Appleseed Shoot

Discussion in 'Firearms' started by NVBeav, Mar 19, 2007.


  1. NVBeav

    NVBeav Monkey+++

    I was able to spend all day Saturday at an Appleseed Shoot that was held near Fallon, Nevada (I was hoping to spend the weekend). It was probably the funnest and most worthwhile Saturday I can ever remember having (except that one Saturday I got married :^).

    Here is an exerpt from RWVA.org describing what they're about:
    Following is a short summary of what you can expect to learn. By the end of the day you get these drilled into your head and you can't forget them...
    • Safety
    • The six steps to firing a shot
    • NPOA (Natural Point of Aim)
    • Inches, minutes, and clicks
    This is by no means complete because you learn a huge amount of stuff!

    You know that sling that always gets in your way when you're trying to shoot?... Learning to use it will make an incredible improvement in your shooting -- I used to think it was for carrying your rifle.

    The instructors were incredibly knowledgeable and eager to teach you everything they could. There was no yelling or screaming -- everyone was shown respect. They were a great group of people.

    If you can't tell already, I highly recommend going to one of these events -- you meet some great people and get to learn a huge amount. A paltry $70 for two days of training isn't going to get any one of the instructors rich; their mission is just what they say it is: "Teach people basic marksmanship with military style rifles, and enable students to pass it on."

    One of the instructors keeps in contact with a couple Marines that attended the Yakima event -- they said that in all their training, they were never taught some of the basic knowledge learned in day one.

    As soon as I'm able, I'll attend both days of training instead of only day one -- I'm really anxious to learn what I missed on day 2.

    My recommendation: Go whether you're a novice or just trying to get those last few points to attain Rifleman. Even if you're already a Marksman you'll enjoy the camaraderie with a great group of men and women.

    I can't wait to go shooting again, and I'm going to drag my wife and all my friends with me!

    Event calendar: http://www.rwva.org/yabbse/index.php?topic=1385.0
    RWVA Forum: http://www.rwva.org/yabbse/index.php?board=45.0
     
  2. Blackjack

    Blackjack Monkey+++

    I love the idea of these.
     
  3. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

    Awesome. First I have heard of them.
    I'll have to look into this and pass it along to others

    Thanks!
     
  4. NVBeav

    NVBeav Monkey+++

    It was simply a fantastic weekend -- I've GOT to go again soon. I'll try dragging my wife to one in Idaho or Oregon this summer. In the mean time, I'll be practicing everything they taught me.

    The biggest mistake I made was not bringing elbow pads! My elbows were like hamburger when I finished on Saturday. My muscles were pretty sore too...
     
  5. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    I think maybe I'll go this coming weekend, at least one day. This session is in Chesterfield, VA, just south of Richmond.
     
  6. NVBeav

    NVBeav Monkey+++

    Be sure to bring elbow pads... also, a tarp is great to bring, but bring a shooting mat or rug remnants to cozy up in the prone position with. My elbows were pretty well bummed for several days.

    Make sure you have a rifle sling; there were a couple types people had. Mine worked well being a heavy canvas-like material. I'm not sure how well the leather slings worked.

    For Saturday only, I shot just under 200 rounds of ammo. I went through 3 quarts of water and could have finished more if I'd had it handy. Light snacks are very helpful.

    Have a great time!
     
  7. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Also take a beach chair, you'll be glad you did.

    Start limbering up exercises a couple weeks ahead. 3 position shooting can make you stiff. Loose, you need to be. Strength, you don't (as long as you can hold the piece up long enough to run a string of 10 rapid fire.)

    You probably won't need a spotting scope, you get to check the targets more often than you want, it is a humbling experience. (Not to mention what this all can do to knees and elbows on solid ground with stones, up and down rather frequently.)

