Hunting Great Yorkshire hound show
The Northumbrian pack and the Wynnstay take championship honours
FOXHOUNDS
THE finale of the foxhound day at the Great Yorkshire show, where 21 packs filled the ring at this most popular of agricultural shows, was fought out between two beautifully balanced bitches who had both been pulled in from the two-couple classes.
They were Grove and Rufford Starling 18, by their Broker 15 and shown by huntsman Paul Larby — who has an extraordinary skill for showing hounds — and Tynedale Assynt 18, lighter in body but bursting with quality and bred along less orthodox lines, by Morpeth Graffham 14 and with College Valley blood on both sides of her pedigree. It was to be a victory for Assynt and the Tynedale on a day when the northern packs more than held their own against the bigger opposition from the south.
Charles Frampton, jointmaster and huntsman of the Heythrop, judged the doghounds with Countess Goess-Saurau from the VWH, and they were quick and efficient with a large entry. There were many packs that are rarely seen in the show ring and the restricted classes give them a better chance to be seen, especially for the Yorkshire packs, and the West of Yore and West Percy came to the fore with their single unentered hounds.
The Duke of Beaufort’s hounds had made the long trip north, largely because former master and huntsman of the West of Yore Tom Ramsden, father of the Beaufort joint-master and huntsman Matt, was president of the show. Their Bradman and Brassey, by Grove and Rufford Broker 15, won the unentered couple class, and then Brassey was unentered champion.
The famous Grove and Rufford Broker won the couple class with his kennel-mate Stanton 18, and he has lost none of his star quality. He appeared again in the two-couple, but the placings were reversed from the previous class and the Tynedale took the honours with four quality, matching doghounds from the same litter as their Assynt.
The Cheshire had a lovely stallion hound, Hamlet 16, ably shown by huntsman Jake Oppenheim, and the Grove pulled another top-class dog out of their locker, Lodger 16, by Curre and Llangibby Lancer 14. However, it was Chris Woodward from the Wynnstay who held the trump card in their Chairman 17. Chairman is a home-bred old English dog who had sired Peter McColgan’s lovely North Shropshire pair who had taken second place behind the Beaufort in the unentered couples. Chairman won the stallion hound and then beat the Tynedale’s Ascot 18 to take the
‘There were many packs that are rarely seen in the show ring’
DIVERSITY IS ON DISPLAY
overall championship and reward their recently retired joint-master Richard Tyacke for all his efforts in his 15 seasons at the Wynstay.
A HUGE NUMBER ON SHOW
FRANK HOUGHTON BROWN and the young joint-master of the South Shropshire George Renwick, who hails from the Morpeth country, judged the bitches. There were a huge number of entries and the Middleton won the restricted class before a pair of big and quality matching white bitches from the Beaufort took the unentered couples from another pair of North Shropshire bitches by the morning’s champion doghound.
Local pack the Bedale had success with their matching entered couple, and the Percy produced four virtually identical old English hounds to scoop the top honours in perhaps the most important class of the day, the two-couple of bitches. Their popular and dedicated huntsman Robert McCarthy had his charges galloping around the ring and they were near-perfect examples of their type. The Tynedale had a quality entry of lemon-coloured bitches in second place and the Wynnstay were third.
Perhaps the biggest cheer of the day was saved for the fourth place in the brood bitch class, when the Braes of Derwent were placed with their blue mottle Guilty 17, shown by Sandy Wilson who has just moved there as huntsman after a long stint at the Morpeth. The Grove and Rufford took the two top places with the lovely sandy-coloured Sandstorm 16 and Glitter 17, a black-bodied bitch with ample substance and balance.
There are special prizes for the old English hounds in many of the classes at this show, and with the increasing popularity of the old English cross these produced a lot of quality. York and Ainsty South Peewit 15, shown by huntsman David Elliott, won the old English championship, a decision loudly applauded by a partisan Yorkshire crowd.
HARRIERS
THE harriers were well represented by six packs, and judged all day by Paul Jelley and Simon Dunn. The Holcombe have been very successful over recent years but this was the first outing at a hound show for their new huntsman Matthew Biddiscombe, who has just arrived in Lancashire from the Essex Foxhounds.
