Doc Harrison
This article reprinted with permission from the "On Target" column of Outdoor Edge Magazine, May/June 2003.
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On Target (from Outdoor Edge Magazine)
 Black Powder -- A Little History and Lessons Learned With a lifetime of interest in guns and the shooting sports, I also suffered from a curiosity about the guns of history. It was natural that with the advent of off-the-rack muzzleloaders I would get the urge to get into it. Early in the 1960s, I purchased a 45-calibre Thompson Center Hawkren from Lever Arms in Vancouver and returned to my home in north central BC. Then began the fun of trying to find my way as a beginner with no known local teachers to carry me over the learning curve of becoming proficient in the handling and shooting of this new discipline. Gradually a few of us did find each other and we reached the point where we decided to form a balck-powder club. The club included people from Prince Rupert, Kitimat, and my home Terrace. It was called the Northwest Charcoal Burners. We were amazed when, after we formed, we met someone in a gravel pit doing his thing with a muzzleloader and asked him to join the gang. His responses was, "oh I'm not good enough to shoot with a club." i wondered where we all got this expertise that made us so much better than him. You should have seen our first efforts in the sport. The first meets were off the bench at 100 yards (shades of modern guns). Of course we had no idea what the norm was for black-powder shooting. Later my brother and I had the opportunity to attend a rendezvous in Chilliwack and had a chance to observe what a rendezvous was all about. We returned to spread our new found knowledge to our group. A rendezvous is like the gathering of the clan, basically a re-enactment of the times when trappers would come out of the hills to trade their furs, pick up provisions, party and compete in various matches to show their skills. At rendezvous it is quite impressive to see all the canvas tents and tee-pees spread out among the trees. Usually there's a division of the primitive area and the tin tee-pee area to accentuate the feeling of stepping back in time. Black powder is a multi-faceted sport and although shooting is the common thread, people do come to just pitch their camp and enmjoy the socailizing, campfires, and other aspects of the game: trading, crafts, equipment repair, and so on, while the children play under the watchful eye of all participants. It's amzing how when people revert to simpler times it also seems to bring out the best of the old ways. A person's word is their bond and a promise made is a debt unpaid. It is not uncommon to see a trade table left unattended with no thought of theft. My advice to anyone interested in becoming involved in the sport would be to find a local club that is active in your area and go to its regular meets. Talk to the people -- you will find they are quite willing to give advice and talk about the pros and cons of the game. Visit a rendezvous if possible for a firsthand view of the activities. If the shooting interests you, don't rush out and buy a gun, take your time. Talk to shooters, look over the different styles and makes. Talk to owners and, if available, builders. Sometimes a little more for a gun at the beginning saves a lot of hardship later. I remember a case where a person asked advice, was advised not to buy, but went ahead. He came to the shoot and did not too badly at 25 yards. But when we went to 50 yards he couldn't find the target. He moved to the side and shot over the rest for a couple of hours. Then he folded his camp and we never saw him again. Black-powder shooters hate to lose a potential member almost as much as we love to suck new beginners into the game. 'Til next time, Keep your powder dry, Doc Harrison |