2018 Legion 9/11 Memorial Run N Gun, Rockcastle Shooting Center, Park City, KY

I'm honored to announce I'll be helping to put on the second annual Legion 9/11 Memorial Run N Gun on Sept 8th and 9th, 2018 at Rockcastle Shooting Center in Park City, KY.

Details are still sketchy this early, but I wanted to get this out there now to get on everyone's calendar. This will be a benefit match for the Special Forces Association, Chapter 38 (who takes care of 5th Special Forces Group soldiers and their families out of Ft. Campbell, KY).

See last year's event page to get an idea what you might expect: https://www.facebook.com/events/1623894691019344/

All photos by Lisa Stennett

https://i.imgur.com/Tcn8DAM.jpg

BACKGROUND:

When the United States was attacked on September 11, 2001, the country needed a response. The Green Berets of the 5th Special Forces Group, known as “The Legion,” answered that call. From crushing the Taliban in Afghanistan, to dismantling Al Qaeda networks in Iraq, and combating the Islamic State in Syria, The Legion has carried the torch in the fight against America’s enemies. Many of the battles have been fought in the shadows, known only to those who were there. This 9/11, the Special Forces Association invites you to honor the dedication and sacrifice of The Legion by participating in the second annual Legion 9/11 Memorial Run N Gun

This match is an opportunity to test rifle and pistol skills in stages based on combat situations faced by members of The Legion throughout their history. Both a 5k with 5 shooting stages and a 10k with 7 shooting stages will be offered, so you can choose your level of challenge.

All proceeds from this match will be donated to the Special Forces Association, Chapter 38 – an organization dedicated to supporting the Soldiers and families of the Special Forces Community.

WHAT YOU NEED:
Minimum Rifle Round Count: TBD
Minimum Pistol Round Count: TBD
(Recommend carrying 2 x minimum rnd count. Also, there will be a side matches you can shoot as well)
- Rifle that can reach out to TBD yds
- Rifle sling
- Enough rifle magazines to hold the minimum rifle round count at least
- Enough rifle magazine pouches to hold your rifle magazines
- Pistol with secure holster (must cover trigger guard)
- Enough pistol magazines to hold the minimum pistol round count at least
- Enough pistol magazine pouches to hold your pistol magazines
- Headlamp for navigating the cave to/from the shooting portion (you cannot use a weapon mounted light for navigating the cave)
- Tac light (pistol mounted or hand held) for the shooting portion in the cave
- Clear Eye Protection
- Hearing Protection

TIMELINE:
8 SEPT
0630 - Registration
0730 - Shooters Meeting/Safety Brief
0800 - First Runner
TBD - Awards Ceremony

9 SEPT
0630 - Registration
0730 - Shooters Meeting/Safety Brief
0800 - First Runner
TBD - Awards Ceremony

For those who have shot my March matches or other Run N Guns - this match is a little different. I decided early on I can't "out badass" 5th Group, so I'm not even going to try. My March matches are simple fun events which test your skills and fitness level. The Legion match is a chance for civilians to actually experience a watered down version of what our 5th Group friends live every day, and is the closest we can get to "real world" in a safe competitive environment.

For example - 5th Group rarely knows exactly what they're in for until they get there, so all stages will be shot completely "'blind" and there will be no stage details released before the match.

5th Group never quits, so you can't either. You must keep shooting until you either run out of ammo or the RO makes you stop. There is no "taking the penalty and moving on."

It's not always clear who the good guys and bad guys are in the field, so you will be briefed on various intel items as part of the match and be expected to remember, analyze, and decide who and when to shoot and who not to shoot. On the clock. While you're exhausted.

In other words, you must be able to perform physically. You must be able to shoot well. And you must be able to think and process information while doing both of the above.

More info coming soon. Good luck!

So...I had a meeting with my 5th Group counterparts recently. I don't want to jinx anything, but I will say that if even half the stuff they already have in process comes through this will make "epic" look boring.

