Page 10 of 11 FirstFirst ... 891011 LastLast
Results 91 to 100 of 103

Thread: Project Appleseed

  1. #91
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    I followed up on a suggestion from another post by @Moylan on Project Appleseed in this thread:

    https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....ctor-s-courses

    Turns out there is a 2 day "Pistol Clinic" in my area, at the Manatee Gun and Archery Club, in Myakka City FL Sat/Sun May 1-2, 2021. Cost is $120 plus $7.50 range fee daily.

    The course link is here, described as "Learn the basics of handgun safety, accuracy, and control. All the fundamentals needed to safely handle a handgun will be covered. Skills taught include proper stance, sighting the target, trigger control, Natural Point of Aim, speed drills, and many other topic."

    https://appleseedinfo.org/programs-pistol-clinic

    Has anyone taken one of these Pistol Clinics? If so, what did you think of it?

  2. #92
    Will send you a PM

  3. #93
    Site Supporter
    Join Date
    Jun 2020
    Location
    Houston
    Quote Originally Posted by RJ View Post
    I followed up on a suggestion from another post by @Moylan on Project Appleseed in this thread:

    https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....ctor-s-courses

    Turns out there is a 2 day "Pistol Clinic" in my area, at the Manatee Gun and Archery Club, in Myakka City FL Sat/Sun May 1-2, 2021. Cost is $120 plus $7.50 range fee daily.

    The course link is here, described as "Learn the basics of handgun safety, accuracy, and control. All the fundamentals needed to safely handle a handgun will be covered. Skills taught include proper stance, sighting the target, trigger control, Natural Point of Aim, speed drills, and many other topic."

    https://appleseedinfo.org/programs-pistol-clinic

    Has anyone taken one of these Pistol Clinics? If so, what did you think of it?

    I didn't know they had pistol classes.

    I attended one of the rifle clinics 10-12 years ago (got my Rifleman patch around here somewhere) and enjoyed it. That said, if it is anything like the rifle clinic, you will probably have fun but doubt you'll learn too much if you already have a decent grasp on the fundamentals. The rifle clinic was pretty basic stuff. I think they are great for new shooters though - haven't thought about Appleseed in years but I should try to get out to one with the GF to have someone other than me explain this stuff.

    If you are just after a fun weekend at the range with some structure, I'm sure you'll find that.

  4. #94
    I've helped teach a couple of them, but I never actually took a full one.

    Some things to know. There is no holster work in these classes. They involve no defensive tactics, there's no "mindset" lecture, they're really not fighting pistol classes. They focus on teaching the fundamentals of pistol shooting. The curriculum (ISTM, FWIW) is very solid, built on good contemporary pistolcraft. There is a serious focus on accuracy, and the speed portions of the program are pretty understated. In the qual test, which is shot at 7 yards, the fastest stage requires a magazine change and ten rounds total fired in 15 seconds. (Extra mag can be on your person or on the table next to you.) On the other hand, the targets for this stage are fairly small. We're not using A zones from USPSA targets and suchlike. Because of the accuracy standard, I believe that many shooters will find the qualification test harder than they might expect.

    Most shooters use 22lr pistols, but of course centerfire is welcome.

    Let me know if there are any specific question I can answer!

  5. #95
    Chasing the Horizon RJ's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2014
    Thanks guys, I probably should have mentioned, this class is not for me, but someone else who is new to shooting.

  6. #96
    I think it’s probably a decent option for a new shooter. The minor quibbles I had are things you can share before/after the class with the shooter if you’re so inclined, and as others have also stated it’s heavily accuracy focused so they’ll need additional practice or instruction from others on shooting faster. But honestly if they can meet the accuracy standards for the course of fire they’ll be miles ahead of the average shooter you see at ranges.

  7. #97
    Great to hear this is an option. I've had many requests recently for a good basic pistol course. This could be an excellent option.

