Albquerque, NM AAR - October 17th & 18th, 2026

[desert_diver]

12 shooters arrived at the City of Albuquerque Shooting Range Park early on a brisk October morning to learn our history and the fundamentals of practical rifle marksmanship.  We started off with the 1st Strike by Mrs. Smith, then completed the safety briefing, then shot the Hits Count! target.  The first block of instruction was broken up with drills at the firing line.  The first square showed several rifles needed large sight adjustments.  Groups shrank steadily throughout the morning.  Yrissari_Blacksmith delivered the 2nd strike.  After I-M-C, a few more squares targets refined the sight corrections.  Challenges were added - magazine changes, transitions, and time limits.  The day ended with another Hits Count! target, the 3rd strike by Desert_Diver, and a Benediction.

Sunday was warmer, but less sunny.  We reviewed the prone position and the safety material, then shot the Hits Count! target.  The sitting & standing positions were taught on Sunday morning.  After a few AQTs, we broke for lunch & KD instruction.  October is the 249th anniversary month of the battles around Saratoga so the story of Daniel Morgan & Timothy Murphy was told in a bit more detail than usual.  The shooting ended with two additional AQTs, a Parker's Revenge challenge, and the Hits Count! target.  The Parker's Revenge teams were evenly matched - all teams were within 7 points.  Henrik cleaned the Hits Count! target - great effort.  3 shooters shot 210 or higher - Henrik, Brenton, and Brandon.  It was particularly gratifying to see several youth shooters who have attended multiple 25 m events make substantial progress toward a Rifleman score.  We closed the event with a call to action - vote in the upcoming elections and take the time to contact your elected representatives.

The weather co-operated - both days were calm, with ideal shooting conditions

Photos:
It's cold on Saturday:

Shooters & Cadres on Sunday:

Instruction put to use: