Result: Beaverton Grouse Dog Club

Location: Meredith, Michigan

Post Date: May 11, 2026

Submitted By: Tom Fruchey

Eaton Spring Derby Classic (l-r): Ken Moss with Moss Meadow Searcher, Shane Haskin (judge), Frank Ilijanic with Northwoods Wanderlust, Marc Dozeman (judge), and Travis Whitfield with Highfive's Raising Cain.

The Beaverton Grouse Dog Club held its annual spring trial April 17-19 on the famed grounds of the Gladwin Field Trial area near Meredith, Michigan. The weather for the trial was warm and dry, and while very nice for the people, the dogs found it challenging to find and handle wild birds. Under the direction of President Shane Haskin, the event went off very smoothly, making for a very enjoyable weekend in the grouse woods.

We want to extend our thanks to our most gracious sponsor, Purina, who has supported our sport for many years and continues to offer programs and awards, helping to allow clubs to host good-quality field trials and continue to see the sport flourish. The Hollisters still provide high-quality mounts for the judges to ride. We thank them very much for this top-quality service that we never take for granted.

The Saturday night steak fry was the highlight of the trial; more than 40 people attended and enjoyed a perfectly grilled steak by Chef Moss, along with beans, potatoes, salads, and sweets, along with cocktails, making for a very nice social gathering. Fun was had by all!

Jeff Sweet and Travis Whitfield graciously accepted the role to judge the third running of the Wayne Fruchey Open Shooting Dog Classic. This year, 39 entries took to the field, and the weather was very warm and dry, making it hard to locate and point wild birds. "Rip," a powerful, strong pointer male owned by Brian Ralph and handled by veteran pro Scott Chaffee, stepped up to the challenge and ran a very nice race, and was able to locate, point, and handle a woodcock to capture the title. Second place went to "Mac," a very nice setter male owned and handled by Marc Dozeman. During the heat of the day, Mac was able to pin a woodcock and finished his 30 minutes nicely. Rounding out the placements was "Sadie," a classy setter female owned by William Yant and handled by Scott Chaffee. Sadie hunted hard and smoothly and was able to dig up a woodcock in the 17th brace of the stake to take home the yellow ribbon.

The Michigan Grouse Dog Puppy Classic Ran on Friday. While the quantity of contenders was low, the quality was extremely high. Eight young grouse dogs went to the line, and six of these could have claimed the title. Hairs had to be split by the judges, who were Ken Moss of Mt. Pleasant and Brent Peters of Gladwin, to make the separations between the placements. The dog earning the top spot was "Mercy," a very nice pointer female owned and handled by Ken DeLong. Mercy was forward, fast, and classy, always showing at the right place at the right time. Second place was awarded to "CJ," a very nice setter male owned by Steve Colvert and handled by Scott Chaffee. CJ negotiated the puppy course well and showed great potential for future placements. Third place went to "Braveheart," a very classy setter male owned by Jack McNulty and handled by Adam Dubriske. He ran strong, showing to the front and showed a lot of promise for the future.

The Eaton Spring Derby Classic started at 8 a.m. on Saturday on Course 13. The judges for this year's classic were Shane Haskin and Marc Dozeman. Capturing the title was "Searcher," a very nice setter male owned and handled by Ken Moss. He ran extremely well and had a broke grouse find towards the end of his run. Second place went to "Ruby," a very nice pointer female owned and handled by the club's newest member, Frank Ilijanic. She put down a very stylish forward race and had a nice woodcock find. Third place was awarded to "Cain," a very young, stylish pointer male owned and handled by Travis Whitfield. Cain ran strong and pointed a woodcock during his brace to round out the placements in this large 29-dog Derby stake!
The Amateur Shooting dog ran on Sunday and drew 24 dogs. Judging the event were two of our local pro trainers, Scott Chaffee and Rich Hollister, who were very attentive and helpful to the amateurs in the stake. First place was awarded to "Star" with a snappy fast forward race coupled with a gorgeous grouse find, and also a nice woodcock find. Star was handled by owner Chuck Rowling. Second place went to "Seeker," a well-known setter male owned and handled by Ken Moss. He had a strong forward race with a very nice woodcock find. "Cooper," a very fast forward running Brittany male owned and handled by Eric Naus, took home third place honors with a good woodcock find and nice strong forward race.

