hunt test / field trials

[ribka]

Well no doubt hunting season is over

Carry on

[jetjockey]

There have been a few nobody pointer trainers and nobody has ever argued that it isn't big out here. I can't believe you keep up posting and boasting about how great it isn't here. It seems to consume your thoughts.

Here's what the real pointing dog world looks like.  Maybe, with any luck, you will be able to experience it some day.

[jetjockey]

They even paint pointing dogs on the water towers.  Ever seen anything like that Happy?  Don't worry about answering.  I already know! 

This post was about pointing dog trials in the PNW.  Unfortunately, there is VERY limited opportunities to trial in th PNW.  Down here, there's a breed trial, and an AF trial every weekend, and during most weeks during the season.  Old boys drink coffee at the old restaurants and talk about the glory days of wild quail hunting and tell lies about the best bird dogs that ever lived.  They live and breath bird dogs, and they still look down on you if the gun your carrying doesn't say Smith, Parker, or Fox on the side of it.  Bird dogs are a tradition, and it's a tradition that's gone back well over a 100 years.  Maybe some day Happy, you will open your eyes and try to experience it.  It's pretty cool.

[ribka]

Years ago did a quail plantation hunt down in Georgia on horse back. It was fun. Definitely more of a tradition on east coast vs west coast

Does it make the east coast better? A lot of the good hunting land was tied up by hunting clubs on east coast. Not cheap to hunt upland or water fowl

[RC3]

Yes, there are more rich guys who ride horses around boasting about how far their dogs can run and point one quail at the other side of the ranch; I will give you that.  I really don't understand what a guy from the mid-west gets out of coming on a Washington state forum and trash talking our bird dogs.

[jetjockey]

Who was trash talking PNW bird dogs?  Wasn't me.  I'm from the PNW and grew up hunting Eastern WA when WA still had lots of pheasants.  I just wish we had the tradition of bird dogs and field trialing they have down here.  The wild bird hunting in the PNW is better, but guys just don't get into the bird dog games.  This thread was started by someone asking about field trialing and bird dog games.  The sad reality is that when compared to other parts of the country, there is very little in the way of trials, hunt tests, and other pointing dog games.  That's not bashing.  That's the truth.

[AspenBud]

I am born and raised Washingtonian. But I did move to the Midwest for about five years and it's not a stretch to say the Northwest has less of a field trial community for pointing dog owners. That's not a knock on the dogs here, it's just stating a fact. It's a lot harder to find people with a similar interest here be it training groups, fun trials, hunt tests, or full blown field trials. Throw in a level of secrecy almost complete with secret hand shakes that everyone feels they need to have to keep anti-hunting folks away here and it gets even harder.

This is also the land of the retriever and spaniel however and that's a different story. I do think there are some reasons they are more popular here than pointers and that covers anything from available land, what people do for a living, money, local culture, and tradition. That greater popularity makes it easier to find like minded people to train, compete, and hunt with. imo

[Blackjaw]

I think AspenBud hit the nail on the head based on my (very limited) experiences of training spaniels at Ft. Lewis 30 or so weekends a yr you see 3-4 big retriever training groups, the 2 spaniel training groups, and rarely a couple of guys that get together to train their pointers. I have stopped and BSd with these guys a couple of times and they are a couple of hard core hunters that train together during the off-season. I am sure I haven't seen every pointer guy that trains at Ft. Lewis, but they seem to be few and far between.

[AspenBud]

I think AspenBud hit the nail on the head based on my (very limited) experiences of training spaniels at Ft. Lewis 30 or so weekends a yr you see 3-4 big retriever training groups, the 2 spaniel training groups, and rarely a couple of guys that get together to train their pointers. I have stopped and BSd with these guys a couple of times and they are a couple of hard core hunters that train together during the off-season. I am sure I haven't seen every pointer guy that trains at Ft. Lewis, but they seem to be few and far between.

Guys with pointing dogs are often mainly upland hunters. There aren't a lot of hunters in Washington and among them bird hunters represent a small subset, waterfowl hunters are a small subset, upland hunters a smaller subset, those who are involved with field trials and hunt test even smaller, and then break it down by retrievers/spaniels and pointing dogs and well... In some ways what I'm talking about should not be a surprise. I've seen a lot of guys involved with trials and hunt tests who said they basically gave up fishing and/or big game to focus on the dogs and bird hunting, it is a commitment.

[Happy Gilmore]

Depends on how short a guy makes the history lesson. The retriever field trials were very small in the PNW. In fact, there was nothing in the PNW and the guys who ran the west coast circuit had a far more challenging job of balancing training and travel. I've been told stories of hauling a load of pointers in a 1940's school bus one weekend in Oregon, next southern california, texas, oklahoma, kansas, colorado, idaho, oregon and back to california. Of course the history is there but, to say there is "NO HISTORY" is certainly an uneducated statement.

Does anyone know who sold Cherry Valley to the State and what the property was used for prior to passing ownership to WDFW?

[jetjockey]

Make the history lesson as long as youd like.  It wont change a thing.  They have been running bird dogs down here longer than most bird dogs breeds were even in the country.   The people support it, the state supports it, and its a part of the culture.  That doesn't  occur in the PNW.  Ask anyone who's come down to watch a trial down here.  They all say the same thing.  There is no facilities like what we run on down here, in the PNW.

[AspenBud]

I think the main thing to say about that is things are just different. It's sort of like comparing our big game hunting to the east. Open up an issue of Field and Stream, you can read all about white tail hunting in a tree. Does anyone who hunts west side black tails ever feel left out? It's kind of the same thing with pointing dogs and field trials. We don't have big quail hunting plantations here and we don't hold grouse trials on grounds preened for ruffed grouse. We also have far fewer preserves or public areas on which to hold such events.

[jetjockey]

I agree.  And that's what I find sad.  I wish we had those things in the PNW.  I wish we had places that were groomed for wild pheasants and valley quail in order to hunt and run trials on.  The state, and the people don't support it in enough numbers to make it happen though.  All our state trial grounds down here have clubhouses with bathrooms, kitchens, and stalls for horses.  Most have hookups for LQ trailers, and many even have showers for people without LQ's.  There's no reason we couldn't have it in the PNW, but the history and culture just isn't there to support it.

[AspenBud]

I agree.  And that's what I find sad.  I wish we had those things in the PNW.  I wish we had places that were groomed for wild pheasants and valley quail in order to hunt and run trials on.  The state, and the people don't support it in enough numbers to make it happen though.  All our state trial grounds down here have clubhouses with bathrooms, kitchens, and stalls for horses.  Most have hookups for LQ trailers, and many even have showers for people without LQ's.  There's no reason we couldn't have it in the PNW, but the history and culture just isn't there to support it.

Go to Gladwin in Michigan some time if you haven't already.

http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,4570,7-153-10366_46403-288218--,00.html

[Bluemoon]

Seeing that this was titled hunt test/field trials
And everyone likes facts. I went to the AKC events site to get the facts. 
Currently on their books for 2015, for just Pointing breeds
Pacific NW already has schedule 14 field trials and 13 hunt tests
Georgia                                        8     "   "               4  "      "
I know there are many more yet to be scheduled here in the PNW  I do not know about GA
**this does not include American Field, NSTRA, NAVHDA,Springer or Retriever events.  Which there are many coming up.  This was about Pointers however.  So either back East or out here someone is using new math because I was always taught numbers don't lie...