Thoughts about "Cowboys"

[Ulmus]

I'm sure Marshal is cringing about this, but how about bring the podcast version back?

You could break it up into three or four parts:
1.  New guns and gear
2.  Regional shots with interviews of people there
3.  Getting started/Shooting tips
4.  Historical stories of real cowboys and the gun they used.  (Cowboy version of Gun Stories)

What's really cool with the second part is that you can really play with it and go all across the board. From RATS to Black Powder to Wild Bunch.  You could focus in on a part of each one as a topic.

Same with Winter's Range and End of Trial.  I don't know how well a play by play of some shooting rounds would go.  (baseball translates so much easier to radio)  But following a shooter or two would be interesting.  Also how the local shoots are and who are the shootists there?

Plus theres the outifts, who makes them, where to get them, how to make you own (plain or fancy)...

How about life of a trail duster.  Someone who goes around the country moving from regional shoot to regional shoot for the fun of it.

Maybe even how to integrate SASS exhibitions in Pioneer day/Heritage festivals

Figure 45 minutes to an hour per show.

So what do you think?

[gunman42782]

Bring back Tequila.

[BAC]

Bring back Tequila.

+1.

[Marshal Halloway]

Hey guys!

Thanks for taking the time to brainstorm around this. We need all the input we can get.

I am not cringing about Cowboy Action Radio. 
I would love to bring it back, but as of now, there is no time left to "play".

I am however very much occupied with Cowboys and the future of the show. About half my time is now dedicated to the show. This may sound strange, since the show has been cancelled (It will be off the air from July 2011). As of now, we do not even know if they will continue any reruns in the future.

It was a long run actually. Michael has been fighting hard to keep Cowboys live for 8 seasons. It is also the only show on air that has been dedicated to one specific shooting sport.

However, Cowboy Action Shooting is one of the shooting sports that has a broad appeal and with over 100,000 shooters worldwide more or less active in the sport, it does not deserve to be forgotten. Including in this, are the 100s of thousands of history buffs and old west enthusiasts who have been following us over the years.

If you saw the videos we posted last weekend ( http://www.downrange.tv/blog/category/tvshows/cowboys/ ), you probably noticed that the intro is called Cowboys Online. You will hopefully see more of that in the future.

We are in fact working on a new approach bringing Cowboys to the web mixing new and old timeless content using a new online video player.

Producing content for web with a new show every month and with event coverage in the mix, opens up for more flexibility in terms of content. Without the time limits we have on broadcast content, we can allow some experimenting and try out new content to test what the audience likes. One more advantage with web tv is instant feedback plus that our sponsors will have better ways of communicating with the viewers.

So the content ideas mentioned above are on our list, but feel free to add more. When it comes to hosting, we believe it will be a mix of personalities (guest hosts if you will), some from the sport itself, but with some interesting "outsiders" in the mix.

MH

 

[fightingquaker13]

I second bringing it back, I I like the history and technique. Its not my cup of tea gun wise, but I'd sure show up to watch a match, and wouldn't mind at all taking some lessons on using an SA properly if they were offered (maybe a way to defray expenses)?
FQ13 who just couldn't help suggesting a new theme song for the pod cast though.

[Sponsor]

[MikeBjerum]

So many questions Marshal!

1.  Was it lack of viewers or lack of sponsor interest;
2.  Was it cost of production;
3.  Was it personalities;
4.  Is it politically incorrect;
5.  Does it appeal to a demographic (old farts) that Outdoor Channel (OC) does not wish to cater to?

I could go on all night, but all I am doing is starting to go in circles.

I like almost all shooting shows, but if OC thinks they can cover SASS through Scoutten and his crew we are all going to lose out, and the sport will be hurt.  Scoutten does what he does well, but you provide an educational and personal angle with the entertainment.  I will miss the show!

[Marshal Halloway]

1.  Was it lack of viewers or lack of sponsor interest;
2.  Was it cost of production;
3.  Was it personalities;

The ratings for Cowboys were not far behind any of the shows on Wednesday Night. My numbers are showing increased ratings after we changed the format of the show, especially the last season moving to a more magazine style format.

Sponsor interests are there, but one of the challenges with a niche market is that the industry catering to cowboy action shooters are comprised of small and medium sized businesses with no budget for TV advertising. Midway USA and Ruger have been a life saver for 8 seasons.

However, with more options available for the larger sized businesses, Cowboys went further down the priority list or at least that was something that was signaled. I think that was a major factor when the decision was made.

4.  Is it politically incorrect;

Not at all. The average citizen looks at Cowboy Action Shooting as something "innocent" in terms of guns and shooting compared to IPSC or other action shooting sports. I never stop being amazed what a cowboy hat can do to stop the "fear of guns".

5.  Does it appeal to a demographic (old farts) that Outdoor Channel (OC) does not wish to cater to?

Cowboy Action Shooting appeals more to people over 40 than the younger generation. This is directly linked to the generations who grew up with silver screen cowboys and TV westerns. All networks want to cater to the younger generation, but the more "nichy" a show is, the tougher it gets to balance this.

[Ulmus]

Awesome!  Thanks for the replies.

I had noticed the recent videos here on DRTV and am glad to see them.

It sounds like you got this planned out very well.  Thanks for the compliments and all your hard work.

I look forward to seeing more vids.