Thunder Valley - September Newsletter

Howdy Cowfolks:

The September Main Match was given another excellent day of weather. The temperature was 70 degrees, low humidity, and a nice breeze passed through the range during the day. 58 shooters showed up to throw lead down range, 18 classes were represented, and 60% made the bonus rifle shot at 52 yds. Congratulations to the eight folks that had a “Clean” match: Nomore Slim, Buffalo Bud Harden, Longshot Tom, Abu, Cole Coffee, Flintlock Fields, Dingo, and Lorenzo Lain.

Folks were geared up and ready to practice for the upcoming Indiana State competition. Lead was flyin’ and smoke was rollin’ down range all day. Repeated Yeehaa ‘s and other assorted yells were heard throughout the match. We had four brand new shooters, and total of six new faces at the match. Sunset Sam, Batjack Shootist, and his wife Paulette Brown joined as club members. We thank you folks for signing up to support our club.

Reminders: (1) October is the month for our 3-way match competition at Knob Creek, on the 1st Sunday, Pleasant Valley, on the 2nd weekend, and Thunder Valley, on the 3rd Saturday. Come on down, shoot at all three locations, and see how you stack up in an 18 stage competition. Awards will be given for the main match at each club, and then final awards at Thunder Valley for the eighteen stage event. Should be interesting !!. (2) The November match at Thunder Valley will offer camping and a pitch-in dinner Saturday immediately following the match. Our shootin’ pards from Illinois, Missouri, and northern Indiana already have their bags packed, and the meals planned. These folks can only join us a few times a year, so bring your favorite covered dish and drinks, sit around the campfire to hear some tall tales with lots of braggin’, and enjoy some Kentuckiana hospitality at it’s very best. It’s a hoot !!!!

Happy September birthdays to : Baron Von Csco, Christian, Cumberland Drifter, Don’t Know Diddly, Dutchman Swart, Longshot Tom, Marshall Spencer Owen, Nomore Slim, Smiley, and Woodchuck Willy.

We have been very fortunate this year to have lots of new faces show up at our range. Some have been new shooters, and others have been experienced shooters that just came to visit and check out our facility. We try hard to make an extra effort to cause folks to feel at home and have a fun day.

I would also like to offer a few comments that may make your day at the range a little more efficient, demonstrate proper range operation for new and less experienced shooters, and improve the overall operation at any range that you may attend.

Timer Operation – Larger numbers of shooters requires a larger number of posses, and then we often find a posse shooting at the adjacent stage. It is very important for the timer operator to immediately cover the receiver of the timer, as soon as the shooter has finished, and immediately report the time to the score keeper, audibly and visually. Visually noting and immediately verbally reporting the score will reduce the chance of picking up a shot from the adjacent stage and giving the shooter an erroneous raw time. Spotters should be polled after the raw time has been reported to the score keeper. Polling spotters prior to verbally reporting the score provides a substantial risk of picking up the sound of an unwanted shot.

Score Keeper – The score keeper should be in a position near the timer operator at the conclusion of the stage. When the timer operator reports the raw time to the score keeper, he/she, should then audibly repeat the raw time and any penalties/bonuses to the timer operator. This will reduce the risk of an incorrect recording of the raw time and penalties/bonuses.

Spotters – This is one of the most important job assignments in the posse. Spotters should position themselves at different places behind, but near, the firing line. Spotters should be able to clearly see all targets while the shooter progresses through the scenario. It may require the spotter to change position in order to maintain a clear view of each target while the shooter is engaging each one. Both visual and audible skills must be used by the spotter in order to provide an accurate accounting of the target strikes. Calls made by the spotters will determine the outcome of any match, and each spotter should provide their undivided attention to the task at hand while the shooter completes the scenario. Final match results can be drastically incorrect if the spotters are not giving their full attention to the job assignment.

