“Aaaah! Nothing like the smell of the smoke of a Colt 45 in the morning. The feel of that Colt 1911 bucking in the hand was pure magic”.
“What!” you say, “Cowboys with a Colt 1911! What are you guys’ smoking?”
Nope, it’s the truth, but to understand you need to watch the 1969 movie “The Wild Bunch” directed by Sam Peckinpah.
It is about a gang of ageing outlaws around 1913 in the final days of the old West. The movie starts with them robbing a bank to get enough money for possible retirement but it turns out to be an ambush where almost all of the gang are killed. The ambush was arranged by the boss of the railroad that they robbed many times in the past and all they get away with is a chest full of washers.
But they are followed by bounty hunters and must escape to Mexico where they get mixed up with a corrupt General in the Mexican Federal army during the revolution. He promises to give them gold to steal a weapons shipment from a U.S. army train.
However, there is betrayal and a very gory finale where virtually everyone is killed.


Of course, this attracted attention from Cowboy Action Shooters who were keen to try something new and they started holding side matches using the 1911 alongside their normal cowboy shoots.
In 2010 the Single Action Shooting Society recognised that Wild Bunch Action Shooting had grown from a side match into a separate discipline. They formulated rules based on the use of a Colt 1911 pistol, a pump-action shotgun and a lever-action revolver-calibre rifle.
Part of the appeal of Wild Bunch is the high-power factor ammunition coupled with the higher round count per stage, especially with the pistol. The shotgun round count is typically five or six rounds and the 1911 needs 3 magazines and typically 15 or more rounds per stage.
It is important to realise that Wild Bunch Action Shooting is a sport based on speed, action, and accuracy. Targets are set further away than for CAS matches and target sequences are more challenging.
Eden County Gunslingers has modified the SASS rules to allow the use of steel-frame pistols in 9 mm provided that you shoot all-lead bullets in all firearms. The reason is that we shoot steel plates at close range and there is a risk of bounce-back with jacketed bullets.
If you want to try it out, come along and we will show you how to have fun. You won’t find a more relaxed group of cowboys and cowgirls.
We just ask that you try to wear something a cowboy might wear. Please, no T-shirts, combat boots or camouflage outfits.
Jeans, a hat with a brim and a long-sleeve shirt are perfect.
We shoot at the On Target Range outside George on the first Saturday of the month, starting around 8:30, weather permitting and we usually finish by 10 or 11.
Give Kevin a call on +27 82 877 0792 before saddlin’ up your pony.
