Although the temperatures averaged somewhere between the 30's and 40's, we had a full line of enthusiastic shooters step up to the line at Berwyn Rod and Gun Club this March 17, 2018. We had multiple parent and child pairings, showing once again that Project Appleseed events are an excellent family activity. Our next event is coming up quickly. We'll be hosting another one-day event during the Prince George's County Public School's Spring Break on Wednesday, April 4th, 2018. Additional info: https://appleseedinfo.org/location/?locationid=544&eventid=6000

On April 19th, 1775, British colonial farmers, shopkeepers, lawyers, doctors and craftsmen chose to face one of the world's most feared and best equipped armies in a dispute over their rights and privileges as Englishmen. Learn why and how these brave early Americans did what they did at an Appleseed near you. RWVA instructors use Brandeis University History Professor David Hackett Fischer's best-seller Paul Revere's Ride to teach how the Revolutionary War began in a series of stories that capture the initial hesitation as well as the ferocity of that day. Project Appleseed's heritage program vividly portrays the Battles of Lexington and Concord with the kind of care and immediacy that is absent from most formal schooling. Modern listeners are confronted with the danger, the fear, and the heartbreaking separations that arose out of the choices made on April 19th, 1775. They are also reminded of the marksmanship skills and masterful organization that ultimately helped set the colonists on the path to success. Those who attend gain a better understanding of the fundamental choices faced by our ancestors as they began to set the stage for the nation we now enjoy. Their rifle marksmanship program complements that history and heritage. The focus is on teaching the traditional American marksmanship skills. There are, however, several aspects of the marksmanship program that deserve special mention. Project Appleseed is particularly proud of their younger attendees. In accordance with applicable local laws, young people with sufficient maturity are welcome to the Appleseed line and can, with parental permission, join the cadre. The RWVA recognizes the importance of introducing a wide cross section of Americans to their marksmanship heritage. This Appleseed event at BRGC will be a single-day event during Spring Break for Prince George's County Public Schools. Both centerfire and rimfire rifles are allowed at this event. A semi-automatic .22 LR rifle with a detachable magazine is recommended. If you don't have one, just let us know beforehand and we'll be glad to set you up with a loaner rimfire rifle to use for the event. Please see the following link for additional information and registration: https://appleseedinfo.org/location/?locationid=544&eventid=5783 Please check the “How to Prepare for an Event” link (http://www.appleseedinfo.org/as_prepare.html) for particularly useful information about preparing for your Appleseed event. Feel free to contact me concerning these or any other public shooting events at BRGC at PublicEvents@berwyn.org

BRGC remembered the Battle of the Bulge on January 14, 2018, with a memorial shoot using period rifles. This years' shoot saw an array of US and German-made rifles; Garands, Springfields, a G-43 and a K-98 Mauser. The weather for the shoot was a brisk 25 degrees Fahrenheit. We began the event by remembering the sacrifices of those who fell during the battle with moment of silence. The course of fire, following a series of sighters, consisted of 10 rounds slow fire from the prone position, 10 rounds rapid fire including a transition from standing to prone, and 10 rounds slow fire from the standing or offhand position. The standard SR-1 target was used. High scores for the day were Ray B. with a 259-3x and Myron B. with a 251-1x. Well done, gentlemen! Our rifle event schedule for 2018 is still a work in progress but will include several vintage rifle memorial shoots in additional to CMP-sanctioned rifle competitions.

On April 19th, 1775, British colonial farmers, shopkeepers, lawyers, doctors and craftsmen chose to face one of the world's most feared and best equipped armies in a dispute over their rights and privileges as Englishmen. Learn why and how these brave early Americans did what they did at an Appleseed near you. RWVA instructors use Brandeis University History Professor David Hackett Fischer's best-seller Paul Revere's Ride to teach how the Revolutionary War began in a series of stories that capture the initial hesitation as well as the ferocity of that day. Project Appleseed's heritage program vividly portrays the Battles of Lexington and Concord with the kind of care and immediacy that is absent from most formal schooling. Modern listeners are confronted with the danger, the fear, and the heartbreaking separations that arose out of the choices made on April 19th, 1775. They are also reminded of the marksmanship skills and masterful organization that ultimately helped set the colonists on the path to success. Those who attend gain a better understanding of the fundamental choices faced by our ancestors as they began to set the stage for the nation we now enjoy. Their rifle marksmanship program complements that history and heritage. The focus is on teaching the traditional American marksmanship skills. There are, however, several aspects of the marksmanship program that deserve special mention. Project Appleseed is particularly proud of their younger attendees. In accordance with applicable local laws, young people with sufficient maturity are welcome to the Appleseed line and can, with parental permission, join the cadre. The RWVA recognizes the importance of introducing a wide cross section of Americans to their marksmanship heritage. This Appleseed event at BRGC will be a single-day event. Both centerfire and rimfire rifles are allowed at this event. A semi-automatic .22 LR rifle with a detachable magazine is recommended. If you don't have one, just let us know beforehand and we'll be glad to set you up with a loaner rimfire rifle to use for the event. Please see the following link for additional information and registration: https://appleseedinfo.org/location/?locationid=544&eventid=5783 Please check the “How to Prepare for an Event” link (http://www.appleseedinfo.org/as_prepare.html) for particularly useful information about preparing for your Appleseed event. Feel free to contact me concerning these or any other public shooting events at BRGC at PublicEvents@berwyn.org

