Page 118 - ShowSight, November 2020

The dog under consideration must have and display great bird sense. He must show perfect work on both coveys and singles. He must be able to quickly determine between foot and body scent. He must use his brain, eyes, and nose to the fullest advantage and hunt the likely places on the course. He must possess speed, range, style, character, courage, and stamina—and good manners, always. He must hunt the birds and not the handler hunt the dog. No line or path runner is acceptable. He must be well broken, and the better his manners, the more clearly he proves his sound training. Should he lose a little in class, as expressed in speed and range, he can make up for this, under fair judgment, in a single piece of superior bird work, or in sustained demonstration of general behavior. He must be bold, snappy, and spirited. His range must be to the front or to either side, but never behind. He must be regularly and habitually pleasing governable and must know when to turn and keep his han- dler’s course in view, and at all times keep uppermost in his mind the finding and pointing of birds for his handler.
for some 300 coveys of quail. There are two separate courses, one for the morning and one for the afternoon. Each course is an 11.5 mile (lin- ear length) course in which the dogs will run 22 to 26 miles over three hours. The judges follow the “Amesian Standard” when judging the tri- als and look for dogs with almost as much enthusiasm at the end of the three hours as they had when they started the course. Unless there are call-backs required, the trial will take up two-to-three weeks until all the braces have been completed and a Champion is named.
For many years, the trials were held on consecutive days. The gal- lery of riders following the dogs on horseback would, at times, exceed 1,000 horses and riders. As you can imagine with that many people on horseback, occasional incidents and injuries befell some in the gallery. So, at some point in the 1980s, it was decided to run the trials only on weekdays to help discourage those folks who came out on the weekends to use the trial as an excuse for a trail ride. Even after the cancellation of the weekend running, the galleries still average 300 to 500 people on horseback following each brace.
The braces run daily regardless of weather—and February weather in west Tennessee can run the gamut of warm, hot, sunny, overcast, rain, and even snow. But as the saying goes, “the Trial must go on.” So, the draw of your brace does have an element of luck as to the conditions.
Through the years, I have had the pleasure to ride in the gallery for numerous braces and, on occasion, I have ridden behind every brace for the duration of the trial. I can tell you, six hours a day in the saddle for a couple of weeks will take a toll on your body.
I find it kind of ironic that the National Championship for bird dogs coincides with the annual Westminster Kennel Club dog show in New York. Both events have long and storied histories dating back over 125 years. Westminster is held in the city that never sleeps under the bright lights of Madison Square Garden and [is broadcast on] millions of televi- sion sets around the world, whereas the other is held in the quaint, small town of Grand Junction with little fanfare except for the thousands who attend and the reporting that is done in the American Field following the event.
Although all of you reading this are familiar with the great tradition and history of Westminster, I would guess there are very few who are aware of the Bird Dog Championships.
Westminster and our dog shows are judged, as we all know, against the standard for each breed represented. The National Bird Dog Cham- pionship is judged by what is known as the “Amesian Standard” which is described below:
Wow, what an amazing standard to live up to. First, we must remember that these dogs run for a full three hours in all types of conditions across all types of terrain. This alone requires a very special physical specimen with the proper con- formation of not only the running gear, but also of the body for heart and lung capacity, good bone, correct feet, and a sound mind and body. When I think of the many Sporting breeds that have been bred to hunt, I often wonder how many could regularly meet these challenges.
When you attend this trial and witness these dogs enthusiastically doing what they were bred for, you gain a better understanding of why some standards were written as they were.
There are many books available about the National Bird Dog Championships and each will give you a greater insight into this amazing field trial event.
The home of the National Bird Dog Championship is the historic Ames Plantation. The site is an 18,657 acre planta- tion owned and operated by the Trustees of the Hobart Ames Foundation under provisions of the will of Julia C. Ames. The site also serves as an agricultural experiment station within the University of Tennessee system. The property con- tains over two hundred 19th-century historic sites. In 1901, Hobart Ames purchased the plantation, one of the region’s largest, and turned it into his own private rural retreat. The manor house itself is furnished with early 20th century fur- nishings that appear much as they did when the Ames family departed in 1950.
The plantation is also home to a replica mid-19th cen- tury family farmstead, typical of those that once dotted the antebellum landscape. It is home to the third oldest herd of Angus cattle in the United States and boasts many oth- er areas of historical significance. A little research on your part will give you a ton of information on this historic and unique piece of American folklore.
As I mentioned earlier, Grand Junction is not only home to the National Championship; it is also home to the Bird Dog Foundation and the National Bird Dog Museum. The foundation and museum can be traced back to the 1970s and Dunn’s Sporting Goods Store in Grand Junction on Hwy 57. Wilson Dunn, owner of the store located within five miles of the center of Ames Plantation, had devoted the back rooms of the store to an impressive collection of photos, memorabilia, and history of the National Field Trial Championships at the nearby Ames Plantation. He referred to his collection as the Field Trial Museum. The store and the rooms in the back received many visitors throughout the years.
In the late 1970s, Gary Lockee arrived in Grand Junction to compete in the National Championship and would later become a Field Trial Hall of Fame inductee. Lockee visited Dunn’s Sporting Goods where Wilson Dunn shared his col- lection with Lockee. The two men began a friendship and often discussed a need to establish a museum to better rec- ognize and honor all Sporting dogs, with the capability to educate visitors about the history of field trials.
In the past, previous attempts to build a Field Trial Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, had failed. So, fol- lowing many discussions with fellow enthusiasts and friends, a group decided that Dunn’s collection should be expanded and used as the basis for a museum that could then be added to for generations to come.
114 | SHOWSIGHT MAGAZINE, NOVEMBER 2020
TO HONOR THE GREAT BIRD DOGS