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Volume 5, Issue No. 10 October, 2007
Colorful Leaves and Characters Punctuate Ocoee Rangers October Shoot
The day started like any other: folks were shootin’ the Buffalo Shoot. Outrider won the .22 cal. competition and the Lever Action Rifle shoot. Sundance McNeyman showed he could handle Long Range Pistol shootin’ by winning that event. And Marshal Too Tall, after goin’ toe to toe with Outrider in a shoot-off, won the Long Range Single Shot Rifle shoot. And while they were busy, folks started driftin’ in to register. Attendance was down because of special event competition at a couple of other area shoots. Hootin’ Old Town was hosting a 2-day Black Powder State Championship Shoot, and there was some sorta big whing-ding shoot in the Atlanta area. So, lots of cowboys and cowgirls shot elsewhere. All totaled, we had 49 shooters, plus Sundance shootin’ in the Buffalo Shoot: he was moving and had to leave.
L-R: Front – Mesquite Millie, Tellico, Calico Nicole. Middle – Ben Shot, Mr. Pistol, Horseshoe John, Unpleasant, Purly. Back – Tennessee Jake, Squire Shooter Josey Buckhorn, Tenn Smoke, Bad Eye Tom, Sledge.
Festus D. Deputy had a memorable day. We shot black bats / plates off the Texas Star rotating target, leaving white bats / plates in place. That is all of us except Festus left the white plates in place. While the Star was spinning with the white targets in place, Festus grabbed his rifle and began blazing away at the rifle targets – and he managed to hit 1 of the white bats on the Star. That means he missed his rifle target (rats?#!?) – and he also was the only shooter in the entire match who hit 1 of the good, white bats.
Roy Orbison used to sing a song called ONLY THE LONELY. This lonely bullet mark, the only 1 on any of the white bats / plates in the Texas Star rotating target frame, was put there by good ol’ Festus D. Deputy. Of course he was shootin’ at something else, namely 1 of the round targets you can see way in the background.
Bad Eye Tom had his granddaughter, Calico Nicole, with him. She plans to shoot the November match: she’s a real live SASS member. And Tin Pot had his gang with him: son Outlaw Tracker and his grandsons.
LR :Outlaw Tracker, Tin Pot , grandsons
The TOP GUN for the day was S.A. Pondwater The Top 10 Shooters were(1) S.A. Pondwater (2) Marshal Too Tall (3) Unpleasant (4) Festus D Deputy (5) Ocoee Red (6) Widowmaker (7) Pleasant (8) Mr. Pistol (9) T–Bone Angus (10) Tabasco JOT. 8 cowboys had no miss matches: Widowmaker, Mr. Pistol, Pleasant, Cool Waters, TN Jake, Deadman, Sledge and Josey Buckhorn.
Someone (not Deadman) suggested we try an experiment to see how shooting results among folks shooting Big Guns would look. Big Guns would be folks shooting pistols in.44 cal. with 200 gr. bullets or above and medium loads or above and .45 cal. with 230 gr. bullets or above and medium loads or above. Here’s the top 10 Big Gun Shooters: (1) Limp Along Charlie (2) Horseshoe John (3) Hey Duke (4) Deadman (5) Tellico (6) Bad Eye Tom (7) Makers Mark (8) Tenn Smoke (9) Coffee Joe (10) Tio Don.
Mr. Pistol Draws A Bead With His ’73 Win.
Classic
1. Lightning McCoy
Here are the category winners:
49er
1. Marshal Too Tall
2. Festus D. Deputy
3. Ocoee Red
Silver Senior
1. Mr. Pistol
2. Tabasco JOT
3. Outrider
Modern
1. S.A. Pondwater
Duelist
1. Horseshoe John
2. Ziggy the Kid
3. Awful Close
Gunfighter
1. Widowmaker
2. Pleasant
3. Keystone
Black Powder
1. Coffee Joe
Senior
1. T-Bone Angus
2. Purly
3. Tin Pot
Traditional
1. Unpleasant
2. Slater
3. Yankee Dutchman
B-Western
1. Dusty Camino
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The Ocoee Ranger page 2 October 2007
The Reel West, The Real West & The West of Our Imagination
Martha Hyer
The Reel West – Martha Hyer
Well, it’s time to look at a movie cowgirl: that means a Hollywood gal who made Western movies. So, let’s take a gander at Martha Hyer. And she was worth the view. Martha was born in Texas, in 1924. That makes her a legitimate Western gal. During high school she studied drama, and after she matriculated (how’s that for a professor Owlhoot Hardin word?), she hit the trail to Pasadena, CA. She did some summer playhouse stuff. And then she got into the movies. Her dream had come true.
