New SASS Badge Holder

We are now carrying a new badge holder, which also has a pocket for a credit card or drivers license and a little cash. This is a high quality all leather item made in America. It comes in Black or in Brown and will be in house shortly. Be the first to order The price is $14.95. You can order by calling the SASS Office at 877-411-SASS or on-line by following this link.
http://www.sassnet.com/P-BadgeHolderPocket.php

SASS University Classes for END of TRAIL

The SASS University classes for EOT will be the following

Shooting Double Shotguns – Taught by T-Bone Dooley and Nuttin’ Graceful
Shooting Duelist Style – Taught by T-Bone Dooley and Nuttin’ Graceful
Shooting Gunfighter – Taught by Half-A-Hand Henri
Shoot Smarter and Not Harder – Taught by Calvin n Hobbs and Barbary Coast
Transitions – Taught by J.T. Wild
You make the call – Taught by Pale Wolf Brunelle

The class will be on Tuesday June 22nd and run from 1:00 PM till 4:00 PM.
You can sign up on line at http://www.sassnet.com/Merc-SASS-U-001A.php

CHARLOTTE AND THE NRA CONVENTION

I have just returned home from the NRA Convention in Charlotte, NC, So, with the convention fresh on my mind, I have decided to discuss the NRA and the NRA Convention.

The convention was HUGE. It was the largest convention of any kind ever held in the Charlotte Convention Center. Officials estimate the convention drew close to 80,000 attendees and generated about $20 million dollars during the event for the city of Charlotte. I think every inch of the convention center was used, including some of the space of the newly opened NASCAR Hall of Fame, which is across the street and connected with a pedestrian bridge.

The convention floor had over 400 different vendors and displays dealing with hunting, shooting sports, and guns. Many of our Cowboy Action Shooting sponsors and dealers were there including Ruger, Taylor’s and Company, Cimarron Firearms, Uberti, Stoger, Henry, Chiappa, Eagle Grips, Dillon Precision, EMF, Navy Arms, and many more. Many new products were also being introduced. Ruger introduced several new revolvers and Para introduced its new “Wild Bunch” 1911 45 auto designed just for Wild Bunch Action Shooting. Para’s new pistol is generating a lot of excitement from magazine writers, and I expect you will be seeing articles in your favorite magazine very soon.
This year’s convention had many workshops, an indoor air rifle range, and a plethora of speakers including Newt Gingrich, Lt. Col. Oliver North, Glenn Beck, and Sarah Palin. One of the new seminars, “Refuse To Be A Victim,” focused on personal safety. The seminar covered Personal, Home, Automobile, Workplace, and Technological Security.

The SASS Booth was very busy the entire three days of the show. Judge Roy Bean and I were on hand along with a great group of North Carolina SASS members, led by J.M. Brown, to answer questions and sign up new members. Members were glad to see the Judge back in action after his yearlong battle with cancer. He is getting stronger every day and is also planning to attend END of TRAIL later in June.
The NRA is important to SASS and to all of our members. The NRA is one of the few organizations that fight for our Second Amendment Rights so we can continue to play our game the way we choose. But, the NRA is more than just fighting in the political arena. It has hundreds of programs to educate not only adults in gun and hunter safety, but also educating our kids about gun safety through the Eddie Eagle Program. The NRA has programs to help build gun ranges, help improve hunting habitats, and help promote sport-shooting activities like SASS. If you are a SASS Member, the NRA deserves your support because they fight for us every day and we should fight for it.
Every year the NRA moves the Convention around the country so more members have a better opportunity to visit the convention. Next year the 140th Annual NRA Convention will be in Pittsburg, PA, April 29th through May 1st. I hope you get a chance visit a NRA Convention. I know you will like it and SASS would love to see you there.

Para's New Wild Bunch Pistol

As I am gearing up to leave for Charlotte and the NRA Show tomorrow there is another booth you might want to visit at the NRA Show. It is the Para USA booth, #427. Para will have its new Para SASS Wild Bunch Pistol. Para has designed a pistol that is ready to take on the rigors of Wild Bunch Action Shooting and is set to go. The pistol will have its first public viewing at the NRA Show and I for one can’t wait to see it. Long Hunter will be in the Para booth talking about the gun and Wild Bunch Action Shooting. So, stop by and take a look and say hello to Long Hunter. Tell him Coyote sent ya.

The NRA Show and Annual Meetings

The NRA Show and Annual Meetings are this week in Charlotte, May 14-16. There will be over 400 vendors, including SASS, setting up in the Charlotte Convention Center to show off their latest products. This is always a great show and it has everything new in guns and shooting.

