AAR San Antonio, TX March 11,12 2022

[GenX Minuteman]

   This event was certainly one for the memory banks, in more ways than one!!!  We started out a week prior to the event with a sold-out roster numbering 12 students.  As the week progressed and the weather forecast began to bring news of humbling conditions, the roster began to drop quickly.  By Friday morning there were only five brave souls willing to face the cold winds (now please, no laughing by our non-Texan Appleseeders, the temp was 40°F but the wind was a non-stop 20-25 mph).  Luckily, we were also graced with an additional three walk-on shooters making our early morning ranks a total of eight.

   As we proceeded through our instruction, we did our best to get shooters on the firing line quickly and keep people moving to fend of the cold, but Mother Nature could not be ignored so easily.  Sadly after only three sighting-squares worth of shooting at the 25m Drill Target we had five shooters tap-out.  This left only the three walk-on shooters to face the weather and receive the remainder of the day's instruction.  The three remaining shooters took advantage of the intensified instruction and powered through.  We continued on with additional instruction and practice throughout the day, but decided to forego a chance at a Friday-AQT in an effort to wrap things up early.  There would be plenty of opportunities the following day for AQTs so a general consensus was made to minimize the chance of pneumonia and wrap Friday up sooner, rather than later, hahahahaha. 
   
   Saturday was an excellent example how small changes matter greatly.  Same 40°F temperature as Fiday, but the sun was shining and zero wind!  We proceeded to verify sighting system zeros and get started with AQTs.  Luckily, we were able to add one more walk-on for the AQT grind so this helped spread the glaring eyes of our Instructors on a few more students.  With an already impressive skill set, Matt was able to couple this with Appleseed teaching to put up a very respectable first time AQT score of 204!!!  John had been to a few Appleseed events prior to this and was easily in the high 190s out of the gate.  Mike, who had also been to an event prior to this was doing well with scores in the low 190s.  Jeff, our Saturday walk-on, had been to a number of events as well but was having some difficulty with his rifle which still needed to be worked through.

    The best thing about having such a small group of students is the opportunity to slow down and help students with particular issues.  It was wonderful to see how all of these students progressed in their skill with each successive AQT.  John and Mike made it very clear to Matt, their travel mate and first time Appleseeder, that if he made Rifleman then he would be taking an Uber back home to the Dallas area, hahahahahahahaha!  The continual ribbing and jokes made this event a blast!!! 
   As fate would have it, Matt would not have to worry about finding an alternate ride home this day.  He continued to progress, but fatigue and other factors prevented him from achieving a Rifleman score.  It was not until the final Red Coat target of the day we learned why his scores kept slipping.  His scope rings had loosened up due to the cold temperatures and by the time he took his final shot of the day, the scope was able to spin freely in the rings!!!  Certainly hate to see this, but Matt will hopefully come back and knock out a 210+ without a problem.

   Mike and Jeff both continued to work on small technique improvements throughout the day.  Both of these guys did an excellent job of breaking previously established bad habits and applying Appleseed teaching.  Mike was making stunning progress and improvements using his $20 1960's era Ruger 10/22.  Just goes to show, it is not the equipment which makes a great shooter.  It is a great shooter who can make the equipment perform as it should!  Way to go Mike!  With continued practice, that Rifleman patch is well within your grasp!  Jeff faced a few equipment related issues which could not be addressed easily.  He set aside his rifle and began using a loaner 10/22.  He quickly adapted to the new platform and was making progress in short order.  While cycling through AQTs, Jeff was able to apply newly practiced skills and improve his scores, but the transition to a new platform came too late in the day for him to achieve a Rifleman's score.

   Our final student of the group, John, had attended a number of Appleseed events and commented how frustrating it was for him to never quite reach the 210 point mark.  Try as he might, he said he was always a few points shy.  John continued to crank through AQT after AQT with a Stage 1 performance which would make any High-Power competitor cry!!!  His standing Stage 1 groups kept getting smaller and smaller after each AQT!!!  Random issues on Stages 2 and 3 kept plaguing his chances for a Rifleman patch.  When his Stages 2 and 3 were doing well, there would be a momentary drop in performance on Stage 4 making that 210 an elusive achievement.  Luckily, our expert group of Instructors was able to help John identify a few technique improvements he could take advantage of.  He took the advice to heart and on the final AQT of the weekend, he scored a 212!!!!!!!!!  The stars aligned, the planets all synced up and John's amazing Stage 1 was equally matched with a great Stage 2, 3 and 4!!!  Way to go sir!!!!  We were all overly proud to see your persistence pay off!  This is what we, as Instructors, thrive to see.
   
   We wrapped things up with a solemn discussion of Freedom and Sacrifice before shooting the Final Red Coat of the weekend.  There was clearly a fair amount of improvement in all of the student's performance, which was great to see.  Matt was well on his way to cleaning the Red Coat target, despite a loose scope, until it full lost zero!!!!!  As was said earlier, sometimes the small things matter.  The one vote you may cast, just might change the world! 

Always vote for Freedom!
Chad Stovell - GenX Minuteman

[GenX Minuteman]

[JustKim]

NIce!!