Cowboy action addiction

With my first match under my belt I was definately hooked!  I couldn't wait for the next match, and right away I started looking for more cowboy gear, the SASS website has a links page for vendors sassnet.com/Links-Main-001A.php they have everything you could want!  I ordered a pair of authentic pants, shirt and vest to add to my assemble.

My first match (continued)

The next week I got a call from Doc Hell welcoming me to SASS and asking if I was going to the shoot that Sunday in Mofitt.  I had not really planned on going thinking that I would probably just wait until the June Minot shoot, but Doc convinced me I should come.  When I said that maybe I should just come and watch, he said, "oh no you should bring your guns you're going to want to shoot."  Doc gave me directions to the range and said he would call me Sunday morning.
That whole week I really tried to convince myself that I shouldn't go, what would people think having a new unexperienced shooter?  I was really nervous but then I thought, hey, I have made the investment, this is something I have always wanted to do.  So Sunday morning May 19th, I loaded my guns and gear and headed for Bismarck, then east on I-94 to and south to Mofitt to the Dakota Roughriders cowboy range.  Doc called while I was on road to make sure I was coming, he couldn't have been nicer.  When I got to range I was still a little nervous but, I spotted Doc and he came right over and helped me get registered and showed me the course and talked me through what we would be doing.  More people started arriving and everyone was really nice, not a disparaging word from anyone!  Then came time for the shoot!  I was really nervous and when it was my turn I went to the loading table, they showed me the right way to load and then it was my turn to come to the firing line!  Dakota Dealer was the Timer Operator, he was very patient and talked me through the stage.  When he said "Standby" and the buzzer went off and my mind went blank!  I drew my first pistol and started blazing away mssing a couple, then hitting most of my rifle targets I couldn't believe I could miss a target that close with a shotgun! but I got through it and what a rush!  I was hooked, this was so much fun I couldn't believe it had taken me this long to discover cowboy action shooting.  Through the rest of the day Doc Hell was right there explaining everything, everyone was very patient and seemed pleased that they had another new shooter.  That is something I have come to learn is that everyone I meet in this game is very friendly and willing to help, if your gun hangs up or breaks down they will offer you theirs to use.  During one of the next stages, there were 4 shotgun targets, I had 6 shells in on my belt but I missed twice and still had one target left but no shells!  Quick as could be Dakota Dealer who was the Timer/Operator grabbed two shotgun shells out of his belt and handed them to me so I could finish the stage.  When the match was done it turns out I hadn't done too bad, I wasn't even the slowest time but I bet I had the most fun.

My first match

So I had just about every thing I needed, even built a gun cart (more on that later), yet I still had not been to a single match.  It was early May and I was checking out the Dakota Roughriders website www.dakotaroughriders.com to see when their next match would be when to my suprise it said that they had formed a SASS club in Minot!  They were calling themselves the Trestle Valley Rangers and they were planning on having there first match in June at the outdoor range.  I couldn't believe my luck they listed emails for the three gents who were starting the club, Yellowstone Vic, Doc Hell and Charlie Waite.  I sent them an email and told them I would like come to the shoot and was willing to help out anyway I could.  I soon got a reply back from Vic welcoming me to cowboy action shooting and inviting me to the shoot in June.  I replied right back and said I would be there for setup and the shoot.

Can't shoot without bullets!

Well I had made the investment, bought the guns and gear but I still did not have a single bullet to shoot from my guns.  Turns out that after the 2008 election everyone went crazy and figured they would never again be able to buy guns or ammunition or reloading supplies so they better start hoarding.  I have been reloading for rifle for hunting for many years but this entailed maybe 50 rounds a year for practice and hunting combined, with cowboy action shooting I would be shooting around 100 rounds of 45 Colt per match.  The local Scheels was empty of all brass and primers, cabelas and Midway USA had 6 to 8 week back order on primers!  Luckily Alex my daughter's boyfriend kept an eye out and found large pistol primers for me and I was able to finally get some brass.  So with that and a can of Trail Boss powder and box of lead bullets I started reloading.

Cowboy Clothes

The clothes were easy, bought a pair of boots at Home of Economy, work style cowboy boots, they aren't as fancy but comfortable can wear all day.  Cowboy hat from same place, took a pair of Levi's cut the belt loops off and put suspender buttons on (you can get these at any fabric store), suspenders and a vest an Voila! instant cowboy.

That's me trying to look like Wyatt Earp.

Got the guns now need the gear!

