Quite a number of dogs had long hunts and needed to be handled on the long go-bird, and many dogs also had long hunts on the second bird.

The blind was approximately 100 yards long, with the line to the bird to the left of the second mark, just angling closely across the ditch in front of the handler. A perfect line would see the dog running 20 yards the left of the ditch, then through the ditch for about 40 yards, and finishing the remaining 40 yards on the right of the ditch. Thus the angle through the ditch was very thin.

Marshall's commentary: Series One Commentary En francais

Chairman's message En Francais

Video of the test

Series Two (Tuesday August 20): Water Triple with Hot Blind

Photo: Benoit St. Amand

This water series is being held at the site labelled Water 1. Winds began from the southeast and shifted to the east as the day went on. It is a triple, with a hot blind. First bird was thrown on the right at 49 yards, then the middle bird at 63, landing in cover, and then the go bird was thrown just along the shoreline to the left at 46 yards. The line to the blind is between marks two and three. Eight dogs were dropped at the conclusion of this series. Two of them broke, four were picked up by their handlers, and others had significant difficulty with the blind. Twenty-two are back tomorrow to do the upland test at site Land Three.

Video of the test dog

Marshall's video commentary on Series Two En francais

Chairman's message En francais

Series Three (Wednesday August 21): Upland Test

This test is being held at the site labelled Land 3. It was a hot and humid day for the dogs--30C, with the humidex reaching 40C at times. Once a few technical kinks were worked out the birds flew well and from all accounts the dogs had a blast hunting them up. For five dogs the excitement was just too much and they were unable to remain steady on the flush. That brings seventeen dogs back to a land series at site Land 2 tomorrow morning.

Marshall's video commentary on Series Three En francais

Chairman's commentary En francais

Video of the test

Series Four (Thursday August 22): Land Triple with Blind and Honour

This series simulated a field hunt. The handler and a live gunner using a shotgun with poppers and caller stood in a brushed out blind made on a Zinger Blind base. They added some excitement by calling out "Take 'em" to simulate a flock of birds coming into the decoys. The dog sat just outside the blind to the left of the handler.

The first mark was the shortest and thrown right to left from a bush out in front of the hunting blind at 32 yards. The second mark was thrown left-to-right from behind another bush out at 79 yards in the field. Then the dog had to swing all the way to the right to see the go bird thrown deep, in front of a row of taller grass at 42 yards. Once the marks were retrieved, the handler took the dog behind the hunting blind while the bird for the blind retrieve was planted. The blind was planted deep and to the left of the bush from which M2 was thrown, at 92 yards, requiring the dog to pass just under the arc of the short mark, and past the back of the hidden gun station for M2.

Two dogs were dropped at the end of this series, leaving 15 back for the final series on Friday. From the marshall's commentary it appears the dogs did quite well on the marks, and it was a break on the honour which eliminated Ronin and Stella.

Video of Test Dog One

Video of Test Dog Two

Marshall's commentary on Series Four En francais

Chairman's commentary En francais

Series Five: Water Triple with Blind

 The judges have set up a triple with a blind for today. Marks are thrown right, centre and then left, with an extra gunshot between the right and centre marks. Handlers have been instructed to pick up the mark of their choice, and then run the blind, then pick up the remaining two marks. Winds blowing strongly from right to left across the test.  The first three test dogs could not complete the test successfully, so this has some meat to it!!

At the conclusion of this test, ten dogs have qualified to earn the NHM title.  Names to be provided soon!!

Video of the Marks

Video of the Blind

Marshall's Commentary  En francais

Chairman's message  En francais

And the Qualifiers are:

DRUM ROLL PLEASE!!! And the qualifying dogs and their handlers are:

#30 Fen & Louise Thorpe

#31 Gucci & Danny Lemay

Congrats to all the qualifiers, and also to the other five finalists: Boone/Benoit St. Amand, Prunelle/Yvan Morissette, Shiraz/Gilles Poulin, Liam/Maggie Trottmann, and Sako/Mario Beauregard. Some very good teams there.

Well done and very proud of you all!