The goal of the Appleseed is to take:
Rack Grade rifle
Surplus ammo
and achieve:
4 MOA hits out to 500 yards
To do that, you don't need much more than a military sling (web sling) and good form.
I use a cheap USMC shooting jacket so that I have built in arm pads, and a pad on my upper arm to keep the sling in place.
IF a shooter meets the goals of the Appleseed, they have all the fundamentals to go and make equipment changes to tighten up. But honestly, you don't have to kill yourself to make good hits.
What the Appleseed is perfectly set up for is teaching the basic skills required to learn to shoot. All of those skills are 100% applicable to precision competition. BUT, you don't need the fancy gear and such to learn to shoot well.
Gotcha! Makes sense! Thanks for clarifying!