Are we seeing the start of a mass exodus

[Branchwater Jack SASS #88854]

1 hour ago, Geronimo Jim SASS # 21775 said:

Wild Bunch retiring?????

https://www.sassnet.com/Downloads/20eChron/20JulyChronGO5.pdf

[Bad Bascomb, SASS # 47,494]

  I personally find the 2 monthly matches our club holds to be a welcome break from the tedium being caused by ill-considered governmental regulation.

Our CAS club 'family' provides relief, both comic and fraternal.

 

That said, we might shoot some .22 class occasionally, and I'm reluctantly preparing to thin out cherished firearms to defray medical expenses.  Just gotta shape my mind and get over the psychological barriers to letting go of items that I searched for for years, finally found, and now am not able to use.  Could be worse.

[Boomstick Bruce]

13 hours ago, Lone Rider, SASS# 73063 said:

 

Stumbling on great deals like that SKB you bought from Twin also helps alot in saving money.

 

It's the most expensive single gun purchase I've ever made. But not the most expensive gun I own. Either of my 58's take that title but I built them over time...

[ORNERY OAF]

I'm getting ready to retire. Im getting ready to jump both feet back into sass now that I will have weekends off....

[irish ike, SASS #43615]

I've posted on this topic a few times. And like most of us I have my opinions on why SASS in my opinion will be gone in less than 10 years.

Members are getting old and less ambulatory, burned out, broke, and or dead.

Membership decline isn't being replaced at the same rate as new members.

Many still can't figure out what they get for whatever the annual dues are and have stopped paying it.

Like many activities we get into we get all amped up and excited about it and then it wanes along with our interest.

State gun laws are making it difficult to buy ammo and or guns.

You're seeing a slow decline in membership, the number of clubs and the number of annual shoots. Why see the above.

Now the reorganization of SASS has some of us in a wait see whats going to happen mode.

Can't figure out how to get TG's together so it's become a why bother just let ROC handle it. They do anyway!.

 

[McCandless]

I'm not seeing a mass exodus.  I see new shooters joining and displaying their new badges quite a lot on other forums.

I do see a sort of hiatus as ranges restrict the number of shooters allowed, or posse sizes, depending on their state's restrictions.  I'm also seeing folks back off temporarily as factory ammo, (for those who don't reload), and primers, (for those that do reload), are hard to come by.  This too shall pass.

 

Yes, the number of shooters is down from the big swell of the early 2000's, but that doesn't mean we're going away anytime soon.  

We get the most new members, not from the kids, but from those in their 40's-60's who have the disposable income, and time, after raising their families.... not by telling prospective shooters that they "have to" get go-fast upgrades, but to bring what they have, and join the fun!

[Tequila Shooter]

@McCandless I used to love reading your stuff when I was on FB. I guess it’s a good avenue to reach out and stir interest in CAS, I just couldn’t hack FB anymore.  You’re doing good work keep it up!

[Major BS Walker Regulator]

Are we seeing the start of a mass exodus,  NO. Just an adjustment.

[Dirty Dutch Brody]

I think there needs to be a bigger push to bring attention to this sport. I'm a new shooter to the sport and I am a avid shooter. I stumbled into this sport and so wish I would have found it sooner. Since I have found this sport earlier this year I have turned on at least 2-3 other new shooters that has no idea this sport existed.

[Dantankerous]

The answer is

 

 

NO.

 

 

[Diamond Jake]

20 hours ago, ORNERY OAF said:

I'm getting ready to retire. Im getting ready to jump both feet back into sass now that I will have weekends off....

 

That's me.  2022 is when I'll start travelling and hit several shoots outside of TN.

[doc roy l. pain]

51 minutes ago, Diamond Jake said:

 

That's me.  2022 is when I'll start travelling and hit several shoots outside of TN.

This past year, even with covid going on, we traveled shooting through 8 states. With the reloading components situation the way it is now, we probably won’t get to go to as many shoots. Gonna try to continue and support our local clubs as much as possible. 

[Marshal Hangtree]

21 hours ago, McCandless said:

We get the most new members, not from the kids, but from those in their 40's-60's who have the disposable income, and time, after raising their families.... not by telling prospective shooters that they "have to" get go-fast upgrades, but to bring what they have, and join the fun!

 

I think McCandless nailed it right there.

[Captain Bill Burt]

21 hours ago, McCandless said:

I'm not seeing a mass exodus.  I see new shooters joining and displaying their new badges quite a lot on other forums.

I do see a sort of hiatus as ranges restrict the number of shooters allowed, or posse sizes, depending on their state's restrictions.  I'm also seeing folks back off temporarily as factory ammo, (for those who don't reload), and primers, (for those that do reload), are hard to come by.  This too shall pass.

 

Yes, the number of shooters is down from the big swell of the early 2000's, but that doesn't mean we're going away anytime soon.  

We get the most new members, not from the kids, but from those in their 40's-60's who have the disposable income, and time, after raising their families.... not by telling prospective shooters that they "have to" get go-fast upgrades, but to bring what they have, and join the fun!

 

11 minutes ago, Marshal Hangtree said:

 

I think McCandless nailed it right there.

I think all of us are subject to 'point of view bias' to some extent.  People who like to shoot fast and have all the bells and whistles are going to be more prone to assume new shooters are interested in the same aspect of the game.  It works both ways, people who aren't in to that aspect of the sport are going to be more prone to assume that new shooters don't care about it either.

The reality is that some new shooters will want the 'go-fast upgrades' and will benefit from informed advice and experimentation with different guns before they make their big purchases. 

 

Other new shooters won't care about those upgrades.

 

I've encountered my share of new shooters, helped some of them directly, and observed others help as well.  I've never heard anyone tell a new shooter that they 'had to have' go-fast upgrades unless that new shooter had expressed an interest in that aspect of the sport.

[Middlefork Bob, SASS #53945]

I haven't had time to shoot much and with COVID didn't shoot a match this year.  I plan to get to some matches again this spring but until the ammo situation eases back to close to normal I doubt I will be doing much practicing, just maybe 1 or 2  matches a month.  I do predict that the sport will have an initial loss of interest but will bounce back quickly possibly due to the inevitable restrictions to hi cap guns  the 3 gun shooters are using.  This may have a positive effect on our sport by generating a lot more interest in lever guns.  

[Rye Miles #13621]

37 minutes ago, Middlefork Bob, SASS #53945 said:

I haven't had time to shoot much and with COVID didn't shoot a match this year.  I plan to get to some matches again this spring but until the ammo situation eases back to close to normal I doubt I will be doing much practicing, just maybe 1 or 2  matches a month.  I do predict that the sport will have an initial loss of interest but will bounce back quickly possibly due to the inevitable restrictions to hi cap guns  the 3 gun shooters are using.  This may have a positive effect on our sport by generating a lot more interest in lever guns.  

Interesting theory. I may have to agree!

[Marshal Hangtree]

15 minutes ago, Rye Miles #13621 said:

Interesting theory. I may have to agree!

I'll second that.  I've had more than one person here lately express an interest in lever guns for home defense, so I can see where a slight decline in hi-cap 3 gun sports might push some in our direction.  Good thought, @Middlefork Bob, SASS #53945 !

[Tequila Shooter]

2 hours ago, doc roy l. pain said:

This past year, even with covid going on, we traveled shooting through 8 states. With the reloading components situation the way it is now, we probably won’t get to go to as many shoots. Gonna try to continue and support our local clubs as much as possible. 

 

This is why I saved so much of my ammo this year.  In 2021 I’m figuring there won’t be many shooters at the big matches and I might even get a win, place or show  

  

[Marshal Hangtree]

1 hour ago, Tequila Shooter said:

 

This is why I saved so much of my ammo this year.  In 2021 I’m figuring there won’t be many shooters at the big matches and I might even get a win, place or show  

  

The keys to the Cadillac are waiting for you at the local dealer, TS.

