2009-11-26

Mounted shooters find Bandera to their liking

By Judith Pannebaker

The Cowboy Capital of the World has captured the imagination of another segment of the western population. The “Side Tracks” section of the November-December issue of “Western Shooting Horse” features an elaborate four-page spread on the numerous cowboy-centric festivities surrounding Celebrate Bandera.

The article contains not only a plethora of colorful photographs by Lucinda Wood but also plenty of hit-the-target prose by Ken Amorosano, who also serves as the mag’s publisher and editor-in-chief.

Since “Western Shooting Horse” is dedicated to “preserving a rare breed of horse and rider,” the article recounted in detail the mounted shooting competitions and exhibitions that took place at Mansfield Park during the three-day Labor Day weekend celebration – and rightly so. Unfortunately, the events in the rodeo arena on Highway 16 North sometimes get overshadowed by the goings on downtown and at the popular Inter-Tribal Powwow. This article should rectify that for future celebrations.

While attending Celebrate Bandera, Amorosano and his wife, Wood, visited Gary and Dee Dee Trichter, both avid mounted shooters. Dee Dee Trichter is president of the club and her husband portrays Buffalo Bill Cody in the annual Wild West Show – a component of Celebrate Bandera. One glance at him and you’ll know why.

Clearly enamored of Bandera, Amorosano describes it as offering, “mounted shooters a rare opportunity to combine their love for the sport with a true American experience.”

Other facets of everyday life here that were singled out for special accolades include the “sprawling lawn and dominating Renaissance Revival architecture made of native limestone” of the Bandera County Courthouse complex; the longhorn cattle drive up Main Street that kicks off the annual Celebrate Bandera parade, a “jewel of a western store,” Gunslinger, a chic upscale emporium owned by Melissa and Jim Benge; Arkey Blue’s Silver Dollar and its 100-year-old bar; the 11th Street Cowboy Bar, billed as Bandera’s largest honky-tonk; and, on the opposite end of town, the Longhorn Saloon where “bikers and cowboys mix it up among longnecks and tall boots.”

The article wasn’t clear as to whether this was Amorosano and Wood’s first visit to Bandera, but from the sound and look of their engaging piece, it probably won’t be the last.

Other articles in the current edition include the five best pistols for cowboy mounted shooting and three long guns for rife competitions; a profile on perennial rodeo champ Joe Beaver; a fall and winter fashion spread; and a feature on shooting horsemanship, that spotlights Kenda Lenseigne, one of the sports best shooters and horse trainers.

A year’s subscription to “Western Shooting Horse,” which consists of six issues, costs $19.95 and is available online at www.wshmag.com or by calling 877-333-9742.