This page will be used to present news and info of general interest for New Hampshire Shooters. If you have something to post here just send an email with the information! Click here to send

Click on the Winchester Flyer to view a nice video, put together by WMUR in Manchester, featuring the fabulous Blaisdell family of Keene, NH. (aka Mike, Theresa and Jake).

Pictured below is NH shooter Ron Frazier, of Brookline, sporting his new wheels and new license plate at Royalston's Labor Day Shoot and MATA cook-out. In case the truck is from before your time it's a 1949 Ford Pick-Up that hasn't been restored, it's orignal and mint!!!

The above ad, published on 9/15/06 in the American Shooter, was provided to me by Phil Wright, who in turn received it from ATA Hall of Fame Director Kenny Rae Estes. It is interesting for a couple of reasons in that it probably confirms the claim of the Exeter Gun Club is/was the oldest shooting club in the state and, of course, because the NH team won the "National Clay Bird Tournament" in Chicago held in 1884. We can only guess what this tournament was but here are some pertinent facts:

1-United States Cartridge (manufacturing) was located in Lowell, MA and was a competitor, at that time, of Western Cartridge and Union Metallic Cartridge (in that the latter two companies had not been purchased yet by Winchester and Remington respectively).

2-1884 was the first year the ammunition companies began to sell factory loaded shotshells. Winchester was selling black powder shells for $11 per thousand (smokeless not available until 1894).

3-In 1880 George Ligowsky of Cincinatti created the clay target but in 1884 Fred Kimble invented the composite clay target, which in addition to clay used coal tar and pitch, and was a lot more breakable than Ligowsky's target (similar to today's targets). It was called the Peoria Blackbird.

4-The introduction of hammerless single and side by side shotguns started in 1890.

5-The first trapshooting organization, the American Shooting Association, was founded in 1890 (and the Interstate Assoc. and ATA much later). The ATA HofF timeline does state, perhaps in error, that the first national trapshooting tournament was staged in New Orleans in 1885 but says nothing of its sponsor.

So to recap one could speculate that these five well heeled gents from Exeter took their factory loaded blackpowder shells and 12 gauge hammer guns to Chicago by train (via Boston) and shot at the first national claybird tournament throwing Kimble's Peoria Blackbirds and won it!

We would like to thank all of our wonderful friends and acquaintances at the New Hampshire State Shoot, who were so generous as to donate to our children Mike & Julie for their little angel Lillian who is so sick and has spent the first 6 weeks since her birth in intensive care nursery at Dartmouth in Lebanon, N.H. Our children are thankful and very appreciative of all the help. We will keep you all in our thoughts as we pray for our sweet Lillian.
Thank you so very much,
Dave, JoAnn, Mike, Julie, and Lillian

The 110th NH State Shoot was held at Pelham Fish and Game and was a success on all levels including a good turn out (of both resident and non-resident shooters), good weather, good management and good shooting. Special thanks to the members of the Pelham Clay Committee (Jason, Steve, Dave, George, Nicole, Leo and I'm sure others) as well as the officers of the NHTA (Buddy, Dan, Phil and again others). Additional thanks to Sue Wright and Theresa Blaisdell for doing a fantastic job with the trophies and to Stu Patenaude for donating $500 of prize money on behalf of Pat-Trap.

A nice consolation for Mike was that with his runner-up title in Event 4 he joined wife Theresa, the ladies champ, and son Jake, the sub-junior champ, in performing the first family Hat Trick in NHTA state shoot history.

In case you haven't seen it, under the Accomplishments tab, is a listing called "NH Hot Shots" that attempts to recognize the accomplishments of NH shooters at significant shoots across the country. In reviewing and updating the listing it is impossible not to notice the accomplishments so far of the dynamic duo from Hudson. Yes, that's Phil and Sue Wright and together this year they've dragged home some sixteen trophies from just three shoots. So in the spirit of fairness, since we've been spotlighting our younger shooters, lets give these "mature" shooters (sorry Sue) a big hand and the wish that the remainder of the season is equally as good (or better). Incidentally, in the article below we talked about Jake beating Mike someday and ironically Phil has a similar and maybe more serious problem of getting beat by Susan. It seems, for example, that in Event 6 at Montpelier Phil admits he had to hustle to tie Sue's 92 shot with her old Remington 1100 and, yes, they both shot from the 27 yardline.

