Minnesota's FIRST AS! Winona, 9-08

[Old Glory!]

Iowa Mark, Azel, Johnny Appleseed, Savage Shooter and Colycat; MOST EXCELLENT JOB TODAY!   

Great hosts at the Winona Sportsman's Club; nice range on the hills above the Mississippi River.  Perfect weather.  Cool(ish). 

28? shooters.  Two Riflemen today!  Battery went dead on the camera before the second rifleman.  Catch you tomorrow.

I'm sure Iowa Mark will have a detailed report to follow.

[Scout]

Man, what a crew you guys had there. Great Job! Mark is a good man, I was at Ramseur with him and enjoyed his company. He is doing a great job too.

You guys should be proud. First Appleseed of the State of Minnesota, that will be something to put in the Minnesota State Appleseed Museum someday.

Congratulations Mark, Azel, Johnny, Savage and Coly! You guys and your students are a winning group, (and a Handsome and beautful group in your picture too )

[SavageShootr]

Hey OG,

Great group pic. It is an honor to be here for the first ever Minnesota Appleseed Event!!

It was a good day out at the range, as always. We saw much improvement in the marksmanship of all of the attendees. It is a pleasure to work with you all.

Congratulations to the two who shot a Rifleman score today!! One with a score of 210 who did not mind his dousing in North Bridge water.  

~SS

[rock-chucker]

Hey, congratulations to everyone for making the very FIRST Minnesota Appleseed happen!

28 shooters, and TWO Riflemen the first day.  Fantastic.  Congratulations!  Great job!  Can't wait to see what happens today.

Being originially from Minnesota (I'm a CA guy these days, along with JA and SS) and still having family there, I've been anxiously anticipatint the first MN Appleseed.  thanks so much to Azel and IowaMark for getting one going up there.  Hopefully, the first of many, many Minnesota Appleseeds.

Hope to hear about more Rifleman scores after the close of the day.

R-C

[colycat]

What a great AS. All the instruction was first rate, as were the shooters.  4 rifleman scores on the qdaqt for the weekend and 5 new IIT,s are signed up. Maybe more, right Mandy?

Now all we need are more events in MN.  I know the girls at the Kwik Trip in Mn City want to go to one , even after they found out all that ALL the instructors are NOT from California!!!!!!   ("Wisconsin, thats not very exciting") But when I told her " We will teach YOU to hit a man sized target at 500yrds, the riflemans 1/4 mile"  They all say " How cool is that"

Thank you Iowa Mark for running a really tight and well organized shoot.  I learned a lot.

Colycat

[colycat]

WARNING!!!!!!!APPLESEED MAY CHANGE YOUR LIFE!!!!!!
Iowa Mark!  I hope you will post all those redcoat percentages that we hit.  WOW    

[Fred]

    "FIVE IITs?"

     "FIVE?"

    You instructors from CA are gonna have to face some music when you get back to that state, where the average is "Two IITs" per Appleseed.

    Bob is gonna wanna know why you're either slacking off in CA, or showing off in MN.

[IOWA-mark]

FIVE IITs?  NO.
After canvassing the line, there were more to add.
Count in the picture.  THATS TEN!!!

-mark

[colycat]

OPPS,  I guess it WAS five until the seventh step.  I've got the email addresses and will mail out to them after work.

Fred just go ahead and send me a dozen orange hats,  No,  13 and I will get them distributed at the appropriate time and place.

[vmt193]

Four rifleman? Dang, I lost track and thought we had five. I know we had a few more that were sure knocking hard at the door to get in also. Duane didn't quite shoot a Rifleman score at this AS, but even when he does get there, he'll still be a darn fine Cook.

I want to thank everyone, shooters and instructors, for making the inaugural Minnesota Appleseed a huge success!
(All I did was put through the requisition forms for the weather, so I'll be happy to take credit for that.)

It was great to finally meet all of you and be able to put faces to the screen names! Iowa-Mark and the entire crew of instructors did a super job of turning out Riflemen as well as igniting 'the spark' in ALL the shooters. Before the sun even set on the first MN Appleseed, we were already in the planning stages of designating one evening a month, or even one per week at the Winona Sportsman's Club Range to be 'Appleseed Night'. Hopefully we can find those Kwik Trip girls and get 'em prepared and fired up to join the Appleseed family.

Thanks again to all of you!!!

vmt

[IOWA-mark]

The Great Winona Minnesota Appleseed, the first of many to be held in the "land of ten  thousand lakes" was in my opinion an OUTSTANDING SUCCESS.  Held at the Winona Sportsman's Club facility just outside of town, we were well located at a truly first rate facility, and hosted by VMT193 ably assisted by Duane and Kevin.
The firing line, oriented to the north and providing good lighting all day, was not huge, but stretching it almost to the max we squeezed our twenty-four appleseeders into the line, (thank you lord, no relays!) some with fields of fire stitching between the support posts of the overhead baffles.
Welcome Appleseeders! And a prestrikes (somewhat rambling, sorry folks!) by Iowa-mark, First Strike by Azel (Alex), and off to shooting instruction by Coly.  Red coats and a morning of "wax on, wax off" (a karate kid movie reference) position drills and introduction to steps and NPOA. (You all remember the Cannon & the garden hose right?)  Break for lunch and to the joy of instructors planning to eat canned soup cold, Duane and Kevin went straight from the firing line to the club house and cooked up great burgers for the many of us.
Desert was Coly treating us with second strike then "shooters to the line!"  Alex led us through the afternoon and we brought home our first rifleman Brad with a 210 complete with dousing ( be advised, Coly is sneaky).  The group of shooters was awesome and the momentum kept up crashing clean through the "two o'clock wall" without notice, ending the day with Red coats and taking a few minutes for sure to be historic group pictures.
This was when a REALLY FUN thing happened.  As folks were packing up, Wendy, of Dennis, Wendy and Tim (young Tim was our most junior appleseeder, a sharp kid and quick learner, shooting well with a too long stock & standard 10-22 sights!)  came up to Savage and I, revealing that she had family (Harrington and Estabrook) with history relating to 4/19/75,  and that she had compiled some of the family's traditional stories from that time, she left us with a promise to share them in the future.
With the official day over it was now time to shoot till dusk with the stalwarts, bringing Joe into the fold of rifleman. (Joe had been with us at Searsboro 4/19)