SASS will be in booth #1706, so please drop by for a visit or bring a friend to sign up. Judge Roy Bean and Coyote Calhoun will be there to meet and greet and answer any question you may have. The hours are Friday and Saturday, 9AM to 6PM and Sunday 10 to 5.

See you in Charlotte this weekend.

Buffalo Stampede - Video

We had some crazy weather at Buffalo Stampede this year. Here is a short video that shows some of the weather and some of the going-ons.

END of TRAIL - WILD WEST JUBILEE

Round Up your Posse of Family and Friends at head to Founders Ranch in Edgewood, New Mexico where the West is Alive and “Extra” Wild for 3 Big Days during this year’s 29th Annual “SASS End of Trail & Wild West Jubilee” June 25, 26 & 27, 2010, 9:00am to 5:00pm Daily! There’s an entire, family fun, Western Festival awaiting everyone at this year’s event. Along with all the great exhibitions from “Sure-Shot” World Champion SASS members, Shootin’ Stages on the Range and Ride’n Fast and Shootin’ Straight in the action packed Mounted Shooting Competition! There will be lots of non-stop, fun for all ages entertainment, featuring World Champion Trick Ropers, Gun Spinners, Knife Throwers, Trick Horse Riders, plus, World Class Variety Stage Acts, Live Music with Award Winning Singers and Musicians, Native American Dancers, Old West Magicians, a few Hollywood Movie Stuntmen & Actors thrown in for good measure and much, much more!
Twice daily the Legacy of America’s West will come to life during Dr Buck’s Wild West Show starring literally the Best in the West collection of performers this side of… Anywhere! The Cast reads like a Wild West Arts Who’s Who… WWPAS World Champion Gun Spinner, Johnny “Hotshot” Tuscadero, WWPAS All Around World Champion Dan “Rhinestone Roper” Mink, World Champion Mounted Shooter & Trick Horse Trainer Gary “Bad Dog” Bennett, Award Winning American Indian Tribal Dancer Moontee Sinquah, Hollywood TV & Movie Stuntmen, Dr Buck Montgomery and Amos “Pyro Kid” Carver. But wait, there’s more… there will be a Special Guest appearance by America’s favorite sidekick “Gabby” and maybe even Champion Mounted Shooters, Ed “Jersey Kid” Beesley and Jerry “Expressman” Bestpitch. This One-of-a-Kind Show might best be described as… “Buffalo Bill Cody Gone Wild!” Don’t miss a moment of the Action!
The action doesn’t end in the Arena Pard’ner, because all of the Wild West Entertainers will also be individually performing their very own shows, either on stage in the Bella Union, Tex’s outdoor stage, the Gem Saloon or back in the Wild Bunch Arena. Plus, the always charming and ever popular Miss Tabitha will be on hand showcasing her many talents on the Bella Union Stage in one of her, not to be missed Variety Shows. Then hold on to your hats, because we have even more Entertainment to blow the Sombrero off your head, like Live Music, featuring the One and Only, Sourdough Slim, Syd Masters, Frederic Jackson Turner and his band “Big Red Sky”, Award Winning Flute Player, Moontee Sinquah and All ages will be Amazed? Amused? by the Dueling Magic Team of Col. A.P. Green and Mysterioso or see what your Future just might be at Madame Zamora’s Palm Reading Gypsy Tent. Now even if you’re not shooting at the Event, you can still test your skills with a Single Action Six Gun over at the Wild West Cowboy Fast Draw, but bring a friend so you can see who really is the… “Fastest Gun in Founders Town!”
So ya say you wanna be a Gun Spin’n, Trick Rope’n, Whip Crack’n, Knife Throw’n Wild West Performer? Well, then here’s another reason why you have to be at the 2010 SASS End of Trail Wild West Jubilee. SASS-WWPAS “Wild West Performing Arts Society”, will also be hosting daily Workshops and Seminars on all the Wild West Arts… Trick Roping, Fancy Six Gun Spinning & Handling, Bullwhips, Knife Throwing and how to “Look like you’re getting the tar beat out of ya”, Stunts & Stage Fighting.
Besides all this “New Daylight Entertainment” Wild West excitement, the Evenings are looking to have their own “Wild Time in the Old Town”, and not just one night, but three or four! There will be an abundance of Live Music, Dancing and, of course, Miss Tabitha, Peaches O’Day and a cast of multi-talented performers in the New for 2010, Coyote Calhoun extravaganza! {All evening shows require an End of Trail Conventioneers ticket}
The Nation's oldest and largest Cowboy Action Shooting competition and Wild West festival, END of TRAIL draws more than 1000 authentically dressed competitors from around the world to vie for the World Championship of Cowboy Action Shooting. A western United States tradition dedicated to preserving the history of the Old West, End of Trail is a celebration of the Old West Cowboy lifestyle, surrounded by a four-day festival open to the public and featuring Best of the West entertainment and activities for the entire family. END of TRAIL World Championship of Cowboy Action Shooting and Wild West Jubilee is produced by the Single Action Shooting Society, better known as SASS. Admission is $8.00 per person per day. Kids 12 and under are free. Parking is $2.00 per vehicle. Event hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Thursday – Saturday. All spectators are encouraged to dress Western, but are not permitted to carry firearms. All spectators in the shooting areas must have eye protection (sunglasses). Hearing protection is encouraged and available on site.
For Photos, more details, or information about this great family event, visit the official SASS website at: www.sassnet.com or call 1~ 877~411~SASS {7277} or 505~843~1320

