Ferns Field Trial Forays

[Amberquest]

Thought I'd do a topic as a bit of an insight into me starting to run in Field Trials. I'll update this whenever I have a trial, hope you find it interesting

[Amberquest]

23/10/2013 Lothian and Borders Novice Cocker

Yesterday I took part in my first ever Field Trial, the Lothian and Borders Gundog Association Novice Cocker. I travelled up the night before to try and avoid the stress of a drive and the nerves I’d no doubt be feeling on the morning of the trial.

I woke bright and early and sorted all the dogs out, before stressing over breakfast in the hotel, despite saying it started at 8, the chef rolled up at 5 past and I had to leave at 8:20. I managed to get some dry toast and a bacon roll before I had to dash, arriving at the ground in good time for the introductions etc.

Some familiar names and faces were in the farm yard, but surprisingly I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be. I was drawn number 13, not the ideal number for you first time out, as I found out later on!!

The trial started in sieves and bracken and a few of the early dogs had long runs. There was a couple of nice retrieves, but there was lots of mention of hares being shot – given my dog hasn’t seen I hare, the nerves started to kick in.

As the trial progressed, we got into some higher cover, rushes etc, and the hares and rabbits were becoming less frequent, that put my mind at ease a little. Before I knew it I was in, working out the corner of heather and bracken where the previous dog had 2 flushes and retrieves.

I was in under Edward Martin, who after I explained it was mine and the dogs first trial, immediately put me at ease with the words ‘no ones ever been hung at one of these trials’. He signalled to the line we were ready, off came the lead and I cast Fern off into the bracken where the previous pheasants had flushed from. She hunted it thoroughly with pace and I was relaxed and enjoying her work. She came out of the bracken onto the open heather, which I was a little worried about as she had never worked it before.

It was sloping from right to left and the wind was blowing in the same direction, I tried to get her working out and back towards me into the wind towards the fence on my right hand side. She wasn’t going quite as far to my right as I would have liked, but I was happy with the way she was hunting.

After about 100 yards we got into some high reed/rush type cover and a hen bird flushed. Fern stopped to the flush but as soon as it hit the deck she thought ‘I’m having this’. Lead on.

Edward was brilliant with me afterwards, and spent what felt like an eternity with me in front of the gallery telling me to not be despondent and when Fern started hunting she was one of the dogs on the day he’d have in his kennels. Off I walked back to the gallery where the other guys also commented on well she was going, including a guy called Davey Earsman, who other competitors told me was good praise coming from him.

I wasn’t too disappointed with how it ended, I could tell by how she was on the lead when we were backing up that she was getting excited and I think the temptation was probably too much for her when the bird hit the deck. It was good to get my first trial out of the way, and has given me confidence in the dog, despite the running in, as I know it’s not something she normally does.

John Bailey won following a run off with Matt Farrish (whos dog decided to take a pee in the run off the poor guy), I cant remember who got 3rd at the moment and John got a COM with Derek O’Neils little dog.

[Amberquest]

07/11/2013 Gwynedd Novice Cocker - Teddesley Park

Short write up from my day yesterday.

After a 4am start and a 150 mile 3 hour drive, I took part in the Gwynedd Novice Cocker Trial at Teddesley Park. Arrived and exercised the dogs before waiting for the instructions about where we were going etc before jumping into the vehicle and driving to where the trial was to be held.

I was in at Number 1, and after my first ever trial a couple of weeks ago, wasn’t as nervous as last time out. At first it looked as if we were going to be starting in a bracken-bottomed wood, ideal ground, however we bypassed this and ended up in a field of canary grass. I had to ask the keeper what this stuff was as we don’t have it up here in Cumbria!! Fern looked at me as if to say “What the hell is this Dad?” I was a little worried about this stuff as not only would it have been nigh on impossible for me and the dog to mark a fallen bird, but it was very difficult to see the dog working and she could have easily gone AWOL. I was in under Ralph Edwards and he told me to cast her off, I needn’t have worried, she ploughed through the grass and kept within sight and earshot. It was handy she was smashing through it so fast, as I was able to track her by sound rather than sight. We ran through the canary grass until the end of the field, a run of 10 minutes or so, with not a bird in sight for either myself or number 2. I wasn’t too disappointed by that as a retrieve could have proven to be very difficult.

