I need to down size before I post them, but I want everyoneelse to post up their experience at this shoot...

I had a great time, and want to thank all the shooters who came out, and are outthere seventh stepping as we speak, right?

I also want to thank the IIT's Dennis, Ben, and Tim, you all did a great job... and especially Nero and his wife Pat who made the shoot possible by diverting and running the second range, without which we would have had to run relays with 6 spots on the line... Not ideal.

We got Lucky with the weather Sunday, and only had it rain on us at lunch time for about 15 minutes, as we huddled under the cover and told the history, not too bad, and almost seems like it was divine providence....

I let some of the shooters fire the musket after the history, and they loved it! i saw a lot of pics being taken... post them up guys!

Alright... let the pics be posted!!!!! and Nero can elaborate what went on on his range.....

[TowedJumper]

Great event!  Plenty of sun on day one, a tad wet on day 2 but lots of lead was expended!  3 new riflemen plus one re-confirmed rifleman (nice groups Marty!  Cloverleafed 3 of 4 of the silhouettes on stage 4 if I recall correctly).  The great thing about this shoot for me was meeting new people (as usual, its always fun doing an AS) and as an instructor it was great to see that everybody had a "teachable attitude" and were really interested in picking up training.

Tim, was great working with you and teaching your wife to shoot.  You guys are both "Great People" and I am glad you took an orange hat.  Need people like you around!  Marty, Terry (& son.  Can't remember his name), Coy, Shayne, Aaron, and Jean-Ann.  You guys and gals did great and I don't think we could have asked more from you.  Nero and American Amazon, it was great working with you and thanks for helping (or at least attempting) to beat those bad habits and "extra" line command words out of me  .  You know I needed it and thanks for not shrinking back from duty!

I am sure I will see some of you later on down the trail and I am not sure when that will be, but until then, keep doing what you were doing, all of you.  You all were doing good things, just need to keep at it.

Aaron, if you register on the boards, reply in here if you could.  I would like to chat about your sling setup if you don't mind.  I know you said you might not be able to be back to an appleseed in a while, but there might be things you can do in the meantime on your own (thats one of the goals of Appleseed anyway.  Train you so you can train yourself and others).  Regardless, hope to see you sometime soon!

[TowedJumper]

Oh, and if anybody finds my two boxes of Federal Automatch in their gear, just let me know and then donate it to your local shoot boss.  No need to reconnect me with it as I am out of area.  Local staff would be Tim (TPF68 I believe, or Andy.  Don't know Andy's handle on the forum here).

Thanks!

[helicopter mech]

Andy= ARTKAT2

It's not that I'm forgetful but there has been so much going on around me that I didn't set my clocks for the time change and lo- and behold...guess who was at the range first? Guess how early. Ha!

So I sat there at the closed locked gate, had some hot chocolate and a croissant did a crossword puzzle and then like the other Appleseed I attended, it happened again. I met the nicest friendliest people. First was Ben and Cam. Then that nice generous smiling fellow Andy! aka artkat2

Then the forgetfulness really reared it's ugly head. I couldn't shoot too good! (sic)
It took until after lunch to figure out that after I adjusted my stock length Friday evening, I never made the adjustment to my scope. So the parallax was leading me astray. Everything lines up, employ the steady hold factors ..BANG...WTH?! I hit the target at 11 o'clock high! Move my nose, same sight picture and it's a 5 point shot...WTH?!
I make some scope adjustments....and finally I crept back into my Rifleman performance!
But metal and wood alone doesn't win the war.
I will tell you that listening close to Nero working with other shooters awoke my focus and attention to form. Then it really hit home with the NPOA exercise the attorneys don't like. That was good instruction for me.

And like I said in the beginning, I meet the nicest people at Appleseed!

I hope to be able to get more involved in instructing.
Stay safe and alert!


We had some FUN!


RIFLEMAN!


Another Rifleman!


Another Rifleman


Shoots 200!




See? FUN!!!!

[Camljr]

Where are the pics from the shooters?

[artkat2]

Nice pics Marty!

Cam, Nero, American Amazon and TowedJumper; thanks for coming in from around the state to help out, along with Bigjacobus and tpf68, you guys made the shoot happen!  It's lonely only coming by to visit!