(p.s.-please feel free to send in your accomplishments because we just don't see everything in a timely manner. Your help would be appreciated)

* Kate and Frank (both accomplished shooters) are not new to trapshooting but only to the Granite State. Kate from RI and Frank from MA.

Almost 35 years to the day All-American Mike Blaisdell shot his first registered ATA targets at the Montpelier Gun Club (MGC) in Berlin, VT. That day was Saturday May 29th 2010 when Mike's son Jake took to the line to shoot his first registered targets at the MGC during their Memorial Day Shoot. Jake shot a very respectable 145X200.

When classifying Dennis DeVaux likes to consider known ability so could he be wondering if there's anything genetic to take into account? Take a look at the horsepower in his first squad starting with his Mom Theresa followed by Dennis DeVaux, Collin Bigras and Dad Mike. Good shooting Jake and welcome aboard. We're counting on you to outshoot the "old man" one of these days (Collin can tell you how).

Mark your calendar for July 9-11 and plan to attend the state shoot being held again at Pelham Fish & Game. Click on the 2010 State Pin below to get a preview of the 2010 Program sent along by Phil Wright.

Like Trap & Field this is the field part! This kid who shares his name with a young male turkey has bagged this beautiful Rio Grande long beard while hunting with his Dad Mike Blaisdell on the famous Frying Pan Ranch in Texas. If your curious ask Jake or Mike why they're holding up those high brass Remington shells!

“Go hunting with your boy today and you won’t have to hunt for him tomorrow”-Herb Parsons All-American Trap and Skeet shooter, ATA Hall of Fame inductee, exibition shooter and hunter.

Jim Bellinghieri previously from Nashua and Derry, NH and now The Villages, FL passed along this 22 year old picture from the 3rd Northeast Grand (1988) at the NYSATA Homegrounds in Cicero, NY. Any of you folks who have participated in this satellite grand over the years should have no trouble relating to these photos. Left to right Bob Raymond (Seagull), Dan Ross, Jim, Lee Partridge and Jim Meyers.

A number of NH folks (and probably some I missed) took advantage of the mostly cold, windy & wet Florida weather to start the 2010 season at the Silver Dollar. There could be more but those participating and those competing included Don Linger, Felipe Garcia, John Chick, Stu Patenaude, Jack McDonald, Sue Wright, Phil Wright, Mike Blaisdell & Pete Tomaini. Don Linger took E2 SVRU caps with a 92, Mike Blaisdell shot a 95 in E3 dbls for class AAA RU, Jack McDonald shot 100 16s for E7 Vet RU, and finally Phil took two trophies for E8 caps 4th place with a 95 and E13 dbls class AA RU with a 97. Phil shot good caps and doubles while Mike shot well at singles. Ironically Mike shot at 500 singles during the week and hit 498 of them for a 99.6 average and appears to have nothing to show for it.

While browsing through Dick Baldwin's book The Road to Yesterday I came upon this interesting old program for the ninth annual registered trap shooting tournament, presented under the auspices of the White Mountain Trapshooting Association:

Since our state shoot records indicate that we held our shoots there from 1938 until 1942 I was curious to learn more. It turns out that the Maplewood, NH shoot was one of the East's most popular tournaments from 1915 to the start of WWII and that that The Maplewood was a grand hotel with rail service that obviously catered to the well-to-do. I believe our shoots were an accommodation and shot as part of other events. In looking at the links below it's unclear if there ever was a Maplewood, NH as the hotel was apparently in Bethlehem, NH. For a little information on the history of the hotel, which burned down in 1946, check out this site:

Pretty much everyone in the NH trapshooting community knows Jake Blaisdell and has watched him for quite awhile now as weedlike he continues to sprout into a young man. Although he hasn't started on the "clay" birds he's not doing bad with the real ones. Last year we saw a picture of him with his first gobbler ( & doe). Now, below, we see him again with his first rooster. Way to go Jake!

