Agarita Ranch Lockhart, Texas

A Chronicle of the Plum Creek Shooting Society

January 2012

Ride with Pancho VillaOur annual Ride with PanchoVilla Match will be March 2nd

through 4th. Thanks to SterlingSage for designingthis year’s poster.The registrationform and shooters’schedule areattached as the lasttwo pages of thisissue. We needvolunteers – stageand posse marshals,set-up, etc. ContactMatch Director,Buck Bradley orDelta Raider (emailaddresses nextpage) if you canhelp before and/orduring the match.If we havesufficient sign-up,there will be RO1and RO2 classesoffered Thursday.Please let BuckBradley or DeltaRaider know rightaway if you wouldlike to attend. The classes willmake you a better shooter,whether or not you want to runthe timer. Buck and Delta

Raider have also asked me toremind everyone that only thosewho register in advance will geta pre-printed match badge. Wewill be having a silent auction

as part of the match festivities.We need donations. Pleasebring anything you would liketo donate to the auction to ourmonthly match in February. If

that is just not possible, pleasesend an email to Delta Raider orBuck Bradley telling them whatyou will be donating. Proceedswill be used to defray the cost of

the match and forclub expenses,including rangemaintenance andupgrade, monthlyprizes and otheroperationalexpenses. Thanks inadvance. We alsoneed some buildingmaterials: plywood,full sheets, halfsheets, ¼” or biggerthat will be installedbelow the screens atloading andunloading tables tohelp with splatterbelow the waist. Wecould also use someadditional screening.Finally, we havedecided to shoot anight stage Fridaynight just for fun –no scoring. For those

who have ‘em, bring those blackpowder hogs. Whether or notyou shoot black powder , weguarantee you will have a hootshooting at night.

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Marshals Range Marshal - Delta Raider Territorial Governor - Jake Paladin Safety Marshal - Elroy Rogers Protest Marshal – Schuetzum Phast Stage Marshal - Phantom Long-Range Marshal - Wild Hog Administrative Marshal – Long Juan Medical Marshal - Jake Paladin Raffle Marshal – True Blue Cachoo Costume Marshal - Lorelei Longshot Entertainment Marshal-Old Bill Dick Special Events Marshal - Belle Fire Side Match Marshal - Texas Sarge Editor, Agarita Gazette – Long Juan

Plum Creek Shooting Society

February 4 Monthly Match

March 2-4 RIDE WITH PANCHO VILLAANNUAL MATCH

March 29-April 1

Comancheria Days Texican Rangers

March 29-April 1

Raid on Old Fort Parker First Step - Texas 3-Step

April 7 Monthly Match

May 5 Monthly Match

Long Juan Here!!After a little fog to start the day,we had GREAT weather for theJanuary shoot, withsunny, bright blueskies and temperaturesin the upper 60s andlow 70s. It absolutelycould not have beenbetter! Forty-twoshooters in threeposses competed in 19different categories.Phantom wrote thescenarios, which againwere interesting,competitive and fun toshoot. Now we havefolks complainingabout targets that aretoo close AND targetsthat are too far away. That mustmean Phantom is doingsomething right.

Congratulations to The AdobeKid, Drifter, Wildcat Bob andTejas Bob, all of whom shot

CLEAN. Complete results areon page 8. Thanks to G.T.Sharps for sending me some of

the pics you see in this issue.Thanks to Kitchen Kate formaking great five-bean soup forlunch. I saw more than oneperson going back for seconds.And then we finished with BlueBell ice cream, cookies and freshfruit. It can’t get much better.Congratulations to BooseyBabe, Boon Doggle and Drifter,all of whom found Chuck in thepuddle last month. Othersmade good, but incorrectguesses. Let’s see who can findChuck this month. He’s in oneof the pics – I promise!

