Myakka City Feb. 21 & 22

[RickB]

Since no one else has chimed in I'll start this topic.
We had a very interesting Appleseed shoot on the machine gun range of the Manatee Gun and Archery club.  Our host club was gracious as always.  Our club ROs were Mark and his son Howard.  They have become Appleseed regulars.  Howard informed me that he will be at the next Appleseed shoot--not as an RO but as an attendee!
The weather was very nice: A chilly 45 to 55 in the early morning rising to the mid 70s in the afternoons.  Clear and sunny both days.  The humidity was very low (for Florida).  Less than 40%.  That led to problems later.

Two shooters made rifleman on Saturday--a very good thing as it turned out.

Sunday started out smoothly.  Two walk-ons were added to the group.  Our reviews were top-notch (thanks to Thor and TnTimberWright).  In the early afternoon we shot one AQT.  Everything was moving along with a couple of people right on the edge of rifleman (one was a 209).  Then the smoke started rising to the east.  A brush fire had started on the Bench rest range two berms away.  The smoke cloud got blacker and wider.

The ROs asked us to cease fire till we got word on what was going on.  PHenry did "Dangerous Old Men and Brave Women."  ItsAnSKS (our state coordinator) did an impromptu promo.  We cleared the line of all ammo and mags and put he shooters into dry fire practice--instructors engaging closely and giving excellent one-on-one instruction in sling use and building the different positions.
 
After 45 minutes (or so) the word came--the fire department was closing down the whole range for the rest of the day. What a disappointment!
The attendees were cheerful about the whole thing and expressed their gratitude to all of us.  After PHenry's "benediction" quite a few stayed to help us tear down the line.  They were a great group of shooters!
RickB

[PHenry]

Fire! No, really a FIRE!

On a chilly and breezy morning in February, in a little town in FL., 20 Americans gathered to practice traditions that were born hundreds of years prior.

With the target line assembled and a brand new POI in hand, six volunteer instructors set about the task of re-acquainting their fellow "ordinary" Americans with their extraordinary heritage.

All of the eager attendees were on time and we were off to a great start. Some welcome "repeat offenders" - Brian, Jacqui, Chuck, Zach, and one or two others whose names I have "misplaced" mentally (please forgive me). Also some new welcome faces - James and Anita, Raul, Rob, George, Paul, Chuck P, Laura (do instructor's wives count - you bet they do!), Eric, George, Brett and Chance, Frank, Larry and several others.

After a through safety briefing and a rousing First Strike by Thor to the sound of Fife and Drum, the first shots went down range at 10:AM. The smell of powder in the crisp morning air is one of the simple pleasures in life for sure! It never fails to recharge my soul.

The results of the Redcoat targets, while better than some events, still showed the need for much hard work. And work we did, right down to 12 year old Chance, who displayed the grit of his Forefathers - persisting with a very teachable attitude. Always a pleasure to see a well-behaved and attentive young person at an event.

Much instruction and shooting followed the Redcoats, from proper position to the six steps, and then more shooting - the prep periods getting shorter and shorter as the shooters got used to the "drill". On to transitions and standing position, and more shooting as Lady Liberty smiled down upon her chosen people.

By 3:55 EST, the shooters were finally looking down their sights at the storied Army Qualification Target that was to seperate the Riflemen from the cooks. Each shooter eager to prove themselves worthy of their ancestry. From the newest shooter to the "veterans" of that time-honored tradition - the AQT is a harsh judge, demanding strict adherence to the basics of marksmanship.

This is where the shooters are forced to see the hard truth of it - that "widgets" don't make the grade. That a rack-grade rifle with standard iron sights can out-shoot the finest "match" rifle when a Rifleman is on the trigger. When the bullet hits the paper - it's all about the basics - you either know them and employ them, or you miss the mark. All the "gingerbread" in the world won't help a bit if you don't shoot by the numbers - all of them. The only mandatory accessory is a good web sling!

As I wear glasses myself, and now suffer from both far-sightedness and near-sightedness, I fully understand the desire for optics. However, we all must accept the limitations thereof. A scope merely magnifies the target - it will never release the shooter from the basics of firing the shot. The shooter who relies upon hardware to improve his aim will always be disappointed, and worse, often tends to ignore the points of instruction that would improve his / her shooting.

By late Saturday PM, two Rifleman were revealed for all to see, and after shooting the closing Redcoat, two of those coveted patches were awarded during a brief "ceremony". One of the recips was unaware that he had "banged the gong" and was clearly jubilant. My red hat is off to both of you - Brian and Chuck!

We also had one more ceremony to perform - Thor having acquitted himself with much distinction to date and and having delivered his own personal version of the First Strike, received his red hat to the applause of all in attendance, including his charming bride. Congrats Thor and many thanks for all of your hard work and long hours at the wheel. You are a fine addition to the team and may consider yourself most welcome at any event I am ever involved with.