During her career, which lasted from the ‘40’s until she retired in the late ‘60’s, she was in lots of movies. And while she didn’t become a big name actress, she was very busy. Shucks, she even got an Oscar nomination. But let’s get to the important stuff. Among the movies she made were some Westerns. Ta-ta. Some of her first horse operas were with Tim Holt (Too Tall’s saying, “Who?”) and Rocky Lane, and Charles “the Durango Kid” Starrett, and other cowboys. But she also appeared with the big boys. She was the gal with John Wayne and Dean Martin in THE SONS OF KATY ELDER. And she was Clint Walker’s wife in THE NIGHT OF THE GRIZZLY. I told you she appeared with the big boys: both Wayne and Walker were 6 Ft. 4-6 in. tall, depending on who’s telling the tale. And then she was with Ben Johnson in WILD STALLION, and so on, and so on.
Martha retired in the late ‘60s. She was still busy, but she retired to spend time with her other half. How ‘bout that?
The West of Our Imagination – Killin’ Time
How well does she shoot? Killin’ Time won this buckle in 2003. How many Ocoee Rangers have won 1 of these?
Killin’ Time – Lady Duelist
Killin’ Time has been cowgirl shootin’ since Nov. 2001. As she said, “My gosh, that’s 6 years. Jerry (Rusty Spur Slim) found it on the internet and said that it looked like fun. So, I said, ‘Let’s go. I’ll take pictures.’ After a while, he said, ‘Why don’t you shoot?’ And I said, ‘I might as well. I’m just killin’ time. That’s how I got my alias.
“I shoot .32 cal. Rugers and a .357 mag. Marlin rifle. When I first started, I called it a .36 cal. rifle. That’s how much I knew when I started. That’s how far I’ve come. I used to be afraid of guns. Now, I’m not. I think education = gun control.”
What category does she shoot in? “I shoot Lady Duelist. I started in Traditional, but I started shootin’ Duelist. I like that better. And I shoot my rifle with my thumb. There are 4 of us who shoot our rifles with our thumbs: Yazoo City Gal, Last Kiss, Dagnabit Deb, and me.”
Who’s her favorite movie cowboy? “Robert Duval, as Gus McCrea.” That’s the word from a Lady Duelist.
The Real West – Jack McCall (1850 -1877)
Jack McCall – Assassin
Jack (John) McCall was born about 1850 in Jefferson Co., KY, but he drifted west as a young man. In 1876, he showed up in Deadwood, South Dakota. About a month after he arrived, James Butler “Wild Bill” Hickok arrived in Deadwood. At that time, Deadwood was experiencing a gold rush and an avalanche of thieves, prostitutes, and general land pirates.
McCall did little, except consume great quantities of alcohol. (How ‘bout that phrasing, Owlhoot?) Then on the afternoon of August 2, he wandered into the No. 10 Saloon. Bill Hickok was playing poker with several other players, and uncharacteristically, he was not sitting with his back to the wall. Mc Call walked up behind Hickok, pointed a pistol at Hickok’s head and shot him dead, saying, “Take that.” Then he ran out the door and down the street. A short time later, he was apprehended, without incident.
On August 3, a miners’ court was convened, a judge, prosecutor, and defender were elected and a jury was selected. McCall pled not guilty, although as he’d run through the street of Deadwood before he was caught, he’d yelled that he’d shot Wild Bill Hickok. Witnesses testified that they’d seen him shoot Hickok, and the jury listened to all the evidence, and they found him not guilty. (Their ancestors probably were on OJ’s jury.) So, McCall was released. He hung around town for a few days. Then 1 of Hickok’s friends showed up and wasn’t pleased with the verdict. McCall quickly left town.