These comments/suggestions are intended to assist each of us in improving our general range operations skills, and will be an aide to providing more accurate accounting of the event at any CAS range that you may attend. Hope it is helpful to you. In future newsletters, other posse duties, firearms usage, ammunition reloading tips, tips on other accessories, building or improving your gun cart, costuming, and a nearly endless list of hints, tips and suggestions can be forwarded to shooters. Many times following a match we all gather at the range or at our vehicles to discuss what could have been done better. If you have any comments/suggestions that would be useful as instructional material, or general information, please sent it to me, and I’ll post it in the newsletter.

The Indiana State competition for 2007 has come and gone, and the folks at Deer Creek Conservation Club deserve a huge round of applause. This was a very well organized match that presented a challenge, with lots of fun and excitement. The scenarios offered lots of movement with a great variety of targets. The shooter books were well written, and range officials provided concise and accurate descriptions to the shooters prior to beginning each stage. Food and beverage arrangements were excellent. The camp grounds were excellent. The operation for sign-in, and all office operations were excellent. The awards presentation was excellent. Darn, I guess the whole thing was excellent . Thanks to all of you folks at Deer Creek for all of your hard work, long hours, and another G R E A T !!!, State Match.

Deer Creek has decided to take a break from the Indiana State event and the 2008 Indiana State will be held at Cutter’s Raiders, in Etna Green, Indiana, approximately one hour north of Deer Creek. The folks organizing this event are experienced shooters and match organizers. All should look forward to attending and help promote the 2008 Indiana State at an awesome facility. Checkout their website via the SASS website, Cutter’s Raiders Paradise Pass. We will keep you posted on the specifics related to that event as they are made available.

The members and regular shooters from Thunder Valley, Pleasant Valley, and Knob Creek went to the 2007 Indiana State ready to blaze away with their cowboy firearms and equipment. The following is a summary of the awards presentations. Monthly reading, “Stampede” is attached.

Indiana State 2007 – Main Match

Results listed are for awards presented to members and regular shooters at Thunder Valley, Pleasant Valley, and Knob Creek. See the Deer Creek Conservation Club website for all detailed scores.

Indiana State Top Cowboy - Doc Molar, Indiana State Top Cowgirl - Two Sons, Top Gun – Three Gun Cole

49er: Vaquero Hayes 1st place & Indiana 49er Champion, 7th overall, Indy Kid 3rd place, Fighting Eagle 4th place

B-Western: Judge Mint Day 4th place

Duelist: M’Bogo 4th place & Indiana Duelist Champion

Ladies Duelist: Calamity Kelly 1st place & Indiana Ladies Duelist Champion

Frontiersman: Nomore Slim 2nd place & Indiana Frontiersman Champion, Smiley ( Sheep Dip) 4^th place, Pee Wee 5th place

Frontier Cartridge: Randy Atcher 3rd place

Ladies FC: Lizzy of the Valley 1st place & Indiana Ladies Front Cart Champion

Front Cart Duelist: Abu 5th place

Front Cart GF: Hardscrabble 2nd place & Indiana Front Cart Gunfighter Champion, Manatee 4th place

Gunfighter: Max Montana 1st place & Indiana Gunfighter Champion, 11th overall, Jose Gigante 4th place

Modern: Leadville Clyde 2nd place & Indiana Modern Champion, 9th overall

Ladies Modern: Short Fuse Ruby 1st place

Seniors: Redneck Rebel 4th place

Ladies Senior: Hesibah Hawke 3rd place

Silver Seniors: Drew First 1st place

Traditional: Black Tom 5th place, 8th overall

Clean Match: Nomore Slim & Lorenzo Lain

Sincerely,
Redneck Rebel

Scores are up

Padre PW has posted the Hoosier Ambush 07 Scores.

Hoosier Ambush 07

Well, the shooting has stopped and everyone got home safe and sound and had a good nights rest in the comfort of their own bed. No listening to Jose or Judge snoring and an air conditioner that works properly. Amen!

I didn't shoot my best or worse, so I guess that's a push. I'd be happier had I not had a proceedural on a stage, but then it didn't matter as far as scoring goes. To my surprise, there were only four gunfighters at the shoot and so I got fourth place since Max Montana, Lassiter and Frenchy Yukon were in the category and they're pretty good. Judge ran into the same issue with B-Western, only four competitors, it appears that people are heading towards the black-powder categories. Its funny how categories grow and shrink with each state match as people look to either new challenges or to get away from better shooters and score a victory.