The ATA, in a just issued press release, announced that New Hampshire shooter Mike Blaisdell has been selected to the 2010 men's first team. This honor marks Mike's eighth All-American title since 2000 with two first team berths and six on the men's second team. P.S.-that kid across the river that Mike coaches also made the Junior first team. Congradulations to Mike (and Collin).

It is hard to believe that Thanksgiving is right around the corner! The trap shooting year has come and gone. That means that it’s time for the NHTA annual meeting. The meeting will be held on Friday, December 4^th at Pelham Fish & Game Club in the main clubhouse @ 6:30 PM. A hot meal will be served prior to the meeting.

Pelham Fish and Game continues to reinvigorate its registered shooting program and based on the success of this year’s state shoot we anticipate that Pelham will want to host again in 2010. We are heartened by the response from those attending the state shoot. Even though attendance was a little lighter than we wanted to see, the shoot went great. The Pelham Clays Committee and the NHTA volunteers worked superbly as a team to show the shooters a good time. Your executive committee thanks all those involved in making the 2009 state shoot a success and looks forward to making the 2010 shoot even better.

For those planning on attending the meeting, please RSVP by Monday November 30th so the proper amount of food can be ordered. Contact Tia Hackett by e-mail or phone. Contact information is: tiamadaffari@hotmail.com or by phone at 335-2548

We will also be collecting the NHTA 2010 shooting year dues at the meeting. If you are unable to attend the meeting, please enclose $5.00 for each member along with the name of each member. Please see Phil Wright for your card over the course of the shooting season.

Win a $100 Gift Certificate to Cabelas for Shooting In a NTD Shoot!

All shooters who shoot on National Trapshooting Day at a participating club will be eligible to win a 100 dollar gift card from Cabela's. The ATA will randomly select 10 people to win the Cabela’s gift cards. Simply shoot at any of the clubs, listed below, during their scheduled National Trapshooting Day shoot.

PSC is on the list of participating clubs

The registered trap committee at PSC would like thank all those that have attended this year for their support and to wish everyone health and happiness throughout the Holidays and Winter season.

Congratulations to Mike Blaisdell who won the following at the 2009 Grand American according to RJ Stuart Computer Services (www.rjstuart.com):

In the ATA All-Around Champion of America competition consisting of the Clay Target Championship, the GAH and the Doubles Championship (400 targets) the winning score was 398. Mike shot a 396!!!

(I've no inputs so far but quite a few folks came in with 100s in Event 17 so Mike must have had some significant shoot off activity. Also the 10th Place win in the GAH might be the highest GAH score for a NH shooter ever and again had many 99s shot. Feel free to contribute whatever you can to this site in the interest of NH trapshooting in general)

Note:If you've won a trophy or two this year your doing OK but take a look at NH Hotshots under Accomplishments for Mike's wins which add up to about 20 better than one or two!!!

Good luck to all planning to attend the 2009 Grand American at Sparta. Grand week runs from Moday August 10th to Saturday August 15th with the featured GAH held Saturday morning. The program records show the following NH shooters winning major championships in previous years:

1997 GAH Champion Richard Connor 99 2003 SVet Clay Target Champion Jim Link 200

1977 Dbls Champion of America Phil Wright 99 2005 GAH Woman's Champ Mary Beth Lewis 98

The above is good but we can do better! Bring some championship trophies back to NH!!!

In Saturday's NH club race (p/o E4) Pelham destroys, no whips, no maybe steals a victory from Cheshire County F&G (the usual winner). So will somebody in the western part of the state please mail that traveling plaque back east so we can get it engraved and hung in Fox Hall! Seriously, thanks for participating in this fun shoot and check the results below for the five hi-guns from each club (38 shooters signed up).

Checkout the Mayland Gun Club! Membership is free, targets are free and ammunition is free and it's open 24/7. It's on the Links page or click on the icon below!

If you haven't looked at them in awhile scroll down and checkout the license plates with trap related terminology. There are now 40 plates and with the cost of vanity plates doubling in NH you might not see some of these much longer. How many do you recognize?

Also checkout photos of the VT SS taken by Jim Giarrusso in the photo section!

