Level 1
1 Laura Williams and Jess – 100
2 Steph Rendall and Freyja – 100
3 Lucy Davis and Callie – 99.95
4 Emma Rebbetts and Murphy – 99.95
5 Rita Banfather and Elliott – 99.75
6 Linda Hams and Sonic – 99.75
7 Emily Jane Meadows and Crosby – 99.7
8 Claire Grainger and Cora – 99.35
9 Vicky Lawes and Neo – 99
10 Val Isherwood and Trio – 99
11 Diane Botting and Boris – 99
12 Rosemary Jackson and Trev – 58
Level 4
1 Kym Salisbury and Max – 97.5
2 Val Isherwood and Heike – 87
3 Harold Latusek and Rosie – 79.45
4 Gloria Bonnell and Jade – 78.5
5 Deborah Palmer and Majic – 69.95
6 Lorraine Coley and Chester – 69.95
7 Helen Soper and Toby – 69.75
8 Emma Conlisk and Danny – 69.75
9 Lynn Bell and Google – 63
10 Jean Payne and Otti – 58.5
11 Ingrid Neale and Teazle – 57.25
12 John Hearn and Skip – 56.95
After all the weeks (if not months) of preparation the big day of the first Greensand K9s Scentwork UK Trial at Totternhoe dawned frosty and clear. My judges Heather Donnelly and Ali Brannen and team of helpers arrived promptly and all pulled together to cope with deciding on the best location for the vehicle searches, while setting up the indoor search, the kitchen, and parking early arrivals simultaneously. Lessons learned for the future but despite some ‘teething problems’ we were up and running on time.
Level Four ran first. Vehicle and Table/Chairs/Perimeter searches ran simultaneously and then Exterior and Container searches. Four out of the twelve teams qualified and accordingly all gained places. I understand that the Vehicle search in particular proved very challenging in the cold conditions and this had taken its toll. I look forward to reading the Judges’ Reports. Scores were totalled and the presentations completed in time for the team to have a short lunch break before Level One began.
Level One had originally been planned as a Pre Trial. When two competitors pulled out leaving only four Pre Triallists I took the decision to upgrade the trial to Level One. Three of the four Pre Triallists bravely decided to ‘give Level One a go’ alongside a mix of other first timers and some more experienced Level One triallists, four of whom were potential candidates for an Excellent award.
Once again we started on time at which point the weather took a dramatic turn for the worse. We ran Vehicle and Container searches simultaneously, followed by Exterior/Tables and Chairs. Dogs and handlers worked both outdoor searches in pouring, cold rain. All competitors remained cheerful and in good spirits and all but one team qualified. There were lots of happy faces at the presentation, and this was good to see. Two Level One Excellent awards were presented, to Emma Rebbetts and her Springador Murphy and to Steph Rendall and her Jack Russell Freyja. Congratulations both and best of luck in Level Two.
The local farmer had kindly provided the use of his adjacent field for additional parking/dog exercise. The final drama of the day was that some vehicles got stuck trying to get out of the field because the ground had become soggy thanks to the downpour. Once again everyone pushed and pulled together and all competitors were soon safely on their way home.
Big ‘thank you’s are due to everyone who supported me before, during, and after this trial. Rita Banfather who uses the venue to host Working Trials, is due a huge vote of thanks for encouraging and supporting me in this venture from the beginning to the very end of the day yesterday as well as working as a morning Runner. I am most grateful that my judges Heather and Ali were able and willing to judge for me. Your experience and support throughout the day was greatly appreciated by competitors as well as by yours truly. Another vote of thanks to experienced Scentwork UK Trial Manager Karen Denton whose trials I have always enjoyed. She kindly shared thoughtful advice when I asked her and also allowed me to shadow her at one of her trials so that I could ‘learn the ropes’ in practice. Hazell Williamson (morning and afternoon Runner) and Maggie Wills (morning and afternoon Scribe) helped all day and were absolutely brilliant. And last but by no means least, Vicky Lawes and Julia Wood both did sterling jobs as first time Scribes.
