Trials and tests

Written by Craig Nyhus

Friday, 04 April 2008

Photo by John Eriksson Competition draws retrievers, handlers from across the country The close of duck-hunting season on Jan. 27 didn’t provide the usual break for Jeff Kucera and the staff at Port Bay Club in Rockport. After the decoys and boats were put away, the club hosted the Coastal Bend Retriever Club of Texas AKC Licensed Field Trials a little more than a week later. The trials used the grounds and marshes of Port Bay Club, the oldest continuously-running hunting and fishing club in Texas. “The judges came in from across the country and set the courses on the marsh,” said Port Bay’s Manager Jeff Kucera. “They even used some of the duck blinds to hide the bird boys when they threw the birds.” Kucera, who has entered field trial competitions in the past, was well aware of the effort needed to put on such an event. “The field trial circuit pretty much starts down here and slowly moves north up the country,” he said. “Some of the handlers have as many as 10 dogs.” Jim Rumley and Pat Kenny of Rockport founded the Coastal Bend Retriever Club about six years ago. “We started it because of our interests in retrievers, field trials and hunt tests,” Rumley said. “Our field trials are a big deal because we start off the season, and people like to run their dogs in the coastal area — there will be five or six types of cover changes before the dog gets to the mark.” The retrievers, handlers and dog owners came from dozens of states and as far north as Canada, with 176 entries competing in four classes, including the coveted open and amateur divisions. “In the open and amateur divisions, dogs perform double and triple marks on both water and on land,” said Kenny, whose dog Icebreaker Mackinaw finished fourth in the amateur division. “And they also do blind retrieves on both water and land.” The open division, the only division that the pros are permitted to compete, had 77 entries. Handler Dave Rorem, who lives and trains retrievers near International Falls, Minn., in the summer and near Columbus in winter, captured two of the top four spots, with Two Rivers Lucky Willie, a black lab owned by Brady Oman of Marble Falls, taking the top prize. But Rorem, who trains dogs with his wife and 29-year-old daughter Ty, was most proud of his daughter’s performance. “It was only the second field trial she ever ran, and she finished second in the open with The Bear XVII, called ‘Yogi.’” Rorem, a retired Minnesota game warden, knew it was rare to have so many top finishers. “We’re blessed with good athletes,” he said. “We have a good string of young dogs, and we all work our tails off.” In the amateur division, all of the dogs were required to be handled by their owners. Kathy Berdan with her lab FC AFC Mizpaw Miss, took the top prize, and Alex Washburn with Coolwaters Hurricane Alley finished second out of 47 entries.

Last Updated ( Friday, 04 April 2008 )

 

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