Match of May 18, 2008

May 19, 2008

“April showers bring May flowers” or so the saying goes, but for us cowboy and cowgirl shooters, April cold and windy brings May warm and sunny. I tell you, what a difference a month makes. Yes, it was a little breezy, but at least we could keep our hats on! Ain’t that the truth, Not So Slim Jim?


On that note we need to take our hats off to some people, first and foremost let’s acknowledge Dakota Maid and CC Lakota. They celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary this May. Also let’s have a big cowboy welcome for Misty Target for her first match, and let’s add a little warning to dad (Blake Stone), she was runnin’ and gunnin’ like a pro. She even handled ejecting a live round without a problem,. She just reloaded and kept right on a shootin’. Also, let’s tip our hat to the new shooters that came back this month. The only new shooter that wasn’t there was Charlie Waite and he was out of town for his wife’s grandfather’s 92nd birthday. That goes to show you don’t stop playing because you get old, you get old because you stop playing.


The new shooters didn’t take long to figure out the game, Jerome is starting to figure things out, too, and it’s great to see a new duelist at the match. Looks like Tom and Brian got somebody to make some new leather for them. It looks good, too.


Now, for just a quick reminder, our next shoot is Sunday, June 8th. We set up the night before about 5:30-6:00 p.m. on the 7th and could sure use some help for that. It’s a great opportunity to visit with other people, get a feel for the stages, and if you want a little practice or want to test a gun or some ammunition loads, it’s a great time to do that too.


Till next time we meet, keep the dirty side down.


Dakota Dealer

January 18, 2026
Dear BMRPA Members, It is with a heavy heart that I am writing to let all of you know that the BMRPA has lost one of its founding fathers. Marlin Fried, the namesake of the Fried Family Marksmanship Center, passed away this week. He is survived by his wife Leanne, children and grandchildren. While Marlin has not been active as a shooter with BMRPA for several years, we would still occasionally see him at the outdoor range in his red Chevy pickup, tending to the trees he had planted. In years before, many of you might have known Marlin from Gun City, the shop he started on Main Street in Bismarck. For those of you have never made it to Gun City, it was the type of unique gun store we don’t really get to see anymore. Not all of the trees at the Fried Family Marksmanship Center were planted by Marlin but a great many of them were. He embodied the spirit of old men planting trees which they will never live to enjoy the shade of. It was that spirit of providing for future generations and his enthusiasm for marksmanship and firearms ownership that inspired Marlin to donate the land that the Fried Family Marksmanship Center sits on today. The BMRPA, a club founded by competitive shooters coming together never had its own facility before Marlin’s gift. It was that gift by Marlin and the Fried Family that was one of the greatest factors turning the BMRPA into an organization that provides opportunities for competitors, youth and female shooters and provides a space to exercise our freedom. For that gift, we are thankful and appreciate how uncommon an act such as that is.  So, Marlin and the Fried Family, we thank you! We also wish to express our condolences to the Fried family for their loss during this sad time. A memorial service will be held at 11:30AM on Monday, January 19, 2026, and visitation will be held Sunday, January 18, at 5:30PM at Bismarck Funeral Home, and 7pm prayer service. https://www.bismarckfuneralhome.com/obituaries/marlin-fried Tom Headrick President, BMRPA
November 25, 2025
2025-26 Junior Marksmanship Program
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