2007 APC NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS

November 10 -14, Wye Island, Maryland

Participants and spectators for the American Pointer Club National Field Trial Championships began to assemble at the Wye Island Natural Resources Management Area, near Queenstown, Maryland on Friday, November 9th. For the weary travelers, chef Karen Spey prepared a delicious lasagna dinner, topped off with a delicious chocolate layer cake. We renewed old friendships and met new people as each person arrived at the beautiful lakeside lodge, which was the trial headquarters for our weeklong event.

We were honored to have several APC board members, and our current presiding officer in attendance this year. APC President and National Field Trial Standing Committee member, Jack Haines has been an active participant in every APC National Championship since the inaugural running in 1996. Debby Freidus, DVM was the 2007 event secretary and saw to the details of running our event, in addition to serving on the current APC board and participating as a NFTSC member. AKC delegate for the American Pointer Club is Karen Spey, who drove from New Jersey to serve as our chef extraordinaire for the week. Tracy Black flew in from Texas and is also a member of the APC board and the NFTSC. Honorary lifetime members, Jamie and Pat O'Donnell provided much valuable assistance during the planning and preparation of this event. Jamie serves on the NFTSC and Pat coordinated the travel arrangements for the judges. 2007 Field Trial Chairman was Angela Schillereff, who flew across country from Oregon to oversee the running of the event and is the current chairman of the NFTSC.

But the two people who travelled the farthest to attend the week of the Championship and events were visitors Sue Welch and her friend Roger -- both from England! Sue is a Kennel Club (England) conformation judge, and has attended past APC Specialty shows and a National Championship Field Trial in Virginia. She once again spent her days at this Championship 'in the saddle' watching the running of each stake.

Many thanks to the local host committee members and others who helped to make the 2007 National Field Trial Championships another successful event. The local host committee was comprised of many people of whom we owe a debt of gratitude for their efforts. Special note of thanks to KC Shore and Jeremy Zellers who created a special website for this event and were the public relations coordinators. KC and Jeremy also arranged many interesting seminars on topics such as detecting lameness in sporting dogs, proper horseshoeing and horsemanship techniques, which were held during the event. Smokey Hiles was the designated driver for the dog wagon and she worked tirelessly to ensure that dogs were transported on time to the start of each brace. And thanks to Sally and Donn Eck, Jim Heckert, Kristie Reisenweaver, and Ben Garcia who were also on the committee and were out helping at the event!

We wish to also thank our sponsors and donors, including:

And our auction/raffle donors:

And a very special "thank you" to all of our seminar/traning session leaders who gave their time and expertise for this event:

Dr. Hal Engel - Veterinarian/canine sports medicine specialist Dr. Engel did a presentation on detecting soundness in a working dog. His presentation covered a complete "flexing" of two dogs - one young field trial dog, and an older dog -- to demonstrate how to notice unsoundness before it becomes obvious. Dr. Engel also gave some wonderful tips and suggestions for conditioning dogs to be their best in field trial competition.

Jack Bart, Professional Shotgun Shooting Instructor - Jack came out and set up a "trap" area onsite, where he coached a number of people on the do's and don'ts of firearm handling and 'wing' shooting.

Ben Garcia, Hideaway Kennels - Ben is a professional birddog trainer, and he gave a 'hands on' bird dog training seminar that was well attended, and he received lots of compliments on the presentation and information presented.

Caroline Rider - Caroline is a 'horse whisperer' who gave an amazing demonstration of the communication that is possible between people and horses. She showed how learning natural horsemanship techniques can help to create a better bond between a horse and its owner, and provide for a safer riding experience. Mark and Laurie Mougel, who print our Pointer Points Magazine, were in attendance for this demo as well.

Matt Taimuty, Fair Hill Forge - Matt is a "natural balance" farrier, and he came out to do demos of trimming gaited horse hooves the 'natural balance' way for better gaiting and overall soundness.

Debra Freidus, DVM - Debby volunteered her time to microchip animals onsite at the Championship. This microchipping clinic included registration with AKC's companion animal recovery service. Both dogs and horses were microchipped at this event.

RUNNING OF THE STAKES

Open Puppy Classic Saturday, November 10, 2007
The Open Puppy Classic broke away Saturday afternoon and ran a single course. The weather was crisp and breezy and the dogs and horses were fresh. Judges, Gene Moseley, Jr. from Hempstead, Texas, and Ronnie Clark from Howell, New Jersey watched each of the 4 puppies as they demonstrated their abilities. Marianne Goodwin scratched her Hacasak's Beautiful Bess as she came in season. That left Kristie Reisenweaver with two of the four puppies to run, each as a bye.

