Side-by-sides are the perfect merging of form and function. They’re one barrel form, one barrel function. Somewhere out in front, the two cross and make a gun that can and does do almost anything.
They represent the South better than any other firearm because you can do anything in the South with one. Take it to the deer woods or go bear hunting in the canebrakes: one side slug, one side shot. Teach your grandchildren how to shoot squirrels one day and ducks (if the barrel’s walls are safe for steel) the next.
If it can be done with a shotgun, it can be done better with two barrels.
A Gentleman’s Shoot
The shooters at Southern Side-by-Side understand that duality. They’ve even written it into their name: the Southern Side-by-Side Championship & Exhibition. Since 2007, shooters have traveled to Georgetown, South Carolina, to shoot side by side with fellow side-by-side enthusiasts.
The 2015 three-day event runs October 23-25 at the Back Woods Quail Club.
Five different events will be held Friday and Saturday:
• Small gauge 50-target, open to 20-, 28-, and 32-gauge, as well as .410 bore
• Big-bore 50-target, open to 10-, 12-, and 16-gauge
• Preliminary 50-target, open to 10-, 12-, and 16-gauge
• Flush & Flurry, open to single shooters for 100 targets or two shooters for 200
• Pump 50-target, open to all gauges
Three events will take place Sunday:
• 100-target Atkin Grant & Lang main event
• 30-target Compak shooting event
• 25-target black powder event
Two Parker-Smith events will be held: a 30-target fall challenge and a 50-target trap challenge.
The shooting doesn’t stop there. Hosted deer and quail hunting excursions on Back Woods’ grounds will be available throughout the weekend, giving side-by-siders a chance to use their guns for two Southern trophies.
A continental pheasant tower shoot will offer a traditional tower shoot for 300 released pheasants on October 24 at 9 a.m. The tower shoot has limited space available; reservations can be made at 843-546-1466. The tower shoot is $325 per person.
For more information about the Southern Side-by-Side Championship & Exhibition’s Fall Classic, visit southernsidebyside.com.
Cover image: Southern Side-by-Side Championship & Exhibition