# National Am - Championship



## FTGoldens (Dec 20, 2012)

I should have posted this earlier ....

For all the northwesterners on the board, you have a great opportunity to personally see the best of the best compete in Roseburg, Oregon at the National Amateur Retriever Club Championship. This is the once a year competition for amateur handlers for which the dogs must qualify by getting an Amateur 1st plus 2 additional Amateur points (the points can also be earned in Opens if the dog is handled by an amateur). There will be 10 series over a period of 7 days. The marks will be challenging ... long and tight; the blinds are typically chock full of "factors" to throw the dogs off course. And one of the most difficult elements of the Championship is to have a dog (and a handler) that is able to "keep it together" through 10 series. 

It is almost unbelievable to see what these dogs can do. I implore you to visit the trial if you are able to do so. It starts Sunday (in two days) and goes until next Saturday.

If you can't make it to Roseburg, you can follow it on "The Blog" at 2014 NARC Blog (if the link doesn't work, go to The Retriever News home page theRetrieverNews.com - TheRetrieverNews.com and follow the directions from there).

Notably, we have two of our own running in the Championship:
* FC Topbrass No Time to Paws ("Flash") - Kaye Fuller, handler
* The Sunday Swimmer ("Wyatt") - Jeff Bandel, handler

I have to say that it's even exciting to follow the almost up-to-the-minute blog entries. I waste too much time on the internet during the week of the National Am.

FTGoldens


----------



## gdgli (Aug 24, 2011)

Thanks, FT. I will be checking it out. I certainly do like field trials although I do not compete.

I hope to give it a shot in the future.


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

Very cool running blog, thanks! I always like it when they include a sketch of the set up.
Flash is #3 and Wyatt #8.
I'm also rooting for #84, FC-AFC Lanes Lets Get Ready To Rumble (Ali) LM, since his daughter is our houseguest this week-end.


----------



## FTGoldens (Dec 20, 2012)

The fourth series water blind is a doozy!
It's only 245 yards, but the factors are having a huge influence on the dogs (a tree limb, a few hay bales, an interesting angle to the terrain kicking the dogs to the left (unless they flare the hay bales and the gunners, then they will square the hill to the right), two gunners just a few feet off of the line to the blind, a water sluice, kind of an angle entry, a point that they have to get all 4 feet on, etc.). Lots of whistles!
That's the perfect early series National Am caliber water blind ... lots of factors but only a little bit of swimming.
FTGoldens

PS: Wyatt and Flash will be running it soon!


----------



## FTGoldens (Dec 20, 2012)

Flash and Wyatt both had very, very solid water blinds in the 4th series. So, it seems that both of them will be headed to the 5th series (I believe that it's been a while since we've had two Goldens heading into the 5th series of any National ... probably not since 2006, when FC AFC OTCH Topbrass Ascending Elijah OS FDHF and his son, FC AFC LaCrosse Max Q Jake OS FDHF, went to the 5th series).

The fifth series is typically a super-challenging land quad, with mixed bag (ducks and pheasants). Elimination of lots of dogs often occurs in the 5th series. Fingers are crossed that Flash and Wyatt hit home runs in the 5th!

There are good photos of Flash and Wyatt on the blog, showing them right after completing the water blind. 

FTGoldens


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

Go Goldens!


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

Wow, I just went and looked at the fourth series set up!


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

The 5th series Quad looks tough to me. 1st bird down is 255 yards out and sandwiched in between two fliers. YIKES!


----------



## ArchersMom (May 22, 2013)

I wish I'd seen this Sunday! I just passed through Roseburg


----------



## gdgli (Aug 24, 2011)

I checked the blog today. Fifth series looks tough. I see Flash and Wyatt are still in. Wyatt had a handle but others did too.


----------



## gdgli (Aug 24, 2011)

Flash and Wyatt have been doing well.


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

Flash is carried to the 6th! 
Wyatt goes out in the 5th.


----------



## tpd5 (Nov 7, 2013)

Flash called back to 7th


----------



## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

So how does it work when you have 104 dogs to run in a series? How do you get through that many dogs? Is there more than one location to run the dogs at all at the same time? Now at the seventh series they still have 49 dogs. That's a heck of a lot of great dogs. Then the other thing is, how do you judge that many dogs? What separates one from the next? I mean they are all mostly FC-AFC dogs, so none of them are chumps. Just curious.


----------



## gdgli (Aug 24, 2011)

Alaska7133 said:


> So how does it work when you have 104 dogs to run in a series? How do you get through that many dogs? Is there more than one location to run the dogs at all at the same time? Now at the seventh series they still have 49 dogs. That's a heck of a lot of great dogs. Then the other thing is, how do you judge that many dogs? What separates one from the next? I mean they are all mostly FC-AFC dogs, so none of them are chumps. Just curious.


The judges set up tests that are meant to eliminate dogs. Take a look at how the size of the callbacks diminishes.
This is not testing to a standard. It is testing for finding who excels.


----------



## FTGoldens (Dec 20, 2012)

Alaska7133 said:


> So how does it work when you have 104 dogs to run in a series? How do you get through that many dogs? Is there more than one location to run the dogs at all at the same time? Now at the seventh series they still have 49 dogs. That's a heck of a lot of great dogs. Then the other thing is, how do you judge that many dogs? What separates one from the next? I mean they are all mostly FC-AFC dogs, so none of them are chumps. Just curious.


As gdgli said, it's an elimination process. The judges, with the help of the Field Trial Committee and following a certain protocol, set up ten tests to challenge the best of the best. 
As you may have noticed, the judges are typically (though not always) generous in the first two series of a National Championship (series #1 and #2 almost always consist of a double and a blind), then start pushing the skills of the dogs and the handlers to a higher level with each successive test. And the competitors generally get two boo-boos ... most often a handle on one mark will not get you kicked out, but a handle on a second mark (or a gorilla hunt on a mark) will find you packing your truck for the trip home.
Did you happen to notice in the 8th series how tight the guy sitting in the chair was to the line to the blind, with a very narrow corridor of water to get in? Then the 9th series quad had a 398 yard water mark with multiple entries? And the finale, with a land/water quad, a tight quad? Lots of talented dogs and handlers had a tough time with that set up.
Maybe one day you will get to run a National ... but if not, be sure to go watch one to see just how good the competing teams can be.
FTGoldens


----------



## hollyk (Feb 21, 2009)

FTGoldens said:


> Did you happen to notice in the 8th series how tight the guy sitting in the chair was to the line to the blind, with a very narrow corridor of water to get in? Then the 9th series quad had a 398 yard water mark with multiple entries? And the finale, with a land/water quad, a tight quad? Lots of talented dogs and handlers had a tough time with that set up.
> Maybe one day you will get to run a National ... but if not, be sure to go watch one to see just how good the competing teams can be.
> FTGoldens


Yep, I noticed that gunner sitting on the line.  That series had me thinking "ok, I could I break this down and teach it". 
That 9th series, a quad that started with a 398 yard mark and was sandwiched by two fliers.......well I don't even know what to say about it other than those dogs are amazing!
The 10th sounded like there was no way to even handle to one of the marks. The blog would say something like "dog busted out of grass with bird in mouth."

I really liked the diagrams and photo's. It's giving me a lot to think about.


----------

