Okay, so we’re all here because of our Classic Cougars… what else interests you? I’ll start with a couple that occupy most (sometimes ALL) of my free time:
1.) My Dad started me on shooting and hunting when I was 9; starting with .22 cal rifles and progressing on to shotguns. Following in the “Family Tradition” my 12th birthday present was a .22, in my case a little Marlin semi-auto carbine. Other than “familiarization sessions” with his .357 revolver and 1911 .45ACP pistol; I spent most of my time with long guns until I was 21. Bought, shot and sold a lot of handguns until I settled upon a K-frame Smith and Wesson -which my wife promptly “took over” and told me to get myself something else! So I now have a Smith and Wesson 629 .44 Magnum. “Pin-shooting” with the 629 was fun, but somewhat “high-action”; and I started looking for something more ‘restful’ and easier on my arthritic wrists…
Meet “The Boys”:
Italian-made replicas of the Remington 1858/1863 “New Model Army”. The top one (my first black powder weapon) is in the original 7-12" barrel, and shoots POA at 15 yards with 29 grains of Hodgdon Pyrodex behind a .454" round ball, as long as I do my part. The 5-1/2" 'shortie" comes easier to hand; but I have to clear up a timing issue and generally slick up the lockwork before I can figure out a good load and adjust (with a file) the front sight so it will hit where I’m aiming.
2.)When I first moved from Yuma to Tucson for college (GO WILDCATS!); I moved in with my older brother and his wife, who were both very involved in Team Roping. Both were affirmed “Headers” (get a rope around the bovine’s head or horns) and looking for a “Heeler” (ropes the back legs). Along comes Jimmy and HE’S LEFT-HANDED; which is very beneficial for a heeler. So while my peers at the UofA (GO WILDCATS!) College of Engineering were partying on weekends; I was usually on the back of a horse throwing loops at cattle. Later on, when my wife was starting to show with our first child and we were worrying about how to support this new addition to the family, we sold “EVERYTHING HORSE”; which suddenly freed up roughly 1/3 of our income. Little did we know that, 17 years later, that first baby would come home from her job grooming show horse and shoveling stalls to announce, “Dad, I bought a horse!” 
Thus began the effort to ‘buy everything back’. OBTW, like Cougar’s, horses can be addictive; and you “can’t have just one”…
Chance; -aka- “Life Moneymaker”, according to the Jockey Club Thoroughbred Registry. The horse that started it all AGAIN
My oldest, just 6 weeks after giving birth to her son, atop Chance, holding the flag of our local PRCA Rodeo (which MY MOM made back in 1975!); standing alongside is some old “Rodeo Bum” she found wandering in the arena.
Like I said, “you can’t have just one”, so…
Mr Rascal Robert; my wife’s first horse (this time around).
Rascal was 30 years old when this picture was taken in 2008. He was an extraordinary arena horse; probably been through our arena 2 or 3 or maybe 10 times as often as me; so my wife agreed to let me ride him during rodeos. In this picture, he’s carrying the same Rodeo Bum from the first picture; along with the flag of Jack Daniel’s Distillery; one of our PRCA major sponsors. We were the last to leave the arena; and he really wanted to pass everybody and just RUN!
This past May, we had to euthanize Rascal, due to his age and a vicious onslaught of Cushing’s Syndrome. My wife was heartbroken (Hell, we ALL were); so now she has adopted…
Dakota
A good-natured Quarterhorse/Arab cross that needed a new home. This pic is of her first ride, wherein they were ‘figuring each other out’; learning each other’s ways and quirks. They’ve bonded, BIG TIME. We also found out that the little endurance saddle she had for Rascal was waaaaayyyyy to small for this big boy; so there goes a few more Benjamin’s for a new saddle. (Oy!)
What, you think I could hang around (and spend money on) all this equine madness without one of my own?
Dutch aka “Dawwyuri” according to The Arabian Registry
A friend of mine was moving and had to liquidate all HIS horse stuff; so I took Dutch off his hands for not much cash back in 2006. After I paid for Dutch and my friend gave me the paperwork; I looked at his papers, saw that he was an Arab, and immediately said “Carl, gimme my $500 back!” I’m glad I was only joking. Dutch has a few spooks and quirks of his own, just like every Arabian I’ve ever seen; but he’s a good horse and we seem to work together well.
When I saw his ‘official’ name on the registration, I asked Carl where he came up with the name “Dutch”. He pointed to the “official” name and said “How do you pronounce THAT?” I worked it around in my mouth and said, “You’re right - he’s Dutch!” Believe it or not, I searched through my phone, 3 computers and my Photobucket and Facebook acounts; and can’t find a picture of me on Dutch! I guess I have to find a giant mirror, but that would probably spook him 
And that’s two reason why my Cougar isn’t on the road yet. 
Anybody else have any hobbies that border upon obsessions?
Yeah, I flew one of those when I finally soloed before one of the Instructors with the Yuma Aeromodelers (it was actually HIS bird). Nice plane, wish I had been flying a Telemaster, though. Do you know into how many pieces a US can be disassembled to if one over-corrects from an excessive landing flare at 3 feet? No really, do you know? Because I never could count up how many pieces there were… Good thing the kit didn’t cost that much and the Fox .40 survived! This took place not much post-9/11; I was cleared to fly “as long as { I } avoid model passenger airliners and model skyscrapers”.
And I’m still a Traynor nut for sure. Pete Traynor was a genius and his work is very underappreciated, especially here in the US I assume he’s better known in Canada.
