Why not?

[josterman]

I did not know or heard of the Appleseed until I joined ingo.

 

[Bill of Rights]

link me to what it is?

Sure thing! Appleseed Project Home We're an American heritage organization with one heck of a rifle marksmanship clinic. Our goals are to have Americans who know the real story of how we came to be a country and the importance of marksmanship in making it happen. April 19, 1775- When marksmanship met history and the heritage was born.

I don't own a rifle - yet.

Appleseeds sound like a blast! I hope to attend one day, but not just yet.

Don't let lack of a rifle stop you. The Appleseed organizers will hook you up with a loaner if you let them know in advance. Just get to an event!

True! Every shoot I work, I can guarantee at least two extra rifles will be there, though one or both might already be promised for use. As do many of the instructors, I also carry extra slings and such for people to use (no charge) and am willing to sell them at my cost (I'm not making any profits, but I can't afford to supply everyone out of my own pockets either.)

I just signed up for an Appleseed in Clinton IL and taking my father for a birthday suprise and my son to make it a 3 generation event! really excited! this will be a first one for all 3 of us.

Great! That's always cool when we have families show up together. One family out in Idaho, both parents are instructors as are both daughters (I want to say there are other family members as well. The daughters are also working on the website as administrators. There's a family in Ohio that's almost as involved as the one in Idaho, too.

Id just like to go for the talking points, etc. Don't really want to pay to hear.

Wow... I don't know what to tell you. I mean, nothing worthwhile is completely free, y'know? If you are a woman or are under age 21, or if you are active military (active duty, Guard or Reserve) you may attend without charge. We who staff the shoots are all volunteers; no one in this program is making any money on it. I am saddened to say that I'm reminded of a portion of a speech by Mr. Samuel Adams: "...If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that ye were our countrymen."
- speech at the Philadelphia State House, August 1, 1776

I don't quote the above to insult or demean you. Rather, I say come. Show us your skill and your knowledge. You may learn something you do not know, or a new application of something you do know. In the unlikely event that we have nothing to teach you and you shoot so well and are so well-versed in the history as to gain nothing from us, you are who we need helping us do this thing. I have found among the instructors and other volunteers friends... Americans with a love of our country and of liberty unmatched elsewhere. I would be very pleased to add more to that number.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[Joe Williams]

Other: Course of fire seems an awful lot like the AFQC if I understand it correctly. Frankly, I've shot a lot of them, and don't think I'd feel particularly challenged.

Not to mention, I don't seem able to make plans to be able to pick my nose lately much less attend a two day affair without drama from work interfering. I'm just a tad grouchy about that at the moment.

 

[stilllearning09]

I've signed up for a mini in September. Giving up an entire weekend is difficult to do.

 

[Bill of Rights]

I went to one on a Saturday. Don't know if it was a "full" one or not. Frankly, it was pretty basic. Fun, but basic. Nice folks. I went primarily so my daughter could have the experience. And yeah, it was HOT. My family isn't available for such activities on Sundays.

"Full" Appleseeds are Saturday and Sunday. We do all of our instruction on Saturday and save Sunday for polishing those skills. We do a LOT of shooting on Sunday. Were you, by chance, at MCF&G earlier this month? That sure was a hot day, wasn't it? As for Sundays, I understand (I think..) We have at least one instructor who is also the pastor of his church and cannot attend Sundays; For that matter, I've not been to a Sunday portion of a shoot in many months, but I love getting out on Saturdays and helping instruct. It is such a joy to see the light bulb come on as people begin to understand what it's all about. (It's fun watching them learn to shoot better, too!)

I work 7 days a week and can not afford any time off.

Wow, that's a rough schedule. Hopefully, you'll get some vacation time and can find a way to fit us into your busy life.

Just got a rifle, I want to attend but I'm disabled and can't really get down on the ground, I want to do a mini first because I don't think I could do 2 days right now

The organizers have a habit of bending over backwards to accommodate any special needs anyone has. If you can't get on the ground, don't let that stop you from attending! They just want you out there.

We've had shooters out that had some pretty tough challenges. Some of our fellow INGOers have had similar issues, but I'll let them tell you their experiences themselves. In the meantime... Consider this young lady, now one of our Ohio instructors:

I needed to get BACK to one, but my family stole all my LTRs to go to Appleseeds themselves. Guess that isn't all bad.

You do need to get back, Joe. We miss you!

It seems kind of basic to me....just letting you know why I have not been to one.

If Im wrong, let me know and I will sign up for one.

Some people underestimate the challenge of 25m. It's been said that that's harder than shooting at full distance (we do some of the latter when we can, too, BTW) As I said in my last post, though: If your knowledge and skill exceed ours, you're someone whose talents as an instructor would be very valuable, but we won't know 'til we see you at a shoot.

The first one near me, I didn't know was happening until it was 3/4 over.
The second one, I knew about...but was out of town the first day and even though it's OK to jump in for the second, I felt like if I did an AS I should do it from start to finish.

I don't see any more shoots in your neck of the woods this year, Annie, but that doesn't mean more won't be scheduled. If I see one come up, I'll try to remember to message you.

