First Hunt Test Report.
First off I would like to thank Wayne for pushing me to get Piper ready and out to an event a month earlier then planned. If anyone is considering getting into the world of shed hunting Wayne is an invaluable source for information. He knows the sport and the in's and outs of it. Me I just fly by the seat of my pants most days doing the opposite of what I should be doing.
Our trip to Owenton Kentucky was an adventure to say the least. Having 3 kids and both working full-time jobs my wife and I are hard pressed to get away by ourselves so we had high expectations for this trip. From our front door to the Capital Plaza Hotel was roughly 670 miles. I kept an eye on the weather the week leading up to the event. With snow and ice forecasted for the area we decided to drive the truck and not my wife's SUV. It turned out to be the right decision since we had to navigate what looked like a demolition derby in Nashville. I lost count on the amount of wrecks we saw. After making it through Tennessee we were greeted with blinding snow in Kentucky. I tip my hat to the road crews in Kentucky keeping the roads open. What was suppose to be a 10 hour trip turned into a 13 hour ordeal. But none the less it was fun and exciting. After getting the wife and Piper settled for the evening I finally made it to bed around 10:30pm.
The next morning we were greeted with a blanket of snow and high teens for temps. I also got to meet Wayne for the first time. We have spoken a few times on the phone and would text off and on. Mostly through the forum. I met Wayne for the first time behind the wheel of a 500hp army tank sports car named Scotty. I had just walked Piper to let her do her business. I look up to see Wayne holding onto Scotty while trying to traverse the snow and ice. Needless to so I got a chuckle. If anyone gets the chance to meet Wayne and Scotty you will find out very quickly that Scotty is a machine. His athleticism and drive makes him want to go 100% all the time. Plus he's a gorgeous to boot (Scotty not Wayne). It's kind of intimidating.
We got loaded up and made the 25 minute drive out to John Ballard's farm for the test. I'm still not 100% sure how they draw the running order but we drew dead last. There were suppose to be about 40 dogs running but due to the weather the field was cut down some. As time went by I would occasionally get Piper out and let her stretch her legs and get her nose warmed up retrieving a thrown shed. We finally got the call that it was our turn. The first course was shaped kind of like a half moon that had a pond on one side and some tall grass on the other. I sent Piper on my command and we were off. Straight to were every other dog before us had stopped and marked their territory. The wind swirled and she caught wind of her first shed. When she found it and I witnessed the year of training come to fruition I was beyond proud. She brought it straight to my hand. At that point I would of been proud to have made the trip just for her to find one. After probably too much love and praise I sent her back out. I noticed we were working with the wind at our back so I pushed her to the back of the course and turned us around. She found shed number 2, 3 and 4 in no time. I looked at my watch that I forgot to start to see how we were doing. The judge told me we had 5 minutes left, I panicked, Holy crap!!! did 10 minutes really go by that quick. At that point we dove off into the high grasses. Piper sniffing every spot another dog have been. I'm sweating bullets trying to keep her working. Bam!!! Number 5. "Ok we can do this" I thought to myself. Gave her some love and a treat and back off she went. Bam!! Number 6, Oh my goosh!!! Did we just pass our first course?!!! We did!!! Time 6:26.....what??? The judge had gotten confused and told me we had 5 minutes left instead of telling me we only used 5 minutes. Needless to say I was shocked. After a lot of praise and love we went straight to the second course.
The second course was a cut soybean field with deep tractor ruts with a brush pile in the corner. She went on my command. I watched the ribbons on the boundary markers and worked Piper downwind edge of the course running the length of it. She had no trouble finding the large sheds. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 like clock work. She threw that nose in the air. "She smells it" straight to the brush pile, Number 6!!!! Wow!! Did we just pass both of our courses? I guess we did. She manage to pick up the speed on the second course and ran a 5:40. The walk back to my wife was one of pride and jubilation.
All of the work and frustration had paid off. I learned a lot on this trip. I learned I have been over training Piper on courses too large with sheds that are too small. I think it paid off. I also learned that we will never win best time or a World Championship. We can never compete with the "fast dogs" as I call them. Piper isn't built for it and not wired to do it. I just happy with a pass. Ultimately I'm just happy to have her as my pet.
I'm going to give her the week off and give some much needed attention to my male pup Oberon. Then we'll get back in the woods and get ready for our next test in February in north Mississippi. Needless to say it was a long weekend. 1400 miles driven, countless hours behind the wheel. But it was all worth it. Thanks for reading.
