On Wednesday, November 17, 2010, Pine Straw Katydid was named Runner Up Champion at the National Amateur Grouse Championship that was held near Marienville, Pennsylvania. There were 69 dogs drawn for this cover dog event that lasted most of 5 days. Katie was in the 33rd brace, which ended up being the last brace due to a few dogs being withdrawn. Katie ran hard and tore through the cover. She had 1 grouse pointed about half way through the brace and one at the buzzer. I knew Katie had the breeding (CH Chip's Uncle Buzzie X Sky's Blue Belle) but she's been running horseback for the last year, so I wasn't sure how she'd do back in the woods. Anyway I want to say thanks to some of the really nice people that have helped me along the way: Chip for his mentoring, coaching, and help giving Katie a brush-up on grouse; Steve for breeding this great little dog and giving me advice along the way; Jamie Fountain for handling Katie in the horseback events and keeping the edge on her; Gus for scouting and buying dinner; Craig for his advice and thoughts on breeding; the Formans for their coaching; all of the people that worked to put on the NAGC; and especially the judges for selecting RU CH Pine Straw Katydid. There were so many nice people that made the experience even better, from the judges that were approachable and helpful, to competitors that were fair, honest and sincere in their congratulations.
