NBHA Northeast Regional Championship
The 2015 NBHA Northeast Regional Championship was held Aril 1-4th at the Pine Island Wildlife Area near Portage, WI. These are nice grounds with sufficient water and the opportunity to really show a dog. We were blessed with beautiful spring-like weather, sprinkled with a little heat to start the trial.
The host of this Championship is the 12 O�clock Field Trial Club. We would like to thank our national sponsors Purina � represented at the trail by Dean Reinke, Tri-Tronics, Christie Enterprises, Gun Dog Supply and Gun Dog Central. Without their support our trials would not be as successful as they have been�thank you! The 12 O�clock FTC has also secured Trophy Athletic, a Milwaukee, WI business to provide our awards at a substantially discounted rate. They have been a loyal supplier for years and we are grateful to have them aboard.
This year we were proud to have two judges from Illinois, Aaron McAfee from Edinburg and Caren Mansfield from Mechanicsburg. Aaron and Caren communicated very well with each other and the handlers alike, thank you for your time and attention to our dogs.
The Championship drew 28 shooting dogs and the accompanying derby stake drew 13. Professionals Tom Waite and Garry Malzone both brought strings and amateurs were also well represented. We cannot thank the owners and handlers enough for entering their dogs. The Thursday evening steak dinner was sponsored by last year�s winner A Carolina Shadow and Garry Malzone. The grill was under the watchful eye(s) of club member Dave Hourihan and the steaks were cooked to perfection. The camaraderie for the evening was quite enjoyable!
The Winners: The 2015 NBHA Northeast Regional CH was won by Harwich Indian Creek Buck (Malzone). Buck is owned by John Olfson of West Hartford, CT. He is a bold liver and white pointer. Buck ran in the first brace on the first day, which proved to be a tough day for the dogs. The weather on Wednesday was warm and very dry. Harwich Indian Creek Buck ran a wide race. His two finds (40 and 46) were late in the hour, as heat continued to rise. He finished nicely after his last find.
Indian Creek Wingman (Malzone) was named Runner-up Champion of this stake. He is a male, black and white setter, owned by Jillian Stuhr of Franklin Lakes, NJ. Lucky ran in the 13th brace of the trial. He started the brace with a divided find at 7. Lucky tallied three more well-spaced finds throughout the hour at 26, 43 and 53, with a back at 58. He made some moves and looked classy going. His consistent hour complemented the drive of the CH, earning him the RUCH title.
The Running: The trial began Wednesday afternoon with the fore mentioned CH Harwich Indian Creek Buck (Malzone) braced with Honey Creek Jazzman (Waite). Jasper finished the hour with no bird work but a very classy strong race in the dry heat. Dale Creek Mickey Finn (Waite) started with a nice flowing gate but shortened in the heat and the handler elected to pick up at 33. Mickey was braced with Indian Creek Spanish Fly (Malzone). The tracker was called for at 17 after not having the dog since the break-a-way. The third brace was Dale Creek Bud Lite (Waite) and Winkleman�s Little Sugar (Duvall). Buddy was handling nicely yet to make bird contact and was last seen at 20. Sugar had a find at 33 after relocation. She finished the hour with a good second half.
Thursday morning dawned with cooler temps and a comfortable breeze. Brace four of the Championship paired Crow Creek Sugar Baby (Black), the 2013 CH of this trial and Hells Bells (Waite). Sugar started right out of the gate with a find at 7 but moved with the flush and was up early. Belle started strong and was last seen going across the dike, well to the front. She was found at 20 standing. After the flush she got a little too anxious which ended her bid. Pee�s Little Fella (Waite) and Merritt�s Zachery (Malzone) � last year�s Runner-up both started with a lot of energy. Fella was last seen at 4 and tracker was pulled at 22. Zach had an unproductive at 33 and Malzone elected to pick him up due to a laboring shoulder. The morning ended with a nice brace to watch Dale Creek Rail (Waite) � another Runner-up CH of this trial, ran a consistent, steady race. He had finds at 46, 50 and 52 with a stop to flush at 54. Rail was braced with Texas Honey Bee (Malzone). Bee had a find at 40 and shared the find at 46 with Rail. Zansett�s Simply Red (Waite) and All That Jazz Jasmine (Duvall) were off after lunch. Red was last seen at 3 and the tracker was in the hands of the handler. Jasmine had finds at 7 and 11, ran a wide race and was not seen for lengthy part of the brace, but finished nicely. Brace 8 was Sandy�s Lucky Charm (Waite) and HiFive�s Passin Time (Malzone). Lucky ran a strong race and was under a bird at 22. Country ran a classy forward race with no birds. Dale Creek Peanut (Blair) was last seen at 5 and tracker was requested. Dale Creek New Era (J. Dlobik) handled nicely, stayed forward with wide casts. Unfortunately Banner�s youthful exuberance got the best of him and he was under a bird before the handle could arrive.
The last day of the trial began with Rebellious Rotten Ralph (Luebke) and Jan�s Ultimate Cash (D. Dlobik). Cash began with a nice solid back of Ralph at 7, then a find at 30 with a relocation but was moving with the birds at 31. Ralph was found standing at 7 with all in order. He went on to put down a solid race with finds at 19, 30 and 46. Tim�s Setter Rosie (Callahan) and Berg Brothers Jack (Waite) started the second brace of the day. Rosie had finds at 16, 28 46 and 52. She was a little loose on a couple finds but had a nice flowing race. Jack was found standing at 12, backing at 16 but was picked up at 31 due to unpleasing manners. Megans Black Jack (Malzone) was found standing at 19, had finds at 35 and 44. He was last seen at 46 and the scout was sent at time to locate him. He was brought to the judge with only minutes to spare. Braced with Black Jack was Blair�s Witch Project (Blair). After Guy�s initial breakaway cast, he was last seen crossing the dike and the tracker was pulled at 25. In the second to last brace of the trial, Indian Creek Wingman was previously reported. He was braced with Hidden Hollow Sammy. Sammy was found standing at 10 with all in order. He had finds at 55 and again at 58. Wrapping up the Championship was Dale Creek Cuppa Joe (Waite) and Pee�s Tater. Joe had a very consistent flowing race but unfortunately did not come in contact with any birds. Tater was picked up at 13 due to manners.
With nearly 30 dogs in this stake, were other dogs the judges took into consideration. Dogs to be noted that gave the winners a run for their money were (in no particular order) Rebellious Rotten Ralph (Luebke), Dale Creek Rail (Waite), Megan�s Black Jack (Malzone) and All That Jazz Jasmine (Duvall).
The accompanying derby stake began Saturday morning under beautiful skies with 13 entries. First place, for this year�s derby stake, went to Dale Creek Kip Babe (Waite). Kip is owned by Bill babe of Silver Lake, WI. He is an orange and white, male setter that put down a strong meaningful race. Second was awarded to Texas Free Mason (Malzone) a male setter owned by Kevin Klein of Waterford, PA. Rounding out the placements was Kessler�s Hardcash, a beautiful black and white male pointer who is owned and handled by Mike Roper. Many derbies showed great potential but these three stood above the others. We would like to thank judges Deb Dlobik and Boyd Sutfin for judging the enthusiasm of these youngsters.
Again we would like to thank all the owners and handlers who came and put their dogs on the ground. We truly appreciate them all. It would not be appropriate to close this article without thanking the many 12 O�clock Field Trial Club members who took on responsibilities throughout the entire week. We could NEVER have pulled this off without ALL your help. Thank you and we look forward to opening our arms again next year!
