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Bega Cup
Field and Retrieving Association for Gundogs 2008 Bega Cup All Age Judge: Noel Eltringham
Dom Colasimone & RT Ch Macropus Monty CD Judge Noel Eltringham, 1st Dom Colasimone & RT Ch Macropus Monty CD, 2nd Lyn Wise & Birdlehund All The Way RRD, 3rd Greg Warren & Yellesie Billy, 4th Laurelle Draper & Lynstep Tanner RRD
In March 2008 I received a phone call from Amand Golle inviting me to judge the Field and Retrieving Association (FRA) 2008 Bega Cup All Age Retrieving Trial. After a short consultation with my wife I was able to respond to Amand to inform him that it would be an honour to judge this event to be conducted over four runs on On Thursday evening Amand picked Kate and I up from
On Friday we headed off to the
Run 1 got under way at Run 2 was a double blind and a mark retrieve. Dogs were left in a hide and the handler proceeded forward to fire at the two blinds and then reloaded before calling the dog. The handler then fired at a mark at 80 metres with a 40 metres swim down a water hole. The blinds were located at either side of the mark, one being located at 85 metres on land and 25degrees to the left of the mark and the other located at 70 metres across a neck of water and at 25 degrees to the right of the mark. Either blind could be retrieved first with the last bird to be picked up being the mark. Top scoring dog on this run was once again RT Ch Macropus Monty CD on 41 points followed by Lyndstepp Tanner RRD
Run 4 the final run, was a blind and diversionary double fall retrieve with the double fall bird being picked up by a game steward. Both legs were across water. The dogs were initially left in a hide while the blind was fired at which was located diagonally across water at a distance of 75 metres from the firing point. The handler then called the dog and fired at a mark 90 metres across the water and landing behind some small saplings. The dog was then sent for the mark and when the dog had gone 10 metres into the water the double fall bird was cast from right to left to land on the river bank 55 metres from the firing point, 25 metres from the line to the first cast mark and 20 degrees to the line to the blind. All dogs completed this run with a wide range in points awarded to different dogs leaving 7 dogs to complete the trial.. The top scoring dog on this run was once again RT Ch Macropus Monty CD on 46 points followed by Lyne Wise’s Birdlehund All The Way RRD on 43.5 points.
I would sincerely like to thank the committee and members of the Field and Retrieving Association for Gundogs for the hospitality and friendship shown during the visit by Kate and I to judge Retrieving Trials for the club at
Bega Cup Novice Stake
Judge Kate Eltringham
 Judge Kate Eltringham, 1st Lyn Wise & Kuven Lasting Memories,
2nd Malcom Tyrie & Birdelhund George, 3rd Alan Donovan & Alverpoint Jack O Hearts I returned home from work and Noel informed me that Amand Golle had called to invite us both to go to Queensland in July for Noel to judge the Bega Cup All Age and for me to judge the Novice Stake. After checking the calendar and looking at all the possible scenarios we were both delighted to accept the invitations.
So it was on Thursday 17th July Noel and I, along with our two nephews and niece left a metre and a half of snow at Falls Creek, the children returning to Adelaide and Noel and me on a flight to Brisbane. Weather shock to the system, no polar fleeces needed at Brisbane airport that night! Our host for the next few days Amand met us at the airport and transported us to his and Georgina’s home for the evening.
The following day, in shirt sleeves and sunblock on we traveled with Amand and Georgina to Somerset. After settling into our accommodation we traveled out to the trial site to meet up with Daryl (our trial manager) and started exploring the site. What a pleasure it was to walk paddocks with cover, see some fabulous gully’s, waterholes with water in them (a sight not seen much in our home state of Victoria). Saturday we (Noel and I) took the opportunity to walk the property again and found areas that we could certainly set runs of a standard we would expect the dogs to be challenged but not overwhelmed.
While Noel went and set up his runs I had the pleasure of not only Amand and Georgina’s company but also their judging experience and knowledge to assist me with setting my runs. I found myself in the bizarre situation of being at a retrieving trial for the first time without a dog so I must also thank Georgina for running Cherry over my runs so that I could see how the dogs would handle the terrain.
Sunday dawned rather crisp with a little bit of fog but with a clear sky it looked like it would again be another beautiful day. I was honored to have a field of 18 dogs enter the trial to be adjudicated by me. The range of breeds were varied English Springer Spaniels, Curly Coated Retrievers, Flatcoated Retrievers, German Shorthaired Pointers, Labrador Retrievers, Brittany Spaniels, Irish Setters and Weimeraners. For a variety of reasons we had 12 dogs present to the first run.
The first run was over land, a bird was being cast from left to right at a distance of 90 metres, a high cast with the bird landing in some short but sparse grass. The breeze, what little there was, was gently blowing from right to left. To reach the bird the dogs had tom negotiate two gully’s. Whilst every dog saw the cast bird judging the depth with the two gully’s proved challenging for a number of the dogs, three dogs failed to complete the run. My highest scoring dog on this run was Lyn Wise’s Kuven Lasting Memories, Disco, on 53 points.
The second run was a much shorter cast bird. The bird was being cast from right to left at a distance of approximately 60 metres, across the back drop of trees landing in a water hole with a large splash. Whilst there was no skyline for the bird the birds used were light in colour and all the dogs acknowledged the splash of the bird. The remaining nine dogs all completed this run with the highest scoring dog being Malcolm Tyrie’s Birdelhund George, George, with 52 points. The dogs that failed to complete the first run also ran and all of them completed the run.
The third run was a little more challenging for the dogs, they were on the edge of the waterway, the bird was being cast, from right to left, high up on the bank on the other side of the water landing in reasonably open terrain which was littered with a number of fairly large rocks at approximately 75 metres. The dogs were faced with a number of challenges on this particular run, they had to look up to see the cast of the bird, remember the depth of the fall of the bird after negotiating the water, a few bushes and then the steepness of the bank. The direct line to the bird was through the water, an area of a small bush and fallen timber and then up the hill. Whilst the majority of the dogs moved left or right to go around the bush and fallen timber there were three dogs, two competing and one non competing, that took the direct line. All of the dogs completed this run and I saw some terrific work by all of the dogs. The non competing dogs also ran on the run with varying degrees of success. My highest scoring dog on this run was Lyn Wise’s Kuvin Lasting Memories, Disco with 55 points.
I had many helpers over the weekend and would like to thank them all, Noel, Amand, Georgina, Daryl, Anne W, Anne L, Roy, Ron, Debbie and Jan for keeping me and the stewards so well fed and watered. It was a pleasure to judge the trial and the help and assistance from everyone at the trial was greatly appreciated.
My final placings were:
1st Lyn Wise’s Kuven Lasting Memories (Lab B) 159 points
2nd Malcolm Tyrie’s Birdelhund George (Lab D) 157 points
3rd Alan Donovan’s Alverpoint Jack O Hearts (GSP D) 147 points
=4th Anne Latimer’s Ch Lindsayvale Mr Magic (CCR D) 132 points
Malcolm Tyrie’s Feldhund Perazzi (GSP D)
Tricia Price - Secretary Banora Pt, NSW, Australia Phone : (07) 5524 3701 Email : priceg-t@bigpond.net.au |
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