Well done to all competitors, whether or not you took ribbons home. And huge congratulations are due to our winners Kym Salisbury with Max (Level Four) and Laura Williams with Jess (Level One), both Border Collies. Well done!
Kathy Killick
Ali Brannen – L1
First off I would like to thank Kathy Killick for asking me to judge this level 1 trial. Also thanks to my fellow judge Heather Donnelly, my scribe Vicky and to Hazell Williamson for running.
I was tasked with the outside searches and I definitely drew the short straw as just after scenting up the vehicle, it started raining and it just didn’t stop. Fortunately most of the teams seemed eager to get the outside searches over and get back into the dry and warm so the searching was pretty speedy. The scent was hidden on the hub of the front wheel. 12/12 teams were successful and these were Emma & Murphy, Steph & Freyja, Vicky & Neo, Linda & Sonic, Val & Trio, Emily & Crosby, Rita & Elliott, Rosemary & Trev, Laura & Jess, Lucy & Callie, Claire & Dora, and Diane & Boris.
Then it was on to the exterior search (still raining)! The scent was hidden in the head of a vacuum cleaner. The searching was getting harder as some dogs just didn’t want to work in the awful weather and some teams were distracted by the search area itself. However 11/12 teams were successful and they were Emma & Murphy, Steph & Freyja, Vicky & Neo, Linda & Sonic, Val & Trio, Emily & Crosby, Rita & Elliot, Laura & Jess, Lucy & Callie, Claire & Cora and Diane & Boris.
11/12 teams qualified for this level 1 with 1st place going to Laura & Jess, 2nd Steph & Freya, 3rd Lucy & Callie and 4th to Emma & Murphy. Huge congratulations to everyone else who took part and to all those that qualified. The standard was incredibly high for this level, and the outside searches were quite hard due to the awful weather. So well done for sticking in there.
Also thanks to everyone who stayed behind to push the vehicles off the field ensuring everyone got out ok. Teamwork at its finest.
A white dog was used on all searches.
Ali Brannen – L4
First off I would like to thank Kathy Killick for asking me to judge this trial, her first trial in fact. Thanks also to my fellow judge Heather Donnelly, runners Hazell Williamson & Rita Banafather, also thanks to my scribe Vicky.
I was tasked with the interior searches so we started with Tables, chairs & perimeter. The distraction scents used were dog bedding and coffee. The perimeter hide was hidden on a stereo on the right side of the search area, and the second scent was hidden on the 5th chair at the back of the tables. 8/12 teams found both scents and they were John & Skip, Deborah & Majic, Val & Heike, Harry & Rosie, Kym & Max, Helen & Toby, Lorraine & Chester, and Lynn & Google. 4/12 teams found 1 scent and they were Gloria & Jade, Jean & Otti, Emma & Danny and Ingrid & Teazle.
Then it was on to the boxes and luggage search. One scent was hidden in a box seam at the back of the search area, the second scent was hidden in the zip of a handbag. The distractions scents were coffee and dog bedding. 11/12 teams were successful in finding both hides and they were Jean & Otti, Val & Heike, Helen & Toby, Ingrid & Teazle, Harry & Rosie, Deborah & Majic, Emma & Danny, Gloria & Jade, Kym & Max, Lorraine & Chester and Lynn & Google. 1/12 teams found one scent and that was John & Skip.
Fortunately most dogs seemed to manage these searches very well, with only a couple being distracted by dog bedding. The handling I saw was very good and I felt that all the teams worked very hard. Unfortunately the weather conditions seemed to be hampering the searches outside so that we ended up with only 4 qualifiers on the day.
So congratulations to Kym & Max on 1st place, Val & Heike in 2nd, Harry & Rosie in 3rd and Gloria & Jade in 4th place. Well done to all competitors who took part in this level 4, and I look forward to seeing you all in the future.
A white dog was used in all search areas.