This fellow is a well mannered 15 year old sub-junior from Parsons Field,ME. Whereas we don't normally cover out of state shooters this kid gets a pass as his mentor and grandfather is the notorious sandbagger John Chick (and grandmother, of course, is Anna Chick) of Summersworth, NH. At the recent MA State Shoot Tyler took the following awards:

While most of you were working through the last days of winter up north (and maybe looking forward to an April shoot) at least 34 Northern New Englanders attended the 29th Southern Grand and lucked out with a great week weather wise and for some a great shooting week as well. On top in the latter category was Mike Blaisdell who had four major wins: E3 AAA RU Dbls 99, E9 AAA RU Dbls 99 , E10 Champion Hdcp 99 + 25 and HOA AAA Winner 977X1000. The only other NH shooter to win (who now may be a FL shooter) was Steve Blain taking Class D Dbls with a 92 in E11. New Englanders picking up trophies included Jones, Martin, Anzaldi, Stinson, Conti, Hinz, Bigras (Collin) and Alverez.

Congratulations to Robert Hunt of Plaistow, NH who shot his first 100 straight in Saturday's Singles Championship. Another NH shooter know as the MGS says "Robert-OK to take off your high heels now!". Hopefully that means something to Robert.

Picture below is Frank (Culbertson), Pam, Felipe (Garcia) and Sandy enjoying the shoot. Hint: MGS is in this picture!

Loren R. Hardy, 66, died peacefully Thursday, February 25th at St. Joseph Hospital in Nashua after a courageous battle with Lewy Body Dementia.

He was born May 18, 1942 in Nashua, son of the late Robert E. and Ruth A. (Campbell) Hardy.

A longtime resident of Hudson, Loren served in the Army in the '60s and later worked as a field service engineer with Sanders Assoc. in Nashua and in Rochester, NY. He was a lifelong amateur trap shooter and one of the founding members of the Walworth Sportsman's Club in New York.

He is survived by his brother; Donald Hardy and his wife Joan Walker of Hudson. A niece; Elise Jacques and her husband Dennis and their 4 children. A nephew; Carl Hardy and his 2 children.

Visiting Hours will be held on Sunday March 1st from 1pm – 3pm in the DUMONT-SULLIVAN FUNERAL HOME, 50 FERRY ST. IN HUDSON. Burial will take place in Hills Farm Cemetery in Hudson at a later date. In lieu of flowers the family requests donations be made in Loren's loving memory to the Alzheimer's Assoc., Greater NH Chapter, 1 Bedford Farms Rd., Bedford, NH 03110. For directions or to send an online message of condolence or a sympathy meal to the family or to receive 24 grief support, please visit www.dumontsullivan.com. THE DUMONT-SULLIVAN FUNERAL HOME IN HUDSON

Mark your calendars. The 2009 NHSS will be hosted by the Pelham Fish and Game Club and will be held July 10, 11 and 12. Be there!

Check out the site http://www.shotgunlife.com for some interesting reading. According to the site "Every week you'll discover ways to improve your shooting, take care of your shotguns and to fine a greater appreciation for the Shotgun Life." In addition you can sign-up to receive a free e-letter on a regular basis. Lastly, the site indicates it welcomes e-mail at anytime with your "ideas, opinions and insights".

A nice crowd of dedicated NHTA members met 12/05/2008 at the Pelham Fish & Game Club in Pelham, NH. A light dinner was served prior to President Steve Szczechura calling the meeting to order around 8PM. The meeting was highlighted by a presentation by Jason Green, PF&G Trap Chairman, indicating a strong commitment from the club to host the 2009 NHSS. A subsequent vote was unanimous and Pelham will host the shoot July 10, 11 & 12. Phil Wright brought the group up to date on ATA activities including the new ATA official youth program AIM. Anyone or any club desiring to coach and put together an AIM team should contact Phil or any NHTA officer. Next the 2009 NH State team was announced and is posted in the State Team section. Congratulations to Mike, Phil, Buddy, Felipe, Roy, Jeff, Fred (Lewis), Frosty, Jim (Sweet) & Fred (Parker). Lastly, officers were elected for 2009. Steve Szczechura stepped down with a standing ovation for his dedicated work over many years and indicated that he will work with Pelham to support the state shoot. Moving up from Veep was Buddy Hackett our new President. Moving into the VP spot was ex-President Dan Madden. Phil and Tia were unopposed and remain treasurer and secretary respectively. Camera work below was not too good but shows some of the folks present. The potential new member with Sue Wright is none other then Finn Hackett! Please see the NHTA section for the official minutes when posted.

