The Bottom Shot

What amazes me the most is that while we knew what we wanted, there was no way in hell we knew what we were about to get ourselves into. We left the house at 6:30 AM, made the mandatory stop for mcdonalds, then drove to the certification course and shoot location at the Rosebush exit off 127, just south of Clare, Michigan.

Arriving just before 8 AM, we noticed that we were most likely in Kansas. We were at a farm way outside of town, and about 35 of us made our way to the loft in a barn to sit down and learn our way in the world. A bit too early for excitement, we learned soon why we were there.

Harding says, and we learned from Fred's powerpoint:

"He who hath once smelt the smoke is ne'er again Free"

We were on our way, and knew it. It would be several hours of learning, cramming, and asking questions before each of us was handed a 3" shell, shown the mortar and given a flare to light it. We walked a few hundred yards into a field, donned our helmets and eye protection, and for the first time, dangled a 3" high low explosive non-salute shell (thanks UBpyro!) over a tube, dropped it in, lit it, and did the duck & turn.

Here is my attempt:


Here Dave & Darek: