BigGameHoundsmen.com

Directions: North or South on I-5 to Willows, go West on Hwy 162 to the town of Elk Creek (about 28 miles) at the only stop sign there will be the first Field Trial sign pointing North, go North 6-7 miles following the signs you will see the signs pionting West it's about 2 miles to the grounds on the Whitney ranch, if you have any problems finding it go back to town and ask at the store they know the Whitneys and will piont you in the right direction, you can show up any time this week, there were some that were coming today but with the rain they may have changed there minds.
We will have the canopy's set up and will run rain or shine!

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Hi 58 °F Tonight


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Lo 40 °F Thursday


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Hi 54 °F Thursday
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Lo 42 °F Friday


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Hi 52 °F Friday
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Lo 38 °F Saturday


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Hi 52 °F Saturday
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Lo 38 °F Sunday


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This from the National Wheather Services web site, I've heard from several of the Houndsmen in Or. and Washington and they said they will be there rain or shine.

I heard the turn out wasn't even half as what it was last year.

There wasn't, only 3 out of my normal group of 20 came. Blame the rain becuase I'm sure they will, but I talked to a lot of people out there that had no idea of the changes, and said they aren't coming back next year. I myself went, and instead of entering 9, I entered 2 and 1 came in 3rd, I did not reenter him.
With all that being said, I liked the 2 bear races, and I didn't mind no qualifiers, but there only being 2 divisions really did shut people out early where they didn't mind leaving Saturday. ALOT of people left Sat. If you want a fun event that brings the family and keeps people supporting, you can't shut everyone down.

Its a shame to see events destroyed because someone wants to change something thats not broken . I remember the Kenton Nationals in Ohio a million dollar gold mine .They decided to change things and now after 30 plus years its gone. I hope this dosnt happen here .
When someone says if you dont like the way we run things dont come its time for that person to step down or be voted out.
I hope they see the light and change things back to the way people want. Hate to see an event pass into history because of lack of leadership .
I ran a business for years by makeing myself easy to do business with and watched businesses fail because the made things easy on themselfs .Same principal applies here.

Time to mend fences and invite the people back out to the event they love.If that means new leadership then thats what needs to be done.

Very well said slowansteady, its way gone when the leadership says if u don't like it don't come. It's post to be about raising money for the sport an when your telling people not to come.... Wow!

I am no vetren to these events, but had a great time despite busting my wallet, braving the weather, and saving my trailer auning at two am in the driving rain and wind. We sure savored the sunshine Sunday morning. The bear race my boy entered Blitz in went amazingly smooth. All the dogs lined up well and went... they came into the pole the same way. My friend and I brought out 4 kids under the age of 13 and it is clearly evident that to them there are two things in life... that would be Christmas and the Elk Creek Dog Trials!!

Good visiting you Walkerdog!! See you all out there again next year!!

Mark

.One and done is not are kind of fun..we wont be back intil all hounds have a fair chance,to be put in there right heats...are group of six trucks ran 15 plus hound last year and one this year..most guys pulled up there tents and were gone by one..Its was funny to watch some dogs run the quid track..What was real funny was that guy and wife put that pink pillow case over that dogs head at the bid trailer..me and my wife pulled out about 230..One and done is not are kind of fun...I hope they change it back.or it will be are last weekend there..

This year was close to being as big as last year, I was there all weekend, both years. I guarantee that a lot of what didn't show up WAS due to the weather. Only us clinicly insane stay in tents and tent trailers in pouring rain and 70mph winds for three days. I heard on Saturday they'd already made as much as they normally do? So the auctioning of all heats does benifit the club and save time.

My one complaint is there IS WAY TOO MANY DOGS in the finals. 10-12 dogs in a final should be max. 15-20 dogs is crazy. We do need to come together and find a way to reduce that number.

The bear races went way smoother, that part was great.

I entered 6 dogs and 4 made it into the finals. Two of those were puppies. So honestly I don't think the new format is too unfair. I also seen 3 greyhounds that smoked the dogs in there heats, and then NONE come in in the finals. I like the way the dogs are grouped (ie first lines together and all others drawn) that seemed to really make all the dogs in each division compareable. They came across the finish line neck and neck.

You guys that want try tell everybody how the changes in how we run things has recked this field trial should have looked around a little bit, I had over 20 Houndsmen come up and tell me how much they liked the changes and how smooth the entrire field trial ran even with the 50-60 mile an hour winds that destroyed the canopys, the pooring ass rain and hail that dumped over an inch of rain in 20 minutes in the middle of the finals and turned the main road into the camp site's into a mud bog we still had just over 300 dogs entered in the field trial and 59 dogs ran in the 2 bear races.

If the few of you guy's that have all the answers can do better then you need to step up or shut up!!!

That's what I'm saying Dale. I liked the old way. But the new way worked out. We saved a lot of time, but we were still running dogs at almost dark, seemed like a LOT of dogs to me. The finals weren't over until after 4pm on Sunday. I guess everyone wanted to stay until 8pm and get POURED on the whole time... I would like to see a way to cut back the numbers in the final, but still have it be fair, like it is now. Gotta be a way we can come up with something. We've got a whole year though.

Not sure how everyone keeps saying there was only two divisions and everyone got shut out?

There were 5 final divisions. 3 of those were made up of dogs that got in by second line, or by tree. I got two 10 month old pups into the final, one of which came in 5th or 6th out of 20 dogs in the finals. Don't see how thats shutting anyone out? If they didn't make it into the finals, then they probably aren't very good field trial dogs. Not everyone made it into the finals the old way either. Plus this year you had a chance to enter your dog THREE times, not two. The club made more money on auction, and we didn't have to run dogs until 9pm.

These guy's don't understand that the qualifacation races wasn't for anything but where they ran in the field trial, so one and done this year was the same as a qualifaction race plus one and done last year. I also had a 10 month old pup make the finals and had 2 others of mine that don't make the finals to often make it this year.

I would have liked to have 10-12 dogs in each of the finals also but to do that we would ether have to add about 6 semi's for the five finals and stay until 8:00pm like you said, or have 14-16 dogs in each heat would would have ment less dogs making the finals and more whining about one and done!

I'd like to try and keep the whinning down if we can!!!

Dale T wrote:These guy's don't understand that the qualifacation races wasn't for anything but where they ran in the field trial, so one and done this year was the same as a qualifaction race plus one and done last year. I also had a 10 month old pup make the finals and had 2 others of mine that don't make the finals to often make it this year.

I would have liked to have 10-12 dogs in each of the finals also but to do that we would ether have to add about 6 semi's for the five finals and stay until 8:00pm like you said, or have 14-16 dogs in each heat would would have ment less dogs making the finals and more whining about one and done!

I'd like to try and keep the whinning down if we can!!!

So anyone that dosnt see things your way is whineing ?
Guess your talking to a stone wall here that is dead sure anything he says or does is right and all others are wrong. Good luck you guys will need it

Tell you what slownsteady I'm on my third and last year as President of North Central per our bylaws, in this time we have had the biggest Field trial that this club has ever had, now we meet the 1st Tuesday of every month at the pizza round up in Loma Rica at 7:30 why don't you show up and tell us how your going to step up and put in the hours of work it takes for each of the Field Trials laying out tracks , setting up the grounds, working on the trailer , making and setting up then taking down the signs, scheduling the porta pottties, the drag boy, working with F&G to get the grounds, the auctioner. starting almost every race and being at every tree, working on the rules we run under to try and make them fair for as many as we can, then dealing with the whinning from the few who don't step up but are the few that are the first to get behind there key board under a screen name and WHIIIIIIIIIINE!