Yakima June 7 & 8 - Really the Best of the West!

[Believer]

Yakima June 7 & 8

On the plane ride home I read the AARs on the Ohio and Kentucky shoots.  If you have read those reports you will know that it was very hot!

I live only a couple of hours from the Kentucky shoot and only about 4 hours from the Ohio one.  I could have attended either shoot and "cooked" with the rest.  However, I decided to fly out to Yakima.  The weather was great!  Cool breezes all day long and temps in the mid seventies.  I was quite comfortable in a long sleeve shirt. 

I worked with JohnnyAppleseed and SavageShootr (The nickname comes from the rifle she shoots and not her personality).  I was very glad to be working with them.

Had to use a pink piece of paper as a halo above a target to help one guy stick to his own target.  I had to do something similar once before in Birmingham, AL a couple of years ago.  We had a guy who had trouble staying on his own target, so we wrapped his target backer with pink survey tape.  It was quite effective.  Junior Birdman, can you help me remember who that shooter in Birmingham was? 

Appleseeders are a different breed of people.  I enjoyed a father working with his son, building their relationship as they worked through ball and dummy together.  They encouraged each other all through Saturday.  I also enjoyed seeing the Homeschooling family that I meet in ID a couple of years ago.  LC is 15 now and SHE is still whipping the men with HER AQT scores.  Another man brought his wife and two daughters to the shoot.  Never heard a complaint from any of them as they worked through the COF and issues with their rifles.  The daughters (new to shooting) stuck it out to the end and improvement was very evident!

I got a chance to speak with the club's Range Master about setting up 4 dates for 2009, he stated that he was not going to tell us no, that he would go get a 2009 calendar and get us scheduled!  You have to appreciate the club's willingness to work with RWVA!

The club gave us three pistol bays on the lower range to use for instruction.  These were C shaped bays that were side by side.  With 27 shooters, we made use of two bays.  We came together for instruction and went to the individual bays to shoot.  It was a very nice arrangement.  The beams on all three sides meant that we could go down range independently and review or targets.

I always marvel at the inventiveness of Appleseeders.   Due to my flight schedule I was not able to arrive until after the range closed on Friday.  A small obstacle to getting things set up in advance was that the gate did not open until 8:00 AM.  I gave the group a quick rundown on how to set up the target line and off they went.  A few modifications as the weekend went on and we had a very solid target line. 

The POI was the RWVA standard.  We started with a welcome, safety instructions (annotated by the club's Range Master), and history.  We then moved to the pistol bays, and constructed the target lines.  Actually, constructing the lines at this point showed the shooters how easy it is to construct an impromptu target line.  As I explained, they are getting a better value for their money then most Appleseeders in that target line instruction is not generally a part of the program!  Have I already mentioned the inventiveness of Appleseeders?  Have I already mentioned that Appleseeders are a different breed of people? 

Even with the line construction, we were able to get the first shot off at 9:47.

We shot the "Redcoat" target followed by a series of one inch squares.  We covered the six steps to firing the shot, sling usage, position basics, talking targets, NPO and IMC.

On Sunday we had two new shooters, however, since several had left we were able to fit in one pistol bay.  We began the polishing process.  We started the day with a fairly comprehensive review.

I was very pleased with the overall progress of the shooters!  By the middle of the day on Sunday, I could point to just about any of the shooters and they could recite the six steps.  Humorously, on Saturday I asked a young boy what step one was, he thought for a moment and appeared unsure of himself, I told him he could "Ask a friend"  He turned to one of the other guys, points at him and says "first step!"  After getting an answer, he turned to another guys points at him and states "second step!"  He continued this way until he got through the six steps.  I think we have an instructor in the making!

[Junior Birdman]

  "Junior Birdman, can you help me remember who that shooter in Birmingham was?"

   I have no idea what you're talking about. 

   Sounds like a GREAT shoot!  Thanks for the run down.  I guess I should schedule my future instructing out west where you don't even break a sweat!     JB

     

[Wheeler44]

All I can say is "I wish I was there"

[artandscience]

I was one of the guys that LC bettered.. Wish she had been able to stay and make Rifleman.

It was a good time and I found myself wishing for a third day. On the other hand, going home gave me a chance to work on my rifle (and fix a few problems).

Thanks for operating on 4 hrs sleep, Believer. And thanks again to SavageShooter and JohnnyAppleseed for the dedication to drive over 1000 miles to help out!

[muxtek]

I attended the Ohio shoot last weekend, but my sister lives in Yakima. Pretty cool coincidence to have them the same weekend. Too bad she doesn't shoot. On Sunday I was horrified to have shot the wrong target more than once. Per the schedule, I could get another shot at it this year. Maybe I'll request an end position on the line.    It sounds like Yakima was a good time. I used to live in Texas so the heat here was OK with me for one weekend. Not that I can shoot well in it, but I learned how to practice for the next one.

[Reformed Redneck]

To all,

Thanks to Believer, Johnny and Savage for running a great shoot. We only regretted that we were unable to stay for Sunday. We had a great time shooting and getting to know many of the other participants.

As mentioned above, the spring weather here is quite pleasant. We had snow here at home in north Idaho for a good portion of the day yesterday. Almost had to break out the 'global warming' shovel again.

Best regards to all,
The Redneck

[SavageShootr]

I would like to Thank all of the attendees for a great weekend of Appleseeding.    It was great meeting everybody and making more friends. 

I always learn at these events, and this one was no exception.

The weather could not have been more perfect. On the drive up we were kind of concerned when we got into Washington and were greeted by rainfall. We were not discouraged though, as we know that there is no such thing as a bad Appleseed. 

[jerryinoregon]

Want to thank all of the instructors for giving thier time, energy, and enthusiasm to help us with a great weekend of shooting.

Would like to see one thing added though; the pledge of allegiance should be said at the start of each appleseed. It would not be hard to come by a small flag that could be flown at the safety briefing and at the pit for the entire shoot. This is the basis of our group is it not? Let's put the flag where it belongs.

Would like to see two things taken away. 1-My low scores. 2- My pink halo.  i know my own efforts will be what helps get rid of both of those and with the instruction i recieved last weekend i now have the tools to really make some huge improvements.

It was great to meet some people who give of themselves to make us all better shooters and better americans.

Need a list of the books that were mentioned and any others for research and history.

Thanks again for a great weekend .

Going to work on geting some appleseeds started in northeast oregon so the instructors can come back and see some of the great beauty of the of the Blue Mountains.

Jerry

....from my cold dead hands....

[jerryinoregon]

Believer,
Found the cause of some of my extraction problems on sunday. I compared my extractor to the the new ones i have and the one in that rifle is as soft as butter. I am getting a new one and i will be ready for your return in october. If i can get some appleseeds scheduled for northeast oregon would be great to have you come back as the shoot boss.

I have been starting the fire at work and here in town to get the soft war going.

see you in october if not before then.

jerry

[Believer]

Glad you found the cause of the extraction problem, but even more glad to hear that you are working towards spreading the word!

[SavageShootr]

Hey Jerry,

Glad to see that you are working step seven (spreading the word), along with all the others that you learned in Yakima. The skills you were taught will definately improve your shotting. You already had a good start with your teachable attitude. That makes all the difference.

Thank You for coming out for a great weekend of Appleseeding. I can't think of a better way to spend a weekend than spending time with like minded people, having fun, and learning new skills. 

~SS