Old West event comes to Henderson

By Dave Clark

Saturday, Sept. 27, 2008 | 10:12 p.m.

Packing revolvers and outfitted in 19th century-style cowboy and cowgirl garb, Single Action Mounted Shooting members galloped through the eighth-annual Pony Express Shootout in Henderson on Saturday, popping balloons and wowing spectators with their old-time skills.

Henderson resident Sandy Burbank, 61, was one of an estimated 100 spectators drawn to the event at the Henderson Saddle Association, which also featured Civil War and Mountain Man encampments. Although she does not ride, Burbank said she loves the animals.

"It seemed like something different and interesting," she said. "If I was rich, I'd own a ranch."

In one of her runs through the course on her 11-year-old mustang, Amigo, 56-year-old Trudy Lawrence popped every single balloon. She shot a .45-caliber single action revolver with black powder ammunition, and followed paths randomly chosen by computer prior to the event.

"I like that it's completely objective," Lawrence said. "It's time and accuracy."

Her path to shooting did not begin until roughly a year ago, when a another rider at the Saddle Association asked her if she could shoot from her horse.

"I thought I'd try it," Lawrence said. "It took a while to get the horse used to the gunfire."

Her horse slowly grew confident, noticing the noise less the faster it ran.

"It's the most challenging sport I've ever been involved in," Lawrence said. "It's a way to relive the cowboy era."

Unlike Lawrence, Boulder City resident John Costanza, 65, is not new to the sport. He competed in a mounted cavalry re-enactment during the 1970s, but returned to the sport a year ago.

"I just like horses. I like shooting," he said. "You combine them, and it's twice the fun."

He noted the shooting does not seem to spook the horses as much as the balloons, which is alleviated through training.

"You see the balloon pop and nothing feels better," he said. "It's a really neat sport. You get addicted to it."

But not everyone performing at the shootout was a rider. Dave Logue, 55, of the Nevada Rangers Cowboy Action Shooter Society was on-hand to support his fellow 19th-century enthusiasts. Members of his club were set to shoot still targets with single action pistols and shotguns.

For him, the social aspect is the best part of the sport. Most shooters, he said, do not stress the competition.

"They are truly salt-of-the-earth kind of folks … People from all different kinds of backgrounds," Logue said.

Logue's odyssey toward shooting began when he saw a poster about cowboy action shooting on vacation.

"Six months later I went to see an event," he said. "Two hours later, I was dressed like this."

Dave Clark can be reached at 990-2677 or [email protected].