Many members of the US Territorial Marshals have been engaged with a sport called Cowboy Action Shooting which involves the use of  lever action rifles, sawed-off shotguns, single action revolvers ("six shooters"), and derringers.  The revolver and lever action are generally chambered in the same caliber and of a revolver cartridge available in the 1870's and on to the early 1900's.

Cowboy Action Shooting is also a description of old west re-enactment skits performed by various members of clubs that perform for an audience.  These cowboy action shooters can involve ladies as well as men.  In history there were several women who gained notoriety with the use of their guns.

Competition cowboy action shooting targets are made to resemble some possible gun fighting circumstances.  The competition score you get is based on elapsed time and accuracy in hitting the targets.  There is a penalty of five seconds added to your elapsed time for each missed shot. The winning shooter will have a combination of the lower elapsed time and the most hits to the targets. 

Cowboy Action Shooting is one of the fastest growing shooting sports in the country.  It is world wide. It exists in places where getting firearms is difficult and expensive such as Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and Austria.   Such organizations as SASS (The Single Action Shooting Society) is approaching 40,000 members, and over 50,000 people participate in the US every year. Over 10,000 people are starting at cowboy action shooting every year in the US alone.

Cowboy action shooting events take place all over the country involving hundreds, sometimes thousands of people. You will find vendors of all types where you could go to a match with a pocket of cash or a credit card and get almost everything you need for the sport from guns to clothes to hearing protection etc.

The cowboy action shooting events or competitions are clever and entertaining.  For example, you may be standing behind a makeshift table in an imaginary bank. When the buzzer on the shot timer goes off you pick up a shotgun that is laying on the table in front of you. You cock the hammer and fire two blasts at a cardboard human-sized target located directly opposite the bank from you. Then you take a few quick steps, pick up your derringer and shoot two fall-down type steel popper targets about 10 to 15 yards away. Without wasting a second in hesitation you move through the front doors and exit the imaginary bank. Quickly, you draw your six-gun from the holster on your hip and shoot four  targets located a few feet away.

The shot timer automatically records your total time after your last shot. Targets are scored for hits or misses. Again, missed shots and failure to shoot and move through the stage in the specified order will add to your total time as a penalty

Period costuming is required in cowboy action shooting competition in order to give the event a feel for the Cowboy Era. This is much the same as the rendezvous and the muzzleloader events... it will also work for Cowboy Action Shooting. A different hat, boots, and a bandana is all you may need to look the part of a cowboy. Many companies have sprung up to supply the cowboy action shooter with everything he or she may want in the way of guns, clothing, and accessories.

The efforts put into the costumes are remarkable. Cowboy action shooting contestants can be real 19th century figures like Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Curly Bill,  Turkey Creek Johnson, Billy the Kid, Butch Cassidy, or fictional 19th century figures, from novels, TV, or movies such as Hoppy, Paladin, The Rifleman, Yancy Derringer,  plus made up 19th century characters aliases like Muleskinner Jim, Dirty Dan, Quartermoon John, Highspade Buck or Max Webster.