Cowboy Mounted Shooting
No, this isn't where you go shooting cowboys off of horses. That would be called Shooting Mounted Cowboys - an entirely different sport all together and probably involves some amount of prison time.
Here's what the club's flier has to say about it...
We have some new friends that are into this. Since the Liberty Prairie Mounted Shooters Club had an event in our town, they invited us out to watch.What is Mounted Shooting?
Single Action Mounted Shooting is an exciting equestrian sport that combines elements of old-time wild west show exhibition shooting along with cavalry drills, barrel racing and historical re-enacting.
SASS Mounted Shooting is a direct outgrowth of SASS Action Shooting and a natural progression for those Cowboys and Cowgirls who want to bring their horses into the event or for those riders that want to take skills to a wildly different level.
Liberty Prairie Mounted Shooters is a safe family oriented club with lots of fun and excitement. Mounted Shooting has levels for all ages of participants and abilities as well as cart driven levels.
The extent of my exposure to horses is what I see on TV when I watch the old westerns - which isn't a lot. I did ride a horse once when I was in high school. My girlfriend's cousin had horses and we went riding for a few hours one weekend. The next day, my butt hurt so bad I had trouble sitting down for a week! Needless to say that was the first and the last time I was on a horse.
As we are watching what's going on and listening to the club members talk, I'm realizing there's a whole level of complexity to this that one [at least for a city boy like myself] doesn't see at first.
Yeah, what's the big deal, right? You hop on your trusty steed, let out a hearty "Hi Ho Silver!", speed through the course and shoot the balloons and your done. Now, where's the whiskey for my men and beer for my horses?
Wrong...
You might be able to do that if your trusty steed is a four wheeler, a motorcycle or a clown car - something that's not a living creature, that doesn't have a brain or a central nervous system.
You just can't "put them in drive - press the accelerator - turn the wheel" and always expect them to go where you want them to go. Apparently, they can do just opposite and go backwards! Another thing I never realized that some horses have a reverse gear.
Add to the equation shooting a gun mere inches from their ears [it's a good thing they have horsey ear plugs so they don't go deaf].
There's a whole level of training that has to be done not only for the horses, but also the riders. To get these two different species to work together as a cohesive team has to be quite a monumental feat. I can't imagine the amount of time it takes for that to happen!
Seeing this weekend's events has given me a whole new appreciation of cowboys and their horses!
I also have to say that the men and women that make up this group were very friendly, very welcoming and fun to hang out with.
Thanks for the invite "Ike" and Judy!
Al n Peg
Pictures from the September Shoot