Volume: 17, Issue: 1 (1st Quarter 2013) - IDPA.com

“A Dynamic Female Duo Starts an
...in the Shadow of The Big Apple”
As I walked down the streets of Hudson, NY, I
was getting pretty worried. Billed as “Upstate’s
Downtown”, the lively burg was filled with visitors
from the Big Apple, who use the Colombia County
location as their playground. On each block filled
with art galleries and upscale boutiques, I saw small,
ecologically correct electric cars with stickers touting
politically correct sentiments - not one SUV or NRA
sticker to be found! The next day, I was scheduled to
teach an IDPA Safety Officer class less than 5 miles
away. What kind of people would I meet there, and
how could a brand new IDPA club survive in such an
urban, firearm intolerant area so close to New York
City? The club was being started by two women from
the area – what kind of folks would be attending this
class? Visions of protestors from the city clouded my
thoughts as I drove to the club the next day.
My relief may have been evident when I met Trish
Cutler and Debbie Singer, Co-Match Directors of
the Colombia Pistol Action League (CPAL). These
ladies were down-to-earth, excited and committed to
the sport. Trish’s calm demeanor and organizational
skills put me at ease immediately, especially when she
introduced herself as a “shooting Grandma”, who lives
to shoot but also loves to hike, plan parties, bake and
decorate. She is the pistol permit clerk in Colombia
County, which she says gives her an opportunity
to meet many people. “I started shooting under the
guidance of Dave Lydon, a retired police officer and
military police Major in the US Air Force, and Ray
Dalrymple, an ex-military firearms instructor. Another
young man by the name of Keith Gibson offered to
instruct me in a more tactical approach to shooting.
Keith introduced me to IDPA.” (Most of us remember
Keith from Season 3 of The History Channel’s Top
Shot).
Debbie Singer, a vivacious brunette with an
irrepressible spirit, came to shooting via a different
route. “I was dating a retired state trooper and he let
8 IDPA Tactical Journal First Quarter 2013