I was never a top-flight contender..... shot at my best in the 80-90 percentile range. And as I aged, I began slipping down even further. Sick with frustration, I was complaining ad nauseam to my long-suffering wife, who said something of incredible importance......

"If you're going to continue to shoot, you must find some value in it other than score!"

And then, two years ago at Raton, I watched a ninety plus year old cowboy named Mannie blasting away at his targets. His score was very, very low, perhaps in the single digit range, but I don't think Mannie cared at all. In fact, I'm not even sure Mannie kept score! But I am sure that he was having the time of his life, enjoying every single minute of being on the line, throwing them down range.... Mannie knew what my wife knows; there is value in our game beyond the score. Being with shooters, watching the damn things fall if and when you hit them, playing the game -- that's what's important! And I've pledged to become like Mannie: Shoot every chance I get, and the hell with the score!

Very well said, and good advice for all.

I know him, not completely like Mannie I hope. Just his attitude about shooting s great. The rest is a little questionable.

I observed Mannie shooting also in 2016. Never thought about it in that light, but now that I have, I agree. He was enjoying being alive, shooting, and just the pure experience of being on the line.

Thank you and your wife for the thought-provoking statement. I like it.

It's Manny not Mannie, for Manuel Sinohui, he will be 93 in October. A side story, when Manny was in his seventies, we were on a deer hunt with myself and my bud, we were both in our forties, and Mannys grandson who was 25 went with us on that trip, it was in 36B just north of the Mexican border. Manny wore out my buddy and I on the first day, it took him three days to have his 25 year old grandson to say no mas.