We were then told we were going back to where we had came from and we going into the bracken-bottomed wood. I cast her off and she was immediately into the brambles, bracken and rhododendron bushes that were interspersed throughout the wood. There were a couple of deep gulley traversing the wood, and I had to pull the judge out of one of them on the way! Fern was going well and after approximately 20 minutes the judge pulled us up. Being new to the trialling game I immediately thought “balls, what have I done wrong?” However, Ralph said it wasn’t my fault, there was no game and I was just going to run the dog into the ground. He commented that I’d got good marks for her hunting but I needed to get a flush and retrieve on the other side. My run finished approximately 10 past ten and I tried to relax, before my second run which turned out to be at approximately 1:30pm.

Game was absent until around 12 when the first dogs had flushes at the end of the wood where I had begun. We then moved to a strip of game crop where the dogs were immediately into game, and then onto another felled wood which led into another bracken-bottomed wood. Game supply was the limiting factor for a few dogs, with a couple having two blank runs, however, we hit a bit of game just as I was backing up.

I was in for my second run under James Luxford who made me feel at ease. Fern had had a long wait so I wasn’t sure how she’d go. Cast her off into some thick bramble and shrubs and she immediately flushed two pheasants, of which a hen bird was shot in front. Ralph Edwards had marked the fall and James asked me to call my dog out from where she was and send her from where we were. I was relieved at this as there was no way she would have marked it from inside the wall of bramble.

I cast her out and she took a good line, she was a bit to the right so I stopped her and cast her into the wind towards the bird which had fallen further into the wood in thick cover. At that point I just had to leave her to it and hope she’d use her own head/nose to find it. After what felt like an eternity, but in reality was 15 seconds or so, James told me she had it and was on her way back. Quick pip on the whistle to let her know where I was as I still couldn’t see her, hands out wide and in she came. Hen bird delivered to hand and I was chuffed. I’d got the flush and retrieve I needed.

I thought that may have been me, given the lack of game, but James wanted to see a bit more of her hunting as the cover had been so dense. Cast her off again and after about 50 yards she started pulling, I knew there was something about. Next minute she flushed a cock bird and sat. The gun shot it and it was a runner, I could just see the left wing bend up as the bird hit the floor. It hit the ground about 30 yards out and immediately jumped up and ran. Before I was asked to send her she decided she knew best and that bird needed to be retrieved. I can’t repeat the words I uttered under my breath! That was my run over.

Left the line gutted, knowing I had had a good first run and had got the all important flush and retrieve on my second run. I spoke to the judges at the end and they gave me good feedback and complimented Fern on how she’d worked. Similar to my first run a couple of weeks ago, temptation had got the better of her and she flicked me the V! Up until she was put out, she was on an A and an A-, 1st and 2nd finished on two As, so I wasn’t far away, which made the 3 hour drive home even more unbearable.

We’ll try again tomorrow, running in the Lancs and Merseyside AV novice, hopefully it’s third time lucky!

[mattog]

Thanks Amberquest

This makes great reading as I think I might like to have a go in the future so it's interesting to hear about your experiences. Good luck tomorrow.

ATB

Matt

[sandra]

I enjoyed reading it too - felt like I was right there with you! Look forward to hearing more - good luck

[Cynic]

Thanks for write-up, a really good read

[criso69]

Really good read, gives me and others a good insight what goes on, on a trail day. I would love one day to go as a Spector.

Chris

[Rascal]

Very well written Scott I felt I was with you all the way, could feel the tension building...

The very best of look tomorrow and not wanting to teach me grandmother to suck eggs but is it worth putting the stop whistle in or would that get you marked down?

Rascal

[Bryn]

Arghh so close!! At least you know she definitelyhas it in her

[vicky payne]

You'll get there! Lovely to read some FT write ups. More please folks!