In early March, we had the privilege of co-hosting the state SkillsUSA Auto Competition. In this event, students vied for the opportunity to represent New Hampshire at the national competition in Atlanta, Georgia, and to win impressive prizes.

This year, with a little help from our friends at MB Tractor & Equipment, Nucar Automall of Tilton and TMS Diesel, we were able to provide the top three finalists with tool sets varying in size. The first-place finisher also received a U.S. General toolbox. Additionally, each finalist received a scholarship toward their automotive education. This not only heightened the competition but also offered significant bragging rights as gold, silver and bronze medalists in each of the four categories.

Over 35 students from across the state gathered at Lakes Region Community College to test their skills in power equipment, diesel, maintenance and light repair (MLR) and college-level automotive service technology (AST). Marc Pouliot of White Mountain Community College ran the Diesel event with the support of TMS Diesel, Jamie Decato and his team from Lakes Region Community College covered MLR along with AST, and the MB Tractor & Equipment team took on the Power Equipment portion.

The students were tested in areas such as electrical diagnostics, automotive measurements and parts identification — and faced a soft skills challenge that included job interview techniques. Upon registering, they even submitted their resumes. Volunteers monitored the students’ progress across various stations throughout the day, ensuring safety was maintained. By the end of the day, everyone was exhausted, but the students could breathe a sigh of relief knowing their efforts were complete, leaving them to await the judges’ final scores.