Feature Article August 29, 2001
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Annie Ellett rides and shoots at the Parham Fairby David BrisonAnnie Ellett is a cowgirl from Dallas, Texas, who married a Canadian hockey player, Dave Ellett, and is now the current world champion of the Mounted Cowboy Shooting event. Cowboy mounted shooting is not yet an Olympic event, but Annie is the spokesperson for the Cowboy Mounted Shooting Association, and she is determined to get more recognition for the sport. Who knows, she might follow Simon Whitfield (he won the first Olympic triathlon) as the inaugural winner of the Olympic ride and shoot event.
The Elletts vacation each year near Elginburg, and Annie came to the Parham Fair last year with one of her quarter horses to participate in some of the horse and rider skill events. She volunteered to come this year to Parham Fair and give an exhibition of cowboy mounted shooting.
Annie first explained the event, and then gave several demonstrations. Ten balloons are set up on a course at different heights. The horse and rider follow a set course, and the rider shoots at the balloons with (in Annies case) a Colt 45 single action long barrel pistol. The event is timed and points are taken off for missed balloons. The ammunition is gunpowder mixed with corn meal.
Annie demonstrated how she sometimes has to shoot over the horses head, and also has to cock the pistol after shooting at each target. She manages to do all of this at an amazingly high speed. Her horse Costa, a quarter horse stallion, is also the current world champion. Annie rode him at the world championships in California, and won over around 100 competitors.
In Annies final exhibition ride, she went though a regular course and hit all ten balloons.
Annie runs a private dude ranch camp in the summer for young riders. Several of the participants in that camp (Danielle Aykroyd, her son Jeff Ellett, and Jocelyn and Ren Murphy) were on hand to help Annie, and also participate in some of the skill events themselves.
Danielle Aykroyd (yes, her father is Dan Aykroyd) told me that she summers on Loughborough Lake, and for the rest of the year lives in the heart of Manhattan. She likes living in the city for most of the year and summering in Canada. Her summer highlight is the association with Annie and the opportunity to ride. She also is able to ride in the city, but on a more limited basis.
Dan Aykroyd was seen wandering around the fairgrounds, in what I would guess is rare anonymity for a celebrity, wearing a badge that his daughter had won in one of the riding events.