I put some of the pictures I took up on my Flickr page and will add Copper's pictures when he gets them to me.

No scores yet, so I really don't have an idea of exactly how badly I was beat by Frenchy, but I figure its not close. Other members of the two clubs we are members of did well with at least two Indiana State Champs and a couple of firsts and seconds. In all, something like 40 awards, good I suppose, but getting an award for showing up isn't much to be crowing about, so I doubt you'll see me and Judge beating our chest.

It was fun and the weather was infinitely better than the previous three years, so that's good. There were plenty of stages with lots of movement on them and a challenge here or there. In all I think I had five misses on ten stages and the forementioned proceedural, not bad, like I said, I'd be happier without that proceedural because that's a severe lack of concentration.

Now on to finish unpacking and processing brass.

Sickness and the 87

Saturday was beautiful and a perfect day for CAS. Unfortunately I wasn’t feeling the same. I had been struggling with a sinus infection for several days and when the alarm went off I almost called Jose and told to him to go on without me. But, no matter how attractive the thought of using a movie line in real life was I decided to tough it out and shoot anyway. I would pay for it on Sunday.

Two things made me decide to shoot. Next week was the state match and I had just picked up my 87 earlier in the week. So I took lots of medicine, packed my gear and off I went.

Overall the shooting was horrible, but I really couldn’t expect much with how I felt. On the other hand I really had a kick shooting the 87. It’s tons of fun and I really enjoyed every minute of it. I don’t know how competitive the weapon will be, but it’s just gratifying to be throwing a lever on a shotgun and watching those big ol’ shells shooting out the top. My plan was to shoot the gun and get it out of my system then use it for fun in the future, but after the match I played with the drop 2 and started to get a handle on how that worked and now I’m thinking of shooting it again. I wanted the 87 from the first time I thought about CAS and I’m glad I finally picked one up.

Of course I didn’t get out of bed on Sunday, and now I’m just praying I get better before the Hoosier Ambush this weekend, but that’s another story.

Time to make the doughnuts go bang

Apologies to the fine doughnut makers at Dunkin.

I've recently tried the relatively new gun powder specially designed for the larger cases cowboy shooters are often utilizing, .45 Colt, .44 Special/Magnum, 44/40, 38/40... Trail Boss powder is made by IMR (under Hodgdon) and is basically a fast burning powder that is more volumous due to its novel doughnut shape (see pic). Gunblast has a nice article on this powder and I won't bore you with details on its benefits. Suffice it to say is it will nearly eliminate the possibility of a double charge and offers more consistent velocities at lower load levels than a normal powder.

My experience with this powder started at my Dillon 550 in the Dillon powder measure. It metered very poorly in my opinion with the doughnuts trickling out after the casemouth of the cartridge pulled away from the expanding die resulting in little doughnuts of powder all over my press. It wasn't enough to alter the charge significantly, but it was very annoying and messy. After reading the gunblast article, I bought a Lee Pro disc powder measure and it works great on my Dillon press without throwing doughnuts everywhere. I liked it so much, I bought another since they're only $20. I've since heard advice on using the Dillon measure to change over the the larger rifle charge bar, but I won't bother since I've found something that works well.

Last weekend, I shot the trailboss loads out of my rifle and its very accurate, if I took my time, I could put a cloverleaf on one of the rifle targets, as it was, all the hits on steel were touching at CAS rifle distance, so I'm very pleased. The other thing I noticed was that it didn't seem to have as much blow-by as the other smokeless powders out there, its not a big deal to the function of the rifle, but its a bit of a bother when you're shooting to have puffs of hot gas in your face. I was hoping TB would be a little cleaner than Clays or Tightgroup, but it really isn't, at least not in my '73.

Anyway, I'll most likely start using this powder in all my CAS loads so I can have the little added reassurance of safety even though it costs more than other powders. The one other thing I want to try is the grits/clays load to see what it is like to shoot and how much trouble it is. As much as I hate cranking the handle, I'm guessing its too much trouble, but if they shoot like they are claimed to shoot, its at least worth a try. I just have to find some grits.

