F I DON'T WRITE THESE THINGS DOWN I'll forget them. I keep a journal when we go backpacking, so I figured I might as well do the same thing with this hobby, too. You can read about my backpacking trips elsewhere, but the Cowboy Tales are right below.

• July 9, 2005 - Pixelwiz shoots her very first match with the Carolina Cattlemen! (pictures and a movie, too)
   
• This year-long gap brought to you courtesy of Dalton and Lexie who generally get the free time I have to write these match notes up. I mean that in a good way.
   
• July 10, 2004 - The High Country Cowboys and a match on the mountain.
   
• June 12, 2004 - A fine summer's day with the High Country Cowboys.
   
• March 13, 2004 - After far too long without shooting, smoke fills the air with the High Country Cowboys.
   
• November 22, 2003 - The High Country Cowboys witness my first attempt at shooting a Gunfighter stage.
   
• September 6, 2003 - An off-shedule match in the mountains with the High Country Cowboys.
   
• August 23, 2003 - Smokin' up the mountains with the High Country Cowboys.
   
• June 28, 2003 - The first shoot with the High Country Cowboys.
   
• June 14, 2003 - Rejoining the Carolina Cattlemen after a lengthy absence.
   
• January 11, 2003 - Brrrrr! A brisk day's shooting with the Carolina Cattlemen.
   
• October 12, 2002 - A fond farewell to the Carolina Cattlemen.
   
• September 7, 2002 - A beautiful day to smoke up the Old Hickory Regulators' new Cowboy Action Shooting berm in Rocky Mount.
   
• August 29-31, 2002 - The Uprising at Swearing Creek (a.k.a., the NC SASS Championship match) provides me with yet another chance to shoot in the rain in Salisbury.
   
• July 13, 2002 - The Carolina Cattlemen suffer through my clouds of black powder smoke again, and I almost shoot a clean match.
   
• June 8, 2002 - The Carolina Cattlemen host the 2002 NC State Games Cowboy Action Shooting match and I shoot black powder for the first time.
   
• May 4, 2002 - Cold & Rain (again!) in Salisbury with the Old North State Posse. What is it about that place?
   
• April 20, 2002 - A laid-back match with a bunch of blackpowder-shooters in Fayetteville with the Cross Creek Cowboys.
   

Iron Gun 2002
The North Carolina Cowboys' version of "March Madness": 6 (or 7, for some of us) matches, each at a different range across the state, in one month. It seems that the "iron" in "Iron Gun" refers to the stamina required for all the driving back and forth...

• March 23, 2002 - The last Iron Gun match (and my very first Clean Shoot!) in Statesville with the Iredell Regulators
   
• March 16, 2002 - A visit to the mountain town of "Mine Branch" with the Gunpowder Creek Regulators in Lenoir
   
• March 10, 2002 - Ploonk! Shooting into the lake with the Thornfield Rangers in Eden
   
• March 9, 2002 - A trip to South Carolina for the "Raid on Andersonville" with the Piedmont Regulators
   
• March 3, 2002 - A warmer, drier day for the Iron Gun posse and the Carolina Roughriders in Charlotte
   
• March 2, 2002 - Shooting in the cold and rain; a test of the Iron Gunners' will (and intelligence!) in Salisbury with the Old North State Posse.
  
   

• February 9, 2002 - A gorgeous day for shooting with the Carolina Cattlemen, but my shooting wasn't quite so pretty.
   
• February 2, 2002 - It was chilly out, but I must have done something right — I finished in the overall top ten with the Old Hickory Regulators. (And yes, there were more than ten other shooters...)
   
• January 12, 2002 - "Third Place Duelist" sounds alright —until I also tell you that there were only three of us shooting that class with the Carolina Cattlemen...
   
• December 8, 2001 - Surprise, surprise! I win first place Duelist shooting with the Carolina Cattlemen. No thanks to my right hand, of course.
   
• December 1, 2001 - Anybody got an extra right hand for sale? Mine doesn't work so well... I still had fun shooting with the Old Hickory Regulators in Rocky Mount.
   
• November 10, 2001 - Slow down and win a prize! I get 2nd place Duelist with the Carolina Cattlemen when I take my time and aim better.
   
• November 3, 2001 - I might be able to hit water if I fell out of a boat, but I can't hit targets with a revolver in Salisbury...
   
• October 13, 2001 - My right hand fails me while shooting with the Carolina Cattlemen. And my bullets are too small, too.
   
• October 6, 2001 - Shooting with (some of) the Old North State Posse in Salisbury, NC. I won First Place Duelist! Yee-haw! ... Okay, so I was the only one shooting in that class... but I'm still happy!
   
• August 30 - September 1, 2001 - Carolina's Championship 2001. My first experience at a major match, the SASS North Carolina State Championship.
   
• August 11, 2001 - Carolina Cattlemen's Shooting & Social Society. At least I didn't finish last...
   
• August 4, 2001 - with the Old Hickory Regulators in Rocky Mount, NC. Hey! I shot a couple o' clean stages!
   
• July 12, 2001 - My First Match: A greenhorn shoots with the Carolina Cattlemen in Creedmoor, NC.