I Shot The Sheriff, But I Didn't Shoot The Deputy

Pioneer Days in Guymon, Okla., is coming up this weekend. The Oklahoma Panhandle community is fast filling up with rodeo athletes from all over the country, as evidenced at  Texas County Activity Center, where the parking lot was filled up last week with a sea of horse trailers for the college rodeo.

I haven't attended a Pioneers Day event in awhile, because for me - it's kind of a "bittersweet" event; however, I have fond memories of it over the years.

When I met my late husband, Michael, he was part of a group known as the Grassland Gunfighters. They were "actors" of sorts who liked to put on shows reenacting old west gunfights from the past. One in particular they performed was from Beaver County, Okla., where way back in the day - there was an actual  gunfight over cow patties. Yes, cow patties. These wonderful cow deposits were utilized to assist with fires to keep warm in those days.

When I first learned of the group I was working for a newspaper in Texas County that was also owned by the local radio station. One of my fellow co-workers was a member of the Grassland Gunfighters. He asked me one day, what I was doing the upcoming weekend. He said they were in need of a "saloon gal".

I was intrigued and said I would help. After that, Ramblin' Rose was born and I was hooked. My husband went by the moniker, Santa Fe Slim. We became fast friends and a few years later - man and wife.

Grassland Gunfighters performed for a number of events, which included Pioneer Days Rodeo. We thoroughly enjoyed putting on a show during the rodeo and participating in the annual parade. One year we were even asked to participate in a commercial that was being made.

We traveled to Kansas, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico as well as doing other shows in Oklahoma.

During a show in Texas, my gun jammed and I had to imrpovise. I decided to chase who I was supposed to shoot and soon learned "improvise" could mean a lot of different things. As I was chasing him, I failed to see a root from a tree sticking up from the ground. Needless to say, I tripped and took a tumble - can cans and all going head over heels.

When the show was over, a gentleman came up and asked if I was okay, because that scene "looked so real". I thanked him and of course, told him that was the effect I was going for (at least that's what I told him).

Another event we performed at found us fighting a very windy day - never heard of in this part of the country I know. The wind blew so hard, it blew our set over before our performance and it landed on top of my husband. We had our own (very heavy) set that we would set up at each of our shows complete with a bank and the Pink Elephant Saloon. Needless to say, SantaFe and I spent some time in the ER before that show.

We were a close-knit group, with a few members who came and went. My daughters even performed with us some. My late daughter Amanda was Cactus Annie; Ashley was Half-Pint and Samantha was Jelly Bean. I loved sharing a pasttime I enjoyed so much with my girls.

The "steam" as it were went out of our traveling troupe when our leader, Bruce Blackwelder, was killed in an automobile accident. It was never the same after that. And, many of us were getting older and finding it was easy to "fall down", but the getting back up was a whole other story.

I will always cherish those memories because we weren't just "actors" - we were a family. And even though most of the time I was the only female of the group - I was surrounded by men who became like my brothers. They were protective of my girls and me. I will be grateful to them always. If not for this group I would not have met my husband.

So if anyone asks, yes, I have shot the sheriff and a few other rascals. But, I have never shot the deputy.