Great Fun And Wonderful Folks In Cowboy Action Shooting

I got started 6 years ago in Cowboy Action Shooting and have been hooked ever since. I live in the north Texas area and stumbled on a TV show called "Cowboys" that aired on the Outdoor Channel quite by accident. They spoke of this organization called "SASS" Single Action Shooting Society, where folks used old west firearms that were like the ones used in the old west before 1899, to have a shooting competition. I went on-line and did a search and found a club not too far from where I lived. I showed up one day when they were having a match and it was a hoot! The men and women all wore clothing I used to see my silver screen western hero's wear or from the western tv shows I watched as a kid. They were shooting single action revolvers, lever action rifles and double barrel shotguns. Some of them shot black powder and some shot the more modern smokeless powder. I was greeted very warmly and it seemed like everyone there wanted me to try their firearm and shoot a stage with them and try out the different feel of each gun so I'd know what I liked. I shot a little that day, looked at all their clothes, guns, leather gear, gun carts, etc. and I was hooked and I've been shooting that type of shooting ever since. The club I shoot at mostly now has both a SASS and NCOWS (National Congress of Old West Shootist) style of match and we shoot 4 days a month. We shoot at metal targets with revolvers, rifles and shotguns and we are scored by how fast we can shoot the designated course of fire with the fewest misses. As much fun as the shooting aspect is though, my favorite part is the great people in the sport. If any of you want a good family oriented sport for you or your family to try you might want to look into this sport. You can find club locations by going on-line to www.sassnet.com or www.ncows.com .