On August 29, McCall was arrested for Hickok’s murder by a Deputy US Marshal in Laramie, WY. Deadwood wasn’t officially a town and wasn’t officially civilian US territory, so the miners’ trial wasn’t legal. McCall was indicted for Hickok’s murder on October 18, in Yankton. He tried to turn states evidence against Deadwood resident John Varnes: McCall said Varnes hired him to kill Hickok. But Varnes had vanished. On Dec 4, McCall’s trial began. On Dec 6, the jury found him guilty of murder. On January 3, 1877, he was sentenced to hang, and on March 1, he was hung. His last words, as he fell through the floor of the scaffold were, “Oh god.” Jack McCall was 26 years old.
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The Ocoee Ranger page 3 October 2007
Ocoee Rangers Annual Christmas Shoot & Family Event – December 15
Double Eagle – Designated Shopper
On Dec. 15, we’ll have our Ocoee Rangers Annual Christmas Shoot & Family Event. We’ll start the day with an abbreviated shoot (3 stages). Then after we take down and store the targets & stuff, we’ll adjourn to a local restaurant and have a Dutch treat lunch. Then, we’ll award the Annual Spirit of the Game Award and Annual Shooting Awards: Top Gun, and Top 3 places in each Shooting Category, etc. Then, we’ll award prizes by random drawing. (There won’t be a gift swap this year.)
During this shooting year, we’ve had a collections jar on the registration table at each shoot through September. And during this year, we’ve collected $681.41 to use to buy prizes to give away in the drawing. A Great Big Thank You to All the Cowboys & Cowgirls Who Contributed. So far, we have 5 packages of 100 rounds of .45 cal. Starline Brass (we bought), and 6 gift certificates with music CD provided by Starline Brass: certificates are good for $50 toward the purchase of Starline Brass. Other than Starline Brass, and maybe a few local sponsors, we will be awarding only prizes that good Ol’ Double Eagle, our designated shopper, will buy to be awarded. To be eligible to win a prize, one must have shot at least 1 match with us in 2007, including the December shoot.
What will Double Eagle purchase with shopping money? Whatever strikes his fancy. If you have suggestions, tell him. But do it fast, ‘cause he’ll be out shopping early. His email address is doubleeagle3@hotmail.com
This year, the after shoot event should not take nearly as long as it has in the past, and it should be better than ever. So, plan on attending. And bring your better half or significant other and the youngsters with you to meet your shootin’ pals.
A NEW WESTERN MOVIE IN THE THEATERS
Russell Crowe as Outlaw Ben Wade
Have you seen the new version of 3:10 TO YUMA? If not, it’s worth a look. Shucks, there aren’t many Westerns made anymore. And when a good one comes along, it’s worth seeing … for 2 reasons (1) ‘cause it’s a Western and (2) so the movie producers will fork up the loot to make more. Granted Russell Crowe doesn’t have the smooth charm that Glenn Ford had in the original flick. But Mesquite Millie thinks he did very well. And there are a couple of scenarios that if cut you wouldn’t miss at all. 1 involves an Apache ambush and the other Chinese railroad workers: gotta get them politically correct coverages in. But all in all, it’s a pretty good Western. Some of the dialogue was right from the original movie. But every producer and director have to put in their own tid-bits. So, it’s a little different.
Now before you say, “How can I take Russell Crowe seriously as a Western outlaw?” Remember that in THE QUICK AND THE DEAD, the Sharon Stone version, he was a pretty convincing gunslinger turned preacher turned gunslinger turned Marshal. And he’s been in at least 1 other Western.
What was the single most regretted missing element? It was Frankie Lane’s 3:10 To Yuma ballad from the original movie: not the thing he recorded on a record of his supposed Western movie songs – it had nothing to do with the movie or a Western theme. Give the 3:10 TO YUMA a look. It’s worth the time and cash, if you like Western movies. If you don’t, shame on you.
WHAT MAKES A COWGIRL SHOOTER?
Deadeye Daisy Sportin’ Her Stylish Cowgirl Hat At The October Shoot
What makes a cowgirl shooter? A pair of pistols? Yep, that goes with the game. How ‘bout a slick as, well, a slick handling rifle? Yep, that helps too. What about a shotgun that’s easy to break the action and reload without having to wham it over one’s knee? Yep, that sounds very reasonable. But the single most essential ingredient is a spiffy looking cowgirl hat.
Last Kiss & Yazoo City Gal Sportin’ Gunfighter Hats
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