1991 United States Open Brittany Championship
By Dr. Robert A. Rankin
The 29th renewal of the United States Open Brittany Championship was run on the Lake Murray Field Trial grounds just south of Ardmore, Okla. This year’s winner was Jake’s Sonofa Gunrunner, owned by Jake and JoJo Schroder of Safford, Ariz. “Sonny” utilized the first course in the championship series to his best advantage and had one dug in find along the lake edge where he was found by JoJo. Sonny is a white and orange son of Gunrunner’s Far Out by Bandit’s Kay of Croixdale. Sonny had just come off a win in the Texas Open Brittany Championship and proved his consistency.
This year’s field of 32 dogs provided plenty of excitement for Judges Larry Clark of Texas and Jim Hoyer of Nebraska. Three days of qualifying and one day of championship finals brought out much of the weather that Oklahoma could show at this time of year. Monday started cloudy and humid with highs reaching well into the 70s. Tuesday brought a dust storm of epic proportions, though it seemed to bother riders more than the dogs. Wednesday brought a cool crisp day that seemed perfect for running, and the championship series also was conducted under good conditions.
The top qualifier was Rimarda’s Trademark, veteran campaigner run by the Holmans. The other two “Dogs of the Day” were
Bay Arbor Dolly and Minnehaha’s Tammy. As has often been the case for the U.S. Open, being top qualifier proved to be somewhat of a jinx in the callback championship. Only once in recent history has the top qualifier gone on to win the Championship when Bayou’s Lonesome Sue did this for Marc Appleton in the early 1980s. Being named the top qualifier is akin to winning most one hour stakes, and much prestige can be gained from this alone.
This year’s callbacks included two national champions in Gambler and Tammy, two lams award winners in Trademark and Tammy, and some young and up-and-coming dogs in Microdot, Shannon and Dolly. Overall, the Championship was a combination of youth and veteran ability. Of note, this was Tammy’s fifth consecutive year to qualify for the championship series. She is a two-time winner previously, as well as a top qualifier.
There have been some slow but steady changes seen over the last five years of my affiliation with this trial. From my vantage point, the overall ability of the dogs seems to be improving on a yearly basis. While the stamina to go an hour five years ago seemed not to be there in all dogs, such was not the case this year. Stamina amongst the dogs, and probably training between the handlers, has improved over the last few years. Once again most dogs seemed to have come through the winter in good shape and ready to handle this trial with its hour qualifications and hour callbacks.
Jim and Chad Holman brought along their typically good string of dogs, while Lyle Johnson has some young dogs coming on that should replace some of his more veteran dogs. Loyd Budd and Vic Carrington both have some young dogs that will continue to impress over the next few years. Kraig Staton came this year with a string that has done well for him so far this spring. We missed Rosco at the trial as he is always fun to have around and has strengthened the quality of the stake through the years. Jim John has gradually improved his string, taking a nujnber of young dogs, breaking them without loss of spirit or style, and bringing them on in their pattern and range. Such can also be said of Kraig Staton, who proved last year at the Nationals that the combination of hard work and good dogs can take you a long way. Marc Appleton was there and of course Jake and JoJo Schroder to run their dogs. Dr. and Mrs. Green came for a few days, and Dub Emde was always available if needed. Rick Smith, Barbara Wade and Doc and Judy Webb kept the trial running smoothly with dogs always available, on time, and ready for their hour. Judy and Barbara were also in charge of the Monday night banquet which was again well attended
The Running
Dun Ben Thru Here (John) and Ditto Ditto (Carrington) started with a lot of enthusiasm carrying down to the left, past the oil well and down towards the old Boy Scout camp. At 36 Ditto got too close to a bird and was leashed. Ben took an unproductive but continued on, tired a bit, then finished strong.
Microdot (Johnson) and Rimarda’s Rebel Jac (Holman) followed. Both are nice, young dogs with a lot of energy. Both took off well and made nice casts through their hours, although it took a while for Microdot to get used to the corners and peninsulas. At 5 Microdot pointed along the lake edge and although no quail were produced, some ducks were seen to get up into the vicinty. Both dogs had unproductives early in the course, but finished the hour to the front and moving well.
