I sent an report to my club's members who could not be present to experience the MN this weekend. I thought I'd share a modified version with anyone interested in reading it. I will add occasional notes in blue for those of you who might not understand some of the comments as they have local history.
Club member Dave Brannon worked set up week, offered his property for pre-MN training, and made/donated a beautifully decorated cedar wood duck nesting box for the Handler's dinner I have a collection of his wood duck boxes that I have won in various events including 4 boxes that I place on my ponds (one was from MN '05), a special one that was outfitted with a hand carved wood ducks for decoration in my livingroom, and a miniature one he made that is a keykeeper.
........By the way Dave, your wood duck box saw some action in the auction at Saturday night's banquet, but I didn't get it and I don't know who the lucky bidder was.
I also didn't get the quilt I really wanted and that DaveMy husband Dave...not Dave Brannon) (from across the room) & I started bidding against each other on. I didn't get the Pink Breast Cancer Zink Duck Call - didn't even get a chance to bid on it as the bidding started at $20 and was immdeciately raised to $500!
I was inline for food when they picked up the silent auction sheets - so I didn't get anything there....Charles and Sherry will have to tell you what all they got as I saw them toting out a pile when the event ended.
I was told that I was NOT to buy any Waterloo raffle tickets for the Over and Under Shot Gun to be given away at Thursday Night's Frankie's Party. over the years, I have won 6 shotguns at various events and last year I won 4 in a 6 day period, one at the DU banquet on Saturday and 3 at the National Wild Turkey Federations banquet the following Thursday. Therefore Dean, Shirley, Charles, Sherry got some tickets and several other Texas people said they'd buy some as long as I wasn't in.
We're having a good time so far. I marshalled first shift yesterday - you'd think that marshalling masters with nothing else going on would be a piece of cake, right? Everybody runs in order, nobody has anywhere else to be....etc....but NOoooooooo! I think I logged in 87 miles in 4 hours walking back and forth - up hill both ways - on that freshly gravelled road calling for handlers to get their dogs into the 3 holding blinds. When I finished my 7-11 a.m. shift, Dave and I grabbed some lunch and went over to the B flight to check on club members running...happened to catch Pat and Vince running, Charles was out in a blind quacking, popping, and throwing.
Dave took his turn shooting pheasant in the 3:00-(almost)7:00p.m shift and had a really good time b.s.ing with the other 3 in the blind.
I think both groups were running pretty even and got about half the flights run. They'll get back out today and ,while trying to dodge the rain, will try to complete series 1 and get started on series 2.
By the way for those who want to know about the set ups....Flight A had a land triple set up below the big pond behind where Waterloo usually sets up their HQs. (It might have been a combo series since there was water on the way to one of the marks.) I'm sorry I don't know the distances. First bird down was tossed the opening between trees from R-L, 2nd bird was live flyer also R-L in opening behind (but well separated from) the #1 bird station. Bird three was a short bird originating from the right flying r-l, falling into a gully. Flight B ran something similar right off the road as you come into that Waterloo HQ area. I couldn't see it very well so I can't really tell you much about it except that it was a walkup triple with water on the way to the middle bird. Their live flyer was last bird down and I think thrown L-R off to the right.
In Flight A there were many handles on either of the two long birds. In flight B a lot of whistles were used as well and I heard there were even a lot of double handles. Our club members are all sitting pretty good so far. (knock on wood!)
Head Marshall Janet Peters from California had announced without explanation at the handlers meeting on Saturday that each area has been named commemorating something that happened during set up week. The testing area for A was called "Severed Limbs" and B ran in "The Snake Pit." Then she did say that she nixed the suggestion that one of the test areas be named "Ants in Janet's Pants" and left it at that.
Good luck to those still to run and to everyone for the entire week.
. I just having to be patient