    I know at PF we are highly focused on defensive or even competitive firearm use but I find many new shooters put off by that context. Not that they aren't motivated to understand how to use a pistol defensively (for most it's the main reason they bought one), but frankly it's a crawl-walk-run thing.

    I think of this as a basic driver's ed course which doesn't discuss apex's, trail braking, towing considerations, etc.

  8. #98
    Quote Originally Posted by RancidSumo View Post
    I didn't know they had pistol classes.

    I attended one of the rifle clinics 10-12 years ago (got my Rifleman patch around here somewhere) and enjoyed it. That said, if it is anything like the rifle clinic, you will probably have fun but doubt you'll learn too much if you already have a decent grasp on the fundamentals. The rifle clinic was pretty basic stuff. I think they are great for new shooters though - haven't thought about Appleseed in years but I should try to get out to one with the GF to have someone other than me explain this stuff.

    If you are just after a fun weekend at the range with some structure, I'm sure you'll find that.
    Pistol Clinics are new within the last year or so. @Moylan hit the nail on the head re both subject matter and the description and difficulty of the test.
    Grab your gun and bring in the cat.

  9. #99
    Quote Originally Posted by Moylan View Post
    I've helped teach a couple of them, but I never actually took a full one.

    Some things to know. There is no holster work in these classes. They involve no defensive tactics, there's no "mindset" lecture, they're really not fighting pistol classes. They focus on teaching the fundamentals of pistol shooting. The curriculum (ISTM, FWIW) is very solid, built on good contemporary pistolcraft. There is a serious focus on accuracy, and the speed portions of the program are pretty understated. In the qual test, which is shot at 7 yards, the fastest stage requires a magazine change and ten rounds total fired in 15 seconds. (Extra mag can be on your person or on the table next to you.) On the other hand, the targets for this stage are fairly small. We're not using A zones from USPSA targets and suchlike. Because of the accuracy standard, I believe that many shooters will find the qualification test harder than they might expect.

    Most shooters use 22lr pistols, but of course centerfire is welcome.

    Let me know if there are any specific question I can answer!
    What do you think is the minimum qualification/age/fitness level for someone to attend?

  10. #100
    Quote Originally Posted by littlejerry View Post
    What do you think is the minimum qualification/age/fitness level for someone to attend?
    I am not sure about age. The last pistol event I worked at, the rule was that participants had to be 21 or older, but I honestly don't know if that was the individual shoot boss's decision, or if that is a program-wide rule. I'll check on that and get back to you.

    Edit: The age limit nationally is 18, and in certain states the age limit is 21. Namely: Hawaii, Maryland, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, DC (I know, not a state), Washington

    Qualification: the program is suitable for absolute, utter beginners, as well as for more accomplished shooters. It can be the first time you've handled a pistol.

    Fitness: the main thing is that you need to be capable of safely handling a firearm. We'll teach you how to do that, but you must be able physically, mentally, emotionally, of following the safety rules and such. Apart from that, people of virtually any age, fitness level, physical ability level and whatnot have participated in Appleseed events, and we bend over backwards to make our events safe and fun for everyone. The rifle clinics are actually more physically difficult than the pistol clinics because you're up and down into prone, and getting slung up, and sitting and lying in uncomfortable positions all day long at the rifle events. Pistol events have less physical impact. These events are definitely for everyone. Nobody will ever try to push you (I mean, whoever, not you personally) into doing something you're not comfortable with, and instructors will be extremely attentive to make sure nobody tries to do anything that's not safe. (Most common example, in my experience, is that instructors will ask youth shooters at rifle events not to do the transition from standing to sitting, if we see that the shooter is likely to not be reliable at controlling the muzzle during the transition.) Anyway, the events are for everyone and you participate physically as much or as little as you want.

    The thing to keep in mind about Appleseed is that marksmanship is the hook to get people to come hear the stories. We're all about American heritage. Marksmanship is important, but I'm more interested in people getting to know Isaac Davis than in shooting the qualification!
    Last edited by Moylan; 12-31-2020 at 05:06 PM.

User Tag List

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •