Kristie Wilder
10-09-2005, 10:23 PM
We just got in from the first day of our first series. It was slow-moving getting started... I was line marshalling (at least I was TRYING to!) and I was able to observe about the first 30 dogs.
The test was really nice. But it ate that first group of dogs for lunch. I don't know the numbers off the top of my head, but it's something like only two out of the first 10 dogs completing the test. As far as I'm concerned, it was the cover and lack of scent from the pheasants that made the test extremely difficult. Because the test, in itself, is a nicely designed test. The dogs just could NOT come up with the birds early on and it was really hard to watch... However, there were a handful of dogs that did a super job. And lots that did a respectable job. But I think a good number fell by the wayside as a result of the conditions of the test.
It was a walkup to a nice field with varying cover, walls of cover and well-placed trees and bushes for hiding holding blinds. The first two birds down are a hip pocket pair of marks. The longer one is thrown right to left into a "cove" created by bushes, trees and cover. The shorter bird is thrown right to left, with the holding blind maybe about 30 yards (if even) shorter than the longer mark. It lands in another cove-like area with splotched heavy grass cover. While there is a some separation in these marks, many dogs looped around the shorter bird and into the fall of the longer bird (the area between the falls was relatively open).
After those two birds go down (both with more than adequate duck calls and shots), there's a flyer about 90 degrees off to the left. It's thrown left to right and falls into cover behind a cover wall (I think there's a ditch there, but not quite sure) that's tall but not deep. The cover behind the "wall" is different than the broader leaf, grassier stuff in front. Many dogs got to the wall, bounced off and hunted in the cover in front of it. Dogs that broke through tended to do ok, although some still needed to be handled.
There was a dry pop on the return from the middle bird regardless of the order in which it was picked up.
Upon return of the third bird, you would run a blind by invitation had you satisfied the requirements for the marking test.
Sadly, there were at least a couple of early dogs who did exceptionally well on the marking test only to get hung up on the blind and have to honor on lead.
It was a pretty rough start to the morning... Felt a lot like last year -- a blood bath because of scenting conditions (although last year had a heck of a lot of wind that we don't have here).
As the day progressed, the work got better thanks to the fall areas getting scented. But there were still some pretty good hunts on the flyer, handles on various marks and pickups...
BTW, the judges have PREPARED FIFTEEN tests, which is pretty impressive. They've set up and run test dogs on all of them. They are prepared to run as many as they can get in.
I don't know if MN has this up on their site yet (something tells me not, but I may be wrong). If anyone has questions, holler at me...
I haven't heard anything about B flight.
Here you go:
http://www.masternational.com/event/diagrams/1A.jpg
(pic is too big to post here)
-Kristie
The test was really nice. But it ate that first group of dogs for lunch. I don't know the numbers off the top of my head, but it's something like only two out of the first 10 dogs completing the test. As far as I'm concerned, it was the cover and lack of scent from the pheasants that made the test extremely difficult. Because the test, in itself, is a nicely designed test. The dogs just could NOT come up with the birds early on and it was really hard to watch... However, there were a handful of dogs that did a super job. And lots that did a respectable job. But I think a good number fell by the wayside as a result of the conditions of the test.
It was a walkup to a nice field with varying cover, walls of cover and well-placed trees and bushes for hiding holding blinds. The first two birds down are a hip pocket pair of marks. The longer one is thrown right to left into a "cove" created by bushes, trees and cover. The shorter bird is thrown right to left, with the holding blind maybe about 30 yards (if even) shorter than the longer mark. It lands in another cove-like area with splotched heavy grass cover. While there is a some separation in these marks, many dogs looped around the shorter bird and into the fall of the longer bird (the area between the falls was relatively open).
After those two birds go down (both with more than adequate duck calls and shots), there's a flyer about 90 degrees off to the left. It's thrown left to right and falls into cover behind a cover wall (I think there's a ditch there, but not quite sure) that's tall but not deep. The cover behind the "wall" is different than the broader leaf, grassier stuff in front. Many dogs got to the wall, bounced off and hunted in the cover in front of it. Dogs that broke through tended to do ok, although some still needed to be handled.
There was a dry pop on the return from the middle bird regardless of the order in which it was picked up.
Upon return of the third bird, you would run a blind by invitation had you satisfied the requirements for the marking test.
Sadly, there were at least a couple of early dogs who did exceptionally well on the marking test only to get hung up on the blind and have to honor on lead.
It was a pretty rough start to the morning... Felt a lot like last year -- a blood bath because of scenting conditions (although last year had a heck of a lot of wind that we don't have here).
As the day progressed, the work got better thanks to the fall areas getting scented. But there were still some pretty good hunts on the flyer, handles on various marks and pickups...
BTW, the judges have PREPARED FIFTEEN tests, which is pretty impressive. They've set up and run test dogs on all of them. They are prepared to run as many as they can get in.
I don't know if MN has this up on their site yet (something tells me not, but I may be wrong). If anyone has questions, holler at me...
I haven't heard anything about B flight.
Here you go:
http://www.masternational.com/event/diagrams/1A.jpg
(pic is too big to post here)
-Kristie