Sunday, June 3, 2001

[LIKE TRY?]

RICHARD WALKER / STAR-BULLETIN
Paul MacKeeby fired a shot as range officer Jeffrey Wang
watched during a SASS, Hawaii Chapter competition.

Shooting

...the old-fashioned way

---

By C.R. Dudley
Special to the Star-Bulletin

HE'S A TALL barrel o' cowboy with a five-gallon black hat and daubs of sweat on his shirt. Two six-guns ride a fat leather belt around his waist.

He's big, he's fast on the draw and if you're on his team, you better be quick 'cause he ain't waitin' around fer nobody.

He's a throwback to the old west -- a little bit of Billy the Kid in Hawaii Kai. But he ain't just any transplanted gun, he goes by Sasparilla.

Hawaii's Single Action Shooting Society chapter is the only place Sasparilla feels at home.

The Hawaii club, like SASS clubs nationally, is an offbeat alternative to more strict shooting organizations. Over 35,000 people claim allegiance to SASS nationally.

"We're an offshoot," club president John "Black Jack Deringer" Brassell said. "We're a bunch of guys who used to shoot with other clubs but they got over-competitive."

GETTING STARTED What: Cowboy reenactment shooting sport, complete with period costumes and original (or replica) equipment Who: The Single Action Shooting Society, Hawaii Chapter When: The last Sunday of every month Where: Koko Head Rifle Range Cost: $10 per match. First match free, all equipment including guns and ammunition provided to first-timers. Information: John Brassell, president, 394-5030, or Ron "Clell" Miller, territorial governor, 923-9051. Web sites: http://www.sassnet.com http://www.alohastategames.com/alohastategames/shootingwa.html http://www.sassnet.com/store/page10.html http://www.sassnet.com/pages/Clubs/Hawaii.html

Otherwise known as Cowboy Action shooting, single action shooters use guns from the late 19th century or replicas. Club members take nick-names like Quiet Burp, Paniolo Kate, Zane Grey, El Muerte de Dolor and Kid Limerick. They attire themselves in the fashion of their favorite time -- collarless long-sleeve shirts, bandanas, boots, six-gun rigs and cowboy hats.

The club appeals to history buffs, shooters interested in competition but not overly worried about winning, and anyone else craving a simpler time -- a time when good was good, bad was bad and you could draw a gun on the ugly with impunity.

On the last Sunday of every month, the club gathers at the Koko Head Rifle Range for a match. The matches run from 8:30 a.m. to about 1:30 p.m.

For each match the club sets up a few cowboy scenarios -- the McLaren gang is holed up at a bank or horse theives sneak towards the barn. Each scenario is timed from buzzer to the last shot. The SASS member may be asked to do some light role-playing, including throwing rubber chickens at targets before firing, recreating a classic line from a spaghetti western or even throwing a shot glass of "whiskey" at a steel cutout of a card cheat before icing him.

"We're the type of people who wanted to compete in a shooting sport but we also wanted a minimum number of rules and fairness, just like a plain old cowboy," Brassell said. "We're really out here for fun."

Fun, yes. Safe, absolutely. The matches are run in strict accordance with shooting sport rules. Because of the many safety issues, the old-fashioned quickdraw competitions are avoided.

But should a cowgirl choose to pull her loaded six-guns from her true-to-the-times leather holsters to gun down an imaginary scofflaw, she can -- as long as the barrels of the guns are always pointed down range.

A gun safety class is conducted before each match for beginners and those unfamiliar with SASS rules.

"We say we get started at 8:30, but we usually get to shooting at 10," Brassell said. "We go at a cowboy pace. It's kind of akin to Hawaii pace."

RICHARD WALKER / STAR-BULLETIN
Craig Bevan, who goes by the name of "Wild Aimis," sized up
the targets prior to shooting during a Western-style
competition at Koko Head Rifle Range.

Twin Schofield .45 long colt replicas for company and a double barrel shotgun in tow, Brassell is the image of a spittin' and whittlin' cowboy. He retired from 26 years of police work in South Bend, Ind., then moved to the islands. He now heads the security office at the Honolulu Academy of Arts.

The sport's entry prices can be high. Colt replicas that meet SASS specifications run over $1,000. Other replicas cost less. Typically, competitors carry twin six-guns, a long rifle and a side-by-side shotgun.

Don't be intimidated by the start-up cost, though. You can borrow the guns you need each month. After the introduction you still won't need to pony up a fistful of dollars; each match costs only $10.

"You're first time is free," Brassell said.

"We'll get new people started up that day. Just show up. You don't need anything other than yourself. We'll lend you everything you need and then you can get a taste of single-action shooting."

SASS members are competing in the Aloha State Games on June 16-17 at the Maui Shooting Range. To participate you must be pre-qualified. For information on this part of the Aloha State Games, call the commissioner, Burt Swink, at 875-9085, or e-mail bswink@pixi.com.

The Aloha State Games match will consist of 12 individual stages, with multiple targets at various distances and settings. Elimination will be on a man-to-man basis and a Top Gun award is open to all shooters using any class of revolver.

Who really is Sasparilla?

"Well we're not sure what he does now, but he used to be with the military. He's been to Cambodia, Managua, he's a good shooter," a lonely cowboy said.