Heather Donnelly
It was a privilege to judge, alongside my co judge Ali Brannen the L1 & L4 trial for first time trials organiser Kathy Killick. Kathy was very thoughtful as to the success of this trial making sure that the organisation was perfect by having ample helpers which we are all truly grateful for.
Also thank you to Rita for organising the hall and field parking, Maggie for scribing all day for me and Hazel Williamson for running duties all day and even managing to work Teddy as the white dog. Thank you all for contributing to a successful first trial for Kathy.
I judged the L4 exterior searches and we had a frosty start with no breeze changing to a very light breeze that seemed to cause problems for most of the dogs. Out of 12 entries only 2 teams found both articles with the majority not finding any at all. This was no reflection on the ability of the dog’s entered but those dogs that didn’t manage a direct ‘nose on’ and relied on the wind seemed to be at a disadvantage today. However those that succeeded were Kym & Max who ran second and then later on Val & Heike. Kym is very skilled at knowing Max’s needs assisting only when necessary and also Kym’s very calm composure made this team a worthy winner of the top award well done. Val & Heike came home a very credible 2nd place and Val’s very sympathetic handling of Heike when a passing car back firing was also a credit to Val’s partnership with this sensitive dog, a very well deserved 2nd place. Harry with Rosie came home 3rd who also sensitively steered Rosie around the vehicle illustrating a very detailed and systematic vehicle search coverage well done. 4th place was Gloria and Jade who managed to keep their cool during the ‘Exterior Search’ the last search and needing both finds. Jade did a very impressive free search to the first article and it was Gloria’s very good reading of her dog that allowed her to be successful with finding the second scented article. Well done
I was fortunate to judge the interior searches for the L1’s and we started with the boxes & luggage. I must say that the standard of searching was exceptionally high for a L1. All except for one qualifying and yet the team that didn’t quite make it was unlucky as the first search was very well executed. You will get there in the not too distant future I am sure.
The winner was Laura & Jess and this team was very businesslike in the way they came approached both searches. Jess knew the task ahead with Laura, although keeping a close eye on Jess, allowed Jess the freedom to take control of the search. Well done. 2nd was Steph and Freya who can only be described as a whirling dervish the way this little dog searches. It appears that Freya thinks that she has to find the scented article in record time meaning Steph has to be exceptionally quick and skilled with her line handling. This team went on to gain there ‘Ex’ title and this only being Freya’s 2nd trial so well done. 3rd Lucy & Callie a very neat and tidy performance with this enthusiastic parson JRT illustrating what a talented search dog Callie is, both searches were faultless enabling this team to gain full marks. 4th was Emily & Murphy also gaining their ‘Ex’ title on the day. Again a very structured approach to both searches, just losing minor marks which I know Emily will sort out in her training in readiness for the next trial. Well done.
