Howard began his gun spinning career at the age of seventeen when he purchased a replica Colt Peacemaker. Since the gun was unable to fire, Howard decided to learn how to spin it, often spinning for hours at a time. At the age of nineteen Howard discovered the sport of Fast Draw and purchased a real Single-Action revolver. With this second gun, Howard was able to perform two-gun routines.
Gun spinning competitions took place on a regular basis up to the late 1970's, but the sport became inactive until the International Gun Spinning Championship was held at the Sands Hotel in Reno, Nevada in 1990. This contest attracted competitors from the USA, Canada and Japan, and was Howard's first competition... and first win. The picture at right shows Howard during his routine at that contest.
In 1991 the first World Gunspinning Championship was held in Deadwood, South Dakota, which Howard won. Deadwood then became the annual host of the world championships, with Howard winning a string of six world titles... more than has been won by any other gun spinner.
Check out this DVD & book that includes Howard teaching gun spinning in seventeen minutes of demos and instructional footage. Clicking on the picture above will take you to the book's web site where you can watch a clip of some scenes of Howard from the DVD, or click below for some clips.
Howard has performed his gun spinning and fancy gun handling routine throughout North America, including many times at the famed Calgary Stampede. The picture above was taken at "Rope Square" in Calgary, which attracts thousands of spectators to watch the daily western entertainment during the Stampede.
Click picture for larger graphic
In early 2004, Howard was contacted by a British production company to work with them to teach gun spinning and fancy gun handling techniques in the Book of Cool, an instructional DVD and book featuring two dozen fascinating sports and disciplines demonstrated and taught by the world's best. The Book of Cool was released in December of 2004, and contains 9 hours
of video and over 300 pages of instructions to help you master over 250 of the coolest skills and tricks in the world. Howard's "Gun Tricks" section includes 17 minutes of video and 14 pages of the book.
The two scans here are from the book. The top one shows details of a back spin out of the holster, while the second one shows details of the front spin out of the holster. Included on the Book of Cool DVD are:
- Howard demonstration his gun spinning routine
- The draw
- Front spin out of the holster
- General gun spinning movie
- Flat spins
- Back spin out of the holster
- Curly Bill spin
- Holstering demo (different styles)
- "Spin & Stop" holstering
- Back spin into holster
- Forward spin into holster
- Around & in the back holstering
Check out the links above at the right to visit the Book of Cool web site or view some video clips from the DVD.
Video Clips 
of video and over 300 pages of instructions to help you master over 250 of the coolest skills and tricks in the world. Howard's "Gun Tricks" section includes 17 minutes of video and 14 pages of the book.