Piru, CA Appleseed Sept 13-14, 2008

[bob 210]

The event went great! We handed out copies of the Constitution of the United States and read the preamble and the entire Bill of Rights out loud. We had 3 new rifleman (one of which is a riflewoman) and a new IIT (possibly 2 more to come! ). The weather was nice (CA) and we saw improvement by all shooters. Thanks for coming folks! Hope to hear from you all on this AAR. Let us know what you thought.

[V]

Well, I thought it was great! I especially liked that green patch and CA rocker.

And so did a couple of other Riflemen!

Bob did a great job on the significance of the Constitution and it was nice to see the new batch of IIT's working the shoot with Bob and taking some of the load off of the long standing crew. Mr Bill did a great job as Line boss and organizing the sign in and history at lunch.

On another thread someone asked if we are fooling ourselves, ie we hold Appleseed events and we get great "numbers" but is it new people coming with our ranks swelling or is it just the same old faces coming out trying to get rifleman who will then disappear. Well, I've done a few events now ;-) and yes there are familiar faces but there are always new ones as well. The numbers this event were a little lower than we'd like but there were a good number of new faces, some of whom even made it both days! So no, I don't think we are fooling ourselves. But maybe we are getting a little too comfortable - turning up at an Appleseed, worried about no-one else coming, made you recruit hard. Now we have the "comfort" of "well there will always be the bunch of old hands."

So lets get "real." There is a target next April for holding 13 "simultaneous" on the same weekend AS events. There are not 13 Bob 210's. Ergo we need 13 redhats plus 15-20 orange hats. That's a lot of people to train. It was that realization that made me give up my personal quest to qualify with my M1A and say, I need to qualify full stop and start helping out with the training here! To hit our target we have to transition from one appleseed a week all run under the benevolent eye of Bob to multiple events per week with independent shoot bosses/teams pretty soon - its only 7 months away :-)

So lets hope those new faces turn into old hands and pretty soon into IIT's  and we need to step up the recruitment. I know, I'm just restating the obvious but hey when the penny drops it seems like a new one to me :-)

Cheers
Phil

[phoneprone]

yeah... we had a great time there once again! Yippie to be a "riflewoman"...though in talking with V it should just be rifleman to put up the equality in the paradox of what "equality" means to each individual and those that are "owned" by the language ...lol...
phone position as my prone seems to have worked well... now we all know not to kick my foot lol...
I had a great time listening to all the speakers and meeting new people who appreciate good morals and common sense voting...
hope to see you all soon
Layla

[Fred]

...so did a couple of other Riflemen!

     If the above, and the reference to "the green patch" (actually a "Rifleman" Qualification Badge), mean that "V" is now a Rifleman - well, it's time for some fireworks!

    Congratulations!

     And good thinking about looking ahead to the task in CA - if it's gonna work - and there's gonna be 13 AS in CA on 4/19/09 - then as you say, there's a lot of recruitin' and trainin' that's gonna have to take place...

[Cal 7.62]

What a great weekend. I was tired, my muscles ached, and I couldn't stay after and try out Mr. Bill's 50 AE! But I met some great people and improved in my shooting. Of course it would be for naught without "The Story" of 4/19/1775 to give us inspiration and purpose. ("take care of the children." ) Excellent job by all the instructors!  Congrats to all the Riflepeople! (how's that for PC ) I'm glad my neighbor Carey got to share in the AS expirence (even if he missed the 2nd day cause his back was sore) I'm pretty sure he'll be back for another AS. Looking forward to EARNING that "groovy little olive drab patch", IBC and putting on an orange hat. (then handing out PB&J sandwiches and kicking the feet of sleeping americans! ) Just gotta computer less and drypractice more 
I'm sure the founders would agree with this bible passage-

Hebrews 10:24-25 (KJV)

And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works:
Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.

[rock-chucker]

Three riflepeople?

Including you, V?

Outstanding!

Mr Bill the line boss?  So much for jet lag!

PHONE position?  Man, I got some catching up to do.  Congratulations, Layla (phoneprone)

So, with all these new riflemen with groovey little olive green patches, does that meen that next weekend's IBC will be just a little cozier?  I hope so!

Congratulations to all.  Great job!

R-C

PS Cal7.62...you're next!

[phoneprone]

lol... rifleperson just sounds strange, like having to identify that I'm a human (person) without gender... personally I don't care what I'm called riflewoman, person, or rifleman.... all mean the same thing: I made the grade boo-yah! lol
I'm happy, even happier thinking that I made it with the phone prone. I had a great time and look forward to the next time when I can witness someone else getting a patch. Little piece of fabric holds a lot of value.