Franklin County Bandit (Holman) and Maybe Baby (Schroder) were in No. 3. Frank got in the middle of a covey at 5 minutes and was leashed. Maybe Baby had a stop to flush early on and then continued the hour without further bird contact. She was somewhat short in spots and had trouble getting a good line of casts put together.
Bay Arbor Dolly (Budd) and CJ’s Savanah Deelite (John) broke loose and headed towards the bear trap, went around the edge and on back towards the airport with their running shoes on. At about 15, C J was lost and not returned for a long period of time. Just as she was brought back, she had a nice large covey pinned which was handled well. She went on to a good finish on a nice cast. Dolly ran a real nice race, showing well in spots to the front. She was occasionally a little rough on the edges but ran with a lot of enthusiasm and speed making some nice casts, including a very large cast that she finished near time. She had no birds but had done an extremely nice job for her hour down, showing where she should have, running with good ground speed, covering the edges and being in the right areas while looking for birds.
Mr. Buddy Boy (Holman) and Jake’s Red Ball Express (Schroder). Buddy was lost at 5 and not returned. Red Ball started somewhat slow then picked up the pace for the last 45 minutes. He covered the territory in an appropriate fashion but was unable to come up with birds.
Aux Arc’s Mark (Staton) and Amigo of Atzlan (Holman). Mark ran for 40 minutes on sore feet doing a fine job, but it finally became too much for him and he was picked up. Amigo, on the other hand, took off and continued his hour running strong to the front. He had a well located find at 50, showing lots of intensity and style on his birds. His hour was a delightful one to watch with good coverage of the ground in front of him, nice application and good ground speed. Overall, they had done a fine job for 60 minutes with one creditable find. The second day started with winds of about 30 mph and low humidity, temperatures in the low 40s. Although Monday’s temperatures were predicted to reach the 80s, this didn’t occur because of the cloud cover. Tuesday’s forecast was for a cooler day; hopefully a better day for running dogs.
Shannon Far Out (Carrington) Rimarda's Trademark (Holman) opened day No. 2. This started off to be a big race with the dogs going past the usual pick up point from a start at the barn. Both ran to the front and covered edges to the front. TM had a slight edge on Shannon but not to the detriment of Shannon’s ability. TM had a nice find at 40, and another near time, the second being the bed spring covey just past the mouth of the bear trap. Both had run well with TM and Shannon covering the edges in the territory in front of them to their best ability.
Tammy’s Bird Patch Trademark (Johnson) and Flatwood’s Tiger (Holman) both have the same callname, “Tiger”, and both took off to the front, with Johnson’s dog having a slight edge on range. Flatwood’s Tiger was a little shorter but more to the front while Johnson’s dog hunted the lake edge all the way around. This put him constantly behind but allowed him to find a large covey at 20, which he handled well. By this time he had gotten far enough behind that it was tough to catch up and look good but both dogs finished the hour together with no bird work for Flatwood’s Tiger.
Scattman (Appleton) and Jake’s Sonofa Gunrunner (Schroder). Scattman was in and out for his hour and was birdless. Some nice casts were observed as he is a strong running dog. Sonny had an early unproductive but a nice find at 50; a pleasing dog to watch on point. He made some nice casts during his hour and observing his behavior into the wind, played things the way he should have on all the edges. He is a pleasing dog to watch run with a nice fluid motion. He put together some nice castsand on occasion would check in. He finished his hour to the front with one nice find in the series of good casts.
We broke for lunch. The wind continued to pick up and what had been a strong wind in the 9th brace became a major gale. An Oklahoma dust storm was upon us, the wind gusting up to 40 mph.
The Magic Moment (Holman) and Tumbleweed’s Texas Return (Carrington) began the p.m. running. Jennie pretty much ran the hour on her own to the front requiring a minimum of handling. Although the wind hurt her some, she took what edges she could, and used the wind to her advantage when possible. Sam had two unproductives but an otherwise good race for the hour with both dogs doing what they could into the wind.
