Cowboy mounted shooting makes debut at county fair

By Lourie Zipf
North Forty News

Cowboy mounted shooting is currently all the rage in competitive equine sport.

And it's no wonder. The sport combines the speed of horse racing with the finely tuned agility of barrel racing and reining. Competitors use single action, .45 Long Colts, which are loaded with blanks of black powder, to shoot at balloon targets. While negotiating a series of courses, competitors shoot at 10 balloons placed strategically throughout each individual course.

This year's Larimer County Fair and Rodeo hosted its first cowboy mounted shooting competition. About 35 competitors tested their shooting and riding skills Aug. 9 and 10.

It's a very fun sport, said Cody Peterson, president of the Colorado Regulators, a family-oriented mounted shooting club based in Byers. "It seems as if we keep getting more and more members. Pretty soon, even the spectators become competitors."

Not only is cowboy mounted shooting becoming the fastest growing equine sport in the United States, it's also piquing interest worldwide. The sport began in Arizona in the late 1990s and has since spread to Europe and Canada. Peterson estimates that, internationally, there are 5,000 members.

Jim Rogers of Scottsdale, Ariz., originated the idea of cowboy mounted shooting as a competitive, timed sport. He and others founded the Single Action Shooting Society in 1987. Rogers had a lifetime infatuation with the Colt Single Action Army revolver and competed in several mounted shooting events using live ammo. He soon realized that shooting with live ammo from horseback was too dangerous, and he began to pursue other alternatives.

Eventually, live ammunition and broken glass bottles were replaced with blank ammo and balloons. The force from the black powder ignition in the blanks breaks the balloons.

The first organized and "safe" cowboy mounted shooting competition was held in 1992 in Phoenix, and by 2000, over 200 riders were competing in the Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association World Championships, also in Arizona.

"The fabulous growth is a result of the hard work of over 50 CMSA affiliated clubs across the country and the dedication of the CMSA Board of Directors," said Rogers.

The sport is open to all levels and ages of riders, according to Peterson. Children, ages 9 to 12, ride the course without firearms, and children at age 13 are given the option to shoot.

"It's a very family-oriented sport," he said. "We have a lot of families involved, where the parents and kids are both competing."

Men and women compete at six different levels. Competitors start out at level one and work their way up through level six (world champion). This competitive level system also includes juniors and seniors.

Mounted shooting is open to all disciplines of riders and breeds of horses. "We have every breed of horse competing, from Quarter Horses to Arabians to Clydesdales," said Peterson. "And we have ranch horses, barrel horses and horses who have just come off the track. We have competitors from all walks of life."

Peterson noted that it's essential for a horse and rider to compete as a team to master cowboy mounted shooting. "The sport is based on the horse's agility and maneuverability, and the rider's ability to control the horse through all of that," he said.

Dick and Marjie Dones of Erie used to compete as team ropers, but turned to cowboy mounted shooting in 2005.

Dones, who is a level five shooter, won the men's level four World Championship in 2009 in Amarillo, Texas.

"We enjoy the sport not only for just the shooting, but also for the camaraderie," said Dones. "We really enjoy it for the socializing. The other competitors out there are just a great bunch of people to be around."

Dones believes the most important aspect of cowboy mounted shooting is control and accuracy. "You learn to shoot all of the balloons first, and don't over-ride your ability to shoot. The speed will come later with practice," he said.

For more information about cowboy mounted shooting see the web sites www.colorado regulators.com or www.sassnet.com.