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Event: Spring Open Shooting Dog Classic
Result: Moose River Grouse Dog Club

Location: Moose Junction, Wisconsin

Post Date: May 21, 2024

Submitted By: Greg Johnson

Moose Classic Open Shooting DogS224

Moose Classic Open Shooting Dog (l-r): Greg Johnson with Northwoods Atlas, Tim Kaufman with Lake Effect Ali, and Jeff Sullivan with Jewett's Creek Beauty.

The 2024 Moose River Grouse Classic was held April 19-21 on Douglas County Forest land in far Northwestern Wisconsin near Moose Junction, Wisconsin. These grounds are constantly being worked and changed and consistently hold good numbers of grouse and woodcock, and this spring was no exception. This spring's trial included the annual Moose River Grouse Classic, Open Derby, and a 30-minute Open Shooting Dog. We had 66 dogs entered in the three stakes, so it was a very busy weekend. Special thanks go out to the Moose Junction Lounge and Campground for all they did to help make this a very successful event. We want to thank our club members Bill Frahm, Sig Degitz, Tim Kaufman, Ed Graddy, and Greg Johnson for running a great event.
In addition, we would like to thank the people from the other local clubs who helped this past summer in getting our grounds ready for these events, including Bert Benshoof, Ben Mergens, Colin Peterson, and Jeff Marek.

Shooting Dog Classic
We were lucky enough to have two very good judges for our Classic, and we would like to thank them for their hard work and attentiveness during this quality stake. Jerry Kolter from Sandstone, Minnesota, is a legend in the cover dog world, and it was great to see him back in the woods judging. With him was another very seasoned judge, Joe Landowski from Howard Lake, Minnesota, who has run dogs and judged in these events for many years.

Northwoods Atlas ("Jet"), handled by Greg Johnson, was named the winner of this year's Moose River Shooting Dog Classic, and it was the third win of the spring trial season for this setter male. Jet had a very forward race, almost always at the edge of the bell. He had two evenly spaced finds of both grouse and woodcock and handled them perfectly with great style on point. He finished strong with a run like a true field trial dog.
Second place went to setter female Lake Effect Ali, handled by Tim Kaufman. Ali had two beautiful grouse finds early in her brace and looked fantastic on both points. She had a good mix of working closer in the cover and bigger, bolder moves where appropriate, and she also finished very strong.
The third-place dog was a pointer female Jewett's Creek Beauty, handled by Jeff Sullivan. Beauty has also had a strong spring trial season, and this trial was no exception. She did an excellent job of hitting good cover with a good ground race and managed to dig out a woodcock and a grouse on her brace.

Moose Junction, Wis., April 19
Judges: Jerry Kolter and Joe Landowski
OPEN SHOOTING DOG CLASSIC [One-Hour Heats] - 4 Pointers and 19 Setters
1st-NORTHWOODS ATLAS, 1674557, setter male, by Northwoods Grits-Northwoods Nickel. Greg Johnson, owner and handler.
2d-LAKE EFFECT ALI, 1688438, setter female, by Northern Lights Sirius-Lake Effect Tilly. Tim Kaufman, owner and handler.
3d-JEWETT'S CREEK BEAUTY, 1703337, pointer female, by Toth's Tornado Reloaded-Grouse Trails Warrior Cat. Jeff Sullivan, owner and handler.

Open Derby
The Open Derby had a strong field of 21 dogs, and our judges were a good pairing with Bill Frahm of Minong, Wisconsin, and Colin Peterson of Colfax, Wisconsin. Bill is a very well-respected judge who has handled multiple champions and has judged multiple championships over the years. Colin is newer to the judging game but has run dogs for many years and was a welcome addition to our trial.
High Point's Snowman Fred, a setter male handled by Ben Brettingen, was the Open Derby winner. Fred ran very hard for his entire brace and, with that drive, also managed to stay forward very nicely throughout. He hit the known covers and showed very good promise as a young derby dog.
Second place went to pointer male Northwoods Paco, handled by Josh Matel. Paco also had a nice, hard race and excellent ground speed. This was a very biddable dog that showed well for our two judges.
The third-place dog was Faith's Texas Tryst, handled by Brad Holt. This pointer female stayed forward with a very nice gait. She had very large casts during her brace, fading in and out of the bell but maintaining contact with her handler.

Judges: Bill Frahm and Colin Peterson
OPEN DERBY - 6 Pointers and 15 Setters
1st-HIGH POINT'S SNOWMAN FRED, 1709644, setter male, by Ponderosa Mac-I'm Blue Who. Ben Brettingen, owner and handler.
2d-NORTHWOODS PACO, 1711284, pointer male, by Southern Confidence-Northwoods Comet. Josh Matel, owner and handler.
3d-FAITH'S TEXAS TRYST, 1705091, pointer female, by Just Win Chester-Chapel Fork Faith. Brad Holt, owner and handler.
Judges: Greg Johnson and Kyle Peterson
OPEN SHOOTING DOG - 5 Pointers and 10 Setters
1st-PLANET QUEEN, 1702708, setter female, by Rufus Del Fuego-Stumbo's Scarlet. Scott Anderson, owner and handler.
2d-WOODS R CALLIN APOLLO, 1695053, setter male, by Northern Lights Sirius-Lake Effect Tilly. William Frahm, owner and handler.
3d-KONA'S BLUE SKYE, 1688883, setter female, by Northwoods Sir Gordon-I'm Blue Who. A. J. Kalupa, owner and handler.

Moose Classic-Open DerbyS24

Open Derby (front, l-r): Ben Brettingen with High Point's Snowman Fred, Josh Matel with Northwoods Paco, and Brad Holt with Faith's Texas Tryst. (Standing): Colin Peterson (judge) and Bill Frahm (judge).