[kool aid]

Geeze-
I guess I picked the wrong weekend to have the walking pnumonia and the boogie woogie flu.

Good thing the cavalry showed up.

V- knew it was gonna happen for you.

Mister Bill- all reports are of a job well done.

As for the rest of you guys-

SEE YOU AT THE IBC!

[Cal 7.62]

I almost forgot to congratulate all the new IIT's for a job well done and taking the 7th step.
Good job gentlemen!!!!!!

[LayloPro]

Wow!!
This was one of the "fun-ner" weekends at Piru.....How awesome is it when you have one of your "kids" smoke in a good Rifleman score (229)(with a 50 on stage 2!! ) making -all- the guys shooting walk down the target line to see how badly they had been out shot.....
by a soon-to-be school teacher!!  :-*

Then, to make sure he was able to ride home in the -front seat- of his own truck, her boyfriend managed to finally squeak out a 211 (with one -very- contested hole that was almost a deal breaker for 3 points!!) which not only satisfied the Rifleman score standard, but kept him 1 point away from taking the big orange ice water jug's content in a "shower"...... Nicely done, Alex!! Now find some non-metallic .30-'06, & you can shoot the Garand again!!

And to have V, our very own ex-pat Brit, finally decide the program needed him to move forward faster than his M1A was letting him, to score his very nice QDAQT for the one & only Saturday Rifleman score!! And then to show up again on Sunday, with his "new" orange hat on, ready to get going as an IIT! Instant on!! Welcome aboard, mate, we're more than glad to have you......
Honestly, I can't wait to hear you do the "1st strike of the match"!!

We had some new shooters here this weekend, one a neighbor of one of our more determined folks, a pair of fellows who didn't say much at first, but listened to what was being told, & watched their groups begin to shrink like magic, a fellow from up in the Bay Area who thought the drive was well worth the instruction found, & will be coming for more, after he sorts out some minor equipment/ammo issues.... and we can even start having AS's closer to him.... it's the direction we are going in ......

Roger & Andrew had a blast, we finally pried Roger away from his AK, & fitted him with an M1A....immediate group improvement....not to bash on rifles in particular, but some are just more accurate than others..... Andrew continues to show steady improvement, & really is on the road to making it happen.....soon!

Cal7.62 has been to several AS's.....we each have worked with him, and he continues to improve.....this is one of those guys who will not quit, and who wants to start with the orange hat, & work his way up from there......We're pulling for you dude!! Get 'er done!!

We were once again blessed by SonoftheRepublic being able to make it, wearing his orange hat....He called Saturdays' line like a pro, and we all benefited from his stabilizing demeanor & personality....

MrBill made it in Friday night from 3.5 weeks in Maylasia, taking care of business, & even being 13 hrs behind the sun in sleep pattern, handled the Admin desk, instructing, then calling the line on Sunday......and at the end, broke out his "young rifle" (a DE .50 AE) to see what some instructors' "minutes of flinch" looked like.....fun stuff! And yeah, we have pictures.....

Bob210 has been able to do more and more "observing" & "recommendations" for his IIT's.....the training wheels are off, & we had (as IIT's) far more say in how to run the COF, & at what speed....it worked for our line, & we got things moving along without rushing the shooters....I've felt that sometimes too many instructors might "overwhelm" the students, since everyone seems to have their own pace & agenda of how to show things to the students, but in typical "laid-back SoCal style", we got everyone to a point they were all personally happy with.....
At Sunday's benediction, Bob was sidetracked by two gents that Mike Thompson had sent up to "check it out"...not a prob, we took it over, made the awards, & I asked everyone there if they had "had a good time, & did they think the improvement in their shooting had been worth it" All affirmatives. "Had the history been worth it, as well as the Constitution reading?" Absolutely!! They all (even the ones who have heard it before) thought it added so much to the event, they couldn't see it being done without it.

Yeah....the history.....so many different ways it can be presented, but it still comes down to the story of how it got started & what the folks that were involved had done....showing that full strength of commitment & involvement......a guide for us to know when we're "doing enough"....."staying awake enough"...... "being American enough"......

OK, so that's pretty much it......I can't say it was fun enough, it was over too quickly.....time to come home & work thru another week of problems before going out for the IBC (with a few new workers now than last week!!). Bob, thanks for being a great inspiration for us, I know it's "embarrassing" to have accolades piled on you, but dude, you deserve what you are given, & a lot more!
It truly is an honor to serve beside you. 

