Cowboy
Camp 2004
What
a turnout!
Memorial
Day weekend signaled the official start of another great season of Cowboy
Action Shooting in the Golden Heart of Alaska. New shooters as well
as seasoned veterans converged on our range at the F.E. Gold Camp in
Chatanika for a fun weekend of shooting, cowboy life, and camaraderie.
Quilt
Raffle Winner: Cowgirl Jesse
Winner
of the Quigley Shoot: Judge Yukon Hatch, who generously donated his
share of the pot to the club.
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We
had 59 in attendance on Saturday with 19 being new shooters! Our
club is sure growing! We started off the day with an introduction
to Cowboy Action Shooting, our organization, SASS, what to wear,
how to find it, and even how to come up with an alias. From there
we all moved up to one of the stages where new shooters were introduced
to the many types of firearms, holsters, and safety protection
used in our sport. Then the fun began! Everyone got a chance to
try the various different pistols, shotguns and rifles on 3 of
our 5 stages. The stages were divided up so that each new shooter
shot a pistol only stage, rifle only stage, and shotgun stage.
They then put all three together in one complete stage.
After
a short break to give the cooks time to check on the grub the
group setup for the Quigley shoot. In a old time shooting gallery
format the competitors took their turns at the variety of targets
including 6 steel gongs, a complete set of bowling pins and a
bonus bottle of water. Out of the group 2 shooters actually scored
strikes on their first shot at the bowling pins proving that it
could be done. Judge Yukon Hatch was the overall winner of the
Quigley shoot and graciously donated his 55/50 winnings back to
the club. It looks like the club has Long Range fever.
With
a full days worth of shooting under their belts, the participants
sat down for a hearty potluck featuring a pot of old-fashioned
beans cooked in giant kettle over an open fire. Even the evening
shower that blew in couldn't dampen our appetites as we sampled
a wonderful variety of dishes brought by various club members.
If nothing else, the shower helped to bring everyone closer together
both literally and figuratively.
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Sunday
kicked off with a wonderful church service including music by
Valencia Rose and her Autoharp followed by a message from Poco
Loco Louie. The blue sky and white clouds made the perfect setting
for this service outside. Afterwards the shooting commenced
again with 26 shooters in attendance, many of who were brand
new to the sport just the day before. Five regular stages tested
the skill of the new and old alike and the light heared atmosphere
kept all laughing and enjoying the day. To end the day Sunday
Golden Heart Shootist Society celebrated another birthday with
Cake, Watermelon and great fellowship.
Everyone,
including new shooters and, at times, visitors, pitched in to
make the event a great success. Because of this, the orientation,
registration for the shoots, score keeping and the posses ran
very smoothly. As a result, for many folks their first taste
of Cowboy Action Shooting was a very positive experience. A
large number of those new shooters came back on Sunday and again
on Monday Significantly a large number of them were women on
both days. One new-comer was heard to say "I've never seen
so many women packing iron in one place. I like it!"
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Monday
Morning started in appropriate fashion for Memorial Day. A flag
raising along with the firing of a replica Cannon followed by
a 21 Gun salute and blessing helped everyone remember and honor
all those who gave so much so we could do the things we love
in this great country. Another 5 stage match kept the Cowboy
spirit alive and again provided for some challenging shooting.
With
a storm brewing on the horizon the remaining participants chipped
in and preformed an amazing feat, the complete tear down of
camp including wall tents, the trash was collected and disposed
of, the targets were all down and all gear was stowed awayin
less than one hour. This is the true spirit of the cowboy. Work
together to get done what needs to be done, while having a grand
ol' time doing it. It was as if, we'd never been there. Fantastic!
This is probably a record time!
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A huge THANK YOU to everyone that made this event possible. This
couldn't happen with out the generosity of many club members. If
you are new to Cowboy Actions Shooting and the Golden Heart Shootist
Society we would love to have you join us at a General Membership
meeting (see the Calendar)
or contact anyone on our Executive
Board for more information. Come on out and join us!
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