Katana vs Ma Duce

This is pretty cool, a Japanese TV show pits a katana vs an M2 .50cal machine gun.



The katana loses (of course) but its pretty impressive that it splits several bullets before breaking.

Wild Bunch Guns [update]

This is an update to part one of Wild Bunch guns.

So I'm in one of the local gunshops the other day and come across yet another 1911A1 mil-spec clone. This time from Thompson (Auto-Ordinance) and it might be the perfect Wild Bunch pistol. Its a faithful reproduction of the 1911A1 and has the added benefit of having the government markings on it. They have two parkerized models, one with wood grips, the other with plastic wood imitation (yuk!). Thompson also offers two stainless non-WWII models.

Perhaps the best thing overall about these pistols is that the example I saw at the local shop was $449 (plastic grips). That's pretty good for a 1911, not as cheap as my Rock Island, but it may be made of sturdier stuff. For those wondering about the quality, these are made by Kahr arms who bought Auto-Ordinance and are producing new guns and not assembling them from spare parts. $449 for an American made 1911 is outstanding if you ask me, I might have to look into getting one.

Buy! Buy! Buy!

So what's a single gun-head supposed to do when you don't have a car payment and just got a nice raise? Buy guns of course. Over the last month, I've picked up a couple of new guns. First of all, I traded in my SW99 that I don't carry anymore on a new Rock Island 1911. I wanted a mil-spec 1911 for the Wild Bunch matches so's I could shoot it no matter where the WB match was or the rules involved. I also wanted to have it so I could present, at some point, a Wild Bunch category to one or both of the clubs, perhaps next year.

I was going to wait for a range report on the Rock before posting, but in its first outing, the firing pin peened and stuck (CHEAP Philipino steel!). After getting a tool steel Ed Brown in it, I took it down to TVR and the damn slide stop kept engaging, grrrr... I think I have everything ironed out for this weekend, but then you never know. Anyway, it bites my hand, so I ordered a commander hammer for it and I'll try that to see how it goes, I got one of the Swenson original commander hammers since I love the look of it and want to keep it as period as I can. The other thing I want to do is experiment with the trigger to see if I can improve it. If I can, then I'll look into my Kimber's trigger as well since it's got some creep in it.

The other gun I just bought is one of the Norinco 97 pumpguns. Like Judge, I got it through our pard Vaquero Hayes who I had do an action job on it. He suggested I get the 26" model and have it cut to 20" instead of getting the 18" model. What sold it was that the distributor didn't have any 18s in stock. I just got word that it was ready and need to go pick it up along with Judge picking up his 87. My thoughts on that are having a spare 97 for the matches and a 97 with nice wood on it. I may get walnut furniture for my first 97 and work on it even further if its not as smooth as the one I get from Vaquero. We'll see.

Other things I've been working on are the brass shotshells with smokeless powder, I'll get them one day, one day... I've also loaded up some 45 Colt with Trailboss powder to see if it works any better than the others I've tried. I'd like to get a clean powder that doesn't give a lot of blowby in the rifle like I get with Clays or Tightgroup. I might try the Clays/Grits solution at some point, but I'm not a real fan of doing things that manufacturers say is unsafe.

AK’s and .45’s

I had to do a little range training today and got a special treat. One of the guys I work with is a big AK fan and even though I had never fired one before I had been bugging him for months to sell me one of his AK’s. Well we were at the range and had some space to play around and this guy brought out his AK-47 for our use.

(giggle)Fun(/giggle)

Obviously with it’s bigger bullet it was going to have more of a muzzle rise then the M4 and you could clearly feel the bigger bullet. It didn’t take me long to realize why this gun is liked the world over. Smooth, easy to use, quick on the target, and packing a nice punch. The one drawback I noticed was how quickly the gun overheated. A magazine or two on quick fire had the stock smoking and I wondered how they kept the things from burning them in battle. It made me long for an AK and a place to shoot it. I don’t think he will part with the AK but maybe I can get him to give me a deal on his MAK-90.