All right, here's some pix for those who want to see what we did last weekend at our range......
Peace, with honor,
Laylopro

[SavageShootr]

CONGRATULATIONS V, LAYLA, and ALEX!!!!

Good job all back there in CA. It sounds like you had another fabulous AS.

~SS

[MrBill]

Congrats V, phoneprone, and Alex.  Excellent shooting!  Alex, glad you made it otherwise the ride home wouldn't have been pretty  .  Everyone note, phoneprone is the perfect name, and be sure to watch the foot action during magazine changes    Maybe a little unorthodox, but certainly effective.  Remember everyone: the proper peanut butter brand is Jiff to post high AQT scores.

It was a fantastic weekend, and while I felt like I was on a few seconds delay early Saturday, the rest went fairly smoothly.  Thanks to Bob for making everything work and all of your instruction, patience and unyielding dedication to making Appleseed a success.  Thanks Laylopro and Son of the Republic and everyone who attended for making a newbie IIT feel at home.  Being on the Instructing side is even more rewarding, and I think I learned as much this weekend as I had previously as an attendee.  Somehow teaching it makes it more real and incredibly satisfying watching shooters improve dramatically right before your eyes.  I can't encourage everyone enough to take on the orange hat after making Rifleman.  The good times are just beginning.

I hope to see all of you in San Louis Obispo in 2 weeks and all of the IITs at the IBC this weekend. 

And yes, I did really say "WITH 300 ROUNDS LOAD"     People were complaining that they left their Beta mags at home!

Cheers


Mr Bill

[CAB]

   Hi All
I had a great time Saturday at Piru, I woke up Sunday morning feeling like one of those 2X4s that ya find at the hardware store thats twisted and bent. But I'll be back. By the way this is Carey Cal7.62s neighbor (thanks Steve for getting me off my ass and going, for all your advise, and help), I learned a lot in that one day. I'd like to thank all the instructors and especially Cameron, who gave me a lot of extra advise on using my sling. So much that I took his home with me. Congrats to all who made Rifleman. V had to overcome the extra stress of being station right next to me. I only asked a couple of hundred questions or so, and I don't think my AR's muzzle blast bothered him one bit, or the times I kicked dirt on his shooting matt. Here are a few pics from Saturday. Hope I got the names right.



Son Of the Republic


Mr Bill


LawLowpro


Bob210


Target check


Bob210 at the ready


Piru range

   CAB

[Fred]

    Great pics, and thanks for posting them.

    I sure hope that SonoftheRepublic and Mr. Bill are NOT reading The Story - or any part of it.

    Where was Bob 210, if they were? (Which is what makes me think they were not, as Bob would have yanked those 'notes' out of their hands... )

    Nice shots of laylopro and Bob - neither referring to notes, nor reading anything.

    Boy, that Piru range really looks nice, doesn't it?

    Maybe at the Piru Dec AS, people can heat up by the fire in the barrel, as all those "notes" are being burned?

[Camljr]

Hey all,

first post here since FINALLY getting the access to the forum... I had a great first time under the orange hat on Saturday. Working the line was awesome, although kinda intimidating. Worth every minute though. I want to thank Bob for putting me in there working with the shooters. I also learned a few things from the other IIT's there, Ian, Mr. Bill, SOR, you all are a dedicated lot. I have much to learn from you all.

I am especially glad BOB210 put me on working with CAB... At first, I had tried to point out that he needed to work on a better sling hold, which was met with much resistance... I backed off, even after IAN had brought it to my attention again later, I told IAN that he wouldn't listen to me. Finally BOB saw the same thing I did and put me to work on his sling and work with him. I thought, GREAT, this is going to be fun!!!  I kept an open mind, and went at it.
first, had to get him to remove the AR sling, and use one of my Garand slings, (i had a black one so it matched his rifle) that made it easier to accept the change.

Worked out fine, when he saw his groups get a bit better, he was encouraged. Great.  He actually was a nice guy. Just goes to show you, not to judge a book by it's cover.

I wasn't able to attend Sunday, as I had a prior obligation (I know, the unspecific bow out, but I really did).

I also brought 2 people with me on Saturday, so I made the seventh step, which will be repeated often, Brought a good friend of mine, who in turn brought his 16 year old daughter. Her first time behind a rifle, and loved it, she is hooked and will promote Appleseed and the History she was fascinated with. She asked BOB210 if she could take a few of the "Freedom Booklets" with her to pass out in her high school. Said she was going to write a paper on April 19, 1775.

Great to have such enthusiasm for the history. Ah to be young again. I am still intrigued by the history myself. Went and bought a few books on the subject and am reading them now. I'm hooked.

