The Olde West is Born Again!
She stares it down with a steely resolve, ready to draw as her horse gallops past.
POW! POW! POW!
Red littered the landscape, and the acrid smell of gunpowder and smoke filled the air.
Once again good triumped over the bad guys...
It was a bad day to be a balloon.
Click here to view a typical weekend at a CMSA event.
What is Cowboy Mounted Action Shooting? Think of a cowboy or cowgirl atop a 1,200 pound horse, six guns a blazing while galloping through a patterned course of fire, and you may get the mental image of a Cowboy Action Mounted Shooter. Cowboy Mounted Action Shooting is one of the nation's fastest growing equestrian sports and is attracting followers excited by the pace and comraderie of the sport.
Mounted shooting is a sport that combines elements of old-time Wild West Show exhibition, along with the elements of barrel racing, pole bending, reining, and many other equestrian skills; all done while using two .45 caliber single action revolvers, loaded with 5 rounds each of black powder blanks to shoot ten balloon targets set in a special random pattern or Old West type scenario called a 'stage'.
Typically, a competitor crosses the timing beam at a full gallop and engages the first pattern of five targets. After a shooter fires the fifth shot, he or she returns the empty revolver to a holster and proceeds to the next set of five targets. Mounted shooters are timed through the stage determining raw time plus any penalties incurred; for instance, 5 seconds added to raw time for knocked over barrel, dropped gun, missed target. The contestant with the fastest accumulated time wins.
Many of the shooters take on the use of an alias. Names like 'Nickel Creek Cowboy', 'Calico Star', and 'Al Sieber, Chief of Scouts', are an example where folks dress the part, act the part and become that person. It is a liberating part of the experience of stepping back in history and playing cowboys and Indians for real.
Mounted Shooting is open to all breeds of equine animals. Mounted shooting is a fantastic family fun sport and serves to keep the Old West alive. The west was a dangerous, mysterious and yet romantic time of our American culture, and continues to capture the imagination of all. There are many mounted shooting clubs throughout the nation striving to build this great sport, provide an opportunity for horseman and their families, as well as demonstrate safe use of firearms.
For more information, please visit:
- Cowboy Mounted Action Shooting
- Washington State Mounted Shooters
- Oregon Mounted Shooting Association
- Lone Pine Rangers - Oregon