As for the .45, well every time I get to shoot the thing I like it more. I still have a tendency to anticipate when I lose concentration, but it’s a sweet shooting gun. I love to make a point with it at the range. Like today, after everyone was having a little difficulty with a drill I just stepped up, and nailed the shot, first time perfect. Sure maybe it was luck, but they don’t need to know that.

Real Fast

Mr. Completely has a video of "Quick Cal" at a Cowboy Fast Draw competition.

.368 is the time, which if I recall correctly is the time from when the light in the center goes on to when the "bullet" hits the target. So yeah, Cal is indeed quick.

Thunder Valley August 2007 Newsletter

Howdy Cowfolks:

Another great demonstration of Cowboy Action Shootin’ at our August Main Match. 55 shooters, 18 classes represented, and 84% earned the bonus rifle attempt. The weather provided a break in the heat wave, and we saw a sunny day, and 86 degrees. A nice breeze throughout the day cleared the smoke away for the black powder shooters.

The newly installed patio umbrellas at each loading/unloading table provided a welcomed shade from the direct sun. We had three new shooters, and several folks came to observe, take notes, learn about the sport, and plan return to begin their Cowboy Action game next month.

Congratulations to Bad Aim Girl, Jose Gigante, Cumberland Drifter, and Sully Snakekiller for their “Clean Match” for the day.

Happy August birthdays to: Border Rebel, Ellie Mae, Hardscrabble, J.P, Loco Mateo, Nickel Blue, Poker Jane, and Two Jacks.

Especially for the new folks, if you have any questions about our range, or need assistance related to Cowboy Action Shooting, please contact any of the club officers.

They may be contacted via our website, www.thundervalleycas.com.

President- Redneck Rebel, Vice-President- Graver, Range Master- Abu, Asst. Range Master- Jose Gigante, Administrative Asst- Fighting Eagle, and Match Director- Vaquero Hayes.

Our Cowboy Action video production by Firepower TV is now showing 7,877 viewings with a 4.5 out of 5.0 star rating. If you haven’t seen it yet, go to www.youtube.com, then enter, firepowertv cowboy shoot, in the search box. The full 40 minute video is also available on the youtube website. If you are on a dialup connection, it will require approximately 35 minutes to download.

The 2007 Regional competition has come and gone. Several Thunder Valley members and other regular shooters at Thunder Valley made an excellent showing at the Regional Match:

Speed Pistol - Clyde 4
Black Tom 5

Pocket Pistols - Indy Kid 2

Speed Shotgun Hammer - Black Tom 5

Speed Rifle - Clyde 14
Vaquero Hayes 13

49er - Indy Kid 1^st & 6^th Overall
Vaquero Hayes 2^nd & 22 Overall

Duelist - M’Bogo 7

Front Cart Duelist - Marshall Spencer Owen 6

Frontiersman - Nomore Slim 5

Gunfighter - Max Montana 2 & 28^th Overall
Zwing Hunt 6 & 41 Overall

Ladies Frontier Cart Duelist - Calamity Kelly

Modern - Clyde 2 & 13 Overall
Cumberland Drifter 8

Pale Rider Gunfighter - Manatee 3

Silver Senior - Drew First 3

The 2007 Indiana State competition is just around the corner, September 21-23. There will be a lot to see at this match, so even if you aren’t planning to shoot this event, head on up to Deer Creek and check it out. Mark your calendars for our September 15 Main Match at Thunder Valley. This will be your last chance to practice & get ready for the Indiana State. All side matches, and long distance will be available for practice at this match.

Our October 20 Main Match will be the 3^rd leg of a combined 18 stage competition with Pleasant Valley, and Knob Creek. Knob Creek will host the 1^st segment on October 7, and Pleasant Valley will host the 2^nd segment on October 13th and 14th.

See Ya at the Firin’ Line

Redneck Rebel

Wagon Crossing

A home in the West was an appealing idea. The news of successful crossings of the Rockies spawned great excitement in the Northern and Eastern states. Late each spring the emigrants gathered at prearranged spots along the Missouri and moved out in caravans of anywhere from a few wagons to several hundred. For six months they would drag along at 15 to 20 miles a day until the survivors reached an unfamiliar destination some 2,000 miles away.