Had a great time, and will be back. But after October 20th, as I am getting married for the first time on the 11th of October. we'll see how that works out.

But after that, I will be in there hot and heavy and want to attend a bootcamp to learn all I can to get going full force...

Oh, almost forgot, congrats to "V" and all others who made rifleman. It will be a pleasure to stand next to you on the line, and to stand with you all when the SHTF and we have to defend our freedoms.

Thanks to all...

Cameron

[bob 210]

Camljr, good to have you on board! You did a great job as an IIT and I hope to see you under that Orange Hat again, soon.....

[SavageShootr]

Hey CAB,

Welcome to the forum, Thanks for sharing the pics. It is nice to see Phoneprone getting her Rifleman patch from her dad.  Also to see V getting a California Rocker, Fabulous!! Good seeing Alex get his patch also.

~SS

[SavageShootr]

Hey Camljr.

Welcome to the forum.

Congratulations on stepping into the role of IIT. I am sure you will find it very rewarding. You will do very well as an Instructor with the program.

Congratulations on your upcoming wedding as well. We will see you and the Mrs. come out for more fun at the range in the future. Hmmm, I think it would be a nice destination honeymoon to get to an out of state AS. 

~SS

[Camljr]

Savage Shooter,

Thanks for the kind words...

As far as the appleseed honeymoon    thing ...

we'll just have to wait and spring that one on her at a later time .

Works for me, though...

I will be on my honeymoon :-* the weekend of the Piru, CA 18-19 October shoot.

But, I will be attending and working the November 15-16, shoot there...

Can't think of a better way to spend my birthday!!!

I will probably be working the December one also.

Again, Savage Shooter, Look forward to seeing you at one of those appleseeds, if possible.


Aim straight and true...

Cameron

[CAB]

    Great pics, and thanks for posting them.

    I sure hope that SonoftheRepublic and Mr. Bill are NOT reading The Story - or any part of it.

    Where was Bob 210, if they were? (Which is what makes me think they were not, as Bob would have yanked those 'notes' out of their hands... )

    Nice shots of laylopro and Bob - neither referring to notes, nor reading anything.

    Boy, that Piru range really looks nice, doesn't it?

    Maybe at the Piru Dec AS, people can heat up by the fire in the barrel, as all those "notes" are being burned?

    Thanks Fred
If I had practiced getting into position for the week before I went I would have been able to go on Sunday. But my back told me I didn't need to. Now If I had listened to your advise about doing that I would have been OK. I'll be ready next time in Nov. Will take pics again.....

   CAB

   

[CAB]

Hey all,

first post here since FINALLY getting the access to the forum... I had a great first time under the orange hat on Saturday. Working the line was awesome, although kinda intimidating. Worth every minute though. I want to thank Bob for putting me in there working with the shooters. I also learned a few things from the other IIT's there, Ian, Mr. Bill, SOR, you all are a dedicated lot. I have much to learn from you all.

I am especially glad BOB210 put me on working with CAB... At first, I had tried to point out that he needed to work on a better sling hold, which was met with much resistance... I backed off, even after IAN had brought it to my attention again later, I told IAN that he wouldn't listen to me. Finally BOB saw the same thing I did and put me to work on his sling and work with him. I thought, GREAT, this is going to be fun!!!  I kept an open mind, and went at it.
first, had to get him to remove the AR sling, and use one of my Garand slings, (i had a black one so it matched his rifle) that made it easier to accept the change.

Worked out fine, when he saw his groups get a bit better, he was encouraged. Great.  He actually was a nice guy. Just goes to show you, not to judge a book by it's cover.

I wasn't able to attend Sunday, as I had a prior obligation (I know, the unspecific bow out, but I really did).

I also brought 2 people with me on Saturday, so I made the seventh step, which will be repeated often, Brought a good friend of mine, who in turn brought his 16 year old daughter. Her first time behind a rifle, and loved it, she is hooked and will promote Appleseed and the History she was fascinated with. She asked BOB210 if she could take a few of the "Freedom Booklets" with her to pass out in her high school. Said she was going to write a paper on April 19, 1775.

Great to have such enthusiasm for the history. Ah to be young again. I am still intrigued by the history myself. Went and bought a few books on the subject and am reading them now. I'm hooked.

Had a great time, and will be back. But after October 20th, as I am getting married for the first time on the 11th of October. we'll see how that works out.

But after that, I will be in there hot and heavy and want to attend a bootcamp to learn all I can to get going full force...

Oh, almost forgot, congrats to "V" and all others who made rifleman. It will be a pleasure to stand next to you on the line, and to stand with you all when the SHTF and we have to defend our freedoms.

