I believe that mid- hudson is improving itself to better compete with the shooting venues of the area. They have improved the facilities greatly, added a few stations, and yes, there are no "feel good" stations. I am a D shooter, and I have shot low 80's at mid hudson this year, I do not see it as FITASC in the woods but a course that makes me think, concentrate on the presentations, and thus become a better shooter.

Artie

Mid-Hudson has evolved, and IMO not for the better. They used to be a top notch " fun " place to shoot. Some of their target presentations are just ridiculous and for a public facility they are catering to a higher class shooter. Dozens of people I shoot with on a weekly basis just don't go there anymore, including myself, and almost all the comments are the same, " Isn't this supposed to be FUN ". I'm not going to tell people how to run their business, but raising the prices in a bad economy, throwing long difficult presentations and " BULLDOZING " the grounds into a flat lifeless pasture is not a good business model. People don't want to be disgusted after dropping nearly a 100.00 for a round of sporting clays, they are driving away tons of business, and now with TMRP and Furnace RD opening to the public, they are going to have some serious competition. 

Want to shoot a beautiful well thought out reasonably priced course, want to introduce new shooters to sporting clays, Want to shoot a variety of easier or difficult targets depending on your mood, bring a couple hundred rounds and shoot the A and B courses at Lehigh Valley for twice the fun. 

Roland:  I respect your opinion as to what you like to see in a Sporting Clays course and agree that the sport has evolved drastically from when I first shot it in 1988(?).  But as a long time clay target shooter, starting with skeet in the days before Hugh & Ginny Davis took over at Mid Hudson I have to disagree with the path you took to share your concerns.  Whether or not we agree on the way the current owners are managing thier business, it is prudent for all who enjoy the game to either offer quiet suggestions and offer to help implement them or keep our opinions to ourselves.   I was frequently told when I was young "if you can't say anything nice, then don't say anything".  At the end of the shooting year last year after seeing many hard-working individuals hurt by mostly unwarrented critisicm I made a resolution to follow that saying.  It has served me well so far and I look forward to helping where I can so that I can continue to enjoy this sport.  If you don't like the way things are done, just say nothing and shoot elsewhere.

Donna Galotto

Roland, time has passed you by.  Mid Hudson is better than it ever has been.   We shot it last week , and although it is still easier than good tournament targets, it is the best it has ever been.  They will need to be in order to fend off Ten Mile!!

Eric Steinkraus

In response to the recent "Fitasc in the woods" review, which we found to be extraordinarily suprising...we never knew there were two Mid-Hudson Sporting Grounds...clearly the reviewer had beeen to a different venue as the Mid-Hudson we know bears little resemblance to the one reviewed.

" Cleared of all standing organic material" sounds like a catastrophe beyond perception, and I woudn't go within a thousand miles of such a disaster. On a more digestible level, the reviewer laments the loss of " tighter quarters" , "smaller targets", and " optical tricks".... these are the very elements that we are outgrowing in the sporting clay evolution. Target setters are graduating past "trickery" and "short windows", and into the class of nuance and sublety.

Mid-Hudson  has done nothing but improve under new ownership, and enjoys a loyal, supportive base of dedicated shooters. Both the new shooter and the seasoned veteran are on the course every day, and I bet there are no criticism s from either group justifying the review. As an aside, we shot the course within days of the reviewer: for fun, I brought my 28ga, choked LM both bbls, never changed chokes, and had a blast all day. Everything was within the reach of any gauge.

More importantly,  I think it is profoundly  counter productive to publish negative material concerning a sporting facility in these times....we are all trying our best to keep enjoying this sport that we love....

Respectfully,

L & D Christensen

Roland, I have long respected your opinions and enjoyed your site. However, I must take exception to your commentary with regard to Mid Hudson. You may have heard this before: “play the music the people want to dance to”. Our great sport has evolved (I don’t like it just as much as you) into just as you describe it. Did we let it go away? Maybe so? But, the shooters are no longer coming from the Hunting discipline. Yes, it has now become a clays game. It is difficult to make a living throwing clay targets. The ranges had to change to accommodate revenue just like any other business. Venues had to change to allow for maximum participation.

As far as the target presentations at Mid Hudson, I also miss the trees, logs, bouncing rabbits that Huey threw years ago. As far as the distance and quality of the targets compared with other ranges, I disagree that you “choke down” and bring 7 ½ loads. Responding to your “The people I talk to” in you commentary, I solicited opinions from recent guests at MH to verify my convictions. Based upon my information and personal knowledge; you’re wrong on this one buddy.

I wish you would have thrown a couple of bouquets to the new owners for improving the grounds. The “plug in” convenience is a very contemporary addition. It dilutes the small increase in price somewhat. But then there is no “trapper tip” which really calls it a wash. All in all, I rate it a much needed venue that does a good service to the shooters and the sport.

Al Anglace

Having just returned from Mid-Hudson three days after the review, I wholeheartedly disagree with Roland's observations.

Have some things changed? Sure. When I was there, they were doing a bunch of excavating in the middle section changing things around. It looks like they took some of the skeet/trap fields out and were redoing the five-stand area. Personally, I think they've changed for the better.

In regards to target presentation, Mid-Hudson is one of the fairest courses in the area. Being a public course, it has to cater to people like me that get out twice a month if they're lucky, all the way up to competitors that shoot at the Masters level. They could have made it as difficult or they could appeal to a wide range of shooters. When you have to pay the bills, you try to appeal to the widest range of shooters.

When I shot the course, I didn't think there was anything that was super long. In fact, I shot the whole thing with SK/LM and 1oz of #8's and broke targets off every trap (except for 14a which wasn't working). There were plenty of stations that had a tricky transitions, weird presentations, and shorter window shots that made me think.

I haven't been in this game as long as some of you guys have. Eventually the market will decide. Either people will come or they won't and we'll lose another shooting venue. In a time when we're seeing attacks on our pastime from so many different angles, it's a shame we have to defend from inside.