The Black Powder Plainsman: A Beginner's Guide to Muzzleloading and Reenactment on the Great Plains
Born in Stafford Country, Kansas, Randy Smith is a graduate of Washburn University of Topeka and has completed work toward a Master of Science degree in communications at Fort Hays State University. In addition to his present position as a high school communications teacher in Garden City, Randy also conducts seminars and workshops on the instruction of applied communication throughout the state of Kansas.                                                                                  Randy Smith is a member of the National Muzzle Loading Rifle Association, and the Kansas Muzzle Loading Association. He is active in rendezvous and reenactment activities, primarily those which are concerned with the early history of the Santa Fe Trail, and he hunts exclusively with black powder weapons. He looks forward to the day when he can take an elk or a bear with a muzzleloader. Randy's articles have baan published in several black powder and historical publications including Muzzle Blasts, Wild West, Black Powder Hunting, and Muzzleloader. He is also the author of a western noverl, Days of the Plainsman, and a teacher's supplement for the instruction of applied communication for the Kansas Competency Based Curriculum Center in Topeka, Kansas. Randy is married and the father of four chidren. During his free time, he enjoys hunting and rendezvous activities, historical research, writing, and trekking the hills and plains of western Kansas, packing a muzzleloader and a Pentax camera.