Delta Raider Leshikar@aol.comBuck Bradley Renegade@gvtc.com

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Ethics & Values Matter!!The Cowboy Code

I have yet to meet anyone involved in westernaction shooting who does not live by the CowboyCode, Code of the West or whatever you want tocall it. I certainly try. I hope you will share whatit means with your friends, your co-workers andmost importantly your children and grandchildren.The following article is quoted from thecowboylibertarian.com.Headline – Fox News – February 10, 2011Why the Cowboy Code is Not Frivolous

by Patrick Dorinson

"A man’s got to have a code, a creed to liveby, no matter his job." -- John Wayne

The other day the Montana State Senatepassed SB 216 sponsored by rancher and SenatePresident Jim Peterson. The bill is simple anddirect and it doesn’t cost the taxpayers a dime.SB 216 would adopt The Code of the West fromthe book "Cowboy Ethics" and make it theofficial Montana Code. "Cowboy Ethics" waswritten by James Owen, an investmentprofessional who after Enron and the otherWall Street scandals of a few years ago, decidedit was time to take a good look at what we hadbecome as a society and individuals. Like mehe has a great deal of respect and admirationfor the iconic American cowboy and thecowboy way of life. He came up with his "Codeof the West" which states some simple commonsense principles that not just cowboys but all ofus should try to live by. The code includesadmonitions such as "Live each day withcourage," "Be tough, but fair," "Ride for thebrand," and "Know where to draw the line."

Montana Governor Schweitzer has said hewill veto any frivolous legislation. I guess heconsider ethics "frivolous." He wants thelegislature to focus on important things like jobs

and a budget shortfall. He’s right that thosethings are extremely important. But the ethicsand values deficit in this country is just asimportant as the fiscal and financial deficits. Iflife is just about dollars and cents then we arein bigger trouble than I thought. Somewherealong the line we forgot these basic values andreplaced them with a self-centered "grab all youcan and forget the consequences" attitude andsituational ethics.

Children cheat on tests and think it is notonly okay but is a path to success. In 2002 astudy by Rutgers University found thatcheating was rampant and in many casesaccepted behavior among students. Thedirector of the study said "I think kids today arelooking to adults and society for a moralcompass and when they see the behavioroccurring there, they don't understand whythey should be held to a higher standard." Ifthat is how our young people see the world,Lord help us. One student said, “I actuallythink cheating is good. A person who has anentirely honest life can't succeed these days."Another student in the survey said, "What'simportant is getting ahead. The better gradesyou have, the better school you get into, thebetter you're going to do in life. And if youlearn to cut corners to do that, you're going tobe saving yourself time and energy. In the realworld, that's what's going to be going on. Thebetter you do, that's what shows. It's not howmoral you were in getting there." She was 17at the time and by my ciphering she would bearound 26 now. With an attitude like that sheshould run for Congress.

I can’t imagine things have improved since2002 and my guess is that they have gottenworse. Some politicians cheat on their wives.If a man will cheat on his wife what do youthink he will do to the folks who elected him?Bad behavior in public life will more likely land

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you a book deal, a reality TV show or a spot onOprah than the consternation of society. Youwant proof? Disgraced former New YorkGovernor Eliot Spitzer romped with hookersand he now has a television show on CNN. Bythe way, hookers are now called "escorts" andthey have become a part of mainstream popularculture thanks to Spitzer and actor CharlieSheen.

And while the collapse of the housingmarket has many causes one big one was thatsome unscrupulous lenders approved loansalthough they knew the borrowers could notafford them. By the way, the borrowers alsoknew they couldn’t afford them as well andnow some of them just walk away from theirobligations. Now that's a great example for thekids, isn't it?

Some folks might say I’m “naïve” or “oldfashioned” or that “times have changed and Ineed to get with it” whatever “it” is. Maybe so,but when a nation forgets the values that madethe country strong and discards its ethical

compass as “outdated” that nation could be atits end. And if not the end, you sure as Hell cansee it from here.

Code of the West from Cowboy Ethics:What Wall Street Can Learn from the Codeof the West by James P. Owen

1. Live each day with courage.

2. Take pride in your work.

3. Always finish what you start.

4. Do what has to be done.

5. Be tough, but fair.

6. When you make a promise, keep it.

7. Ride for the brand.

8. Talk less and say more.

9. Remember that some things aren’t forsale.

10. Know where to draw the line

“Why, by God girl, that’s a Dragoon! You’re nobigger than a corn nubbin, what’re you doing withall this pistol?”“It belonged to my father, he carried it bravely in thewar, and I intend to kill Tom Chaney with it if thelaw fails to do so.”“Well, this’ll sure get the job done if you can find afence post to rest it on while you take aim.”

