S.A.S.S. and Cowboy Action Shooting

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January 26, 2021 12:16 pm

Just for the fun of it Cowboy Action Shooting. It's all about the fun and the people. What is your definition of fun, and why would you think folks doing it differently aren't in it for the fun? Spe... View MoreJust for the fun of it Cowboy Action Shooting. It's all about the fun and the people. What is your definition of fun, and why would you think folks doing it differently aren't in it for the fun? Speed I frequently see folks say, "I'm not in it to go fast, I'm just shooting for the fun of it." So, let us get something out of the way first... There are no cash prizes, no merchandise prizes, nothing but a plaque, or a trinket, that fades from everybody's memory shortly after it is won. That, and some bragging rights. Those who shoot fast, at incredible speeds, do that because that is fun for them. The satisfaction of successfully pushing themselves harder, to new time targets, faster speeds, to win matches, that is fun for them. They do it at a great cost of effort, practice time, and an amazing amount of lead sent downrange. They didn't get that way overnight. It comes with years of practice. They sometimes get called the epithet of "gamer", because they are making use of every LEGAL way of improving their times. Some use that word to mean "cheater". It is not. A "gamer" is "a sports player who enjoys their sport very much and works very hard."...(Cambridge Dictionary). It is actually something that every one of us can do to the extent of our physical abilities and desires. Often, we hear people complain that "the game has become an equipment race". Action jobs and gun smoothing has been around for as long as the game. I've spoken to some endowment members who did huge numbers of "action jobs" on whatever rifles and pistols were being used at the time. I was fortunate to have a member with a SASS number under 100 give me tips on how to make my rifle run faster. Speed modifications of single-action rifles and revolvers have been around since the late 1800s. Gunsmiths have always been inventive, and improvements in basic designs is nothing new. However, no amount of gun modification, short-stroking, action jobs, or spring changes will help those who are not willing to put in the dedicated effort needed. You can not buy a championship. But, more important, these very fast shooters have refined the NON-shooting parts of the stage. Transitions from one gun to the next, from one position to the next, keeping both hands moving, how to move efficiently... Multi-time World Champion, "China Camp", likened the movements involved as a "ballroom dance". Surprisingly, this is where the shooter can pick up the most time; the time spent on a stage when not shooting. Smoke and Boom Black powder! "Blackpowder category contestants are expected to understand they will contend with smoke obscured targets." This is my personal fun! Cap and Ball pistols and black powder cartridge. Shotguns that white out the stage when I let loose! When shooting into the morning sun on a still day, it's not unheard of to have an 80-second stage! Shooting Frontiersman, with cap and ball revolvers can be one of the most labor-intensive and frustrating categories. But for those addicted to it, it is one of the most satisfying categories when the stars align and everything goes right. Even without percussion revolvers, black powder shooters have unique variables to face, including the vagaries of breeze, humidity, sun, and which direction the shooting bays face, that make this frustrating, rewarding, and fun! Dressing the Part Some have fun by dressing in a way that reflects their vision of what someone in the 1800s would look like. There are those that emulate the look of a cowboy working the cattle drives and ranches of the West, that fed the hungry masses "back east". Still, others dress as a "bar-keep", lawman, banker, the town drunk, and let's not forget the "saloon girls" and "soiled doves", schoolmarms, ladies, and others that populated the west. There are those who cherish the dress more than the shooting. That's alright! Whatever brings a smile to your face. On the other side of the coin are those that dress in Western "bling". The B-Western shooters bring us the memory of Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, Hopalong, and others of the golden age of TV westerns and movies. A whole industry sprang up clothing the movie and TV stars, Country-Western bands, and dudes of the '40s, '50s, and early '60s. There is nothing like the sound of jingling spurs. A word here about brand new shooters. New folks are encouraged to just come with what you can find in your closet. A pair of denim jeans, a long-sleeve shirt, a pair of closed-toe shoes that aren't athletic shoes or combat boots, and a hat of some kind to keep the sun from frying your brains, that isn't a baseball cap. That's all you'll need in the beginning. Will there be some self-appointed "clothing police" that don't like it... possibly. But you are "SASS-legal" and they can bugger off. Soon enough you'll be buying "Cowboy Clothes" as you can afford it and you see how others dress. Visitors? Come as you are. We are glad to have spectators, all you need is eye and ear protection. Introduce yourself as maybe interested and folks will treat you like royalty. They'll be telling you about the game and showing you the guns before you know it. Just for the fun of it I know shooters who do not want to know their times. They are shooting for the camaraderie and the love of the types of guns, and couldn't care less about how long it took them. The only reason for the timer is to tell them when to start. Their goal is to simply shoot, and if at all possible, shoot a clean match... and maybe rib the other shooters when they foul up! One quiet gentleman, I shoot with monthly, always has a smile on his face, has one of the slowest rifles in the game, and routinely shoots 50-60 second stages. He doesn't care. He's having fun, his way. There are duelist-style shooters, there are two-handed grip shooters, there are gunfighters. There are slow shooters, there are fast shooters, there are those who just want to be clean shooters, there are those that want to be soot shooters. There are "dressed-up" shooters, there are minimalist shooters... There are all sorts of shooters and even shooters that combine multiple parts of all we've discussed. We're all shooting "for the fun of it". There is no one way of "doing it right". People writing somewhat dismissively of the way some others go about the game, forget that we are all shooting for the fun of it. If not having fun, they'd save their money and do something else! Y'all have fun now, y'hear?!

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Madame Anne Bonney

Stole it for my wall.

1 January 26, 2021

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