ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

[forrestcav]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

The do's and don'ts are agood idea. Of course reading articles onhere have tons of ways to lmprove your impression. They just have to dig and read a little. Makes suggestions at events, but pull them aside, no one likes a public berateing it gaves them a bad feeling. We all have room for improvement and should encourage and help each other. We usually tell potenial new recruits not to buy anything untill they talk with some guys in the unit and get an idea what to and not to get.

[Old-South]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Pictures? I know there were tons taken.
Regards,

[The Egyptian Homeguard]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

There are a few on my FB page... also a likn on pg 6 of this thread to some more John took...

[Mark Choate]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Hi Gents,

Sorry for my delayed post as I just got back late last night from the Shiloh movie shoot where we got rained on, sleet on, snowed on, etc. As if that was not bad enough, I had to portray U.S. Col. Everitt Peabody so I also got shot in the face! (Note to self......How 'bout changing hobbies to "badmitton" or something? ha.)

Anyway, some good ideas here on the invitation to others of joining the A/C. I want to "chew" on it for a little while so as to word this in the appropriate manner. We want others to feel very welcome to climbing in, but we have to clearly state the goals of this site. It is easier to tell them the temperature of the water BEFORE they jump in than after they are in mid-leap!!

Very good ideas along this line.

regards,
Mark

[The Egyptian Homeguard]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Mark, Very true. There are some who won't change they are set in their ways, these are the ones who don't know the difference between water and sand while at the beach. There are others who are afraid to leave the group they started with because of the potential "hard feelings". It is easier for them to stay where they are even though they know the difference. I was there several years ago while doing infantry. We all know it's easier if we can use a carrot rather than the whip, but sometimes a whip is needed. When I saw the AoP at 1st Raymond, I knew the direction I was headed. There were guys at the CoI that just needed a nudge. If the standards are there and they want to do the 'what ever' event, they'll meet the standards or not attend. The turn out might not be as strong, but the quality will be... Z

[driver49]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

I have posted some photos from this event here: http://1861project.com/franklin

[Tom Craig]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Mark, Very true. There are some who won't change they are set in their ways, these are the ones who don't know the difference between water and sand while at the beach. ... I was there several years ago while doing infantry. We all know it's easier if we can use a carrot rather than the whip, but sometimes a whip is needed. When I saw the AoP at 1st Raymond, I knew the direction I was headed. There were guys at the CoI that just needed a nudge. Z

Zack et al,

Whatever your experience was in attending the COI, it certainly has generated more discussion in this cavalry forum than any other previous event. Active discussion is a very good thing. Having read all the back and forth about the impressions and helping guys improve got me to thinking about how to effectively make improvements to participant impressions.

Some advocate for mentors, some for tough love inspections prior to the event etc. Here's my suggestion. The event has classes/presentations about how to improve your impression, so that guys who don't know, can learn. Presumably some guys come to the event in ignorance, and hopefully go away learning stuff, but many may not even know how to spot what's right, despite having attended a talk.

How about having a graded impression review on Saturday evening. This would involve 2-3 judges with a scoring rubric that addresses all parts of an impression from hats to tack and everything in between. Each man would recieve a score, and get non-judgemental, fact based comparisson to original artifacts. The low scores could remain confidential, while the high scores could be posted as an example so that guys could see who's closest to getting it right, and either learn from their example, or consult them for advice.

Pairing the learning with direct application would, in my opinion, be far more useful and constructive than tearing into someone at a pre-event inspection and more effecient and standard than providing a mentor for each new guy/farb.

Thoughts?

Take care,
Tom Craig
1st Maine Cavalry

[Jerry Ross]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Tom,
I love the idea. I like the way you think ! Mark and Ken I would be glad to help with this idea. I would also be glad to be paired with some one for the entire weekend and show them correct from incorrect. I know this is different from what we have done from the past being with you mess mates from all the years we have been riding but that would be a good way to give insight to less informed Cavalrymen.

[Forrestcavalryman]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

How about having a graded impression review on Saturday evening.

If I am not mistaken we had one, while the troopers identities were not announced, I do believe they graded our imressions when they did an arms report.

[IowaYank]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Were they really grading our impressions??? I didn't think they were grading our impressions really, but just doing an arms and ordnance report.

[TexCavly]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Well if so I wanna see mine so I can get pointers. I like the idea of pairing experienced with inexperienced maybe at the set level. It seamed like Co. D had more people like me (reletively new and still in evolution).

[Paul L Muller]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

I made a few suggestions to Mark about impression improvments, being, how about having volunteers stand before the group and have their outfit and kit graded and discussed. If the volunteer is a newbe, he can have the bad and the GOOD both high lited for the education of the group. The fact that the subject had volunteered, he should'nt be threatened by constructive criticisms. That assumes the coments are given in a supportive mannor. If the subject is a veteran, then all can see what works historicly and feild tested. plm

[The Egyptian Homeguard]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Tom, I like the idea! I'll gladly step forward to be graded out... especially with my CS kit... It's evolving. You fellas have been doing CS MUCH longer than I the CoI was the first time I've ever donned gray. My uniform of my Fed. kit I'm pretty confident with, save for my saddle it's pretty high speed. Still I believe there is room to improve and learn... Next year lets do the CoI as Feds... Joking. Z

[Mark Choate]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Gentlemen,

Many good ideas being put forth here. You are all really digging deep to come up with ways to make it even better. Ken and I have discussed about it being tough to imagine ever improving on the instructionals that we were able to set forth as the planets and the stars had to be in alignment in order to secure that stellar line-up, but suggestions such as these do give us ways of improving on it more and more. Who knows what the future will bring?? I can this much, with next year being the 150th anniversary of both Ft. Donelson as well as Shiloh in the spring of the year, it may be necessary to take a breather on the COI. What I don't want to do is to cram it into a competition with some of these monumental events and as such water down both.

I also want to clarify something mentioned earlier on the inspection performed while you were in line. It was simply a weapons and accoutrements check and not an authenticity inspection. Some minor critiques were given, but mostly it was just the former. Time did not permit a more involved inspection.

Thanks for your collective enthusiasm. This is why I am so proud to be involved with this forum!

Mark

[Old-South]

Re: ANNOUNCING: The 2011 Cavalry Camp of Instruction!!!....

Here are some more pictures I found.

http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=DN&Dato=20110324&Kategori=WILLIAMSON&Lopenr=303240025&Ref=PH