TRUE GRIT 1969 - John Wayne & Mattie

“Life is just a bank. You can’t take out any morethan you put in.”

Tom Lawson (Tom Mix) in Rustler’s Roundup (1922)

from Western Movie Wit & Wisdom by Jim Kane

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What’s it mean? Dragoon by Long Juan The word dragoon originally meant mountedinfantry, who were trained in horse riding as wellas infantry fighting skills. Dragoons evolvedfrom the practice of transporting infantry byhorse when speed of movement was needed.During the 18th century, dragoons evolved intolight cavalry units and personnel. The name hasbeen retained in modern times by a number ofarmored or ceremonial mounted regiments.

The Colt Model 1848 Percussion ArmyRevolver or “Dragoon” is a .44 caliber revolverdesigned by Samuel Colt for the U.S. Army’sMounted Rifles (“U.S.M.R.”), also known as“dragoons.” It was the answer to a number ofproblems with the Colt Walker, including the

Walker’s large size, theWalker’s propensity forcylinders to explode andthe Walker’s habit ofdropping the loading leverupon discharge, lockingup the revolver action.The Dragoon had a

shorter cylinder, preventing its overloading withblack powder (50g v. 60g for the Walker), ashorter barrel (7 ½ inches v. 9” for the Walker),lessening its weight, and a latch instead of aspring to hold the loading lever. More than18,000 Dragoons were produced.

The Dragoon appeared just as the Mexican-American War was drawing to a close. Too latefor use in that conflict, the Dragoon becamepopular among civilians and the military duringthe 1850s and ‘60s. Dragoons were originallyissued to the U.S.M.R. in pairs, which werecarried in pommel holsters on a saddle. Bothmilitary and civilian forces valued the man-stopping qualities and accuracy of the weapon.

The Colt Dragoon was produced in severalvariations. Eli Whitney, Jr. manufactured the firstrun of 1848 Dragoons for Colt at his Whitneyville

factory inConnecticut. TheseDragoons used leftover Walker partsand were known as“transition” Walkersor WhitneyvilleDragoons. First,

Second and Third Model Dragoons followedbetween 1848 and 1860, when the Colt Model1860 revolver replaced it. Differences betweenthe First and Second Models were minimal, withthe most obvious being the shape of the notcheson the cylinder (oval on the First Model andrectangular on the Second). The V-type mainspring of the First Model and early Second ModelDragoons gave way to a flat leaf mainspring. TheThird Model offered an option to attach ashoulder stock and folding leaf sights andfeatured a rounded trigger guard instead of thesquare-back design on the earlier models. Allthree models of the Dragoon have an unflutedcylinder, which bears an engraved scene of abattle between soldiers and Indians. Cylindersmay also bear the inscription “U.S. DRAGOONS”or “MODEL U.S.M.R.”

Famous users of the Dragoon includedJoaquin Murietta, the California bandit, Uniongeneral George McClellan and fictional MattieRoss in the 1969 version of “True Grit.” Mattiecarried a Walker in the more recent film version.The Dragoon is a collector’s item and sells forhigh prices in the thousands of dollars. Ubertiproduces good replicas distributed by CimarronFirearms, Taylor, Inc. and others.

The western expansion of America’s frontierin the 19th century created the need for apowerful, reliable and fast-shooting weapon.

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Colt started down the roadto satisfyingthis need with thePaterson andimproved on the Paterson withthe Walker. Colt took thenext step with the Dragoon. During the

1850s, the Dragoon was probably the finestmilitary arm available. It was replaced onlywhen technological developments allowed Coltto introduce the 1860 Army model. The Dragoonnevertheless saw extensive service on both sidesin the Civil War.

RO’s Corner: CODY/DIXON CATEGORY

You may have a “big bore” rifle, but hardlyever get a chance to shoot it. Or maybeyou have been shooting cowboy action for

a long time and are looking for something a littledifferent to try. The Cody/Dixon category may bejust what you need. You shoot the samescenarios as everyone else on the posse except forthe rifle targets. A Cody/Dixon shooter uses a“big-bore” rifle and shoots at rifle targets that arefarther out than the standard rifle targets.Because the ammunition for these rifles is moreexpensive than pistol caliber ammunition, eachstage is shot using six rifle rounds only. All shotsare fired from an off-hand, unsupported position.

