Being relatively new to Cowboy Action Shooting I started out as most new cowboy shooters, I found a club close to home, learned the ropes and became hopelessly hooked on Cowboy Shooting. One day, at the local match, The Reverend Will-U-Sinmore invited anyone that wanted to come shoot at a new club he was starting in Creedmoor NC. Me and several others piled into a couple cars for the two hour drive and went up and had a blast! This was my first of many, Cowboy Shooting road trips.
In this series of articles I will try to give a brief description, pros and cons and locations of some of the different Cowboy matches I have been to here in NC and surrounding states.
Besides just plain fun and more opportunities to shoot there are some good reasons for traveling to and shooting at other matches. Different clubs have their own character, flavor and different interpretations of the rules. Some clubs will feature pure speed matches with big targets up close while others will have rifle targets staged way over in the next county. To improve on your overall Cowboy Action shooting ability you must be able to handle all of these scenarios.
My first ever road trip cowboy match was with the Carolina Cattlemen’s Shooting and Social Society at that clubs second or third match ever held in Creedmoor NC. I think it is appropriate that my first article in this series should be on Creedmoor. Due to time restraints I have not been able to get up to Creedmoor and visit with the Rev. and his bunch for quite some time. In August my shooting pardner, Jack B Nimble and I re-visted this fine bunch of people, here is what we found.
The Rev. Will-U-Sinmore ramrods this group from the grounds of The Sir Walter Raleigh gun club in Creedmoor NC. This is a six stage match with four stages shot on the west side of the range and we shot on the lower field on the east side. The Sir Walter Raleigh gun club is also host to the North Carolina State Games with the IPSC, Trap and Skeet and Cowboy Action shooting events of the state games held here. The gun club went to a great expense to separate the four shooting berms on the west side of the range with cement walls. However, neighbor complaints about bullets possibly going over the forty foot dirt berm has led to the disuse of two of those shooting berms.
The stages at Creedmoor are always fun and interesting. I like the fact that standard shaped/sized cowboy targets are used. You know, for a preacher, the Rev. Will-U-Sinmore is deviously clever in stage design, throwing in such obstacles to fast shooting as tourniquet tying, clothes hanging and multiple required spoken lines in a stage. (Can you say saloon fun?) There is also a constant variety in stages, for instance, rifle and pistol targets may be up close on one stage and then deceptively far away on the next. The Carolina Cattlemen have also made up a wide variety of cowboy props such as saloon fronts, bathtubs wooden horses and staged tables. Shooters ability at Creedmoor ranges from the first time shooter to some of the fastest cowboys in North Carolina. It is not unusual at all to see a Dude or a Harland or a Stinky or Pecos show up and shoot at Creedmoor. However, all are welcomed and first time and new shooters are encouraged and coached.
At Creedmoor the Cattlemen usually shoot four stages, take a quick lunch break and then finish up with the last two stages. Lunch itself is worth a quick mention. Hot-dogs with Del Rio Donnas special chili along with drinks and chips are served on site at reasonable prices. Just don't ask Donna her recipe for the chili, she'll tell you but then she'd have to kill you! At the conclusion of each match the winners are recognized along with best dressed cowboy and cowgirl awards printed on a nice certificate. The Carolina Cattlemen also go to the trouble of printing up as many copies of the match results as are requested.
Match summary;
Stages-6
Fee- $15.00 for non-members, $10.00 for members
The membership fee to join is $50.00, but, this deserves some explanation. While I generally feel that $15.00 for a six stage match is a little pricey, the Carolina Cattlemen have an ingenious solution. The $50.00 membership cost is a one-time, lifetime fee! This makes so much sense that I wish some of the other clubs here in North Carolina would follow suite. Think about it, a club usually sells memberships to raise much-needed capitol to buy targets and supplies. But, a club as far away as Creedmoor, which I can only get to about three or four times a year, the lifetime membership is a smart move. I wouldn't usually dream of buying a membership otherwise, but I did here because I will continue to shoot here three or four times a year in the coming years. With lifetime membership fees the clubs can attract members from farther away who wouldn't join otherwise, giving the club access to much-needed capitol. Even the $30.00-$35.00 annual membership fees the other clubs charge doesn’t make much sense if you think about it. Most clubs miss a match or two a year and with a $30.00 yearly membership and reduced match fee of $10.00 you are still paying $13.00 per match, if you attend every match. Not much of a savings! With a higher lifetime membership fee the club gets immediate use of the membership fees for target buying, etc. and more people will join. Hey, all you other clubs out there, give lifetime memberships some consideration.
Location- about six miles off of I-85 at exit 191. Traveling north on I-85 go east off of the exit about 11/2 miles to a stoplight. Turn left at the light and go about 2 miles to the second road on the right. Turn right, match is on the left about 1/4 mile down.
Pros-
On-site food and drink
Fun, varied stages
Match results tallied at the end of the match
Close proximity to I-85
Reasonable lifetime membership fees
Cons-
About the only one I can think of is the noise. Creedmoor is somewhat loud. Those concrete walls reflect and amplify the sound of gunfire. It won't rattle the fillings from your teeth but it is louder here than at other matches.
In conclusion, the Carolina Cattlemen’s Shooting and Social Society put on a fun, varied and friendly shooting match. Hope to see you there sometime.
Happy Trails
Deputy Gene