[True West] The Wild West is still smoking' in this hard riding cowboy horseback competition.The thunderous sound of pounding hooves and the staccato bursts of gunfire breaks the silence of the still air as the lone horseman smoothly guides his mount through the maze of carefully positioned opponents.
With his revolver now empty, this centaur of the open range spurs his mount into a full gallop, at the same time slipping his single action .45 back into its leather.
Without a moment’s hesitation, the lightning-fast hands of this mounted shootist draws a second six-gun.
Rounding the bend in an instant, he instinctively levels the hogleg on his first adversary, blasting it as his mighty horse digs his hooves into the soft earth, kicking up dirt clods as he plunges and bolts into a dead run.
Four more rounds, shot as quickly as the six-shooter‐tuned silky smooth‐can be worked, and, in a matter of just seconds, he races to safety, sliding to a dust-swirling, dead stop.
In a few moments, it is over. As the smoke clears and the dust settles, the cowboy looks around to see his score.
This isn’t a page out of the Old West. It’s just another fun ride at any one of the Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association’s (CMSA) matches held all over the country.