Another Class Review

On October 5-6, 2024, this author again attended an Appleseed. Goals were as follows:

1. Shoot a score of 210+ on the AQT - again with an AR-15. 
2. Use the Magpul RLS sling in an entire Appleseed class. 
3. Shoot alongside a friend, and encourage him on. 

The shoot is in the books, and a good shoot it was. I fired less than 150 rounds and the entire shoot was less than 250 rounds total (For reasons that will be outlined below, I did not participate in every shooting drill). There was a LOT more instruction than the prior five Appleseeds I have attended. 

For only the second time, the kneeling position was demonstrated. Appleseed correctly teaches that the kneeling position is less stable than sitting, and should only be used by those who cannot accomplish the sitting position. One shooter used the kneeling position instead of sitting in the second stage, and he used it to marvelous effect. 

Not surprising, again, no certificates were given out to the four individuals who shot Expert Rifleman. Of course, this was a claim by a person I came across some years back. I immediately was skeptical of the claim as Appleseed does not give out certificates. This is not a knock on Appleseed. For those that "must" have a certificate, you get to keep your targets - use that as your certificate. At home, I have several framed AQTs and the Rifleman patch that was earned with it. 

Note: my left shoulder was severely injured over 25 years ago. I likely need rotator cuff surgery. Of late, it has been bothering me more than usual. At this shoot, it was really acting up, and the sling was literally pulling my shoulder out of socket! (No, I did not have the sling "too tight.") Due to extreme shoulder pain, I was not feeling up to shooting the final 3 AQTs, nor the final redcoat challenge. I also sat out two of the 5-shot sighting in exercises on the first day, due to the same shoulder pain. 

Were goals met?

1. Shot a score of 229 on my only AQT of the weekend. That was enough, and it was the high score for the event. 
2. The Magpul RLS sling was used extensively. Write up below on whether I would suggest it for others at an Appleseed. 
3. Shot alongside my friend, Jeff (mentioned in the AAR). He scored a 228 with my tricked-out Ruger 10/22 rifle. He did very well. 

The Magpul RLS

Long and Short: DO NOT use this for an Appleseed. 

Why? Most people use a different length sling for hasty sling, loop sling in prone, and loop sling for sitting. The RLS is very difficult to adjust. As luck would have it, I use the same loop sling length for sitting and prone. Also use that same setting for a hasty sling. A GI sling is far easier to adjust. 

A friend of mine from High School was the shoot boss. Here he is, awarding me the Rifleman Patch. His forum name is "Maximum Effort." He was also officially promoted to Shoot Boss at this event. His kids were instructors there, as well. "Special K" is a Red Hat and "The Dude" is an Orange Hat. Maximum Effort and The Dude have had a class with me, and Jeff was also there, so we shared a camaraderie.