Ray and Ray, nice shootin'

Thanks to all the shooters who showed up, wish I could have spent the weekend with you as well, Jean Ann you really made an impression on my daughter.

Let's see some more pics and hear all the details from the shooters

[ARGirl]

This weekend in SLO was excellent!! I'm so glad it didn't rain!

Everybody was awesome!  Thanks to Nero, American Amazon, Camljr, TowedJumper, BigJacobus and my hubby tpf68 it was a great weekend.  The shooters were awesome and everyone was super safety conscious which is always much appreciated! Camljr, Nero, American Amazon and TowedJumper were amazing with their story telling and sharing of knowledge on and off the range.  We got a peek at Artkat and his adorable daughter to top off the weekend.  It was great to share the range with  Rifleman Alumni Marty again, sorry I ratted you out man, but greatness must be recognized!!

This was my second appleseed and I learned so much more to build on what I learned my first time.  I also found out (more) things I need to work on.  Now that I have my own personal IIT, I'm going to get me a Massachusetts legal assault rifle for home practice and a lot of instruction to work on my NPOA, transitions and relaxation.  I definitely improved over my last shoot and can't wait to come back for more, there's a rifle(wo)man patch in my future!  I think we might need a patch for the "dangerous broads" on the range!!

I can't say enough about the helpful, instructive and inclusive atmosphere that is built at these shoots and am so grateful for all the pointers while we are on the line, kudos to Nero and Towedjumper!

I'm sure that if I hunt around the forums I can find out, but if someone could point me in the right direction to get on the path to getting a "Blue Hat" I'd love to help at shoots in whatever capacity I can until I get an orange hat. 

Thanks again to everyone for an amazing weekend!

Jean-Ann

[TowedJumper]

Jean-Ann:  Quick answer is I am not sure.  Luckily enough we had one working the shoot this weekend, Pat, who goes by the forum handle American Amazon.  You can PM here on here but I am going to find out for myself where to send you and others in the future for more info and reply back again shortly.

[Nero]

PM sent to ARGirl.  Short answer:  Ask the nearest shoot boss, or PM the state coordinator (Bob 210). 

[Nero]

Left my camera download cable in the trailer and had to retrieve it today, so these are 24 hours late. 

Day 1 pix:

Heritage awaits at the beautiful SLO range


Cam kicks it off


Breathe in, breathe out - relax!


Coy and Shayne


Jake and Terry.  Terry shot in the 190s on Saturday's AQTs.  He had to leave us on Sunday (thank you for your service!) but there should be a patch in his future!


Jeff and Jean-Ann


Aaron and his small Euro-rifle


Cam and Bess


Reloading the ol' fashioned way


Suddenly, a shot rang out!


Lots more in the full album:
https://picasaweb.google.com/114208333789247233986/SLO1111#

[artkat2]

ARGirl

http://appleseedinfo.org/smf/index.php?board=384.0

Here is most of the info on "Blue hats", but I think PM's are still in order to Bob210 at least.

Let me know if you want me to "turn you in".

Wow, a 2 hat family, you guys are all right

[Nero]

Day 2 pix:

Kicking it off


Turn-about is fair play: TowedJumper instructs while Nero demos.


The 10/22 battery:  Coy, Shayne and Marty.


Jean-Ann NOT grabbing onto the stock! 


Aaron and his BIG Euro-rifle, reminded everyone to keep their ears on!  (Marty's eardrums will heal up eventually...  )


Lunchtime stories, with rain approaching


Present!


Fire!


Returning rifleman Marty wins the big scope award


Deep in the Grind, TowedJumper calls the line


The last target of the shoot


Marty requalifies & ties for high score of the weekend!


Tired but still attentive shooters


Farewell to Morro Bay until next time!


Additional pix, including more riflemen and musket shooters, in the full album:
https://picasaweb.google.com/114208333789247233986/SLO1111#

(Now we need some pictures from the shooters on Cam's side!)

[Nero]

I also wanted to say that I appreciated working with such attentive and safe shooters.  And I got through an entire shoot without yelling 'Quickly, quickly!' once, which is a rarity and a pleasure.    If I counted correctly, we got through 10 AQTs on Sunday, including two rapid fires.  Everyone hung in there, up until we ran Shayne out of ammo and Coy's mag release busted.  Even then the final redcoats didn't have a chance, with Marty clearing his.  Congrats to Marty on his 223 score, and to everyone else for substantial improvement through the weekend.  Remember, dry fire and practice your NPOA, and we'll see you again!

