SpiralTragedy
Plinker
[FONT="]“We do this for posterity” is how Mudcat (Greg Harris) ended my first Appleseed event.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]Mudcat told me about Appleseed after a Combat Focus Shooting course I was teaching and invited me to attend. Appleseed is a rifle marksmanship course sponsored by the Revolutionary War Veterans Administration. The course covered the same rifle marksmanship used by the Marine Corps and some of the history of April 19, 1775. The history was very surprising to me as I had never been exposed to many of the details (neither in high school nor college) that the instructors shared with us throughout the two day course. I learned when the war actually started; who played pivotal roles and whose seemingly simple decisions shaped the things to come. One of the more surprising things for me personally was that an old cantankerous man of mixed ethnicity had a house and lived among the colonist and when the time came he took action. It’s funny what you never consider.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]When all is said and done though, this was a shooting course. Rifles of all types were represented. I used an AR-15 built by XDman (Greg Harris 2). We were taught the 6 Steps, how to use the sling , Natural Point of Aim (NPOA), Minute of Angle and the different shooting positions. I began to learn how to interpret my target for errors in my fundamentals and probably more than I can think of at this moment.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]It was very different than what I had been doing recently. I struggled a lot in the beginning with NPOA, breathing rhythm and trigger reset. But after awhile it all became very Zen. At one point I shot a very tight five round group. The problem was that I was supposed to shoot two five round groups. As Mudcat looked at my target a big smile came across his face. He said, “I know what you did here. You went for accuracy. What’s that thing you teach….The Balance of Speed and Precision.” So as we both laughed, I had to start giving up some accuracy to finish the course of fire. That concept was brought out a couple times to others in class which really illustrates how much personal attention each student was receiving during this instruction. There were even times when the instructors would lay down next to you and watch you shoot & offer guidance. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]In addition to Mudcat, the course was instructed by XDman (Greg Harris 2), Redfox24 (Kelly), MtnHickorynut (James), Hawkhaven (Ed) and Biogranny (Donna). All of them were top notch. They were friendly, approachable and eager to make sure everyone from the youngest to the oldest was learning and improving. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]They kept the pace of the instruction moving so you were not dwelling on past mistakes and then accelerated the pace so you would just shoot. Fundamentals started to fall into place and focus was placed where it was most needed. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]My best score was 195. I was just 15 away from the illusive Rifleman patch. That is the goal of Appleseed, to bring the Rifleman back to a nation that is not learning its own history. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]This not for profit instruction honors men who sacrificed for a future they would never see. They created generations of free citizens who live without ever having to resort to violence to effect change. What a great reminder to write your politicians and get up and vote for whatever you believe. Could marksmanship be the new old civic duty?[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]In two days, about 15 of us went through 400 rounds each. My average was in the 170s so I still have a ways to go. But even if I had made Rifleman you will still see me at upcoming Appleseed events. I am learning what I am about. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]Mudcat told me about Appleseed after a Combat Focus Shooting course I was teaching and invited me to attend. Appleseed is a rifle marksmanship course sponsored by the Revolutionary War Veterans Administration. The course covered the same rifle marksmanship used by the Marine Corps and some of the history of April 19, 1775. The history was very surprising to me as I had never been exposed to many of the details (neither in high school nor college) that the instructors shared with us throughout the two day course. I learned when the war actually started; who played pivotal roles and whose seemingly simple decisions shaped the things to come. One of the more surprising things for me personally was that an old cantankerous man of mixed ethnicity had a house and lived among the colonist and when the time came he took action. It’s funny what you never consider.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]When all is said and done though, this was a shooting course. Rifles of all types were represented. I used an AR-15 built by XDman (Greg Harris 2). We were taught the 6 Steps, how to use the sling , Natural Point of Aim (NPOA), Minute of Angle and the different shooting positions. I began to learn how to interpret my target for errors in my fundamentals and probably more than I can think of at this moment.[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]It was very different than what I had been doing recently. I struggled a lot in the beginning with NPOA, breathing rhythm and trigger reset. But after awhile it all became very Zen. At one point I shot a very tight five round group. The problem was that I was supposed to shoot two five round groups. As Mudcat looked at my target a big smile came across his face. He said, “I know what you did here. You went for accuracy. What’s that thing you teach….The Balance of Speed and Precision.” So as we both laughed, I had to start giving up some accuracy to finish the course of fire. That concept was brought out a couple times to others in class which really illustrates how much personal attention each student was receiving during this instruction. There were even times when the instructors would lay down next to you and watch you shoot & offer guidance. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]In addition to Mudcat, the course was instructed by XDman (Greg Harris 2), Redfox24 (Kelly), MtnHickorynut (James), Hawkhaven (Ed) and Biogranny (Donna). All of them were top notch. They were friendly, approachable and eager to make sure everyone from the youngest to the oldest was learning and improving. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]They kept the pace of the instruction moving so you were not dwelling on past mistakes and then accelerated the pace so you would just shoot. Fundamentals started to fall into place and focus was placed where it was most needed. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]My best score was 195. I was just 15 away from the illusive Rifleman patch. That is the goal of Appleseed, to bring the Rifleman back to a nation that is not learning its own history. [/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]This not for profit instruction honors men who sacrificed for a future they would never see. They created generations of free citizens who live without ever having to resort to violence to effect change. What a great reminder to write your politicians and get up and vote for whatever you believe. Could marksmanship be the new old civic duty?[/FONT]
[FONT="] [/FONT]
[FONT="]In two days, about 15 of us went through 400 rounds each. My average was in the 170s so I still have a ways to go. But even if I had made Rifleman you will still see me at upcoming Appleseed events. I am learning what I am about. [/FONT]