Day two, led by Savage Shooter,  Redcoats, Aqt, star, position drill & qdaqts and Don now joins the rifleman ranks.  Lunch. Hmm, cold soup or fresh burgers?  Thanks again Duane & Kev!  Third strike by Johnny Appleseed and Shooters to line.  More Aqts and assessments and coaching broken up by the soon to be famous "Captain Parker!" run and gun. (thanks to The Guy & Coly for this one)  Aqts and Kyle is our Fourth Rifleman.  More Aqts interspersed with "Minuteman Histories" (one minute history bites done while filling mags or pre prep)  Mike, Joe, and Brad join us and work as IITs and we continue to pound out our last official QDAQT, there are several more closing in and will Rifleman at the next Appleseed.  Final Red Coat & big smiles as we compare the data from day one.

Coly leads us in seventh step followed by an appeal to bring a buddy to Appleseed by Iowa-mark.

Then Huzzahs.  One for what they began in 1775.  One for what we have done here today. And One for what we all will accomplish tomorrow!
Huzzah! Huzzah!! Huzzah!!!

Canvassing the line we bring on more IITs ending the weekend with TEN IIT candidates and FOUR RIFLEMAN!

Yes, in my opinion the Great Winona Minnesota Appleseed was truly great and outstanding success!

Thanks and many handshakes.

-mark

[IOWA-mark]

The Numbers!!!!       
                                   RED COAT TARGETS
                                       hits/shooters
                                         

           Day One Open    Day One Close   Day Two Open   Day Two Close

100yd     8/24 or  33%      20/24 or 83%    13/18 or 72%    14/14 or 100%

200yd     5/24 or  21%       6/24  or 25%     7/18  or 39%    10/14 or  71%

300yd     1/24 or    4%       2/24  or  8%      3/18 or  17%     3/14 or  21%

400yd      1/24 or    4%       1/24 or   4%      0/18 or 0%       5/14 or  36%

250yd      4/24 or  17%        4/24 or  17%     3/18 or 17%      4/14 or  26%

We finished day two with:

Four Riflemen & Ten IIT candidates.

[IOWA-mark]

Most Improved Red Coat Award.....Goes to Jeff!!!

in addition, I believe Jeff finished the day with a 206 on QDAQT!

great job!

[IOWA-mark]

Thanks to so many.  I had a Great time meeting and working with you all.

Thanks to vmt193. You were a great host. Thanks for being ready to run, fetch, serve and watch our backs until the end.  Your help made it all run very smoothly.

Thanks to Kevin and Duane.  These guys were shooters, Kevin a pistolaro and Duane on claybirds, but both shot with us all weekend to learn more about the rifle and cooked and cleaned up after us. Outstanding.

Thanks to Coly Cat, Savage Shooter, Johnny Appleseed, and Alex.  You were a great bunch to work with.  Thanks for the cooperation and carrying the load through my weak spots.  I learned a lot this weekend and something from each of you.

Thanks to the Winona Sportsmans Club for letting us use their facility.  The range adapted well to our purposes and well kept.

Thanks to the shooters. You  brought a teachable attitude with you and did not leave it in the car.  It made the difference.  Great Job.

Thanks to the IIT candidates. For seeing the importance and making the commitment. Do not slide on this one. Go get'em Minnesota! candidate

-mark

[Old Glory!]

Mark, 
Thanks for posting the stats.   It was MORE than a picture to see all those hands go up on Sunday afternoon on those who cleared the various stages of the redcoats. 

The personal, one on one instruction paid off, BIG TIME!  Mark, Azel, Savage and Johnny, Coly, you ROCK!  Brad, great job stepping up to the 7th step and calling the line!  VMT too!  Kyle, your shooting is awsome, and good to see you start working the line as a safety officer.  Congratulations all the new IIT's.  Coly sent out an e-mail today to all of the new IIT's.  If you didn't get one please e-mail him with your correct address.  lbries@centurytel.net.  Sorry if I missed anyone, so hard to take it all in.   

BTW, did anyone mention we were in our car heading home by 3:30.  And that was after one QDAQT that a few wanted to shoot despite the rain that finally came. 

HUZAAAAAH!  MINNESOTA!

[The Guy]

I see Kevin Made it.  He was at Ottawa last time around.  Good to see him persevere and pull through, with friends to boot.

Congrats!!

[Old Glory!]

I see Kevin Made it.  He was at Ottawa last time around.  Good to see him persevere and pull through, with friends to boot.

Congrats!!

Hey Guy,  You mean Kyle?  Yes, I had the honor of shooting next to him and watching him drill the targets with his AR.  OH BOY!  And guess what?  He stepped up; 7th step!  Yes, by the end of Sunday he was practicing RSO. 

Also, thanks for all the training you provided at Ottawa and Chilli.  While at Winona, I kept thinking about what you said about breathing.  Quick in/out, on target? BANG! - click - on target? BANG!   Still mopping up from the firehose, I guess. 

pm incoming on some other stuff. 

[The Guy]

Yeah, KYLE!!  Heard about us on a Ron Paul forum.

Good seed there.  And Good Appleseed.