Just a reminder that the NHTA Annual Meeting will be held Friday December 5th at the Pelham fish and Game Club starting at 7:00PM with a hot meal served prior to the meeting. If your going to partake in the meal please RSVP to Tia Hackett 335-2548 or tiamadaffari@hotmail.com by 12/01/08.

Jimmy Giarrusso passed this interesting tidbit along (even though he looks shorter and wider today it must be him!):

Hi Jim,

I was in England visiting my family and found this old picture of me, That was 4 th of July 1979 and I just won the shoot and became European novice skeet champion in Germany. I still have the trophy and the gun,

Regards,

Felipe Garcia

Well they say the acorn doesn't fall far from the tree and here's a good example. Jake Blaisdell, a future NH trapshooter, hunting with Dad Mike, gets his first turkey and also his first deer. Congratulations Jake!

Note: The rest of you folks out there hunting this fall who are successful should feel free to send us your pictures also.

Remember these guys? Lou Rudinsky of Hollis and John Sowerby of Dover! This picture was taken in March 1988 during the winter doubles league at the old Exeter Gun Club. Lou took the state handicap title in 1990 and was considered by many to be the ultimate sand bagger. John took many state titles both in NH and Maine but at the time of this photo he seemed to suffer from every ailment known to man. Consequently while shooting you became very attentive to John and his release triggers.

It's that time of the year again! Although this event seems to have started fairly recently here's the first poster (from 28 years ago). Checkout the Peterborough Sportsmen's Club flyer below:

Trophy to high gun in each event. Trophy winner(s) not eligible for added monies.

As we complete our second year of registered trapshooting, the Peterborough Sportsmen’s Club would like to thank all past attendees for their support and we hope that you can join us again next year as your schedule may allow.

For those of you who don't know or remember Ted he left NH trapshooting about ten years ago when he retired to Maine. Prior to that time he racked up about 13,000 registered targets and won numerous trophies around New England as well as at the early Northeast Grands. He shot for Pelham's AA Team as well as captaining it for many years and participated in many winter leagues at the Lone Pine Hunter's Club in Hollis. He was also a life member of the ATA.

Theodore J. Nusbaum, Jr.

September 14, 2008

Theodore J. Nusbaum, Jr., 70, of Bridgton, ME, died Sunday, September 14, 2008 in the Maine Medical Center in Portland, ME. He was born in Elizabeth, NJ on December 29, 1937, a son of the late Theodore J. and Florence (Stengel) Nusbaum, Sr. Ted was a resident of Bridgton for the past 20 years, formerly living in Derry, NH. He was a US Navy veteran. Ted was a scoutmaster for the Boy Scouts Troop #405, and was an Eagle Scout. He retired as a senior engineer from Lucent Technologies in N. Andover, MA. Ted enjoyed trap shooting, golfing and hunting with his sons and friends, and snowmobiling and ice fishing with his grandchildren. He also worked with his wife in their knitting and embroidery business.

Ted is survived by his wife, Anne (Strout) Nusbaum of Bridgton, ME; three sons, Theodore J. Nusbaum, III and his wife Pamela of Londonderry, NH, Michael J. Nusbaum and his wife Cindy of Derry, NH, and Kenneth Nusbaum and his wife Hope of Conway, NH; one daughter, Laura Faiella and her husband Steve of Derry; 12 grandchildren, Abigail, Rebeccah, Samuel, Jessica, Sara, Joseph, Amanda, Taylor, Daniel, Nathan, Nickolas and Nolan; one great-grandson, Lucas; one sister, Carolyn Titterington of Peabody, MA, as well as many close friends from Bridgton to the Carolinas. He was predeceased by his sister, Marie Caputo.