I plan on attending, just haven't been able to make the time yet.

Good for you! Finding the time is usually more difficult than making the time. It's all in what you set as your priorities. Hope to see you there soon!

amongst other things... I don't yet own a complete rifle with which to shoot in an Appleseed.

-J-

As Scutter said, we have rifles we'll loan if we know you need one, just let us know in advance.

If you can lay down on the ground and make head shots with iron shots at 500 yards, then it might be basic for you. I learned a great deal at the two I attended.

It is the basics of rifle shooting. The problem is that not many people teach the basics. Just like Pro Football camp starts out with the basics. If that isn't down, you can never progress.

If you told me I could shoot 5 shots all inside a 1" square at 25 meters with iron sights before an Appleseed, I would have called you a liar. Go out and try it. Not with a scope. With iron sights. Try it.

Scopes, irons, whatever. We're teaching the person, not the rifle nor the sighting system. The only caution we give about sighting is that if you use a red dot scope, you'll want to make sure the dot is smaller than 4MOA or you will obscure your entire target with it on some stages.

I did not know or heard of the Appleseed until I joined ingo.

The program is in it's fourth (possibly fifth?) year now. We've at least doubled in size every year and are looking to do so this year, too. We've been reviewed in SWAT magazine, Dillon's Blue Press magazine, Backwoods Home magazine by no less a figure than Massad Ayoob, and as of today, the New York Times. Much more important to us than well-known names and big media outlets, however, are the comments and reviews from our attendees, our shooters. I think it's very telling that most of the little bit of criticism we get seems to come from people who've never attended one of our shoots. You will never please everyone of course, but we sure seem to be doing a job of coming close to it.

We do teach the basics, yes, but our target, our "test" (; I hate that word.) strikes that really cool balance between being a challenge for experienced shooters but also being attainable by novices.

Come out and see for yourself how it all works. We take great pride in this program and in passing it along to others.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[L-W-R-C]

ive been on this website for almost a year, but im new to appleseed. im almost 17 can i still go? i know its a competition, but what kind?

 

[Bubba]

There is no minimum age for an Appleseed unless dictated by local law, though IIRC you need to be 21 to be a shoot boss (but your current age will not disqualify you from being an instructor if you wish). The ability to safely handle a rifle is a much better quality than any number printed on your birth certificate.

As far as a competition, well... I guess you could call it that, though it's more of a skill check than a contest. In this case you're competing against yourself: old bad habits, fatigue, eyesight, etc. The idea is to see if you can do better now than you did before, not to see whether you can outperform your neighbor. An Appleseed consists of an initial skill check, instruction and range time for sighting your rifle, instruction and range time for shooting small, repeatable groups, and instruction and practice in various shooting positions. These will be mixed with stories about the tradition of marksmanship in America, team activities, and other skill building live-fire activities. The "competition" part is the AQT target: 40 rounds in 4 stages, timed, shot from 3 different positions (two with transitions from one position to another), with a maximum score of 250 points. your goal is to score 210 or higher. Once you've achieved 210, your goal is to score better than before. No one besides you will judge your performance, as long as you are making honest attempts to improve your marksmanship. This summer's been pretty brutal weather-wise, but the quality of the people and the instruction make it worth it.

 

[42769vette]

waiting for one closer to me

 

[AuntieBellum]

waiting for one closer to me

Do you have any land? Any friends with land? Any connections at a local private range? Let us know, and we'll work on bringing Appleseed closer.

Until then, there are plenty of 'seeds in Ohio, too, so that might be an option. Or take a family vacation that includes an Appleseed in your choice of vacation spot.

 

[Bill of Rights]

waiting for one closer to me

How about Miamisburg, OH? Yahoo Maps says it's less than 40 miles away. Auntie Bellum had a better, more long term solution, though, because we would love to have an Indiana range on that side of the state.

Blessings,
Bill

 

[JetGirl]

I don't see any more shoots in your neck of the woods this year, Annie, but that doesn't mean more won't be scheduled. If I see one come up, I'll try to remember to message you.

Thanks. The club's website is kind of bad about updating, but I try to follow their FaceBook page. Only problem with that is that sometimes their status update is exactly that, instead of a "heads up" for future reference.

 

[Jack Ryan]

Why? Pretty simple really, I'd rather do something else.

Now MY question is WHY do you think I NEED an excuse NOT to go to one?

1. You owe us a weekend?

2. You owe us at least the entrance fee?

3. It's a challenge for us and we are so good you couldn't possibly get by with out our infinet wisdome, training and skill.

Other (please explain below)


(Probably not the way it's intended by the OP or the organisation and volunteers but that's the way it comes off to me, like I need some kind of excuse to be a gun owner and not go to this or that or 50 other organisations, meetings, training session, DNR committee meetings.) To quote a movie character, "I'm olddammit! We could kick off any time."

I've spent my life going to frigging meetings and wasting my time with a pack of kids who think just because they discovered it now that it's the first time any one has ever seen what ever ding a ling they happen to be holding. I've shot, I've seen people shoot, I've seen Tom Knapp shoot in person. Unless it's a blood relative putting on a show or I just happen to feel like it that day, I'm going to do what the heck I feel like doing and I don't owe ANY ONE an excuse for it.