The Beaverton Club would once again like to thank our judges who volunteered their time and talents to help make the trial a huge success. For our sport to continue, we all need to give some of our time back to it, as these fine gentlemen did this year!

Meredith, Mich., April 17
Judges: Marc Dozeman and Shane Haskin
EATON SPRING DERBY CLASSIC - 13 Pointers and 16 Setters
1st-MOSS MEADOW SEARCHER, F1709320, setter male, by Moss Meadow Seeker-Tupelo Honey. Ken Moss, owner and handler.
2d-NORTHWOODS WANDERLUST, F1722885, pointer female, by Confident Nation-Northwoods Comet. Frank Ilijanic, owner and handler.
3d-HIFIVE'S RAISING CAIN, F1722002, pointer male, by Ralphy's Chasehill Rip-Hifive's Unsweetened Brandy. Travis Whitfield, owner and handler.

Wayne Fruchey Open Shooting Dog Classic (l-r): Scott Chaffee with Ralphy's Chasehill Rip, Tom Fruchey, Marc Dozeman with Moss Mac Daddy, Travis Whitfield (judge), and Ken Moss with Meadowink Rae of Sunshine.

Judges: Jeff Sweet and Travis Whitfield
20TH WAYNE FRUCHEY OPEN SHOOTING DOG CLASSIC - 10 Pointers, 28 Setters, and 1 Brittany
1st-RALPHY'S CHASEHILL RIP, F1697746, pointer male, by Panola Bacon-Chasehill Little Izzy. Brian Ralph, owner; Scott Chaffee, handler.
2d-MOSS MAC DADDY, F1686015, setter male, by Ponderosa Mac-Moss Meadow Lil. Marc Dozeman, owner and handler.
3d-MEADOWINK RAE OF SUNSHINE, F1705287, setter female, by Dun Rovens Zip-Castle Rock's Autumn Breeze. William Yant III, owner; Scott Chaffee, handler.

Michigan Grouse Dog Puppy Classic (l-r): Ken DeLong with Lucy's Just Have Mercy, Brent Peters (judge), Scott Chaffee with Pigeon Creek CJ, Ken Moss (judge), and Adam Dubriske with Mooselook Tina's Braveheart.

Judges: Ken Moss and Brent Peters
45TH MICHIGAN GROUSE DOG PUPPY CLASSIC - 2 Pointers and 6 Setters
1st-LUCY'S JUST HAVE MERCY, F1723542, pointer female, by Highbanks Final Justice-Highbanks Diamond Lucy. Kenric DeLong, owner and handler.
2d-PIGEON CREEK CJ, F1719455, setter male, by Ponderosa Mac-Lockwood Mae. Steve Colvert, owner; Scott Chaffee, handler.
3d-MOOSELOOK TINA'S BRAVEHEART, F1723237, setter male, by Super Storm Cliff-North Country Shooting Star. Jack McNulty, owner; Adam Dubriske, handler.

Judges: Scott Chaffee and Richard Hollister
AMATEUR SHOOTING DOG - 5 Pointers, 17 Setters, and 2 Brittanys
1st-ROWLING'S STAR, F1675772, setter female, by Long Gone Studly-Rowling's Nike. Chuck Rowling, owner and handler.
2d-MOSS MEADOW SEEKER, F1676726, setter male, by Moss Meadow Rambler-Moss Meadow Maggie. Ken Moss, owner and handler.
3d-GLENRAE'S COOPER TOO, F1705703, Brittany male, by Anchor's Lucky Numbers-Maddie May Dogwood. Eric Naus, owner and handler.

Amateur Shooting Dog (l-r): Chuck Rowling with Rowling's Star, Scott Chaffee (judge), Ken Moss with Moss Meadow Seeker, Rich Hollister (judge), Eric Naus with Glenrae's Copper Too, and Denise Peters.