[Noz]

Just before all this madness started I took a stupid fall on my front porch that damned near killed me (almost 60 days in the hospital).  About the time I started to reach the point where I could stand up for the length of the shoot I fell again.  Old injury in my knee got a whole lot worse.  Got to the point where I could have it replaced and covid comes along and my surgeon says nope, not till I can get vaccinated.

If I have to crawl I will shoot in 2021

[Sixgun Seamus]

6 hours ago, Marshal Hangtree said:

The keys to the Cadillac are waiting for you at the local dealer, TS.

 

[Injun Ryder, SASS #36201L]

1 hour ago, Sixgun Seamus said:

 

 

Very precise shooting! Didn't even touch the car next to it!

[Dogmeat Dad, SASS #48563L]

3 hours ago, Injun Ryder, SASS #36201L said:

 

Very precise shooting! Didn't even touch the car next to it!

 

Only Imperial Storm Troopers are so precise.  (They were aiming for the mini-van!) 

 

[Cypress Sun]

6 hours ago, Sixgun Seamus said:

 

 

Just another day on the way to work in Chicago.

[Tequila Shooter]

@Dogmeat Dad, SASS #48563L I’m a member of the Pew Pew club too

 

 

[Johnny Meadows,SASS#28485L]

When my Dad passed in 1983 I inherited 105,000 primers. He always stated that they would never run him out of primers like they did during World War II.

Johnny Meadows

[45 Dragoon]

If the Senate goes Lib.  you may /will have a forced Exodus!!  Happening right in front of your faces!

 

Mike

[Pat Riot]

I think if SASS wants to adapt it will stay solid. By “adapt” I mean get more interest going through magazines and online media. I haven’t seen an article done about SASS or “Cowboy Guns” in quite some time and the articles I read online and in magazines that do talk about guns that could be used in SASS “Cowboy Action Shooting” is never mentioned. 

In other forums nearly every time someone mentions SASS or CAS the response I see is usually “Yeah, that looks like fun, but I can’t afford to buy that many guns an invest thousands of dollars only to find I don’t like it.” 

 

I think @McCandless is right about new shooters as well. It’s quite frustrating to just get all your guns and gear bought then show up at a match only to be badgered about “Now whatcha gotta do is slick them guns up and it only cost you bizumpteen-hundred dollars and you need to send them to Joe Schmuckatelli and John Smith so they can work their magic...it won’t cost much, just a few hundred dollars...”

 

Cowboys in the Old West didn’t “slick up” their guns unless it was in adornments.  But, lie I said in another thread earlier. This game is all about “gamers” and speed now. 

Which is another peeve of mine. This fascination with being fast. I have seen also seen new shooters further turned off by this “go faster” mentality. I have to admit that it turns me off. 
 

Want to try something interesting if you doubt what I say? Go to a club you rarely or have never gone to and drag a Henry or a Winchester 94 or perhaps a long barreled Stevens 311 shotgun up to the loading table and watch and listen to what happens. You will be inundated with recommendations on new guns or guns sold by “slick em Up Charlie” so you can “compete”. 
Then shoot the stage slow...then at the unloading table listen to all the recommendations about getting those revolvers slicked up or how “you shoulda done what Lightning Bolt Faster Magee dies in his transitions...you don’t know him? Where were you born, under a rock?”

 

I am not kidding. 
 

Sorry for the soapbox rant but that’s my opinion snd that’s how I see it. 
 

One more thing, this prevalence of “gamers” and mouse fart loads is so well known in regards to SASS that everyone in the shooting world that isn’t into Cowboy Action Shooting thinks that “Cowboy Shooters” (sorry Tex) only shoot wimpy under powered loads - which I refuse to do! People do not take SASS or CAS seriously any longer. 
If we are going to attract new shooters in a “tactical world” we need to update the SASS “persona”.

