2015 Georgia Region Championships
4-Star Plantation, Elberton, GA
March 27-29, 2015
Spring in the South can be
hot. We were a little concerned when the
temps started climbing a week before our Regional in N. Georgia. Trialing is fun- less so when the temps are
in the 80’s! But, we needn't have
worried, the rain showed up followed by a tremendous cold front and morning
temps in the 20’s! The sun was bright
and the breeze was perfect under clear skies for the entire three days of the
trial.
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| All of us. GA Region NSTRA |
Friday, we ran a normal
trial. That enabled us to get acquainted
with the fields (more so for the dogs, since many had never been on these
fields). The points, of course, and the
placements did not count towards the upcoming Regional Saturday and Sunday, but
carried forward to next year. A Field
placements were: 1. Randy Schultz/Cap,
2.Keith Howard/Frank, 3.Randy Schultz/Ruby, and 4.Ken Buck/Chance. B Field placements were: 1. Jeff Keck/Trim,
2. Brandon Pritchett/Taz, 3.Randy Schultz/Cap, and 4. Randy Schultz/Ruby. (Randy had a good day!) Judges J.W. Collins, Brad Mitchell, Bodie Ray
and Walt Sanderson, Bird Planter Casey Roberts and Field Marshal Stan Perdue
kept us on the straight and narrow.
Going in to Saturday morning,
the dogs were ready and the handlers were nervous. The fields were huge and both had cutouts,
ponds, tree lines and fingers extending in to the woods. 36 dogs qualified for the Regional this year
and we elected to run 18 braces Saturday with a cut to 16 dogs carried forward
to Sunday. At the end of Saturday, Keith
Howard and Frank were First, Mitch Hurst and Ace- Second, Bill Green and Brennen
Green and Toothpick -Third, and Bobby Wheat and Smoke -Fourth.
Saturday night we held our
region banquet in the 4-Star Plantation clubhouse. After a dinner of “steak the way you like it”
and all the fixings, we got down to some serious business with our elections
and awards. Apparently, we found some
suckers…..er, volunteers, to run for President and the other officers. Ballots were counted and the new Georgia
Region Officers are: President Gene Pritchett, Vice President Jeff Keck, and
Treasurer Brenda Keck. The two elected Directors-at-
Large are David Healan and Bodie Ray.
The Awards for the last season
were handed out by Brenda Keck, as Mistress of Ceremonies. The Rookie of the Year went to Gerald
Pannell. Gerald stepped in and took over
our website and has a fine dog to compete with, as well. The Most Improved Dog Award went to
Flatland’s Sir Brennan (Toothpick) owned by Brennan Green and handled by his
father, Bill Green. This pointer is a
force on the move! Sportsman of the Year
was awarded to Dan Miles. His little
Brit, Ty, kept us all looking over our shoulders. Dan is a new guy who’s made a big impact with
us. Whether he comes off the field with
5 or 0, he’s happy to be there and is always ready to lend a helping hand. The Judge of the Year went to Stan
Perdue. An eagle eye and a sharp pencil
kept us all in line! The Scott Clark Award for all-round super attitude was
awarded to Gary Garrett for his work at his grounds and striving to make his
place a National Class venue in Ball Ground, GA. The first-ever Service Award went to Angela
Healan for her 20+ years of handling the checkbook and statistics of the
Region! No small feat and she did it
consistently well! High Point Dog was awarded to Jeff Keck and Trim. Despite sickness and injury and an inability
to make every trial, Jeff and Trim managed to surge to the lead in the last
trial of the season! High Point Female
went to Randy Schultz and Ruby, who took it home the last trial weekend, as
well.
Sunday morning the temp was 26
degrees. Camper heaters were running and
it really felt like a day to trial! Judges J.W. Collins and Brad Mitchell took
us through the entire day. Their calls
were fair, consistent and non-partial.
And, I’m here to tell you they used the entire scoring scale….just
sayin’. It was a pleasure to have them
down to judge us. Field Marshals Bodie
Ray and Stan Perdue kept the trial moving.
They handled a tie for 4th and 5th place, extra
birds and 15 min braces, late handlers, back to back runs and all the other
minutiae involved in a Region Trial.
And, they did it in fine fashion!
Casey Roberts continued to outfox us with his bird planting skills and
we appreciate his dedication. Two more
cuts later, the Final Hour competitors were Jeff Keck and Trim (Setter/Male)
and Randy Schultz and Cap (Brit/Male).
They released at the line, and for an hour the gallery had no idea who
was ahead, behind or more tired! Randy
didn’t want to waste time heading for the cutout and jumped the 4-board fence,
twice. Jeff and Trim worked like it was
a day in the park, methodically and with class.
(Jeff did not give the old man any slack, whereupon Randy called AARP
and appealed for help and an ATV- denied!)
At the end, Jeff and Trim came off the field victorious and not only
captured the Georgia Region High Point Dog Award the previous night, but the #1
Dog in Georgia that day! 2nd
was Randy Schultz and Cap, 3rd Gary Drinnen and Ziggy, 4th
was Jeff Welker and Aunt B (to the tune of the Andy Griffith Show), 5th
was Keith Howard and Frank, 6th was Randy Schultz and Ruby.
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| GA Region Champion Jeff Keck and Trim (l to r) 1st Runner Up Randy Schultz and Cap 2nd Runner Up Gary Drinnen and Ziggy 3rd Runner Up Jeff Welker and Aunt B |
Congratulations to Jeff Keck
and his fine setter, Trim! 2015 Georgia
Region Champions! See you in the blind!
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| (l to r) 1st Runner Up Cap GA Region Champion Trim |