November 5, 2017, a one-day Appleseed event. From our Shoot Boss, Ken W.: Cool and rainy Sunday at Berwyn Rod and Gun Club this past weekend, with a small class who showed a lot of skill. Six shooters filled the lines in the morning. Chris A. started off his first Appleseed strong by cleaning the Redcoat. If that were not impressive enough, he did it with an FN SCAR in 7.62!!! The shooters moved along quickly and hearkened over refreshments to a nice First Strike by myself and Second Strike by Chuck. Back on the range we ground on, moving on to AQTs after lunch with the Third strike by Doug and Dangerous Old Men from Andy, who was unexpected but very welcome! Back into the grind, and we finished with 3 Riflemen, 2 new and 1 requalification. Of note, both Riflemen were new; one was Chris A shooting his trusty SCAR and the other was Derwood B. Thanks to everyone for a great shoot, and thanks to Berwyn for being great hosts!

On April 19th, 1775, British colonial farmers, shopkeepers, lawyers, doctors and craftsmen chose to face one of the world's most feared and best equipped armies in a dispute over their rights and privileges as Englishmen. Learn why and how these brave early Americans did what they did at an Appleseed near you. RWVA instructors use Brandeis University History Professor David Hackett Fischer's best-seller Paul Revere's Ride to teach how the Revolutionary War began in a series of stories that capture the initial hesitation as well as the ferocity of that day. Project Appleseed's heritage program vividly portrays the Battles of Lexington and Concord with the kind of care and immediacy that is absent from most formal schooling. Modern listeners are confronted with the danger, the fear, and the heartbreaking separations that arose out of the choices made on April 19th, 1775. They are also reminded of the marksmanship skills and masterful organization that ultimately helped set the colonists on the path to success. Those who attend gain a better understanding of the fundamental choices faced by our ancestors as they began to set the stage for the nation we now enjoy. Their rifle marksmanship program complements that history and heritage. The focus is on teaching the traditional American marksmanship skills. There are, however, several aspects of the marksmanship program that deserve special mention. Project Appleseed is particularly proud of their younger attendees. In accordance with applicable local laws, young people with sufficient maturity are welcome to the Appleseed line and can, with parental permission, join the cadre. The RWVA recognizes the importance of introducing a wide cross section of Americans to their marksmanship heritage. This Appleseed event at BRGC will be a single-day event. Both centerfire and rimfire rifles are allowed at this event. A semi-automatic .22 LR rifle with a detachable magazine is recommended. If you don't have one, just let us know beforehand and we'll be glad to set you up with a loaner rimfire rifle to use for the event. Please see the following link for additional information and registration: http://www.appleseedinfo.org/search-states-location.php…. Please check the “How to Prepare for an Event” link (http://www.appleseedinfo.org/as_prepare.html) for particularly useful information about preparing for your Appleseed event. Feel free to contact me concerning these or any other public shooting events at BRGC at PublicEvents@berwyn.org

From our Ladyseed Shoot Boss: September 9th dawned a beautiful, sunshiny, cool day; an ideal day for a Ladyseed! Three lady shooters showed up on the line at the Berwyn Rod & Gun Club (BRGC), in Bowie, MD for a ladies-only Appleseed rifle marksmanship clinic. After kicking off with introductions and the safety brief, we completed our first Redcoat. All three ladies were first-time Appleseed participants, and two were first-time shooters. We then moved on to putting sighters on the Squares target... we were still seeing some loose groups, until we did the "Hold-the-Trigger-Back" drill, and BAM! Progress! They were excited to see their own progress, too, and were eager to learn more. After some history at lunch, we got back to marksmanship training - as the day progressed, it was apparent that the groups had improved significantly. All the shooters maintained a fabulous attitude, and huge improvements were made. When Sunday morning came, it was equally lovely - what a perfect weekend to be at the range! All three returned eager to go, and after some more history and coaching, including mag-change drills and carding the sights, we got down to some AQTs. Even though there were no Rifleman patches handed out, HUGE progress was made and everybody had fun, too! One of the ladies, Martha verbalized that she really appreciated the slower pace and extra drills. One of our instructors said she thought the ladies appreciated that we took breaks and took the time to pay attention to what they needed (special drills) rather than only following the set plan... We hope we see Adela, Maria, and Martha back on the line at some point... A RIFLEMAN PERSISTS! Huzzah!