Matthew’s nerves were quickly settled when their Pirate and President were awarded first and second placing in the unentered doghounds class. His success was soon repeated in the entered dogs with Daystar 15, a tan-coloured
hound who moves beautifully and is a perfect example of the Holcombe type. Other hunt staff were joking that Matthew’s lady master had his P45 ready lest Daystar had not won, such is her competitive instinct.
The Waveney had ventured north from Norfolk, their hounds beautifully shown by
Luke Newton. They have one particular litter of hounds which are outstandingly balanced and almost identical; one of these, Latimer 15, a previous Peterborough champion and by Rockwood Lancer 10, won the stallion hound class.
Daystar was the inevitable doghound champion, having won both here and at Peterborough before, while the Pendle Forest and Craven took reserve with their home-bred Danger 18. Their popular huntsman Richard Lloyd is starting his 30th season with these hounds and senior master Michael Bannister will attend his 80th opening meet with his pack this year on his new horse.
The High Peak had some lovely hounds and gave the Holcombe a run for their money throughout the day. The Vale of Lune, one of the three Lancashire harrier packs that wear a red coat, produced their Flower 17 to win the entered bitch class, tightly contested by the Pendle Forest with Treaty
16, whose sire is a West Country harrier, Cotley Saddler 08.
Another of the Waveney’s strong litter was brought forward for the brood bitch class, their Lavender 15. She was outstanding, tan and white with those features more associated with harriers 20 years ago. Her sister Laughter has also won the championship at Peterborough, but Lavender took the brood bitch and the championship here, with Vale of Lune Flower in reserve.
BEAGLES
NINE packs of beagles contested the prizes under the canvas of the main ring, and the doghounds were judged by Lizzie Pinney, director of the Association of Masters of Harriers and Beagles (AMHB), and Polly Arnett, master of the Chilmark and Clifton Foot with her father Ian Arnett.
This was a triumph in many ways for the fairer sex, as it was also female huntsmen who stole the show in the ring. Libby Gilbert’s Holme and Colne
Valley Viper 17 won the first restricted class, a draft from the RAC where Libby was formerly master. Previously whipper-in at the Middleburg Foxhounds in Virginia, USA, Libby had a mesmerising effect on her hounds all day.
The next class for unentered bitches saw two home-bred Old Berkeley dogs, Farndale 18 and Banter 18, winning first and second respectively. Huntsman Hannah Smith had a similar effect on her hounds as Libby, a brilliant example of hound control and ringcraft. Hannah took over from her father Mike Smith when he
‘Welcoming and encouraging to the public and hunting people alike’
GREAT YORKSHIRE’S POSITIVE ATMOSPHERE IS CLEAR
moved to the Ampleforth Beagles, and her brother is now hunting the Ampleforth hounds.
As if to rub in the Old
Berkeley dominance, Hannah brought seven hounds into the championship. She won the honours with the orange and white Murton 18, home-bred by their own Mulberry 07 and winner of the entered doghound, and also reserve with Banbury 15, the stallion hound winner by the Ampleforth’s Birkdale 07.
Frank Houghton Brown judged the bitches with Andrew Kellaway, the joint-master and huntsman of the North Devon Beagles who have such a wonderful country on Exmoor.
The Hunsley Beacon stepped up to challenge for the rosettes, ably shown by joint-master Neil Tallentire, who will hunt them on Saturdays next season. Their Muffin 17 took the red rosette in the entered bitch class, but even she was sired by Old Berkeley Mulligan 11. The Cheshire also had some lovely hounds and Charlotte Murray, who is the master’s daughter but also kennel-huntsman, showed them beautifully.
The championship was a straight fight between local favourite Hunsley Beacon Muffin and the Old Berkeley’s winning brood bitch Garlic 14. Tricolour and compact but a fluid mover, Garlic took the honours and completed an exceptional day for Hannah Smith and her charges.
Each day there was a young handler’s class run by retired huntsman of the Bicester with Whaddon Chase Patrick Martin. This attracted a very happy audience and is typical of the way the Yorkshire show is run: welcoming and encouraging to the public and hunting people alike.