    Went to the one in Chesterfield today. About 40 shooters and 5 instructors. Started at 9AM with a short history lesson, broke for lunch for an hour, then back at it till 6. I decided that one day was quite enough, they did keep us busy (not to mention forecast rain.) There was really not enough time for any sort of socializing, but found that about half had service time. Oddly enough, not many of them qualified rifleman on the AQT (including me.) They drilled a lot of info on the basics into us in short order. One thing that did not overly thrill me is that everything was done in rapid fire, very little time to concentrate on what they most recently told us. Had there been some slow fire, or free time shooting (read as practice) I think a lot of us, me in particular, could have ironed out some kinks. At any rate, I went thru just under 200 rounds. Bring your own, of course.

    As it happened, the property owner had a monster grill set up, and had food available for short money at lunch time. Porta potties on site, no running water.

    This one was shot on private property. The owner is a dirt moving contractor, and had a berm more than suitable set up. We shot at 25 meters, but they say the second day that they would move back. There is space there for a real 300 meter range. Nice.
     
  8. NVBeav

    NVBeav Monkey+++

    Hey, fellow Appleseeder! Glad you made it through! Next Appleseed shoot, I'll have a big ol' rug remnant and (maybe) a shooting (staight) jacket :^)

    The "rapid fire" was pretty good training for me; left to my own ways I'd probably take way too long.

    About 4pm I was tired, sore, hungry, sore, mentally wasted, sore, etc. -- the "six steps" were the last thing I wanted to think about. When I realized my accuracy was falling by the wayside, I took the "six-step" printout and started reading it over and over forcing myself to concentrate. It helped a lot, but I was still a long way from AQT -- it'll be a long time before I forget!

    I got a 169, but I could see improving quite a bit the next time (that could be my prideful lunacy speaking[beat] ) I came away pleased with my old Yugo SKS; the 7.62x39 is pretty inexpensive and it's good to train with... low recoil, fairly accurate, handled the Nevada dust well. I also came away with a healthy respect for the whole Appleseed program and the people associated with it.

    Surviving all the way to day 2 is my next goal [violin] It's pretty rough for an out of shape, keyboard pusher like me who does curls with a coffee mug...
     
  9. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Worth the note, I guess, one guy had some old Wolf .223 with the laquer coat. Nothing but troubles with his AR. The AK guys had some as well, and ran faultlessly for them. I used polymer Wolf in my Fulton carbine, ran perfectly. Also, one thing for future Appleseed shooters, sight in ahead of time for 25 meters, your scores will be MUCH better than mine. I had to take the time to meddle with them a bit, was sighted for 100 feet when I got there, and it showed up real quick. My meddling did NOT improve things, I'da (for SURE) done better with Canituck windage.
     
  10. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    Ok, I will say it, "Thank you Master Yoda!"

    :rolleyes:
     
  11. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    [fnny]You're welcome. (I wasn't expecting it, tho'--)[LMAO][touchdown]
     
  12. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

    Sounds like a great time.
    Thanks for the graphic explanations and reviews.
    I need to find one and go do it.
     
  13. melbo

    melbo Hunter Gatherer Administrator Founding Member

    Is "Fred" of fred's M14 stocks behind this program? Sounds like something he would come up with. I love it. competition with like minded that cannot be construed as paramilitary militia-esque activity.
    I'd be willing to try and get some of these started around me.

    RWVA has hundreds of threads on this Appleseed
    Really good stuff here: http://www.rwva.org/yabbse/index.php?board=47.0
     
  14. NVBeav

    NVBeav Monkey+++

    Yippers! He's a straight-shooter in more ways than one... He tells it like it is when he critiques your target :^) No excuses -- I overheard a mild put-in-your-place for someone making youthful excuses.
     
  15. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    Dunno if it's the same Fred of stock fame, but I wouldn't doubt it. He does a lot of writing in SGN. History buff.
     
  16. Clyde

    Clyde Jet Set Tourer Administrator Founding Member

    it is the same "Fred". I purchased his shooting manual and targets right off of his site.
     
  17. ghrit

    ghrit Bad company Administrator Founding Member

    That'll be him.
     
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