It's the
Smoky Mountain Shootist Society's annual "Shoot-Out" and the second year the event has been held in Oak Ridge.
The gunfire will be at the association's 744-acre firing range off Oak Ridge Turnpike in the western end of the city.
For shoppers, the action will be at the Civic Center, where Western clothing styles and gear ranging from bullwhips to custom-made knives will be for sale.
Hours for the "Cowboy Emporium" are noon-5 p.m. today and 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday.
Shooters will compete at the firing range with everything from buffalo guns to Colt .45 six-shooters 10 a.m.-4 p.m. today and 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Friday-Saturday, Mike Parker said.
Visitors are welcome, and admission is free, said Parker, a member of the Smoky Mountain Shootist Society.
That's one of the biggest chapters of the Single-Action Shooting Society, which he says has nearly 100,000 members in the U.S. and thousands of European members.
Some 180 people from 20 states will compete in Oak Ridge in the "Cowboy Action Shooting," described as the world's fastest-growing shooting sport.
"It's a lot of fun," said Parker, whose nickname is "El Carrera." He says that means "The Quick."
There will be long-distance shooting with buffalo rifles, as well as Wild West scenarios where participants will test their speed and accuracy at gunning down steel targets of "bad guys."
Bob Fowler, News Sentinel Anderson County editor, may be reached at 865-481-3625.