The wind continued as Spyke De Campo (Budd) and Rimarda’s Gambler (Holman) broke away. Spyke ran well for 45 minutes until sore pads did him in. Gambler, as usual, ran hard to the front. He covered the edges well showing his fine ground speed during his hour down. He ran a pleasing race and was fun to wafch for his time down, but needed some birds to have made it a great hour. As it was, he did a nice job and certainly deserved consideration for the hour.
Minnehaha’s Tammy (Johnson) Sparks’ll Fly (Holman) in the last brace, were run again during the dust storm, now having picked up so that it was difficult to see across the lake because of the dust. This seemed not to bother Tammy as she ran an exceptional hour carding three finds scattered throughout the hour. All were handled with intensity and style as she didn’t let up for her time down. Hunting the edges till the end, she went on for a strong finish combined with excellent bird work and a forward pattern. Sparks ran his hour to the front doing a good job. He was unable to find birds for his time down, and it was evident that the gusty wind bothered him some.
The third day began with Sir Duke Mustachio (Staton) and Slide Rule II (Holman). Much better with temperatures in the high 30s, slight wind and no obvious dust storm in sight. The conditions continued to improve during these three days with Wednesday being the best running day. Slide started on a good initial cast and had a nice back at 35 on what was an unproductive by Duke. Slide then was lost and not returned for the rest of the hour. Duke had gotten a somewhat slow start and continued his hour never quite getting everything put together as he needed to for the qualifying series.
Blaze and Lobo’s Evil Roy (Carrington) and Country Lawyer (Holman). Roy had a busy hour combined with a strong run to carry him into the finals. He had nice finds at 25, 45 and 50 minutes with good intensity and good style but flat lost it on his final find of 55. He was way too lax and then got too close to the birds on a relocation, but for his hour ran a strong race. Country Lawyer was forward but not as strong a runner and had more problems with his range and finished the hour without any birds. Roy finished into the wind in his final 10 minutes with a good cast and overall had done a fine job with three good pieces of bird work and one best forgotten.
A lot of ground was covered in the 15th brace by Tyoga’s Teddy Bear (Budd) and Bernie of the Briar Patch (Staton), though direction was not always of concern to them. Teddy Bear is a previous winner and set off to try to get qualified again. Both dogs ran a strong hour with good ground speed and Bernie established at 25. Teddy was unable to find birds but tried hard for his hour.
C J ’s Katydid (John) and Scott’s Gingerbread Lady (Holman). Lady was seen sparingly but to the front for the first 30 minutes then lost in her last half hour. Katy was a little handy for her first half and an unproductive at 40 didn’t help. She tried hard for an hour but was unable to get things all lined out. This ended the qualifying series. The weather had changed from somewhat hot the first day to a dust storm on the second day to fairly ideal running conditions on Wednesday. Such is Oklahoma with only a rainstorm being missed these first three days?
Championship Finals
The second series began under ideal conditions with a light wind, temperatures in the low 40s and high, thin cloud cover.
Rimarda’s Trademark—Jake’s Sonofa Gunrunner.—For the first 20 minutes at the breakaway the dogs were even, but Sonny slowly pulled ahead with his range and speed. TM is certainly known as a consistent one hour finisher and did well for the hour, but it was obvious that this was Sonny’s day. Breakaway took them down past the oil wells, past the Scout Camp and fish ponds and back up around towards the pond dam. Both dogs ran well in the early cool weather and settled into their job with consistency. At 35 a scout was dispatched for Sonny. As JoJo hunted along the edge of the lake in the cattails, a bird got up in front of her. She looked down and found Sonny buried in the cattails, invisible to the handler and gallery. Point was called and a flushing attempt at the lake edge produced nothing so Sonny was relocated. Winding down along the edge of the lake he established point again on a running covey with strong intensity, head and tail up. Throughout the attempt as birds were produced Sonny held his own, continuing his style throughout the flush. He was then taken on. Meanwhile, TM continued on showing ability in spurts and established point at 55. Having put down the finest run in the qualifying series, our expectations had been slightly higher for TM. He had done a job to be proud of. Sonny continued on his own, staying to the front, cleaning the edges well and finished with edge running casts, the way he had started.
