I am going to try to get a new APC chapter started in my region (I live in Reno, NV) and thought I would start a thread to track our progress as well as receive feedback, guidance, and best practices from other chapters along the way.  After seeing other chapters that have participants come to events from other states due to proximity, I thought instead of limiting the scope of this chapter to just Northern Nevada, I would reach out to our brothers in NorCal and see if there was interest there.  

I have followed the lead of others and created the following email to manage communications:  [email protected]

After posting this topic, I plan on posting threads in both the CA and NV Hometown Forums to raise awareness of the new potential chapter.  At this point, it will be baby steps after that to get our feet wet and do some small events, starting with a simple 3 mile hike to get provisional candidates (myself included) tracking on their progress.  I have a lot of other ideas past that but I want to take things one step at a time since we are just starting out.

If anyone has any advice for a new chapter starting out, I would appreciate it.

You’re on the right track. Start small with hikes.  If you can set up a loop for the first few, then new guys can just do 3 miles and returning guys can go for six.

The hikes are a great way to get to know people and vet internet strangers.

Invite your friends and family members that are halfway into shooting and the outdoors. You might be surprised.

Depending on location, have a meal together after. We general go early and eat breakfast after the hike.

After a couple of hikes, start to include some training afterwards. Land nav, first aid, etc. Look to the upper level requirements for guidance on what to practice. Do a rifle qual, set up a stop the bleed class, etc etc etc.

By the time you have a core group to third class, you’ll have a good idea of where to go.

Thanks Vaquero!  

We have our first hike planned for 02/21/21 with details posted on the CA and NV HTF.

So far, I have interest from both areas.  Locally, I have gained some interest from non-Arfcommers in the Reno area as well.

Also, I have made contact directly with Ben and have a good handle on steps to take going forward.

Looks like this chapter may be on its way.

First hike went great on Sunday!  We only had a few participants but those who hiked definitely want to keep going on additional hikes.

We all hit the 6 mile mark and will be working on our pace going forward.

Aside from regular hikes (just monthly to start), we identified medical training as a need for our new group.  Our local ambulance company, REMSA, is a great resource for training and they will schedule classes for small groups (I have used them for workplace CPR-AED/First Aid training in the past) and they also offer a Bleeding Control (Stop The Bleed) curriculum that will meet APC requirements.  If anyone has held a similar training with your APC chapter, please let me know if you have any best practices to share.

I just learned of APC so this thread interests me.

Is there no 'start up packet' from 'APC National' ?  Or if the org chart is more distributed, is there no 'sponsor chapter' that has a template for a new chapter?

Why rediscover fire?

Great questions!  

What I have learned in the brief time that I have been involved with our fledgling APC chapter is that there is a great amount of variation in chapter make-up that varies often by geographic and demographic factors.  For example, in western (and other regions), communities can be more spread out or rural so interested participants might be more plentiful in urban centers whereas chapters in rural areas might have less interest (at least at first).  That being said, a group of dedicated participants might be willing to drive a good distance to go on a 6 mile hike - or not.

As far as support from the APC organization goes, I can comfortably say that those who are taking new chapters seriously get the support and direction they need from the leadership.  I have been impressed with what I have seen so far.

If there is a chapter in your region, I recommend reaching out to them.  Otherwise, you can simply plan a hike and post up the details in your HTF and see what the interest level is in your area.

This is good feedback. One reason I asked is as a potential 'philosophical VC' to invest in APC. Another is to offer support because I can help with organizational structure, processes, etc. It sounds like 'APC National' is not a bunch of disarrayed buckaroos, so that's awesome; my hope is that I couldn't find the typical generally available public info about how they run stuff because of the - unfortunately required - opsec policies due to the current sociopolitical climate.

I just re-read the above and basically said "I'm not sure if you will survive and want to help, but you can't tell me either of these because I know you can't trust that I'm not a subversive." Man, I want off this ride.

In Cola Warrior we call that obstacle zero. It means showing up.

The guys that show up tend to be the best dudes. And if they're Feds or Military they're really crappy plants because at both APC and Cola we have a great time and make ourselves better. Old guys show up, fat guys show up, in shape Chads show up, heck sometimes we even see a few women. But being out doing stuff beats not being out doing stuff and that's where it is at.

To anyone lurking, just go. The absolute worst thing that can happen is you fail. And if you don't fail, you cannot improve yourself.

??

You will never make the world better if you don't start with yourself.

I went to an APC event today, and regrettably had to leave early for a vet appointment. Still, I got to learn about knots. When is the last time you learned and practiced knots? Two came back to me immediately but I was a full on retard with one of them. Like was shown four times retard. (Protip if you need a bow tie knot do not depend on me)

Anyways, missed the fun part, still got good knot knowledge from both the instructor and from bros. And better yet, I got the "Why" behind the knots.

Stop complaining and start doing. Every skill APC teaches makes another American more self reliant. If you want to be a better rounded man, show up.