Thanks to all...

Cameron

   Sorry I was such a pain Cameron, and thanks for your help. I will see you at the Nov shoot. I'll be using your black sling of course. Thanks IAN (congrats on making Rifleman wish I had gotten a pic of the look on your face when you counted your score and knew you had made it), Bob210, and everyone else for your help as well.

  CAB

[LayloPro]

Hey CAB,

Good to have you out there in Sep., & we look forward to working with you again in Nov......Bring your camera, by all means, the more pix, the better!!

Actually, I got my Rifleman's patch on July 6, '08, the same day as MrBill......Kool Aid was the one scoring them, & he came over to tell me I had hit a 206.....I thought that was ok, (it was part of a steady improvement as I fought to control "the platform") but then he told me it was actually a 215, & I needed to stop screwing around shooting, & get busy instructing.... So yeah, two new orange hats that day.....
@ the Sep shoot, I was given the opportunity to award my daughter Layla (PhoneProne), Phil (V), & Alex (Lt Dang) their patches & rockers @ Sunday's benediction....waaaayyyy cool when your kids' hit the mark...... And THREE new orange hats that day!!

Don't worry too much about Cam, he was a bit "tough" himself when he first hit the Piru range.....guess who they gave him to?? 
I just asked him to show me his very best shooting on the first redcoat, then after that, to listen to what the target was telling him, with us (the instructors) "translating" for it......He agreed, & by his 3rd or 4th black square, he pulled out a 5 shot group of all touching holes......I thought he was gonna blind himself, he was grinning so big!! After that, he started really rock-n-rolling, & ended the day on the only AQT with a score in the high 230's, if I'm not mistaken. AWESOME job, and all because he decided to listen to his target.....

Next shoot he's there @ Piru as an Instructor, there's this guy there that's "kinda crusty" about what he likes & doesn't, and what he's gonna listen to, etc...... Sound kinda familiar??

So who knows, maybe someday after you shoot Rifleman, and accept the invitation to give some of that knowledge back in the form of instructions to other folks, you'll be kind of nervous about telling strangers how to shoot, different then what they've been doing for God knows how many years, and you'll look over the line @ Cam, & tell him....."Yep, it's one of "us"...." And you'll -both- know how to reach that person, because you've both "been there"....

And as we are all old enough to know, that gives you a perspective you can't get from a book......

Peace, out....
LLP

[CAB]

Hey CAB,

Good to have you out there in Sep., & we look forward to working with you again in Nov......Bring your camera, by all means, the more pix, the better!!

Actually, I got my Rifleman's patch on July 6, '08, the same day as MrBill......Kool Aid was the one scoring them, & he came over to tell me I had hit a 206.....I thought that was ok, (it was part of a steady improvement as I fought to control "the platform") but then he told me it was actually a 215, & I needed to stop screwing around shooting, & get busy instructing.... So yeah, two new orange hats that day.....
@ the Sep shoot, I was given the opportunity to award my daughter Layla (PhoneProne), Phil (V), & Alex (Lt Dang) their patches & rockers @ Sunday's benediction....waaaayyyy cool when your kids' hit the mark...... And THREE new orange hats that day!!

Don't worry too much about Cam, he was a bit "tough" himself when he first hit the Piru range.....guess who they gave him to?? 
I just asked him to show me his very best shooting on the first redcoat, then after that, to listen to what the target was telling him, with us (the instructors) "translating" for it......He agreed, & by his 3rd or 4th black square, he pulled out a 5 shot group of all touching holes......I thought he was gonna blind himself, he was grinning so big!! After that, he started really rock-n-rolling, & ended the day on the only AQT with a score in the high 230's, if I'm not mistaken. AWESOME job, and all because he decided to listen to his target.....

Next shoot he's there @ Piru as an Instructor, there's this guy there that's "kinda crusty" about what he likes & doesn't, and what he's gonna listen to, etc...... Sound kinda familiar??

So who knows, maybe someday after you shoot Rifleman, and accept the invitation to give some of that knowledge back in the form of instructions to other folks, you'll be kind of nervous about telling strangers how to shoot, different then what they've been doing for God knows how many years, and you'll look over the line @ Cam, & tell him....."Yep, it's one of "us"...." And you'll -both- know how to reach that person, because you've both "been there"....

And as we are all old enough to know, that gives you a perspective you can't get from a book......

Peace, out....
LLP

      I thought V's name was Ian, thats who I was talking about.......oopppppsssss. See ya Saturday.......Well I have been shooting since I was about 7 years old, but this isn't deer hunting.

      CAB