[ARGirl]

Artkat2, Nero, TowedJumper,

Thanks for the info.  I pm'd Bob210 & American Amazon.  Thanks for the input.  If you guys want to pass the word along that I'm willing to help, that would be great.  Thanks again for all your help at the shoots!!

JA

[Locxster]

I'll go ahead and add my thanks as well, from "the other line," to all the amazing volunteers and shooters I met this weekend!  Thanks a ton to Cam, Tim (tpf68), and Ben for the great instruction and pointers.  A big thanks to Nero and American Amazon for some heartfelt stories.  Way to go Andy for bringing that hot coffee at the perfect time on Sunday afternoon!  I didn't get a chance to work with some of the other guys too much, but thanks for coming out and giving all of us shooters an awesome experience.  And it was great meeting and shooting next to all you guys on my line:  Tony, iRay, eRay, Mike, and Zac. 

I am still in awe of the amazing dedication and patriotism all you volunteers put out there for this wonderful cause.     I was at work this Monday grinning and telling everyone all about the great weekend I had, and how they need to get their butts out to one of these!  I can't wait to attend another one (maybe up here at Chabot closer to home), and maybe even give that orange hat a try!

-Kyle

[Camljr]

Kyle,

One of the reasons that most of us volunteer is because of the patriotism that we see awakened in the shooters that attend... So thank you all for coming, and getting others out to the shoots.

I am glad to see that you are spreading the word at work about Appleseed (seventh stepping at it's finest).  It is hard to not tell everyone you know about their heritage and the responsibility we all have to pass it down to future generations....

Here are a few pics from my line.....

Keep the comments coming.

[Camljr]

more pics...

[irayone]

WOW !!

This is what I learned but had to shorten it up a bit...
My 21 points to take the shot: Taught to me by Cam....

1.   SHOOTER ANGLE 30 TO 45 %
2.   OPEN FORWARD HAND
3.   FORWARD ELBOW UNDER RIFLE
4.   SLING AROUND BACK OF HAND, ABOVE BICEP, SNUG
5.   SUPPORT LEG IN LINE WITH SPINE
6.   TRIGGER KNEE PULLED UP HIGH (PRONE)
7.   TRIGGER SIDE ELBOW PLANTED
8.   TRIGGER HAND 3 FINGER HAND SHAKE
9.   STOCK TIGHT TO SHOULDER
10.   TRIGGER FINGER PAD, LOW ON TRIGGER
11.   TURKEY NECK
12.   CHEEK WELD
13.   SIGHT ALIGNMENT
14.   SIGHT PICTURE
15.   RESPATORY PAUSE
16.   N.P.O.A. NATURAL POINT OF AIM (SEE BELOW)
17.   RESPATORY PAUSE
18.   FOCUS
19.   SQUEEEEZZZZZZZ THE TRIGGER
20.   FOLLOW THROUGH
21.   CALL THE SHOT

N.P.O.A NATURAL POINT OF AIM
# 16
1.   RELAX
2.   CLOSE EYES
3.   BREATH
4.   OPEN EYES
A.   ON TARGET PROCEED TO # 17
B.   NOT ON TARGET...MOVE BODY NOT THE RIFLE
C.   REPEAT
1.   RELAX
2.   CLOSE EYES
3.   BREATH
4.   OPEN EYES

REPEAT UNTILL YOU ARE EXACTLY ON TARGET ONE M.O.A DOES NOT COUNT...YOU MUST OPEN YOUR EYES AND BE ON THE MARK OR REPEAT AGAIN.
Can't wait to go again!!!!

[Camljr]

IRay,

Don't forget #22...

Quit trying so hard, and just let it happen.....     

I guess it worked, since you made rifleman score of 222.     

Nice going..

[helicopter mech]

Yea Nice Shootin' IRay. Nice post too. and don't forget, just go shoot! any range is a good range a?

[Camljr]

More pics.

[TowedJumper]

Well, its not a cell phone so I guess you are good in California Cam