So it's late March 2009, I had purchased 3 guns, wiped the dust off a shotgun I had not shot in almost 20 years, (coash guns aren't real practical for Pheasant hunting).  I still needed holsters for my pistols and some cowboy clothing.  The internet was again my friend, there are a myriad of holsters, gun belts and draw styles to choose from, straight, cross draw, muzzle forward, shoulder holster, drop holster, Buscadero rig.  It can be very confusing and very expensive, or you can simply buy a couple Slim Jim leather holsters (Cabelas and others sell them for around $30 each) and put them on a leather belt you own.  I settled on a set of straight draw holsters from Kirkpatrick Leather from the Long hunter series.  These holsters are very well made and keep the guns canted slightly away from the body to make for an easy draw without catching on clothing, the holsters are also stiff so you can reholster without it folding in on you.

Need a Rifle

I had my pistols and shotguns now it came down to a rifle. This is the item where it probably would have been a good idea to go to a match and handle other peoples rifles.  But I was anxious and at the time a little price conscious and found a Winchester Model 92 clone made by Rossi in 45 colt, its is a good idea to keep the same caliber for rifle and pistol.  It is a nice rifle with 20 inch octagon barrel and very smooth action and a very good price at $475, so I went ahead and bought it.  The 92 is a great rifle, very smooth and reliable, but as I found out later not quite as fast as other models.

More Guns and Gear

Well I had my pistols, I already had a shotgun, in my youth I had bought a Rossi hammered coach gun in a pawn shop in Williston, ND for $75.00, they don't make this model anymore and if you look on the web they go for around $400 used.

Me shooting my Rossi Hammer double

Guns and Gear

The next part was definitely the most fun, I really had the fever, this was the middle of March, there was several feet of snow on the ground and I was looking to outfit myself with the guns and gear I needed to get started shooting. To participate in Cowboy Action Shooting a person needs two single action revolvers, a lever or pump action rifle and a shotgun, either double barrel, pump or lever action all pre-1900 models. The most common pistols are Colt single action (and their clones), rifles, Winchester models , 66, 73, 92 or Marlin 1894 , pump shotguns would be the Winchester model 1897 (or clone) and lever action shotgun, Winchester model 1887 (or clone) any double barrel shotgun will do but it cannot have ejectors or they must be disabled before shooting in a match.  There are many other models to choose from it is really up to you and what you want to use.  Yellowstone Vic and Dakota Dealer had advised me at the gun show that it would be a good idea to come to a match and handle a few of their guns to see what would work best for me, great advise!  But I didn't listen, I have always been a certified gun nut, I read a lot of gun magazines and also perused the SASS website wire forum, www.sassnet.com/forums a web chat about all things SASS. I have always been a big fan of Ruger handguns owning several already so I decided on buying a pair of Ruger Vaqueros, after looking on the web I found a pair of special edition blued 5 1/2" Vaqueros with simulated ivory grips,45 Colt,  a couple calls and they were on the way to my FFL.  I had them in hand in two days, what a pair of beauties! The dark bluing against the white of the ivory grips makes for a pretty gun.

Picking an alias

When I decided to join SASS the first thing I needed to do was to pick an alias, all shooters go by a different name to coincide with the fantasy of being a character from the old west.  The SASS website, www.sassnet.com has a handy alias look up to see if your choice is already taken.  This was not an easy task, I finally decided on Timbercrick Mick because where I grew up in Western North Dakota, we lived not far from Timber Creek in McKenzie County, and Mick sounded better than Timbercrick Mitch, my real first name.  So low and behold that alias was available and  a few keystrokes later I was a full fledged member of the Single Action Shooting Society.

New to Cowboy Action

I got involved in Cowboy Action shooting after attending the 2009 Spring gun show put on by the Minot Rifle and Pistol club.  The Dakota Roughriders, a SASS club from Bismarck/Moffit had a booth and were decked out in full cowboy regalia. I talked with several of the guys at the booth including, Yellowstone Vic, Dakota Dealer and Doc Hell.  I had read about cowboy action shooting before and was intrigued, I have always loved the history of the old west.  So after talking with them I went home and logged onto the SASS website www.sassnet.com and checked it out more.  After a few minutes I had decided to join SASS.

New Shooters Seminar

The Trestle Valley Rangers will be having a New Shooters seminar on January 23rd at the Minot Pistol and Rifle club indoor range.  The seminar starts at 11:00am, with a free lunch, everyone is welcome!  Come see what Cowboy Action Shooting is all about.  For more information contact Doc Hell at (701) 852-1697, or send me an email.

New to blogging

This is a first attempt at blogging for our SASS club check our website for more info.  Trestle Valley Rangers website