The first brace was Hacasak's Elegant Ellie and Alydar Love American Style, aka "Harriet". "Ellie" was handled by Marianne Goodwin and won the stake with a great performance for the thirty minutes. "Harriet" was handled by Rachel Murphy and placed fourth. The second brace was Alydar American Tourister, "Bernard", running as a bye and handled by Kristie Reisenweaver. The third brace was Alydar American Superstar, "Clara", also handled by Kristie. Each of these puppies started out a little tentative, but each cast forward was stronger and more confident. "Bernard" placed second and "Clara" took third place honors.

All the puppies had a good time looking for birds in the cornrows and cover at the edge of the fields.

National Championship Sunday and Monday, November 11-12, 2007
Sunday promised to be another nice day as we started the National Championship stake with 24 entries. Judges, Gene Mosely, Jr and Ronnie Clark presided over the National Championship stake. Due to one of entries being in season, we ran thirteen braces with the last two as byes. We ran six braces on Sunday and seven on Monday. The National German Shorthaired Pointer Association National Pheasant Championship concluded their annual event on Saturday. They released over 200 pheasants, which was the undoing for many of our entries. The wily pheasants slipped away from the dogs on point, resulting in some non-productive experiences that were followed by a stop to flush and sometimes a bad luck break. The placing dogs all had ground covering races, good investigation of cover, and the stamina to remain assertive through the last minute of the hour long stake.

The weather on Monday continued to be cool and breezy, warming slightly in the afternoon making scenting fairly good. Liberated bobwhite quail were released for all stakes. Several covey finds were recorded. The National Championship course was run as a continuous course following the many peninsulas on the island. Many of the dogs could be seen along the edges as they searched for game. Much to the consternation of a couple of handlers, a few native deer were flushed from the cover during the course of the day.

The 2007 National Championship title was awarded to Isle of Hope, "Daisy", who is owned and handled by Dave Pomfret. "Daisy" is a pretty black and white female who is very stylish on point. She was fast on the edges and produced 3 very nice finds, one on quail and two on pheasant during the hour. Second place and runner up honors went to FC/NGDC Covey Up Johnny; "Johnny" owned by Ray Knight and was handled by Jim Heckert. "Johnny" is also a class dog having won the AKC All Pointing Breed Gun Dog Championship. He had a nice race, showing himself in and out of cover with six finds along the way. FC Feather Terrors Gritz-N-Gravy, "Gritz", captured third place. "Gritz" is owned and handled by Steve Anker. "Gritz" quickly took the edges as she broke away. She had nine finds, increasing her animation during the hour-long brace. Just Wait N'See, "Danny", earned fourth place. "Danny" is a nice young dog owned by Jack and Tracy Haines and was handled by Ben Garcia. He started out with a stop to flush and then backed his brace mate. He finished the brace with two more finds and ran strong for the hour.

Open Derby Classic Tuesday, November 13, 2007
After three days of riding, your reporter took the morning off to work with Leroy Bunning and his team of North American Spotted Draft Horses who pulled a hitch wagon for the non-mounted gallery for the National Championship Stake and Derby Classic. This new team was slightly unnerved by the twenty or so gallery riding past. The day was cloudy and foggy and quickly broke into rain. As the weather conditions worsen, the number of gallery riders quickly diminished.

The Derby Classic had 14 entries with one scratched entry. Field Trial Chairman, Angela Schillereff provided a welcome relief to scribe for a few very wet hours. Overall the dogs ran good races, searching for birds in the varying types of cover: corn rows, high weeds, brush, and soybeans. First place and the blue ribbon was awarded to V.I.P. Natural High, "Cut", owned by KC Shore and Charles R. Knight and handled by Jim Heckert. "Cut" was a beautiful, smooth running dog scoring three finds in the half hour brace. Second place honors went to Evans Redneck Dixie, "Dixie", who is owned by Bill and Tony Evans and was handled by Bill. Bill still recovering from his recent accident, was happily back in the saddle. "Dixie" ranged wide to the front with one very nice find. Eshod Elhew Bobbi McGee, "Bobbi", owned by Carl Reynolds, and handled by Ray Dohse took third place. "Bobbi's" race was out to the front with two birds. Fourth place, earned by Hacasak's Elegant Ellie, "Ellie", who was also the winner of the Open Puppy Classic. Ellie is owned and handled by Marianne Goodwin.