Calling hours were held on Friday, September 19th from 4 - 7pm in the Peabody Funeral Homes and Crematorium, 290 Mammoth Rd., Londonderry. A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated on Saturday, at 11:00am in St. Mark's Church, corner of Mammoth Rd. and South Rd., Londonderry. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Ted’s memory to the State of Maine, Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, State House Station, 284 State St. #41, Augusta, ME 04333-0041 or to the American Heart Assoc., Heart Gifts Processing Center, PO Box 3049, Syracuse, NY 13220-3049.

Congratulations to Pete Tomaini who won the Senior Vet catagory (Thanks Cal!) in the Neil Winston Presidential Handicap (E17) on Tuesday with a 97X100 and Phil Wright who took 27 yard 5th with a 98X100 in the Parliment Coach Handicap (E23) on Saturday. Coming close was Mike Blaisdell who shot a 200X200 in Thursdays Clay Target Championship. Unfortunately Mike, who has been known to go 575X575 in extra innings (to win the longest shootoff in ATA history) , let one by early on in extremely poor light conditions. New Hampshire's top three shooters, Mike, Phil and Buddy Driscoll shot extremely well with composite averages for the week of 96.6 (966X1000), 96.5 (965X1000) and 96.5 (1062X1100) respectively. Not to be denied Buddy came thru at the NE Grand by taking ATA 2nd in the NE Grand Handicap (E14) with a 98X100. Check out the Grand photos and hopefully you'll see all the NH folks shooting at Sparta.

Nora Ross will be holding a two day clinic October 4th and 5th at Cheshire County Fish and Game. The clinic will include singles, handicap and doubles. Classes will start each day at 9:00AM and finish around 6:00PM with an hour break for lunch. The price of the clinic is $300.00 for the two day shooting school and $200.00 for one day. If interested call Dick Clauson at 603-835-6666 or Nora at 859-473-1622.

To see Mary Beth Lewis, our NH 2008 Handicap Champion, in a video interview by WMUR-TV in Manchester please click on the following link:

If you've you tried to log in to this site in the last few days you already know the site has been down. An error on my part while trying to enter the 2008 NHSS Winner's List caused the home page and all pages linked to it to be irrevocably lost and more importantly to discover that the site was not adequately backed up locally by me or the remote internet hosting service. Through a process incorporating smoke and mirrors the basic structure is back up but most of the pages are presently empty. It is my belief that most of the info can, with time, be back filled. Your patience will be appreciated and new information going forward will be added as received.

The 108th NHSS is history and the Winner's List is available under "State Shoots". A nice crowd attended and the weather was perfect. In addition, the shoot ran very successfully thanks to the NHTA officers, shoot management and the able staff of MMSC. The big four champions included Buddy Driscoll (16), Mike Blaisdell (Dbls), Mary Beth Lewis (Hdcp) and Felipe Garcia (AA). It should be noted that MBs win is the first championship (non-catagory) title to go to a lady in our 108 years of shooting history. MB has won many titles over the years in the ladies catagory, including the prestigious Grand American Handicap in 2005, but this is definitely a first. Congratulations MB!

During E4 an informal 200 bird contest is held annually between NH clubs that can field at least five shooters. This years event was won by Cheshire County Fish & Game with a 974 with 18 members shooting. Country Pond Fish & Game took second place with a 967 produced by five shooters. Pelham Fish and Game, last years winner, shot a combined 958 with six shooters and will be presenting the traveling trophy to Cheshire shortly.

Congratulations to Robert "Buddy" Hackett, NHTA VP of Rochester, NH for making the 27 yard line on June 1st. This puts Buddy in an exclusive group of around fourteen NH shooters (Big Dogs) shooting from the fence. Buddy says it took him 7500 targets to get there and most of us would say "That's all?". That gal with Buddy happens to be Tia, the NHTA Secretary, aka Mrs. Buddy Hackett.

The NHTA wishes to thank Richard Connor, the creator and previous webmaster of this site, for his significant contributions to trap shooting in NH including his continuing support of this site for an additional five years after moving to California. For you new shooters Rich shot out of Jaffrey for at least a dozen years, was NHTA President for two or more terms and topped off these achievements by winning the Grand American Handicap in 1997. Scroll down this News and Notes section to see more details and pictures of Rich. A job well done!