If it looks new and shiney to to and you want to go then go. Good for ya. Have fun.

 

[cosermann]

Sounds like my daughter and I attended a mini-AS then since it was a one-day affair. It was a great opportunity for my daughter and it's helpful to have someone else reinforce the same things dad has been trying to instill.

 

[jeremy]

I shoot something quite similar to the Appleseed a couple of times a year. For free...

 

[irishfan]

I have not seen any Appleseed events near me.

 

[indyjoe]

Why? Pretty simple really, I'd rather do something else.

Now MY question is WHY do you think I NEED an excuse NOT to go to one?

They didn't ask what excuse do you have. They asked why you haven't gone. You answered, you would rather do something else. Great.

It isn't a berating of you or demanding of an excuse, that you apparently took it as. Just an opportunity for the VOLUNTEERS at Appleseed to see if they can do anything to remove the obstacles that keep people from attending.

How is this different from someone asking why you had never tried product X? Pretty simple question to get an idea of what changes can be made to be attractive to those who have never used the product.

Not everything has to be so confrontational.

 

[Bill of Rights]

Excuse? No, Jack, not that at all. I'm trying to see why people don't want to come out, trying to find who we're not reaching and why.

If you don't want to come, then you would not show up with what we need our shooters to have more than anything else: a teachable attitude. Maybe you're knowledgeable and skilled enough that you don't need us. Maybe you either defend liberty yourself (today, I mean, not in prior service, though I respect that as well) or maybe you don't think it needs defending, or maybe, to use your quote, "I'm old", and as such, you don't care about it for anyone but yourself. I'm not saying any of those are true; I have no basis to do so. I've never met you that I know of and wouldn't know, so these are just possibilities.

We who volunteer and instruct for this program do so because we believe in it and what it has to offer our fellow Americans and our country. It's rewarding to us to see people get fired up about being Americans and to see the light bulb go on when they realize why their shooting hasn't been what they'd like it to be.

Do you owe us anything? Nope, not a bit. We'd just like to see fewer "citizens" and more Americans, wherever we may find them.

Blessings,
Bill

Why? Pretty simple really, I'd rather do something else.

Now MY question is WHY do you think I NEED an excuse NOT to go to one?

1. You owe us a weekend?

2. You owe us at least the entrance fee?

3. It's a challenge for us and we are so good you couldn't possibly get by with out our infinet wisdome, training and skill.

Other (please explain below)


(Probably not the way it's intended by the OP or the organisation and volunteers but that's the way it comes off to me, like I need some kind of excuse to be a gun owner and not go to this or that or 50 other organisations, meetings, training session, DNR committee meetings.) To quote a movie character, "I'm olddammit! We could kick off any time."

I've spent my life going to frigging meetings and wasting my time with a pack of kids who think just because they discovered it now that it's the first time any one has ever seen what ever ding a ling they happen to be holding. I've shot, I've seen people shoot, I've seen Tom Knapp shoot in person. Unless it's a blood relative putting on a show or I just happen to feel like it that day, I'm going to do what the heck I feel like doing and I don't owe ANY ONE an excuse for it.

If it looks new and shiney to to and you want to go then go. Good for ya. Have fun.

 

[Bill of Rights]

I shoot something quite similar to the Appleseed a couple of times a year. For free...

Heh... So you do. And there probably aren't many of our shoots near where you are now, either. For the record, as long as you're wearing that uniform when you go to work, you'll shoot for free with us, too. We've taught some US Military units prior to their deployments and I hope someday to be on one of those shoots as an instructor.

And in case I've not said it recently.... Thank you for your service. It is appreciated by those of us stateside. Come home safely.

God bless.

Bill

 

[Bubba]

Why? Pretty simple really, I'd rather do something else.

Now MY question is WHY do you think I NEED an excuse NOT to go to one?

And MY question is why you would click on a thread clearly identified as being in the Appleseed sub-forum and be offended that the OP might assume you have some level of interest in the program. You need no excuse not to come to one if you aren't interested, but why berate Bill for assuming apathy is not a factor in this sub-forum?

I assume that as a gun owner you occasionally do shoot at whatever interval and location suits you. If you ever decide your personal schedule aligns with a mini and want to come ridicule the program based on personal experience instead of assumptions, let me know and I'll pay whatever range fee there might be. No one will try to coerce you to show up or to attend all day if you don't wish to and then you can come in here and have a firm foundation for your condescension.

 

[Bill of Rights]

I have not seen any Appleseed events near me.

Can't tell too much from "MSG2", but IIRC, that's the Indy area. We shoot at Cloverdale for a full 'seed or a mini just about every month. We'd ideally like to have a range we can use at least a couple of times a year within an hour's drive of anyone in the state. We're not quite there yet, so if you know of some land and would like to see us near you, get in touch with Hawkhavn or Techres and we'll see about getting a shoot up and running there.

Blessings,
Bill