| T&C - A/F | T&C - H | T&C - T | ES - A/F | ES - H | ES - T | VS - A/F | VS - H | VS - T | B&L - A/F | B&L - H | B&L - T | Marks | Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A/F = Alert Find | H = Handling | T = Time (seconds) | |||||||||||||
| Tables & Chairs | Exterior Search | Vehicle Search | Boxes & Luggage | Totals | |||||||||||
| Level 1 | A/F | H | T | A/F | H | T | A/F | H | T | A/F | H | T | Marks | Time | |
| 1 | Laura Williams and Jess | 20 | 5 | 18 | 20 | 5 | 9 | 20 | 5 | 34 | 20 | 5 | 18 | 100 | 79 |
| 2 | Steph Rendall and Freyja | 20 | 5 | 25 | 20 | 5 | 23 | 20 | 5 | 25 | 20 | 5 | 24 | 100 | 97 |
| 3 | Lucy Davis and Callie | 20 | 5 | 20 | 20 | 4.95 | 57 | 20 | 5 | 12 | 20 | 5 | 26 | 99.95 | 115 |
| 4 | Emma Rebbetts and Murphy | 20 | 5 | 30 | 20 | 4.95 | 54 | 20 | 5 | 37 | 20 | 5 | 14 | 99.95 | 135 |
| 5 | Rita Banfather and Elliott | 20 | 5 | 47 | 20 | 5 | 55 | 20 | 5 | 19 | 20 | 4.75 | 25 | 99.75 | 146 |
| 6 | Linda Hams and Sonic | 20 | 5 | 19 | 20 | 4.75 | 129 | 20 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 5 | 20 | 99.75 | 183 |
| 7 | Emily Jane Meadows and Crosby | 20 | 5 | 29 | 20 | 4.95 | 53 | 20 | 5 | 25 | 20 | 4.75 | 27 | 99.7 | 134 |
| 8 | Claire Grainger and Cora | 20 | 4.85 | 32 | 20 | 5 | 22 | 20 | 5 | 20 | 20 | 4.5 | 31 | 99.35 | 105 |
| 9 | Vicky Lawes and Neo | 20 | 5 | 42 | 20 | 5 | 52 | 20 | 4 | 15 | 20 | 5 | 38 | 99 | 147 |
| 10 | Val Isherwood and Trio | 20 | 4.75 | 46 | 20 | 4.5 | 27 | 20 | 5 | 110 | 20 | 4.75 | 92 | 99 | 275 |
| 11 | Diane Botting and Boris | 20 | 5 | 47 | 20 | 4.75 | 67 | 20 | 4.75 | 162 | 20 | 4.5 | 70 | 99 | 346 |
| 12 | Rosemary Jackson and Trev | 0 | 3.5 | 82 | 0 | 5 | 33 | 20 | 5 | 32 | 20 | 4.5 | 23 | 58 | 170 |
| Level 4 | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | Kym Salisbury and Max | 20 | 4.75 | 126 | 20 | 4 | 289 | 20 | 4 | 202 | 20 | 4.75 | 202 | 97.5 | 819 |
| 2 | Val Isherwood and Heike | 20 | 5 | 87 | 10 | 4 | 14 | 20 | 3 | 170 | 20 | 5 | 80 | 87 | 351 |
| 3 | Harold Latusek and Rosie | 20 | 5 | 77 | 10 | 4.75 | 151 | 10 | 4.75 | 289 | 20 | 4.95 | 214 | 79.45 | 731 |
| 4 | Gloria Bonnell and Jade | 10 | 4.75 | 42 | 20 | 4.75 | 126 | 10 | 4 | 156 | 20 | 5 | 45 | 78.5 | 369 |
| 5 | Deborah Palmer and Majic | 20 | 5 | 78 | 10 | 5 | 111 | 0 | 5 | 136 | 20 | 4.95 | 61 | 69.95 | 386 |
| 6 | Lorraine Coley and Chester | 20 | 5 | 184 | 10 | 5 | 149 | 0 | 5 | 107 | 20 | 4.95 | 88 | 69.95 | 528 |
| 7 | Helen Soper and Toby | 20 | 5 | 76 | 10 | 5 | 106 | 0 | 4.75 | 209 | 20 | 5 | 66 | 69.75 | 457 |
| 8 | Emma Conlisk and Danny | 10 | 4.75 | 142 | 20 | 5 | 87 | 0 | 5 | 300 | 20 | 5 | 78 | 69.75 | 607 |
| 9 | Lynn Bell and Google | 20 | 5 | 132 | 10 | 0 | 300 | 0 | 3 | 300 | 20 | 5 | 124 | 63 | 856 |
| 10 | Jean Payne and Otti | 10 | 4.75 | 111 | 0 | 4.75 | 105 | 10 | 4 | 87 | 20 | 5 | 36 | 58.5 | 339 |
| 11 | Ingrid Neale and Teazle | 10 | 4.75 | 176 | 10 | 4.75 | 86 | 0 | 3 | 102 | 20 | 4.75 | 84 | 57.25 | 448 |
| 12 | John Hearn and Skip | 20 | 4.5 | 152 | 10 | 4.5 | 173 | 0 | 3 | 300 | 10 | 4.95 | 111 | 56.95 | 736 |