Range Report

Caleb sent the following email message to his brother and I yesterday. I thought you all would be interested in his report of his first day on the firing range.


Dad and Josh,

I believe that both of you have heard me talk about the Appleseed Project, an "activity of The Revolutionary War Veterans Association, which is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to teaching every American our shared heritage and history as well as traditional rifle marksmanship skills."

The Appleseed Project website is 

http://appleseedinfo.org/.

. . . 

I was able to attend a mini Appleseed project a couple summers ago, and it was very insightful. I just thought I'd let you guys both know that the things I learned at Appleseed are the same things the Marine Corps is teaching me about rifle marksmanship fundamentals. Obviously, we're only using this stuff as a starting point, then we'll advance to more complicated activities, including shooting with full gear on and while moving. But the lessons I had at my Appleseed event are definitely paying off, as it just means I have a leg up on many other lieutenants here in that the positions are familiar to me and I've had a chance to learn a few tips and tricks.

Similarly, the lessons I took in close quarters combat pistol skills are paying dividends, as well. The grip (thumbs straight along the frame, not crossed over each other), the drawing motion (quick draw from Blackhawk Serpa holster, immediately get barrel pointing down range and disengaging safety while still at the hip, bringing hands together in front of the chest, then presenting the pistol straight forward to the isosceles stance), and other things are all repeats of my previous training, making it come that much more easily to me. So helpful.

Today we zeroed our M16s at 100 yards. It took me 21 rounds total to zero first the BUIS (backup iron sights) and then the RCO (rifle combat optic). I was one of the much faster Marines to get that finished. Thursday we start practicing longer distances; the qualification distances are 200, 300, and 500 yards.

We also practiced pistol drills without ammo. We did speed reloads (just like I've done before), Mozambique drills (aka, "failure to stop," which is two to the chest, then one to the head), and simple controlled pairs. Nothing I haven't done before, it turns out.

All this to say…

I'm grateful for the shooting background I've been able to acquire in the past few years, and to point out that some level of training undergone by Marines is available to civilians.

Whew. Long day today. I am falling asleep. Have a good night, y'all!

All for now…

Caleb

I know Caleb would love to hear from you, either as a comment on his post or via snail mail. Of course, he appreciates email, too.

Wayne