CMP Rimfire Sporter Events use the guidelines established by the Civilian Marksmanship Program. Rules regarding these events are located here: http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/CMPGamesRules.pdf?ver=01152017 and http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Rimfire.pdf?ver=20160318. Upcoming events will be posted via our Website Calendar as well as being announced in our Monthly Membership Newsletter. To compete in a CMP event, you must fill out the following form and have it notarized: http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Affidavit.pdf and have a CMP Competition ID. BRGC members and affiliates do not have to compete in order to shoot in the event. This event will be open to the public. There is a $10 range fee for non-members and a $5 range fee for BRGC members. Safety briefing will start at 9:30 AM with the first of two planned relays starting at 10:00 AM.

CMP Rimfire Sporter Events use the guidelines established by the Civilian Marksmanship Program. Rules regarding these events are located here: http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/CMPGamesRules.pdf?ver=01152017 and http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Rimfire.pdf?ver=20160318. Upcoming events will be posted via our Website Calendar as well as being announced in our Monthly Membership Newsletter. To compete in a CMP event, you must fill out the following form and have it notarized: http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Affidavit.pdf and have a CMP Competition ID. BRGC members and affiliates do not have to compete in order to shoot in the event. This event will be open to the public. There is a $10 range fee for non-members and a $5 range fee for BRGC members. Safety briefing will start at 9:30 AM with the first of two planned relays starting at 10:00 AM.

Our next Project Appleseed event at Berwyn Rod & Gun Club in Bowie, MD, is scheduled for June 10th-11th on the BRGC 100-yard range. Centerfire rifles may be used on our range. Project Appleseed's heritage program vividly portrays the Battles of Lexington and Concord with the kind of care and immediacy that is absent from most formal schooling. Modern listeners are confronted with the danger, the fear, and the heartbreaking separations that arose out of the choices made on April 19th, 1775. They are also reminded of the marksmanship skills and masterful organization that ultimately helped set the colonists on the path to success. Those who attend gain a better understanding of the fundamental choices faced by our ancestors as they began to set the stage for the nation we now enjoy. The Appleseed rifle marksmanship program complements that history and heritage. The focus is on teaching the traditional American marksmanship skills. There are, however, several aspects of the marksmanship program that deserve special mention. Project Appleseed is particularly proud of their younger attendees. In accordance with applicable local laws, young people with sufficient maturity and parental permission are welcome to the Appleseed line. A semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine is recommended. If you don't have one, just let us know beforehand and we'll be glad to set you up with a loaner rimfire rifle to use for the event. Registration for our Project Appleseed events can be accessed via the Appleseed Schedule for the State of Maryland (https://appleseedinfo.org/schedule/?qstate=MD&state=Maryland) or the direct link to register for this event (https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bowie-md-appleseed-june-10-11-2017-tickets-29462109964). Please check the “How to Prepare for an Event” (https://appleseedinfo.org/how-to-prepare/) link for particularly useful information about preparing for your Appleseed event. Feel free to contact me (publicevents@berwyn.org) concerning these or any other public shooting events at BRGC.

BRGC remembers the Allied invasion of occupied Europe on D-Day, June 6, 1944, with a memorial shoot using period rifles. This years' shoot saw the classic array of US-made rifles; Garands, Springfields, and M1 Carbines. Out of a possible score of 150, Gary Burak shot a 146-13X using his M1 Garand, Richard Cox shot a 140-11X with a M1 Carbine, and Chuck Pals scored a 117-5X using a 1903 Springfield. Gary Burak also led off the event by remembering the sacrifices of those who stormed the beaches on that day followed by a moment of silence.

BRGC held its first (at least in a while) CMP M1 Carbine event on June 3, 2017. The event began with a quick review on the safe use of M1 Carbine rifle taught by CMP GSM Master Instructor Brian Swift before the 40-round (plus sighters) course of fire.