National Amateur Championship Tuesday and Wednesday, November 13-14, 2007
The afternoon weather improved significantly and three hour long braces were run Tuesday after lunch. Wednesday morning was overcast and slightly foggy. As the day progressed, the fog increased until about noon when the sun came out, warming us from the damp morning. The dogs got off to a great start, but many succumbed to the wiles of the pheasant. Archer's Cassandra, "Cassie" owned by Elizabeth and Frederick Archer and was handled by Betsy to earn the title of 2007 APC National Amateur Field Champion. She was very classy on point and had a great race with four finds and a stop to flush. At the end of her brace she was almost tripped up by a running deer, but was handled back to the stake in time to earn her win. Second place honors went to NAFC FC Southside Tuff Stuff, "Tuffy", owned by Cindy Long and handled by Wayne Scubelek. In addition to handling a couple of dogs at the trial, Wayne was the club wrangler and provided quality walking horses for the judges and gallery. "Tuffy" is a seasoned veteran in field trials, having won the NAFC in 2002. He had two finds in the woods and a nice honor of his brace mate. Third place went to a dog that ran on Tuesday, NFC Southside White Trash, "Hooch", owned by Dan Long and also handled by Wayne Scubelek. "Hooch" is no stranger to the winner's circle, having won the APC National Championship in 2002. He had two finds, one on a pheasant. "Hooch" is a worker in the field, not reaching out as wide as the first and second place dogs. FC Pete Moss, "Pete" is owned and handled by Judith Hamilton. "Pete" had a very nice run with one find in the hour brace.

Congratulations to the all winners and placements
and good luck to those who will be trying again to capture the elusive first place ribbon.

National Championship (24 starters) Judges - Gene Moseley Jr., Ronnie Clark 2007 National Championship winner - Isle of Hope
Place	Name	Owner	Handler
1.	Isle Of Hope	Dave Pomfret	Dave Pomfret
2.	FC NGDC Covey Up Johnny	Ray Knight	Jim Heckert
3.	FC Feather Terrors Gritz-N-Gravy	Steve Anker	Steve Anker
4.	FC Just Wait N' See	Jack and Tracy Haines	Ben Garcia
Puppy Classic (4 starters) Judges - Gene Moseley Jr., Ronnie Clark Pictured L-R Gene Moseley, Jr.(judge), Hacasak's Elegant Ellie w. owner Marianne Goodwin, Ronnie Clark (judge)
Place	Name	Owner	Handler
1.	Hacasak's Elegant Ellie	Marianne Goodwin	Marianne Goodwin
2.	Alydar American Tourister	R Murphy, C Goldstine and N Bosley	Kristie Reisenweaver
3.	Alydar American Superstar	Kristie Reisenweaver and R Murphy	Kristie Reisenweaver
4.	Alydar Love American Style	R Murphy, C Goldstine and N Bosley	Rachel Murphy
Derby Classic (13 starters) Judges - Steve Boyer, Hal Engel DVM Pictured L-R Steve Boyer (judge), V.I.P. Natural High w. owner KC Shore, Hal Engel DVM (judge)
Place	Name	Owner	Handler
1.	V.I.P. Natural High	KC Shore and Charles Knight	Jim Heckert
2.	Evans Redneck Dixie	Bill and Tony Evans	Bill Evans
3.	Eshod Elhew Bobbi McGee	Carl Reynolds	Ray Dohse
4.	Hacasak's Elegant Ellie	Marianne Goodwin	Marianne Goodwin
National Amateur Championship (17 starters) Judges - Steve Boyer, Hal Engel DVM Pictured L-R Back Row: John Bandes DVM, Dan Long, Angela Schillereff, Hal Engel DVM (judge), Steve Boyer (judge), Jeremy Zellers Front Row: FC Pete Moss w. owner/handler Judith Hamilton, NFC Southside White Trash (Laurie McCarty in pic), NAFC FC Southside Tuff Stuff (Erica Bandes in pic), FC Archer's Cassandra w. owner/handler Betsy Archer
Place	Name	Owner	Handler
1.	FC Archer's Cassandra	Elizabeth and Frederick Archer	Betsy Archer
2.	NAFC FC Southside Tuff Stuff	Cindy Long	Wayne Scubelek
3.	NFC Southside White Trash	Dan Long	Wayne Scubelek
4.	FC Pete Moss	Judith Hamilton	Judith Hamilton