It can be quite hard to get a run in a field trial because there are always far more entries than places available, so the runners are decided by a draw.
This winter I have had three runs in trials with Riska, who was two years old in December. As previously reported, she was placed 3rd in her first trial, then we were put out of her 2nd trial because we picked the wrong bird – an easy mistake to make with such a fast dog, because you only have a split second to stop her on the whistle in the right area before she’s gone too far.
Yesterday we ran in the Southern Golden Retriever trial at Tenterden and the ground there suited Riska well. Our first two retrieves were a long way down a grass field and she picked cleanly and galloped flat out up the hill back to me – I work hard at fitness with my dogs and this really pays off in a situation like this. After a nerve wracking second drive we were asked to pick a bird in a gully off to the right and Riska listened to my commands to achieve her third retrieve. The five of us left in the trial were taken into the woods and told to take our leads off and then we were asked to pick birds in turn from an area down the hill behind a clump of trees. Riska went straight to the area and picked quickly with a lovely fast return up the hill and over a fallen tree. When all five of us had completed our retrieves, the judges went into a huddle while we waited on tenterhooks, watching the light fade towards dusk and knowing that we needed another retrieve to complete the trial. Two of us were called forward for a final retrieve and Riska made a tidy job, so I knew we had done well, but I was also aware that first place would not be awarded if the judges didn’t think my dog deserved it.
It was dark by the time we got back to the yard for the results and I felt very grateful to all the peolpe involved to run the day, especially when we were plied with hot soup and sausage rolls, not to mention the chocolate brownies.
Finally it was time for the results and I was overwhelmed to be declared the winner, especially as I bred Riska.
