2010 ASFA Greyhound Specialty - Part 1

Banner is a running dog.

Yeah...  yeah....  I know....  ALL greyhounds are "running dogs".  True, but few approach it with as much gusto and intensity as Banner.  Banner truly loves and lives to run.  He loves to compete and he really dislikes it when he doesn't win.  Yes, I think this boy knows when he doesn't win.

Back in November 2010, the American Sighthound Field Association (ASFA) Greyhound Specialty lure course was being held in Tyler, Texas.  It was to be a weekend of lure coursing and a Greyhound LGRA (Large Gazehound Racing Asso.) Specialty.

Up until 2010, the event had always been held on the East Coast, usually in Georgia.  Since the event was so close, relatively speaking, we just had to go.  It was also a good time to check out the dogs as potential mates for Glory.  So, off to Texas Banner & Glory went.  I only hoped that Banner would uphold the family honor as Glory was not entered due to a chronic toe injury.

It was time for a road trip.

Laurel Drew & I loaded up the Toyota 4Runner with the dogs, our stuff, coursing stuff, and other stuff and hit the road.  I had contacted Buddy Scitern at C&C Greyhound Farm to see if he'd allow Banner to take a lap around his training track. It was a desire to see how well the boy could run. We worked our way down towards Buddy's and found ourselves there on Friday, the day before the Specialty.

Immaculate kennels...  Such a clean floor!
(courtesy of C&C Greyhound Farm)

Buddy has a lovely place.  The kennels & runs are immaculate...  The dogs are happy & well fed...  The track is impeccable...  His is a top notch, well run organization.  Buddy & his family are top notch dog people.

There were a few hounds to run before Banner was to get his turn but the first time he saw the lure zip by on the track, he knew what this was about.  He impatiently waited for his turn.  Since we did not have a dog to test the boy with, Buddy had one dog left to run and he graciously allowed Banner to load up next to him, a Grade A Gulf dog, to do the 3/16's of a mile.

I was so thankful that Banner knew how to load in the box, thanks to NOTRA racing.  Buddy's wife (I think it was his wife) took the boy by the collar to walk him to the box and she was almost pulled off her feet by the lad. He was eager, especially after being on the road for a couple of days. She loaded him up and then loaded the Gulf dog, Stomper, and, quick as a flash, the traps were sprung!

Banner never passed Stomp, but he wasn't distanced either.  He held his own and finished lapped onto the dog's hip. The time was under 17 secs.  Coming off the track, he had dirt on his face (a first), but the boy was content and it served as a good warm-up for the weekend.  It cleared the kinks, mental & physical, out. Putting an edge on him for the upcoming Specialty.

Leaving Buddy's, we stopped at the free, Dog Collectibles Museum in Waco, TX, spent more money, and then proceeded to Tyler, TX to check into our hotel and then to scope out the Texas Rose Horse Park - the location of the Specialty.

That's Part 2....

Bugsy

Ch DM Ocean Meets T'Sky

Bugsy, Age 6 - 7 months

Bugsy got his call name because, when he would lay down, the white on his chest would make the silhouette of a long-eared jackrabbit - just like Bugs Bunny!  His registered name comes from the Rod Stewart song, Sailing.

You see, one of my favorite movie scenes is in the movie, The Perfect Storm.  The fishermen are in a bar, the night before they go out for swordfish.  It's night and one of the deckhands, "Bugsy", is trying  to pick up a woman.  In the background, the Rod Stewart song, Sailing, is playing...

"The rhythm of my heart is beating like a drum and the words 'I love you' rolling off my tongue.  Never will I go, for I found my perfect home.  Where the Ocean Meets the Sky, I'll be sailing."

Having been a boat bum for many years, that scene brings back fond memories and a few tears.

Bugsy's family, the Proctors in New Jersey, have two sons, Patrick and Jared.  Bugsy has claimed them and calls them his own.

BOB at Delaware County, Judge: J Council Parker

The Proctors call him 'the little black dog.'  He really isn't all that small, standing a good 30" tall at the shoulder, but in comparison with some of the other AKC greyhounds back there, he's on the small side.  That's frightening!

Bugsy finished his breed ring championship with style.  He was entered for three days of showing at some very tough events:  Greyhound Club of America's (GCA) Eastern Specialty, Morris & Essex, and Devon. Yikes!  These are shows that brig out the "big guns"...  the big handlers & the big time breeders...  Some of the dogs in attendance were bred by long time greyhound fanciers, not all of whom agreed with or approved of my judicious use of racing blood in the pedigrees.  Breeders such as Rosemary Connor (Amwell Ridge), Sue LeMieux (Gaia), etc. In fact, Ms. Connor (RIP) and Ms. LeMieux (RIP) were behind the most recent attempt to close the AKC studbook to dogs registered with the National Greyhound Association, the domestic registry for racing greyhounds.

Anyway, there was a last minute judge change.  Last minute in that due to weather conditions, the scheduled judge was not in attendance.  However, in attendance was Lena Tamboer, a borzoi breeder & AKC hound judge.  The competition was intense with entries from Cebar (Ellie Creech & Dani Edgerton), Chesagrey (Kat Whitaker), Classic (Cackie Vroom), Eden (Sally Taylor), Golightly (Stacy Pober), Grand Cru (Melanie Steele), Harmony (Cyndi Swanson), Willomoor (June Matarazzo & Patti Clark), and Windrock (Kim & Colin Fritzler).  And that's not all of them!

At the end of the day, Judge Tamboer awarded Bugsy Winners Dog for a 5 point major!  That was on 5 Oct 2005.

2005 GCA Eastern Specialty - Winners Dog - DM Ocean Meets T'Sky

Needless to say, Betsey Proctor was on Cloud 9, as was I. A Greyhound Specialty winner in my first litter and the 2nd to take an award at a GCA Specialty!  Earlier in the year, in March, at the GCA Southern Specialty held in Fort Worth, TX, Bugsy's littermate, Jib, was awarded First Award of Merit by noted breeder judge and open field competitor, George S. Bell.

However, that wasn't the end of the weekend as he still had to exhibit at Morris & Essex and then Devon on the last day. Two very tough shows...  The judge at Morris & Essex was Gayle Bontecou, a Scottish Deerhound breeder (Gayleward) & sighthound judge. The entries were pretty much the same as at the GCA specialty.  At the end of the judging, Ms. Bontecou awarded Bugsy, Winner Dog, for a 4 point major!  He finished!  The boy finished his championship and he did it at two of the biggest shows on the East coast against all comers!  Wahoo!!!!  (Can you tell I'm excited & proud of him?)  What a way to finish a breed championship!

Bugsy was retired from the breed ring not too long thereafter and he lived out the rest of his days with the Proctor family.  Sadly, he developed renal disease and died in 2009.  We do not know what contributed to the kidney disease, but suspect it was a consequence of some medication contraindicated for the use in which it was given.

All of us miss our Bugsy.