Smith & Wesson

Team Smith & Wesson Members Earn High Honors In Back-to-Back USPSA Handgun Nationals

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 20, 2009) – Smith & Wesson Corp., announced today that Team Smith & Wesson members earned high honors in multiple divisions after competing in consecutive United States Practical Shooting Association (USPSA) National Championships during the month of September. As part of the Back-to-Back Handgun Nationals sponsored by Smith & Wesson, team members competed and excelled in the USPSA Production, Revolver and Limited-10 Nationals. Leading the way for Team Smith & Wesson was Annette Aysen, who earned the Ladies Revolver National Championship title.

USPSA Production Match

Held at the Desert Sportsmen in Las Vegas Nevada, the USPSA Production match featured 16 unique stages of fire designed to test each competitor’s skill with a handgun. During the four-day match, Team Smith & Wesson members claimed four spots in the Top 16 and earned top honors in four classes. Earning awards for Team Smith & Wesson was Revolver Champion Jerry Miculek who was named High Senior; Phil Strader who placed 3rd Overall; B.J. Norris who placed 8th Overall and 1st in Master Class; Mike Seeklander who placed 11th Overall and 2nd in Master Class and David Olhasso who finished 13th Overall.

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In the Women’s Division, Smith & Wesson team members achieved two spots in the Top 5. Team Captain Julie Golob placed an impressive 2nd Lady while fellow teammate Carrie Jamrogowicz earned the 5th Lady spot. Both women competed with the Smith & Wesson M&P9 Pro Series pistol in the event.

Throughout the match, the Smith & Wesson Military & Police (M&P) pistol had a strong showing with 25% of the Top 16 competitors using firearms from the M&P line during the competition. This year’s USPSA Production Nationals marks the first time an M&P pistol has been used by a competitor placing in the Top 3 Overall, an accomplishment delivered by Team Smith & Wesson member Phil Strader.

USPSA Limited-10 Nationals

During the Limited-10 Nationals, which were held immediately after the USPSA Production match, Team Smith & Wesson members once again stood atop the leader board. Team Smith & Wesson put three shooters in the Top 20 with BJ Norris placing 5th Overall and 1st Unclassified; Mike Seeklander earning 8th Overall and 2nd in the Master Class; and Tony Phan claiming the 20th Overall spot. In the Women’s Division, Julie Golob had another strong showing placing 2nd Lady Overall using a Smith & Wesson M&P9 Pro Series pistol while Kay Miculek earned 4th Lady Overall shooting a Smith & Wesson Pro Series 1911.

In the Revolver Division, Smith & Wesson extended its domination when Annette Aysen was named the Ladies Revolver National Champion. Shooting a Smith & Wesson Model 625, Aysen was able to claim her fourth national title for the season and her third consecutive USPSA Ladies Revolver National Title. Three other members of Team Smith & Wesson earned high honors in the Revolver Division with Jerry Miculek, David Olhasso and Elliot Aysen placing 2nd, 3rd and 8th Overall respectively.

“The 2009 season has been a very productive year for Team Smith & Wesson,” said Tom Kelly, Vice President of Marketing for Smith & Wesson. “With 20 members competing in a variety of different disciplines and divisions, each has performed admirably and has fully demonstrated the ability of the Smith & Wesson product line in numerous matches around the globe. With only a few more events scheduled for this year, I would like to congratulate each member for their hard work and dedication throughout the season. Every member of our team has been a true champion and has done a tremendous job representing our company and our product line.”

Team Smith & Wesson earned three IDPA Nationals titles

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. (October 20, 2009) – Smith & Wesson Corp., announced today that Team Smith & Wesson earned three national titles and posted high scores in each of the five divisions during the 2009 International Defensive Pistol Association (IDPA) National Championship held at the United States Shooting Academy (USSA) in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Competing in the Enhanced Service Revolver Division, Team Smith & Wesson Shooter Jerry Miculek added yet another national title to his prestigious career while fellow teammate and this year’s Match Director Curt Nichols earned his fourth consecutive national title in the Stock Service Revolver Division. Rounding out the top finishes by Team Smith & Wesson was Mike Seeklander, Chief Operating Officer of USSA, who earned the High Military Veteran award competing in the Enhanced Service Pistol (ESP) Division.

The 2009 Annual IDPA Nationals featured 17 stages of fire with over 350 participants competing for divisional titles. Designed to challenge the speed and accuracy of each shooter, the stages of fire tested each competitor on a variety of defensive shooting skills including drawing from concealment, shooting on the move and engaging a variety of stationary and moving targets. Competing with a Smith & Wesson Model 625, Miculek earned top scores in 14 of the 17 stages to win the national title by over 88 seconds. In the Stock Service Revolver (SSR) Division, Curt Nichols out scored 23 other competitors using a Smith & Wesson Model 67, en route to his fourth consecutive SSR national title. Winner of the High Military Veteran Title, Mike Seeklander, used his M&P9 Pro Series pistol to place 2nd Master and 3rd Overall in the ESP Division.

“Participating in this year’s match both as a competitor and Match Director, certainly brought on some new challenges that I had never experienced,” said Curt Nichols, Team Smith & Wesson member. “The match itself took over three months of preparation as we included more stages, a higher round count per stage and more shooters than ever before. With such an elaborate design, it was a personal challenge to stay mentally focused on my shooting while contending with all of the logistics that go into hosting a match of this proportion.”

During the planning stages, Nichols and his staff worked hard to develop what he portrayed as a ‘shooter’s match.’ The stages of fire were designed to be accuracy intensive and utilized a variety of different props such as the nine different stages of fire that involved shooting around, in and out of stationary vehicles. After the match Nichols received numerous compliments from competitors who portrayed the match as one of the most challenging yet fun IDPA Nationals to date.

After the conclusion of the match, Nichols spoke highly of the USSA facility, dedicated staff of over 70 individuals, plus the Smith & Wesson revolver that allowed him to retain the SSR title. “A match of this caliber would not have been possible without such a dedicated staff and tremendous facility like the USSA,” added Nichols. “I’m extremely pleased with the outcome. I also have to say that my performance in the match as a competitor would not have been possible without a quality firearm. Never once did I worry about the accuracy or reliability of my Smith & Wesson revolver as this particular platform has allowed me to excel in competitive shooting and has served me dutifully in my 22 years of law enforcement.”

Throughout the three-day event, additional members of Team Smith & Wesson delivered solid performances that placed them in the Top 3 of each of the divisions. In the Custom Defense Pistol Division, David Olhasso placed 2nd in Master Class and 3rd overall using an M&P45 pistol. In the Stock Service Pistol (SSP) Division, Gordon Carrell finished an impressive 1st Place in Master Class and 2nd Overall shooting an M&P9 Pro Series pistol, while teammate Phil Strader, who joined Team Smith & Wesson earlier this year, placed 2nd Master and 3rd Overall in the SSP Division. Also competing in the SSR Division was Team Smith & Wesson member Craig Buckland who finished 3rd Overall and 2nd in the Master Class. Team Captain Julie Golob earned 2nd Overall in the Women’s Division.

“On behalf of Smith & Wesson, I would like to congratulate all of the members of Team Smith & Wesson who participated in this year’s match,” said Tom Kelly, Vice President of Marketing for Smith & Wesson. “Once again, Team Smith & Wesson members continued their dominancy in the Revolver Divisions, showcasing both their talent and ability of the Smith & Wesson revolver line. In addition, our team excelled in every single division placing in the top three spots, a feat that demonstrates their diverse skill set and proficiency with a wide variety of firearms.”

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