As the sun sank low in the sky, all of the attendees made their rifles safe and stowed them in their respective vehicles. Everyone then worked hard to leave the range cleaner than we found it - an Appleseeds tradition.

Sunday was a bit warmer and we were afforded two walk-on shooters. One was Neil who has attended previously and in the proper AS tradition, he of course brought a friend who had never been before. Way to go Neil!

Despite sore muscles, the shooter's performance on the Redcoats showed proof of their persistence and teachable attitudes. We moved quickly thru a review of the basics from Saturday and were soon practicing transitions and mag changes again, in prep for more AQTs.

Ball and Dummy was a real eye-opener - literally! Chance had a blink that just wouldn't quit - not even when he was coaching his dad! I know he will persist until he beats it = remember little buddy - dry fire is King! Just get your dad to supervise you with a safe rifle and spend some time at home doing, well, doing your homework - the kind Lady Liberty assigns!

After a quick lunch all were regailed with more tales of bravery and sacrifice by thems that came before us. Thanks to Eric, our State Coordinator and also an instructor in training, I was finally afforded a video of my history presentation for the first time. Now I know that I talk waaay too fast! I promise to work on this until I can deliver the history with the somber cadence and fire that it deserves. I was cringing when I saw the tape. 

Owing to their great attitudes and hard work, the shooters made it to their first AQT of the day by 1:15PM! That is a record for any event I where I have served if I am not in error - way to go shooters! This afforded them them plenty of time to get four more in by day's end (or at least it should have).

With the first AQT, the shooters were sent down range between all stages, but for the second, we just cleared the line and went directly into prep period - full steam ahead - to heck with the torpedoes!

And then we saw the smoke, yes smoke, coming from the public line a few hundred yards to our east. A fire of unknown origin (possibly from a tracer round which are of course forbidden) raged, sending flames 25 feet or more into the air! The wind had been blowing toward the west, but for some reason it shifted to east / north east about the time the fire started???

We spotted some range personnel on top of the berms well to our east, so for safety sake, we ceased all firing until they left the berms. One of the club's ROs, who was assigned to us walked up on the side berm to keep an eye out so that we could resume shooting the AQT - many thanks Mark!

Just as we finished the second AQT, what began as a brush fire soon began to spread over the dry ground cover and it were decided that the local FD should be called in. The careful Firemen combed the entire area looking for and putting out fires. As they are, like any other sane human beings, "shy" about being on the "south" end of HP rifle, they requested that we cease all firing until they were finished.

We dry fired until we could dry fire no more. We listened to quotes from likes of Patrick Henry, Sam Adams, George Washington, and John Adams. We engaged in spirited conversations. We improvised, adapted and overcame as best we could.

All of the shooters waited patiently for the "all clear", but alas, it never came. The fire had been extensive and left many areas smoldering all over the range property. As Appleseeders are some of the finest people to ever draw a breath - there weren't a disparaging word to be heard - merely inquires as to when the next event would be held and where. All present displayed the patients of Job and it were an honor to spend a weekend with each of you.

I know for me at least - this was a first. I always hope to be "keen on setting the brushfires of Freedom in the minds of men", but I never figured an event would be stopped from a real brushfire! I will have to run this past Fred himself to see if such a thing has ever happened before.

All in all, it was still a great event, with great people and I wouldn't have traded it for the world. My heartfelt thanks to all of the shooters and to my fellow instructors - a better bunch of people to spend a weekend with would be hard to find.

For Liberty,
PHenry

[ItsanSKS]

For me, this event really cemented the concept of "you meet the best people at an Appleseed" 
I'd heard this a few times before, and my experience with the people I've met through AS events had given this some credence..  But when the course of instruction is shut-down, hours ahead of schedule, due to a fire, and not one person asked for a refund, or a complimentary entry to the next AS, I was surprised.  I shouldn't have been, but I was surprised.    You really do meet the best people at an Appleseed.  Any other event, and people would've demanded refunds.  Any other group of people would have evacuated at the first sign of smoke. 


Thank you, Appleseed Attendees, for rekindling my faith in the American populace.   

[PHenry]

ItsanSKS,
Ya know - that's an excellent point. I am so unaccustomed to the "Appleseeds effect" that I took it for granted that nobody would want a refund.

My bad for sure - one should never take such things for granted.

Thanks for pointing that out to me!

PH

[DragonWood]

It sounds like you guys had a great AS!

Next time though, you can do without the fires to make sure YOUR AS stands out above the rest!

Congrats to Thor on your Red Hat!

Sorry I wasn't able to attend, hope to be back in FL soon.

Keep up the great work!!

DW