Although the favored time of departure from staging points along the Missouri was late April or early May, it was already June in 1849 when Josiah Royce, his wife Sarah and their two-year old, Mary, left Council Bluffs with a wagon train of strangers. Near the end of August they reached Salt Lake City. Snow could block the passes through the Sierra Nevada range anytime after mid-October, so the company broke up, each man making his own arrangement to get to the mountains as quickly as possible. On August 30, their solitary wagon drawn by a three-yoke team of six oxen pulled out. They followed directions to the lower end of the Humboldt River, known as the Sink, hoping to meet a band of Mormons returning from a summer gold hunt in California and get further directions. They had traveled only a few days across the Great Salt Desert when they met two young men traveling with only a horse and mule. The new members of the party had very little food and, although they hunted every day, food was scarce in the desert.

In mid-September, the Royces met the band of Mormons and their leader carefully explained how to get to the Carson River. But the Royce party traveling at night missed the turn and had wandered miles into the desert. To keep their oxen alive they fed them the straw from their mattress. They had to turn back. “Turn back,” Sarah wrote in her memoirs, “What a chill those words sent through one. Turn back, on a journey like that; in which every mile had been gained with most earnest labor. And now for miles we were to go back.” With only a few sips of water left, they found a grassy meadow with water. They packed the wagon with water and hay and resumed their trek across the sea of sand, “this time to cross or die.” Two days out, two oxen died. They traveled though the night with the remaining oxen, as dawn approached the animals drank the last of the water. They traveled on. For several miles, as the sun rose higher, not a word was spoken. Then finally a low, dark line appeared on the horizon. It was the Carson River. The desert had been conquered, but they still faced the Sierra Nevada range.

Progress toward the foothills was dishearteningly slow. On October 12, the travelers gazed up the steep incline and wondered how they could possibly ascend it. Then in a cloud of dust two “heaven-sent messengers” came cantering down a mountain trail toward them. They were from the Relief Company “sent out by order of the United States Government to help the late emigrants over the mountains.” The two men gave them clear instructions for the safest route and helped repack the party’s gear on the animals. Abandoning the wagon, the Royces needed to make all possible speed while the spell of clear weather lasted. A week later they crossed the summit and began their descent down the western slope. Exultantly, Sarah looked down, “down far over the constantly descending hills, to where a soft haze sent up a warm, rosy glow that seemed to me a smile of welcome. She was gazing down on the Sacramento Valley

Fighting Eagle

Source: The Old West by Time Life Books

$1.83 + $9.95

I lost the ejector housing screw from one of my Rugers on Saturday. Last night I placed an order for the screw from Brownells. $1.83 for the screw and $9.95 for shipping....The term screw just took on a whole new meaning!

Randomness

Work has picked up to the point that I don't have the motivation to post a coherent topic, so I thought a few quick notes a la Grant Cunningham would suffice.

I ran my first match last weekend, I think things went well overall. The scoring system gave me fits until I restarted the software. Helluva way to run a "Cowboy" match. The stages were quick because of the heat, I didn't want to keep people out or confuse them any more than need be. I did find that an a ascending sweep is heap bad mojo, it looked great on paper, but in practice ended up being a turd (yes I proceedured on it). All in all, it was a good experience and with Judge, Smiley and Sadie/Kentucky helping, everything went well and fast. We were wrapped up and on the road by 4pm.

I bought a new gun last week, in anticipation of shooting a Wild Bunch category, I bought a Rock Island 1911A1. I shot it while at PVR on Friday and it promptly failed. Seems the firing pin was soft and peened. Back home, I had the pullout from Judge's Rock and it'll run again, but I think I'll pick up a tool steel variety pin to be sure. I added black rubber grips to be period and get away from the awful stocks that come with it.

My 1873 Uberti rifle is running now after changing the carrier. I still like Marlins better, but hope to speed up with the '73.

