Sunshine State Rhodesian Ridgeback Club
Fall Coursing!

October 22nd and 23rd - Sunshine State Coursing Club fall coursing trials were held at the Florida Horse Park in Ocala.  The weather for the weekend was PERFECT - nice and cool, just what the dogs love!

Many of our club members attended and we had a HUGE Ridgeback entry!  24 total in competition - enough for two stakes and two 5 point majors!!  Several members brought dogs who needed their qualifying runs and we're happy to report that all 8 passed with flying colors...literally!  We also had some folks new to the area bring their hounds and hope to have some more new members soon!

Carol and Bill Smith brought their RV and we all gathered there for lunch.   Everyone brought goodies to share and Carol supplied a big pot of chili which really hit the spot!  On Sunday Carol had a great pot of chicken tortilla soup and Rhonda made sloppy joes....more great food for all!!

The runs were fierce!  The dogs highly competitive!  We had several run offs at the end of the day, but when it all came down to the finish, Kasey and Dale Parks' girl won Best of Breed!  In addition to their rosette, they received a beautiful art glass bowl, donated by Denise Eberhard and Ginny Merchant.  It was also great to have Monique McIlhenny visiting from Georgia with her two Ridgies, who ran beautifully!

On Sunday we had fewer dogs, 16 total, but again....a spectacular day and many great runs!  Ginny's girl, Tori, won Best of Breed.   She also received an art glass candle holder and her rosette.   She tried to compete in Best in Field but after she realized she was running with a big hairy Wolfhound and Saluki, she came to a screaming halt and ran FAST back to her momma!!  Gave us all a good laugh, for sure!

We're looking forward to more great coursing this fall and winter, both ASFA and AKC trials.  

TALLY HO!!

 

TALLY HO!

Mozart

Mozart

Gibson and Mozart

Gibson and Mozart

Jethro

Jethro

Tori

Tori

Rhonda and Zane

Rhonda and Zane

Rico

Rico

Chyna

Chyna

Best of Breed run, Sunday - Tori, Zuri and Rico

Best of Breed run, Sunday - Tori, Zuri and Rico

Tori - Best of Breed

Tori - Best of Breed

A Day at the Beach

There's nothing like a day at the beach on a beautiful October day in sunny Florida!    Club members from North Florida, Belinda Binkley, Cheryl Peterson and Amanda Kelley, got together with some friends and had a fun filled day playing in the sand and surf.  Amanda reports they had a great time - especially the dogs!

Beach Party!

Spring Coursing Fun!

April 16 and 17, 2011 Sunshine State Coursing Club of Central Florida Field Trials, Altoona, FL

Saturday morning dawned bright and sunny, with the promise of a HOT HOT day!  A bunch of fellow Ridgebackers got together for a great weekend of racing and good eats at Rocking Horse Ranch in Altoona!  Robin Sasso and her girl, Zuri, Ginny Merchant and her gang - Esme, Strider and Deja and Matt and Denise Eberhard and their boy, Finn, were there to continue their quest for AKC Field Champion titles.   First on the agenda were Qualifying Tests for 3 new hopefuls.  Paula Alshouse's boy, Deputy, passed with flying colors, as did Joan Lipiac's boy, Jambo!!  Annie Johnson's girl, Mosa, passed, but the jury is still out as to whether she's in it to win it!!  All went on to compete in the trial, with Zuri winning Best of Breed!   In addition to the regular trial, we had 43 dogs of various breeds running for their CAT (Coursing Aptitude Test) titles. This is a new program from the AKC - for more details, check out the AKC website!   www.akc.org  Only 4 of the dogs trying for their CAT failed to get excited over chasing the bunny;  the rest were awesome and had great fun, as did their owners!  As the day progressed, thanks to a delightful breeze, the weather was ABSOLUTELY PERFECT for coursing and we all had a super time!  Between our two runs, we had a great picnic lunch back at our vehicles - YUM!!!

Sunday saw us back again, bright and early! No CAT tests today, so we all got right down to it and we finished the trial by 12:30!! Sunday was Esme's day! She won Best of Breed and came darn close to winning Best in Field!  After a tie with the Greyhound, BIF was awarded to the Greyhound, but the judge said it was a close decision! Maybe next time! This is our last trial until the cooler Fall weather arrives.  We would love to see more club members come and join the fun this fall!!

Chasin' the Bunny!

Deja, Deputy and Zuri

Deja, Deputy and Zuri

They're OFF and RUNNING!

They're OFF and RUNNING!

Esme,Mosa and Deputy

Esme,Mosa and Deputy

Deputy diving for the bag!

Deputy diving for the bag!

Strider with Jambo on his Qualifying test.

Strider with Jambo on his Qualifying test.

Strider and Jambo

Strider and Jambo

Jambo and Esme

Jambo and Esme

Jambo and Esme

Jambo and Esme

Jambo and Esme

Jambo and Esme

Deputy, Zuri and Deja

Deputy, Zuri and Deja

Esme and Jambo

Esme and Jambo

Jambo

Jambo