Outlaw Trail And The Wild Bunch

A few months ago I talked about several changes we were making to our SASS events. Outlaw Trail is one of those changing events. Outlaw Trail has been our SASS Four Corners Regional Match for several years, and this year Outlaw Trail will become The World Championship of Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting. The date for the match is August 5-8, 2010.

Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting has really grown at a phenomenal pace. We now have cowboy vendors like Taylors and Company and EMF offering 1911 pistols as part of their inventory and new companies to the SASS market like Para USA offering a 1911 designed for Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting. Also, many leather companies, including Mernickle Holsters and Kirkpatrick Leather, are making rigs specially designed for Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting.

So, we feel the time has come for Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting to have its own World Championship Match. This is not to say we are going to ignore the Cowboy Action Shooters for this match. We will be offering a handful of Cowboy and Cowgirl categories for those who would like to play but are not yet comfortable with the 1911.

The match will consist of 15 stages, shot five each day on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday with a non-mandatory five-stage warm-up match on Wednesday for those who can show up a day early. We are also planning free clinics by several top Wild Bunch™ 1911 shooters regarding shooting techniques and rules. Each afternoon we will have unique side matches designed with Wild Bunch™ and Action Shooters in mind to keep you shooting all day.

Festivities will include a Saturday Night “Green Chili Cheese Burger” Dinner. Some of you may not know the “Green Chili Cheese Burger” had its humble beginnings in San Antonio, New Mexico at the Owl Restaurant and has now become New Mexico’s signature dish, with “Green Chili Cheese Burger” cooking contests springing-up all over the state. We may even turn this into a “Cooking Contest,” and along with some “Green Chili Beer” from the local micro brewery in Moriarty, it will be “worth the price of admission” alone. The awards ceremony will also be held during the Saturday Night Party, leaving Sunday as a travel day.

Michael Bane, Wolf Bane, SASS #13557, will have a crew filming the match for his Down Range Television, to be aired by the Outdoor Channel. Michael Bane and the Outdoor Channel have been big supporters of Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting, and we are please to have them participate in our event. This should make for some great television and great exposure for the sport, as well as an opportunity for you to get your 15 seconds of fame!

The SASS Mounted Shooters will not be left out, either. Outlaw Trail will be the SASS New Mexico Mounted State (Territorial) Championship. The match will consist of a six-stage mounted match as well as three rifle/shotgun stages all shot on Saturday and Sunday. There will be a two-stage warm-up match on Friday, so you can work the “bugs” out before the match starts. Mounted Shooters are invited to all the festivities, including the “Green Chili Cheese Burger” Dinner.

We are trying to “think outside the box” on this match and make it loads of fun whether you shoot Wild Bunch™, Cowboy Action, or Mounted. It will be a great time for all at a great price. So, join us and help make the 1st Outlaw Trail World Championship of Wild Bunch™ Action Shooting a great success. Visit our web newly redesigned web site at:

http://www.sassnet.com/outlaw

Face Book

If you have not done so you need to visit our SASS Face Book Page. Just log in to Face Book and search for Single Action Shooting Society or click the link below. We have just hit 2000 fans over the weekend and we are excited. Keep in touch with SASS on Facebook.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Single-Action-Shooting-Society-SASS/68373202854?ref=mf

Kentucky Derby

It is Kentucky Derby Day. It can't be enjoyed without a Mint Julep. Here is a video that shows you how to make it.