A little progress has been made on getting smokeless to work in the brass shotshells. I got 4 of 10 to light using Clays powder and opening up the flash hole to 3/32. I bought some different powder (Green Dot) to see if that helps and opened the flash holes to 7/64" more on a couple of extra. TVR will provide the next test. I WILL get this working, I've spent too much money on it now for it not to work. Over $300 so far not including powder, primers and shot. That's a lot of AA, I know.

That's enough for now...

PVR Cabins

When PVR opened they made the decision to allow members to put up cabins or period correct tents on the range. I love the look and feel of Hooten Old Town and I’ve always wanted to have a place to go and camp and play cowboy. So I’ve occasionally brought it up to Copper and Jose about chipping in on a cabin, and of course the wife isn’t all that keen on the idea…not the camping part, but the having it at a cowboy range part.

So, it’s always bounced around in the back of my mind, but that’s been about it. Recently me and the misses have been talking about family camping as our daughter gets older so I’ve been looking at tents. Today I stumbled on Davis Tent and Awning and they gave me an idea.

We could put up a semi permanent tent at PVR. We could throw down decking and a quick frame then stretch a tent across it for that miner camp look. A 10’x12’ wall tent runs about 416 dollars. Another 300 bucks for the decking and framing and you’ve got yourself a campsite. Now I just have to get Jose and Copper to cough up 250 dollars each and a couple of days of hard labor. Go to the Davis Tent and Awning site and check out some of the photo's in the photo gallery and you'll see what I'm talking about.

Thunder Valley Newsletter – July 2007

Howdy Cowfolks,

Our July 21 Main Match was blessed with one of the best weather conditions for this year. An unbelievable day for the middle of July. It was 83 degrees, sunny to partly cloudy, very low humidity, and a slight breeze for the entire day. 54 shooters attended the match, and 83% of them achieved their rifle bonus shot at 50 yards. Sixteen classes were represented. Several new shooters and faces were present, and all had a great experience in the CAS family for the day.

Congratulations to Black Tom for his awesome total time of 99.85. He has broken the previous club total time record of 110.00 set by Vaquero Hayes. Congratulations to Black Tom, Nomore Slim, Buffalo Bud Harden, and Redneck Rebel for their “Clean Match” for the day.

Happy July Birthdays to High Sierra Rose, Indy Kid, Pee Wee, Redneck Rebel, Rosedale Kid, and Sadie Jo.

Our newly completed parking area, behind the Long Distance lane, at range level was welcomed, and provided a much easier exit for those individuals that parked there. We were able to get 16 full size vehicles in the lot. Several folks parked their gun carts at Long Distance at the end of the day, and then drove down to the new parking area, loaded their equipment, and then attended the awards presentation. Our recently implemented scoring sheet procedure has greatly reduced the time required to provide scores at the end of the day, and has made collection of scores at lunch a much easier task.

Upcoming events are the Regional Match, at Big Irons, Middletown, Ohio on August 9, 10, 11, & 12, and the Indian State Match, at Deer Creek, Marion, In, September 21, 22, 23. Even if you don’t shoot one of these matches, it is an educational and fun experience to simply observe. One can learn a great deal about equipment, accessories, gun cart styles, shooting techniques, and all related CAS issues just by watching. Lots of good deals on firearms, equipment, etc.

The September 15 match at Thunder Valley will provide our regular six stage main match, and will also have long distance & all side matches available, before & after the match, for practice and preparation for the Indiana State.

A big “Thank You” to everyone for showing up to shoot each month. Each match this year has exceeded 50 shooters, and our April match had 68 Cowfolks present. Looks like we are well on the way to setting a new record for attendance this year. We’ve implemented several improvements this year. Some new targets and stands have been installed, the storage shed for range equipment has been erected, and the new parking area is complete. The old mower for the range died last month, and has been replaced with a new John Deere. Your continued participation each month and membership support will provide the funds to continue making improvements and offer a well maintained and efficient shooting facility. If you have any suggestions for improvements or changes to our operation, please do not hesitate to bring them to our attention. All suggestions will be considered, and any reasonable/workable suggestion will be implemented.