Microdot—Far Out. Two young dogs with ability beyond their years, but inexperienced in onehour stakes. Both took off well to the front with a pleasing gait and style but were somewhat hard of hearing early. At 35 a coyote was seen by both dogs and once they were able to get him out of their way, they continued on for their hour. For what started off to be good scenting conditions, some of this was lost and no birds were found for the hour.
Bay Arbor Dolly—Rimarda’s Gambler.—Both dogs had shown speed and endurance during their qualifying series and paired together. It was felt by all in the gallery that this would be an interesting brace. Breaking away again at the barn, going clockwise towards the oil well, both dogs took off with speed. Both were a handful early requiring hard riding and encouragement by the handlers. Gambler handled a little more kindly than Dolly and showed well to the front as he continued his hour. Dolly was an extremely large handful and was out of pocket on numerous occasions. Always brought back, both dogs continued on past the hillside ponds, through the evergreen peninsula and on down towards the bear trap, on and around, covering more ground with good ground speed than seen previously. Both dogs continued on for their hour covering the edges running hard but finishing birdless. Both for their hour had exhibited range, speed and endurance, but were sometimes out of pocket for their handlers’ wishes.
Minnehaha’s Tammy —Blaze and Bobo’s Evil Roy.—Roy is a relatively young dog with a lot of experience and ability. In the past, he had always shown both a sense of birdiness as well as the ability to handle an hour. Tammy is a two-time winner of this Championship and a bird dog to the end. Both took off well to the front, Tammy handling the edges throughout her hour. Roy put down a nice initial 40 but then was lost from contention. Tammy, to everybody’s dismay, went birdless but had done a job to be proud of. Bird work probably would have brought her into the runner-up circle without much difficulty with such a pleasing hour. Overall she had not done quite the same job as Sonny in the first brace.
Ardmore, Okla., March 11
Judges: Larry Clark and Jim Hoyer
UNITED STATES OPEN BRITTANY CHAMPIONSHIP
[One-Hour Qualifying Heats; One-Hour Finals]—32 Brittanys
Winner— JAKE’S SONOFA GUNRUNNER, 1338258, male, by Gun Runner’s Far Out— Bandit’s Kay of Croixdale. Jake & JoJo Schroder, owners, Jake Schroder, handler
VICTOIRE NATIONALE DERBY CLASSIC
By Barbara Wade
The one-hour Derby for Brittanys had a small entry this year. Most of the participants had difficulty establishing consistent running patterns and all-age bird work was lacking. The judges chose to name first, second and third places.
First place went to Senator’s Touch of Class, owned by Edna and Don Stillwell of Krum, Tex., and handled by Lyle Johnson. Senator showed a good ground pattern with a forward race. He shortened some at the end. No birds were pointed. Huskey’s Ramblin’ Roan Brook owned by Rod and Debbie Huskey and handled by Jim John was second. Jim De Bob’s Sparks A Dan D, owned by Boyd
Tourtillot and handled by Jim John, was third.
The remaining dogs and their handlers included: Contessah’s Ban Dee (Harris), Huskey’s Tosha (John), Kar Kar’s Sharpshooter (Staton), Kolicko’s King Kay Cee (John), Gringo IV (Staton), Faison’s Blazing Far Out (Staton), Camsham’s Shambozo (Carrington), Mo Kan Playboy (Staton), and Due de Vert (Budd).
VICTOIRE NATIONALE DERBY CLASSIC
judges: Bob Rankin and Rick Smith
[One-Hour Heats]—12 Brittanys
1st—SENATOR’S TOUCH OF CLASS, unreg., male, by Senator La Belle—Orange Blossom Special. Edna & Don Stillwell, owners; Lyle Johnson, handler.
2d—HUSKEY’S RAMBLIN’ ROAN BROOK, unreg., female, by Jim De Bob’s Chenango—CJ’s Savannah Deelite. Rod & Debbie Huskey, owners; Jim John, handler.
3d—JIM DE BOB’S SPARKS A DAN D, unreg, male, by Markar’s Jac’s A Dan D— Jim De Bob’s Chengokta. Boyd Tourtillot, owner; Jim John, handler.
