Pat’s Perspective
Today is day #1 of 2017 National
Amateur Retriever Championship. The
judges have broken a bit from tradition and are doing a triple. They have a beautiful site for the 1st series. They are high on a hill in a patch of woods
that was cleared by the hard working grounds crew. The gallery has a tremendous view. The Field Trial committee gets kudos for
their consideration for the gallery.
Great job!
I have spoken with many handlers
and a few of the gunners regarding the test.
Here are a few things I would like to share with you. There are a number of handlers that have
mentioned that their dogs have swung directly from the short bird to the flyer
and haven’t seen much of the middle bird.
Consequently some have resulted in large hunts. The flyer has also been a challenge for a
number of dogs. After speaking with a
couple of the gunners, it makes more sense.
They shared a perspective that wasn’t obvious from the line. Apparently, the gunners are unable to see the
dogs pick up the flyer. The flyer is
shot over the top of a knoll. When the
dogs can’t see the gunners they lose a perspective that makes hunting the mark
more challenging. The dogs that get a
harder angle back flyer have had more trouble.
It must be a bit of an optical illusion.
On the long middle bird, there are a number paths developing. Like always, some good and some bad. The left hand path leads the dog more behind
the gun and the far right hand path can take the dog outside the mark. Both can result in long hunts.
The judges and marshals are
working hard to complete this test today.
There is a lot more to come so stay tuned …