 

When I saw my first CAS match in 1997 at the Coto Cowboys I was shooting sporting clays at Raahauge’s Range in Norco. I actually walked away from my group in the middle of our round to go see what all these guys and gals in Cowboy duds were doing. I was fascinated! A nice gent walked over to me and started explaining Cowboy Action to me and I said “Wow! This is like tactical shooting with Cowboy guns.” And he said “Exactly” and I was hooked. 
 

What we need is a hook like that...

 

I am going back to the Saloon now. I am parched...

[Abilene Slim SASS 81783]

1 hour ago, Pat Riot, SASS #13748 said:

Want to try something interesting if you doubt what I say? Go to a club you rarely or have never gone to and drag a Henry or a Winchester 94 or perhaps a long barreled Stevens 311 shotgun up to the loading table and watch and listen to what happens. You will be inundated with recommendations on new guns or guns sold by “slick em Up Charlie” so you can “compete”. 
Then shoot the stage slow...then at the unloading table listen to all the recommendations about getting those revolvers slicked up or how “you shoulda done what Lightning Bolt Faster Magee dies in his transitions...you don’t know him? Where were you born, under a rock?”

Maybe it’s a regional thing, or maybe I live in a bubble, but in my 11 years of SASS, I’ve not seen or heard someone dog another shooter for their equipment. The only discussion about those things occurs is because the shooter asked. 
 

 

[Pat Riot]

19 minutes ago, Abilene Slim SASS 81783 said:

Maybe it’s a regional thing, or maybe I live in a bubble, but in my 11 years of SASS, I’ve not seen or heard someone dog another shooter for their equipment. The only discussion about those things occurs is because the shooter asked. 
 

 

Then you are lucky. I wouldn’t call it dogging so much as “friendly advice”. A lot of it and often...

[Tequila Shooter]

@Pat Riot, SASS #13748 glad to see you’re out of the Saloon I was starting to think you had a drinking problem 

[McCandless]

4 hours ago, Pat Riot, SASS #13748 said:

Then you are lucky. I wouldn’t call it dogging so much as “friendly advice”. A lot of it and often...

 

Pat, I have a FB site for new or prospective shooters... then I herd them thisaway.  But, you're right.  They post basic questions about our guns and get told they should buy them from X gunsmith, already slicked up, or buy them and send it to A, B, or C gunsmith.  And, the OP is telling folks that they are on a shoestring budget...

 

We have had some who want the best, and the slickest, from the getgo.  That's fine.  But when someone wants to get into the sport as with minimal investment, why start telling them about all the upgrades?  For the most part, grips that will fit your hand and lighter springs may be all a new pistol needs.   The only gun I'd recommend a new shooter get worked on early, is the shotgun... it is extremely frustrating to shooters to have to break open their SxS shotgun over their knee, or have to dig out shells with their fingertips.... or smaller shooters who need shorter stocks have to shoot with a long gun that doesn't fit them. 

 

There's always time later for short-stroking your rifles and pistols.

 

And fer Gawd's sake, please folks, don't recommend that folks start shooting with stock Colt-type Percussion guns!!   

[McCandless]

5 hours ago, 45 Dragoon said:

 That's what I figured .  .  .  

 

Mike

 

Rugers be good... and the Piettas you worked up for me too!

[Hashknife Cowboy]

I do not believe so.  Those of us who have been in the sport for some time have a collection  of the items needed to load our chosen ammo.  I always recommended to the new shooters to start reloading and collecting components.  I for one find that I am shooting less during these troubling times but have rediscovered black powder.  Several of the older members are being careful with their exposure to others, translated not participating as much but they'll be back.  It is hard to keep an old coot down.   Please do not lose faith, we can and will get through this together. 

[Possum Skinner, SASS#60697]

7 hours ago, Pat Riot, SASS #13748 said:

Joe Schmuckatelli

Pat,

please send me contact info.  I've heard good things about Joe!