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Mama Suede (CH Boulder's Power of Persuasion CD RE SH), and her pups Trip (Boulder's and Fusion's Power Trip JH) and Peak (Boulder's Power of the Rockies) put on quite a show in Montana. Suede and Trip traveled with Mel Reveles and Aaron Davis (of FUSION VIZSLAS) to the Double Double/two walking field trials event hosted by the Montana German Shorthaired Pointer Club and the Montana Brittany Club. Peak road-tripped it with his guardians Jim and Cindy Mueller.
To say we're "pleased" with how Suede, Trip, and Peak tested/trialed is an understatement. We're all still ON CLOUD NINE and beaming with pride!!
 Suede was entered in all 4 of the Master Hunter tests and qualified easily in the first 3 tests. After each performance, and throughout the course of the weekend, she was paid many compliments by the judges, gunners, seasoned and experienced hunters, and novice exhibitors. One of the judges liked Suede so much she gave her an average score of 9.5 out of 10!! We were told repeatedly by others "they would love to take that Vizsla home" with them and how much they enjoyed Suede's well-mannered but still exciting performances. She hunted enthusiastically in each brace despite the 90+ temperatures. Her retrieves were textbook Master Hunter level ("deliver promptly, tenderly and absolutely to hand") and snappy as she bolted back to Mel with her tail wagging happily. Even though she didn't qualify her fourth and last test, the judge exclaimed "Now that's a damn shame!" when she broke a couple of seconds after the second shot (and before Mel released her to retrieve). When Mel thanked the judge and leashed Suede up to heel her out of the field, the judge told Mel, "No, thank you for showing this exceptional Vizsla to me." Yep, Suede and Mel both got goose bumps from such a compliment! :-)
 Not wanting to let his Mama Suede outshine him, Peak qualified for 3 Junior Hunter legs in a row. Mel and Aaron watched with BIG smiles as Peak showed off his BIG run and intelligence in hunting objectives during his tests. Though Jim is a novice handler, he has dedicated many hours learning how to train Peak for field work and how to handle him in the tests. All of their hard work is paying off with the repeated high scores and compliments Peak and Jim get from the judges. One more leg to go and Peak will be the second "Sueppie" (Suede X Cappy) pup to add a Junior Hunter (JH) title to his registered name.
 It was Trip's turn to 'turn it on' and boy did she ever! She was the only Vizsla entered in the walking field trial Open Derby stakes. She ran BIG, hunted with intelligence, pointed oh-so-stylishly, and handled as the 'green-broke' dog we know she is. During her run she honored her bracemate (on her own without a "whoa" command from Mel) and stood steady when he took out her pointed bird (her 4th find of the brace). The judges loved her performance enough to award her the 1st placement BLUE for 2 points (toward her Field Championship (FC) title)!!
What an awesome weekend showing off the natural abilities and trainability of Suede, Peak, and Trip. Though both hunting tests and field trial games simulate hunting, they are judged differently. A dog who qualifies in a hunting test will not necessarily have the run and style to win a field trial placement—in fact, many don’t. Likewise, a dog who wins a field trial placement may not have the trainability to handle "successfully in a hunting test (thus not qualifying)." To have a dam and her two pups qualify in hunting tests AND win a first place field trial placement in the same weekend speaks volumes about the "power of genetics!"
 Not wanting Suede and her pups steal all of the glory, Kosmo (CH Derby's Read Em And Weep MH) followed in his Papa Cassidy’s (BISS CH Rivercity's Quenton Cassidy MH ROM) pawprints and finished his AKC Master Hunter (MH) title. Kosmo qualified in 5 of his last 7 Master level hunting tests. MH tests are tough with so many things that can and do go wrong. His pass rate exemplifies his exceptional natural abilities as a bird dog and his high level of trainability.
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