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View Full Version : My opinion on TG topic #1


Black Hills Barb
10-10-2005, 06:34 AM
:fb
• Should all SASS State and higher championships be required to honor all SASS Categories even if there is only one participant?
We are now requiring all sanctioned State and above championships to honor all categories with 5 or more participants.

Short answer: YES!

My reasons:
Due to the fact that I shoot gunfighter (gunfightress), I have been offered other options because there were not enough lady gunfighters to honor the category. I have shot against the men, shot duelist/double duelist, shot in the ladies traditional or 49er categories but gunfighter style, etc. I think all categories should be offered and honored even if there is only one contestant because when I finally get to attend a match where there might be other lady gunfighters (even if it’s only 2, 3, or 4 of us) we can see how we measure up against each other and be recognized for it.

I very actively work to recruit more ladies into CAS. Allowing all categories to be recognized is a positive approach for those ladies that find it intimidating to always come up against top shooters in the ladies traditional or 49er categories. If the smaller categories are continually “ignored” they might never grow. What’s the incentive to shoot duelist, gunfighter, frontier cartridge, etc, if every time there’s a multiple day match, the category is dropped?

Would we lump that on little buckaroo, buckarette or young gun girl in with the young gun boys? Why should we do it to women?

Match fees are determined based upon the overall cost of putting on the event. Everything from the awards to the job johnnies determine the entry fees. Every registered shooter deserves to have their category recognized.

At smaller, local 3-day matches, I realize that the budget might be smaller but I still think they should offer and recognize all categories. Perhaps a policy of allowing all shooters to compete in their selected category, but only offering awards when 3 or 5 shooters (whatever they decide) are registered. Heck, I pick up packs of blank certificates at Staples for less than ten cents each and I purchase document frames at the dollar store for a buck. If there are less than the required number of shooters in a category, would it break the bank to offer a framed certificate to the top shooter in these smaller categories?

At most monthly shoots, we compete for nothing more than bragging rights. At the very least, still allow them their bragging rights. But, don’t force shooters to move from the category they register in. Allow them to compete and be scored in their chosen category.

Thank you for reading my rant. :rant

DogWoman
10-10-2005, 11:00 AM
All categories need to be recognized at this level! How else will you get interest in them?

I also shoot LGF and have been disappointed that there are not more. It's a fun category and challenging both physically and mentally.

I found at Utah War this year that there were categories I never heard of! It was fun to hear about them and look into them. Ya never know, I might want to shoot one of them some day.

Miss Ruby
10-10-2005, 01:35 PM
I agree as well.

I can certainly understand that trophies etc cannot always be provided and I'm fine with that, I'm not in it for the trophies!

I just shot B-Western at the Australian National Champs. It was a combined mens/ladies category. There were two of us (one man, one lady) out of about 189 shooters! They still listed it as a category and even had an award for it which I was not expecting.

I have the NZ National Champs in a few weeks. As far as I know I am the only B-Western competitor, but they recognised it as a category. In NZ we still have certificates at all of our shoots, big and small, so I know there will be certificates but I also know there will be no trophy as we have a rule here that you have to have 5 entered for a trophy to be struck.

If I wanted a trophy I could shoot Traditional - but I'm B-Western and proud of it!!!

So after going off on that wee tangent I agree that all categories should be recognised - you still look where you came overall and compare your results to other shooters you're 'aiming' at anyway - well I do!!!

Angel Outlaw
10-10-2005, 03:20 PM
BHB, I too shoot LGF, at first I had to shoot with the men, but now all our clubs have trophies for LGF:) NOrmally I am the only one but they all changed and recognized me, that was great. At our state match last year I think I was the only LGF, and I still had my own class, hehehehe, I am in a class of my own! boy is that fitting:w2

I believe they have even given me an award with a different catagory just so I would get one!

boy am I spoiled:)

Black Hills Barb
10-10-2005, 05:50 PM
We recognize everyone at our state match too, but then it's at our club and I'm on the committee. (The men fear me!) :lool Unfortunately many clubs don't though. Sometimes I wonder if all the folks that say "no more categories" and "must have 5 to be recognized" shoot in traditional. They have no idea how frustrating it is to be told that you have to go to another category, etc.

Chihuahua Floyd
10-11-2005, 07:29 PM
We recognize everyone at our state match too, but then it's at our club and I'm on the committee. (The men fear me!) :lool Unfortunately many clubs don't though. Sometimes I wonder if all the folks that say "no more categories" and "must have 5 to be recognized" shoot in traditional. They have no idea how frustrating it is to be told that you have to go to another category, etc.

Barb,
A wise man fears all women (except my Chipmunk, I adore my Chipmunk) with guns or without. Just a tad above respect, and men truley respect a women. Them that don't is less than men.
Just my 2 cents.
CF

DogWoman
10-12-2005, 09:20 AM
Just to clarify this, the state level and above should have all categories. A local club annual match really needs to go with what they can afford! Having categories for all levels can be costly to a club, especially if no one shoots at some of the 'off the wall' levels (BP Frontier Cartridge Classic Cowgirl wearing a purple feather LGF-*grin*).

No one in our area really wants to pay more than $40 for a six stage annual match. We'd have to go much higher in $ to do all categories. This is the reasoning for '5 or more' or '3 or more' in the category.

When we have an open class at our club, I switch back to traditional. Shucks, may as well play gamer that day! We had around 10 women at our last annual match. It's not cost feasible to have LGF, LD, etc. with those numbers.

Now the STATE level is a horse of a different color. But then consider, you have more shooters, more days, and they charge more. The budget is there to offer it.

Fannie Kikinshoot
10-12-2005, 06:47 PM
Barb, I agree with you for all matches State level and higher. This year at the Southeaster REGIONAL Blackpowder Championship I was the only Lady Gunfighter, so they lumped me in with all the other Lady FCD shooters. They did not recognize Lady Gunfighter for that match, although, they did have a gunfighter category for the men. :mad: Dang it, I could have been the Southeastern Lady Gunfighter Blackpowder Champion!!!! Oh well, I shot the match clean!!

Black Hills Barb
10-13-2005, 06:40 AM
At one state level match we attended this year I know for a fact there were 3 ladies that had intended to shoot GF. We were told there were not enough for the category and were offered other choices. It was clearly stated on the registration that 5 were needed. No big deal. I went back to Traditional, one asked for Duelist (not enough) so she shot Double Duelist with the men duelists. The other shot GF with the boys.

Then at the end of the match I learned there were 3 ladies in FC and their category was recognized! Now that just wasn't right.

At another match where there were only two of us one shot GF style but in the LT category and I shot GF with the men. There were 9 of them and lil ole me. On any given day, at least 5 of them could complete for first with only fractions of seconds between them. The others are still pretty darn good. But I figure that if I want to get good at this I have to shoot it and shoot it as much as I can. So suffice it to say, I got my clocked clean but good by the boys. I still had a blast. I even beat a couple LT shooters and I am proud to say that I was the only gunfighter that wore a boa for the entire match! (One man did wear it for one stage though! :18 )

My point to this story is this. What would it have hurt to offer the option to let me shoot and be scored LGF? No plaque or trophy necessary as there weren't 5 of us. Afterall, if I shot GF style in LT I would have handicapped myself enough to surely finish "out of the running" just as I did by shooting against the men. So when offering shooters in small categories their options, I think the option of competing in your category for nothing more than bragging rights should be an option.