The Sun was barely starting to creep over the mountains to the east of the little town of Newton in beautiful Cache Valley, Utah. Our Utah Region of NSTRA was set to begin our 2020 Regional Elimination Trial, and it was going to be a wonderful Saturday where we all gathered together to crown our Region Champion. This is a trial by invitation only, and 24 of the top dogs from Utah were hoping to bring home that coveted title of Dog of the Year as well as High Point Dog of the Year. All 24 dogs had been on the podium this season, and this was going to be a shootout of the best of the best dogs from our region. Excitement and anticipation were building as each dog and handler knew this could be their day to win it all!

It was a playoff format. We would run 12 braces in the first round. Then only the top 6 scores would move on to the second round. The top 2 scores from the second round would move on to compete in an hour-long finale. That final hour would decide the 2020 Region Champion.

As tradition would have it the conditions at this trial can generally be hot and very dry. We wanted to do our very best to get the trial started early, hoping to beat the heat of the day, so handlers and dogs in the first brace were ready and in the blind by 6:30 am. Our bird planter Glenn Smith (who always tends to keep us guessing) was winding his way through the field planting the first brace. He gave the signal he was done, the handlers were called to the line, the dogs were sent, and our end of season trial was underway.

ROUND 1

Troy Anderson and his pointer Rowdy were braced against Kelly Irons and his shorthair Cinder. They both showed how lucky it can be to get drawn in that first brace of the day. Troy and Rowdy were lucky enough to find 3 birds for a score of 547.5 and Kelly and Cinder went 2/2 and a back for a score of 466. This would leave the rest of the field chasing them throughout the day as both scores would be enough to have them advance to round 2.

In the second brace Brad Jenkins and his veteran Brittany Deuce were able to find 2 birds and end with a score of 474. This would prove to be enough to later have them move on to the final 6 dogs.

The next few braces would prove to be tough as conditions started to change and dogs started to struggle. The heat settled in, the wind couldn’t decide between 50 mph gusts or dead stillness, and it wasn’t until brace 5 that we had Dan Felter and his dog Moose (1st runner up in last season’s elimination trial) put together a run of 2/2 and a back that would give them enough to move on to the next round.

The clouds rolled in and the wind settled for about 45 minutes in the middle of the day, which was all long time veteran player Bret Wonnacott and his wife Angie’s setter Sunnie needed, as in brace 7 they went out and put 4/4 on the card for a final score of 799 and the high score for round 1.

In brace 11 we had Rich Lowe and his awesome setter Flash have a run of 2/2 for a score of 468 that would be enough to put them in the final 6 dogs for a chance at the final.

We quickly completed the draw for the next round as the weather had changed drastically to rain and hail, making the final brace of the first round all but impossible. We all took cover for a brief moment while our Judge Lance Neilson came prepared with his umbrella and muck boots :).

ROUND 2

In round 2 we would see the first brace run by Brad Jenkins and his dog Deuce against Kelly Irons and Cinder. Kelly and Cinder were able to go 3/0 and a back for a score of 440. Brad and Deuce would get lucky and find 4 birds and go 4/4 to end with a score of 779.5.

The second brace of round 2 would be run by Troy Anderson and Rowdy going against Bret Wonnacott and Sunnie. Troy and Rowdy would find no birds and end with 150.5 as their score. Bret and Sunnie would again have the best run of the round with 4/4 and a back to get to a score of 820. Sunnie is an absolutely incredible dog and seems to always show why she is a multiple time champion.

The third brace of round 2 would be Dan Felter and Moose matched up against Rich Lowe and his dog Flash. Dan and Moose would find 2 birds and score 477 while Rich and Flash would find one bird to score 322.

The finale was set. We would have Brad Jenkins and his dog Deuce running against Bret Wonnacott and Sunnie for the final hour brace to decide the Champion.

ROUND 3

Brad and Bret have both played this game for a long time and it was fun to be able to watch two veteran handlers and two veteran dogs go head to head to decide the Champion.

As the field was set and both handlers and dogs in the blind, the call was made to come to the line. The handlers let their dogs loose and 15 steps later, Sunnie came skidding to a stop. Her Orange and white muzzle guiding Bret to their first find of the round. Deuce saw the happenings and was able to come in for a beautiful back. Once Sunnie retrieved the downed bird away they went to continue the brace and try to get the next find.

Bret and Sunnie headed to the back edge of the field where they were able to have another find for a score. Brad and Deuce headed right and tried their best to work the far south edge of the field, however the birds didn’t cooperate, and they could not find success. Bret and Sunnie then headed to the middle of the field and were able to locate a bird in the difficult, tall grass that had been swallowing dogs all day for bird number 3 of the brace.

Towards the end of the hour-long brace Brad and Deuce were able to find one bird before time ran out, however it would not be enough to beat Bret and Sunnie for the Championship.

As time expired it would be Brad and Deuce with 1/1 and a back to score 364. Bret and Sunnie would go 3/3 and a score of 575.5 and also had their required back from round 2 to become the Utah Region of NSTRA 2020 Champions. Congratulations to Bret and Angie and their dog Sunnie!

Sunnie also is our 2020 High Point Dog of the Year. (1^st Runner-up: Kid and Layne Peterson, 2^nd Runner-up tie: Sherlock / Barratt Gorshe; Boone / Jared Haddock). This is the 4^th time Sunnie has won the Regional title and the 3rd time she has been High Point Dog. We as a Region want to say Congrats again to Bret, Angie, and their amazing dog Sunnie. As handlers we all hope to get our “dog of a lifetime”, Sunnie is a dog of many lifetimes, and it has been a pleasure to watch her run and compete against her. We may very well never see a dog quite like Sunnie in this region again. Bret and Angie thanks so much for sharing her with all of us!

Thank you to everyone that worked so hard to make this trial happen. Thanks to our amazing presidency for all that you do for our region. A special thanks go out to our incredible judges Lance Neilson and Josh Morris, thank you for taking time to judge.

It was a very challenging season for all of us with the events of the COVID-19 pandemic, and we are extremely grateful for everyone being able and willing to adjust the schedule throughout the season. May you all stay healthy and happy until we all meet again in the winter for the next season and chapter of our Utah Region of NSTRA.

Take Care,

Lance Hansen