BILLINGS — A Miles City man won a national championship in a competitive single-action shooting sport that blends sharpshooting with the style and spirit of the Old West.
Watch the Montana Territory Peacemakers talk about the club:
Jesse Blankenship, a Miles City man known on the range as Hoss Shoer, recently brought home a national championship from Oklahoma in a Single Action Shooting Society competition.
Blankenship is part of the Montana Territory Peacemakers, a club that combines competitive single action shooting with the style of the Old West. The group shoots replicas of firearms from the late 1800s at the Billings Rod and Gun Club.
"We shoot single-action pistols. We shoot a lever action rifle. We shoot double rail shotguns or some pump action shotguns," Blankenship said.
For some members, the commitment to the sport means going the distance — driving more than 100 miles for a club meeting. Blankenship said the early alarm is worth it.
"I got up at four in the morning to come here today," Blankenship said.
His dedication paid off at the national competition.
"The best in the nation, the best in the world were shooting there. And somehow I slid right through and came out on top," Blankenship said.
Part of the appeal, members say, is the sense of belonging the club offers.
"This is a family. It's a community," Blankenship said.
To really fit in, members say you may have to leave your real name at the door.
"Everybody registers an alias with SAS when you join. And your alias is unique to you. You can't spell it different," Blankenship said.
On the range, members say outside jobs and titles don't matter much either.
"I don't know what they do, who they are, and nobody even cares," Blankenship said.
Club president Michael Radecki said the Old West theme doesn't stop with the names.
"We dress kind of period-correct," Radecki said.
The guns follow the same theme.
"Most of them are reproductions. You know, the older ones have a lot of collector value, historical value," Blankenship said.
Behind all the Old West style, the club says safety comes first.
"Most of the folks here are all trained in gun safety. Several of us are range officers where we receive a different level of training, or formal level of training for gun handling," Radecki said.
Now the Peacemakers want more people to give the sport a shot — and Radecki said you don't even need your own guns to start.
"Most everyone here will put a gun in your hands as you experience today and shoot," Radecki said.
For Blankenship, the gunfire may bring people to the range, but it's the community that keeps them coming back.
"You come for the shooting and you stay for the community," Blankenship said.
