Son of a Gun
Davidson joins father in Trapshooting Hall of Fame
Andrew Davidson was inducted into the Ohio State Trapshooting Association (OSTA) Hall of Fame on Thursday, June 20. He continues a legacy started by his father, Lee S. Davidson, almost 30 years ago.
“I was very surprised,” Davidson said of his selection for the Hall of Fame. “I’ve been doing this since I was 12 years old,” he said. “I’ve been at it for almost 59 years.”
Davidson was inducted into the OSTA Hall of Fame during a special ceremony held at the Cardinal Center Shooting Grounds in Marengo, OH. Davidson said three other trapshooters were also inducted into the Hall of Fame during the ceremony.
“They had a nice reception, with a hog roast and a cookout,” he said. “There were probably a couple hundred people in attendance for the actual ceremony.”
With his induction, Davidson joins his father, professional trapshooter Lee S. Davidson, who was inducted into the OSTA Hall of Fame in 1995 and the National Hall of Fame in 1999.
“My father was a professional trapshooter,” Davidson said. “He worked for one of the gun companies, exhibited their products, and was a salesman as well.”
“That’s the reason we moved to Tipp City,” he said. “When my father took the job with Winchester, they wanted him to be located near the Amateur Trapshooting Association (ATA) grounds in Vandalia. So, in 1966, we moved to Tipp.”
A 1971 graduate of Tippecanoe High School, Davidson attended Ohio State University, then returned to Tipp City and opened the Tipp Eye Center in 1980. He retired from that practice approximately two years ago.
“I’m a retired Optometrist, so I’ve had the opportunity to examine and help a lot of shooters with their visual needs, regarding trapshooting as well,” he said. “They always liked to come in and talk to somebody who knows a little bit about it.”
Prior to his induction into the Hall of Fame, Davidson also served on the OTSA’s All-Ohio Team five times. He won multiple runner-up titles at the Grand American, formerly held at the Dayton International Airport in Vandalia, and won the All-Around Championship at the Ohio State Shoot.
Davidson met his wife, Connie, at a trap shoot in Vandalia, where she worked as the ATA's Office Manager.
“My son is also a trapshooter, so we’ve got three generations of trapshooters there,” he said.
“It takes a certain amount of hand-eye coordination,” Davidson said. “My father was one of the best at it, so I think he passed that along.”
“It's been a family-fun thing for us,” he said. “The kids grew up going to trap shoots and working there, as I did when I was young. We just kind of passed it down, through three generations now.”
Over the years, Davidson estimates he has probably fired over 200,000 shotgun rounds.
“Including practice, it’s probably 250,000,” he said. “It’s not a normal shotgun; these are specific target sporting guns made for clay target shooting; they either have one or two barrels.”
Davidson also offered some tips for those interested in trapshooting.
“The first tip is to get some instruction in safety,” he said. “It’s a very safe sport, but we are very safety conscious.”
“The other thing is, it’s like everything else, you have to have the right equipment for it,” Davidson said. “One of the biggest things is to have a shotgun that fits you appropriately.”
Davidson recommends visiting one of the local shooting ranges: the Middletown Sportsman’s Club, the Wright Patterson Air Force Base Rod and Gun Club, or Olde English Outfitters in Tipp City.
“The Wright-Patterson Air Force Base Rod and Gun Club is out on the base,” he said. “You don’t have to be a member of the military or actually work at the base; you can have a private membership there and shoot.”
“Here in Tipp City, there is Olde English Outfitters,” Davidson said. “They have folks who can help you, and they also sell all the guns. I’ve known them all my life; it’s a family business.”