Your biggest regret with gundog training?

[Strathcraig]

Taking advice from people that don't have a clue what they are talking about

Took the words outta my mouth.

That and, similarly to Alice, buying the first yellow bitch I came across, cause no one round about me told me any different.

[scot-ish]

pushing the dog on too early when it was young, being eager to have a dog that could be shot over, before the dog was polished in the early stages, ultimately cost me from being able to run her in trials.
hopefully not make the same mistake with the pup i have just now

This is going to sound daft, please don't take it that way, but is trailing something that generates an income?

RM

certainly not for me, or 95% of people who do trial,

with regards to cost i mean that i put in about 2 hours a day (driving too and from the training areas i had plus the training time) for the best part of 9 months, to then make a mistake with my dog.

prevention is much better than a cure, this dog i have now is a class above at the minute from anything i've seen, but i dont want to put pressure on him just yet. initially i had hoped to run him in novice before the end of january, when he will be around 14-15 months old, but now im actually quite happy to hold off until next season should that be the case.

[Nickheref]

I also think that temperament is everything.

Naj

I have reached the same conclusion but I would also add intelligence, most can hunt and retrieve after a fashion if they want to but it is the ones who really want to and please you at the same time plus have a brain and work out how to do things (like using the wind etc, understanding that a shot bird is not necessarily at the point it lost sight of it and a bird flushed at you rather than just flushed is much more likely to get shot and result in a retrieve) that really make me smile.

[ips]

Not starting or discovering it earlier in life

Apart from the obvious many school boy errors......this for me too.

I did same thing with fencing I took that up well into adulthood and wished I had taken it up when I was younger and much fitter. Better late than never though.

[Nickheref]

Not starting or discovering it earlier in life

Apart from the obvious many school boy errors......this for me too.

I did same thing with fencing I took that up well into adulthood and wished I had taken it up when I was younger and much fitter. Better late than never though.

I gave up fencing shortly after I found gundogs - foil epee or sabre? I was an u20 GB squad epee but to be honest was too short for a real epeeist as most were very tall and thin!! A close mate was England Schoolboy foil captain and he was good not just because he was quick but mainly because he out thought his opponents and worked out how to beat them when watching them against someone else, if it was a team match he would tell us how to beat them, if an individual competition he wouldn't !!!

[ips]

Nick
I only fenced at club level, three different clubs per week at one point. Foil, but dabbled in epee and even had the odd slash at saber, funny lot them sabrours
I became a club leader and trained a few times with Robert kiss, Hungarian master. Also sparred with a paralympian (cant recall the name) sat on a chair which was difficult to say the least. His dexterity and bade control was second to none. I retired about ten years ago due to ongoing sciatica, neck and shoulder problems. Fabulous sport I miss it.

Ps
You say you were too short. My coach was about eighteen stone as in short and, well portly quick on his feet he was not, fleche was out of the question, ballestra would have broken the floor boards BUT like the paralympian excellent blade control and very difficult to get a hit even though the target was so big, bloody leftie as well which didn't help

[Nickheref]

Nothing wrong with lefties unless you start shooting with a right handed a side by side
All the real epeeists I met were built like spiders with huge reaches. Good fun though!

[ips]

Indeed they were / are. And did you notice sabrours were mainly "bigger"

[Judy]

Think I might have to split this thread soon! I played around with an épée for a while but my tutor wanted more elegance than I was able to give. One's left arm had to be in exactly the right position all the time and one's feet just so, I quickly gave up the idea even though I enjoyed it. I also found I couldn't compete with the lads but was too strong in the wrist for the women.

Was watching the Olympic fencing the other night and couldn't remember the differences in technique between épée and foil? Other than I think foil is slightly heavier? And no, my tutors were both competitive sabreurs and skinny!

[Nickheref]

Crikey you can do accents and everything Is that why you are a moderator?
Foil target just the torso, epee anywhere on the body