The season standings for Top Cowboy, Top Cowgirl, and Top Shooter in each class will be posted at each match for the remainder of the year. We will also send those standings out by email each month. It will be interesting to see how the rankings change as folks are able to drop their lower scores after the completion of six matches. If you are planning on competing for one of the Top Shooter positions, you must complete six matches in the same category, and then you can drop the lowest scores of the year for your final average time per stage. All Top Shooter awards will be presented at our December 1^st Main Match.

The monthly Cowboy Reading, “Women Who Lived as they Pleased,” provided by Fighting Eagle, is attached to this newsletter.

See ya at the firing line

Redneck Rebel

Look out Arnold!

When I first started CAS I wanted a lever action shotgun. Just like the one Arnold used in T2. I searched and searched, but they were just not available. So I settled on a double barrel and I've been happy...sort of.

Well now finally the 1887 lever action reproductions are available and for decent prices, and at last I'm going to get my 87.

I sold my 92 the other day for a fair price (It helped that they became legal to hunt deer with this year in Indiana) so I'm putting that money right back into CAS. I'm ordering an 1887 from my friend Vaquero Hayes at Thunder and Lightning Action Works. He's going to order the gun for me and then do the drop 2 modification and an action job. When I get it it will be CAS ready...I can't wait!

Call Me Snake

I like the idea of taking modern movie lines and putting them in as start lines for CAS stages. How about a little Snake Plissken from Escape from New York!

• "Call me Snake."

• "Why are we talking?"

• "President of what?"

• "When I get back I'm going to kill you."

• "I want to meet this Duke."

• "Where you been, Harold? It's been a long time."

• "Yeah. A man should remember his past."

• "You, me, and Fresno Bob. You know what they did to Bob?"

• "You want to see him sprayed all over that map, baby?"

• "Yeah, you and everybody else."

• "You shouldn't have double-crossed me again, Brain."

• "The name's Plissken."

Standby

Top Cowboy

At TVR they do a little thing called Top Cowboy. You have to shoot at 6 matches to qualify and then the top average stage time takes the award. It’s a nice competition for the regular club members. Redneck Rebel sent the current standings out today and of course I was looking through them. There are 5 more matches this year so things can change, but here is what it looks like as of today.

The contenders for Top Cowboy are Indy Kid with an AST of 21.56, followed closely by Vaquero Hayes with an AST of 22.14 and then Redneck Rebel with an AST of 22.32. These three are fierce competitors and it’s going to get very interesting down the stretch.

As for us Amigos well I currently have an AST of 30.438, followed much too closely by Copper Quincy who has a 31.918, and then Jose is trailing the pack at 34.096. Of course this is a little misleading because after you have your six matches under your belt you get to start dropping your lowest scores. I am a very consistent shooter and my match scores do not change drastically. Jose on the other hand is either very good or very bad and he managed to place higher then me overall last year because he got to drop those very bad scores.

Shooter Ready?

I find myself putting everyday things in SASS context. I see a neat box that looks sorta old-timey, I'll think about putting it on a gun cart. This extends to even the most modern of conventions and today I was watching part of one of my favorite movies Sin City and thought that one of the main characters Marv, had some pretty good one liners that I immediately thought would be good for start lines for stages.

These are the ones I liked best:

“No reason at all to play it quiet”
“I’ll be right out”
“They know they been in a fight, that’s for damn sure”
“There ain’t no squarin’ it this time”
“This is the old days, the bad days, the all or nothin’ days”
“This is blood for blood and by the gallons”
“A shot and a brew shelly and keep ‘em coming”
“That’s one fine lookin’ coat your wearin’ there”
“I guess when I shot you in the belly, I aimed to high”
“I’ve been killing my way to the truth every since”
“Sometimes I ask pretty hard”
“Its almost killing time”
“Kill him good”
“I won’t let you down Goldie”
“I got you you little bastard, lets see you hop around now”
“It really gets my goat when guys rough up dames”
“I’ll die laughing if I know I did one thing right”
“What’s left of him anyways”
“I know its pretty damn weird to eat people”
“You can scream now if you want to”
“I got him for you good didn’t I Goldie?”

Standby...