What we do have nailed down is that the basic schedule will be identical to March: ROs run on Friday. 5k on Saturday with 5 shooting stages (same route and shooting locations as before). 10-ishk on Sunday with 7 shooting stages (new route and two new shooting locations still being nailed down).

Should be plenty of side matches with VERY unique opportunities available to help raise funds for the Special Forces Association.

More to come...

https://i.imgur.com/5gDplq6.jpg

Since I'm a freaking genius and forgot to put this in the first post, the Facebook Event page for this year's event is located at: https://www.facebook.com/events/2015...tab=discussion

By far the best way to keep up with every detail discussed about this event is to visit that page and click "Interested" or "Going" - and you should be notified any time anyone posts anything new regarding the event.

I will be also be reposting things I think are important in six other public forums (this is one!) for those who don't do Facebook.

https://i.imgur.com/3vLakN2.jpg

F*CK YAAAAAA!

That's a very, very awesome graphic, by the way. Just thought I'd mention it.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SeriousStudent

That's a very, very awesome graphic, by the way. Just thought I'd mention it.

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Thanks! One of the Group guys actually did that. As usual, I'm just riding their coat tails and sharing the cool things they do. ;-)

Full disclosure: the prize table will NOT be random draw for this match as I have done in the past. My 5th Group counterparts prefer to award prizes by order of finish. This makes a lot of sense for a match celebrating a group of folks for which "good enough" never is.

However - the real prize really IS the match in this case. The time you spend testing yourself, experiencing just a taste of what the 5th Group guys actually do, and having the honor of both competing side by side with active duty SF and honoring their fallen heroes makes the baubles you might pull off prize table seem a little less significant.

So if you want a prize off the table, you'd better start training now and show up with your A-game. But really, you should do that anyway. :-)

http://www.susansolovic.com/blog/wp-...s-harrison.png

From one of my 5th Group counterparts. THIS is what it's all about:

"This past Friday several of us experienced the honor of participating in funeral services for Major Donald Carr at Fort Sam Houston, Texas. Maj. Carr is the embodiment of the American hero; a multi-tour Vietnam MAC-V SOG veteran who left behind country and family to free the oppressed. He went missing June 6, 1971 when the OV-10A Bronco he was riding in disappeared. To the family and his Recon Brothers: It was truly the greatest honor to be a part of bringing your father, grandfather, and friend home. Rest easy Major; we'll take it from here. DOL"

https://i.imgur.com/AAhY8wz.png

https://youtu.be/s5FZ0R6bN9g

We're going to do things a little differently with this match, and will have three equipment classes to reflect the different ways guys in the Legion fight:

“LIGHTFIGHTER”: carry whatever you want, but you are limited to one pistol and one rifle

“OPERATOR”: you must wear body armor with plates installed (front and back at a minimum), and are still limited to one pistol and rifle

“TIER ONE”: you must FINISH the race with a pack weighing at least 45 lbs (not including your main rifle and pistol) – but that pack may (and should) contain ANYTHING that can give you an advantage. The only limit is that pistol targets must be engaged with pistol rounds, and rifle targets must be engaged with rifle rounds. Want to carry a PCC? Be our guest. Think a scoped bolt gun or different upper in 6.5 Creedmore will give you an advantage? Go for it. You can even carry a shotgun to engage steel pistol targets if you want (birdshot only). Packs may be removed prior to shooting, as that is how 5th Group would generally do it as well – but this will be done on your run time and BEFORE any wait time starts.

Green Berets are much more than just knuckle-dragging door kickers; they are well-known for their intelligence as well (just ask one how many languages he speaks, for example). TIER ONE represents a class that has the freedom to think creatively, plan ahead, and bring equipment that might help you in any way you'd like to beat all of the unknown challenges you might face. Take advantage of it, and let's see what you can come up with!

I'll have an announcement very soon about registration. Stay tuned...