The name Cody/Dixon is based on two wellknown “Old West” shooters. Buffalo Bill Cody,known for his abilities with a lever-action rifle,and Billy Dixon, famous for his long-range shot atAdobe Walls with a single-shot rifle. There aretwo classes in the C/D category: the Cody class,which requires the use of a “big bore”, lever-action rifle, and the Dixon class, which requiresthe use of a “big bore”, single-shot rifle.Examples of these rifles include the WinchesterModel 94 (lever) and 1885 (single-shot).

Cody/Dixon shooters shoot the pistol andshotgun targets, in the same order, as everyoneelse in the posse. It makes no difference whetherthe C/D shooter uses one hand or two, smokelessor black powder, a hammered double or a pumpshotgun, or a traditional or modern class pistol.

Rules for the category are few and simple, butfirm. See the C/D rules below for furtherexplanation of what types of rifles and calibersare acceptable and specific loading instructions.

This is your chance to use that “big bore”long-range rifle that spends most of its time in thesafe. Everyone shoots C/D has a really good time.Try it; you won’t be sorry.

Cody/Dixon Rules· All shooters must wear period-correct

(1860–1899) hat, boots and clothes.· Rear sights must be period correct (1860-1899),

and may be either barrel mounted open ironsight, or a tang mounted adjustable sight.Front sights may vary from simple blades tohooded types with interchangeable inserts.Spirit levels are okay. Optical or receivermounted sights are not allowed.

· Rifles must be of a design and a model readilyavailable prior to 1899. Lever- action riflesmust be tube fed, with an exposed hammer.Marlin 336’s and 1895’s are allowed. Single-shot rifles must have an exposed hammer.Spring-loaded ejectors are not allowed, exceptfor Trapdoors. Savage 99’s, Ruger #1’s, mod-ern H&R’s, or any “Little Sharps” rifles al-lowed.

· Rifle cartridges must be of at least .30 caliber,and be a center fire, rimmed rifle cartridgethat was readily available prior to 1899. TheWinchester 30-30 , 32 , 38-55, 40-65, 43 Span-

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ish, and 45-70 Govt. are a few exam-ples. No cartridge smaller than 30-30Winchester is allowed. Any propel-lant powder, smokeless or black is al-lowed. Duplex loads are OK forblack. Bullets must be all lead. Paperpatched or gas checks are allowed.

· All Rifle shots must be fired off-hand;no leaning, supporting, or resting isallowed. Each stage requires six riflerounds. Target distances should bebetween 80 and 125 yards, if range-size allows. Ammunition for single-shot rifles may be staged, loaded fromstock-mounted loops made of periodcorrect material, or loaded from thebody.

· Lever-action rifles must be loadedwith five rounds at the loading table.The sixth round may be staged or onthe body and must be loaded on theclock at any time during the stage.

· Any SASS-approved Main Match pis-tol or shotgun may be used in 12, 16,or 20 gauge.

· Shooting style and pow-der used is shooter’schoice. A shooter canshoot one-handed orwith two, use modern ortraditional class pistols,shoot smokeless or blackpowder. Billy Dixon

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January Shoot

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Dues 2012. Our records indicate onlythose listed below paid dues for 2011 or2012. If “Life” or “2012” appears after

your name, our records reflect that you have paiddues at least through 12/31/12. For those of youwith “2011” after your name, our records reflectyou paid dues for 2011, but have not yet paiddues for 2012. If you name does not appear on

this list, our records do not reflect any dues paidsince at least 2010. If you think our records arewrong, please let me know when you paid dues,what category, etc. and I will make thenecessary corrections. If our records are correctand you have not yet paid dues for 2012, pleasedo. Thanks. Long Juan (jsoule@scottdoug.com)See next page for membership/waiver form.

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Plum Creek Shooting Society 2012 calendars foreveryone who ordered during the shooters’meeting in January are in. They will be deliveredat our February Shoot. Price is $20 per calendar.

Long Juan & Sterling Sage

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