The Tenth Series – A Closer Look

 

10th Series – Land / Water Triple

Bird 1 – Dead Drake – 358 yards

Bird 2 – Drake Flyer – 180 yards

Bird 3 – Hen Flyer – 370 yards

 

10th Series - Land Water Triple

The Tenth Series is a Land Water Triple with a mixed bag of ducks. The mat is on a gently sloping hill facing down to a large pond with a long point on the left reaching half the way into the pond. The grass in this area is stripped in a "V" shape angling away from the water. The cover is dense.

Bird One is a retired dead duck thrown left to right landing 358 yards from the mat. The line to this bird takes the dog down the hill to cross a road and then swim all the way across the right side of the pond. The dog then drives the far hillside almost to the far tree line. These gunners hide in a well brushed blind.

Bird Two is located on the left side of the pond and is a drake mallard flyer thrown then shot from right to left. This bird lands on a hillside with mowed strips that angle away from the pond. The gunners retire in a camo hide. To get to this bird, the dog goes down the field and into the pond. They must swim at an angle to the left and go over a high point. The dogs will then reenter the water and swim to the left shore where they will exit and drive half way up the hill to get the bird that is 370 yards from the mat.

Bird Three is a hen mallard flyer 180 yards from the line. This bird is shot from the lakes right side dam, out towards a group of trees. The gunners are positioned just to the right of a road that circles the pond. The bird is on the handler's right when standing on the mat. The line to this bird takes the dog down the field and out across the flat land at the base of the dam. No swimming on this bird. This test is averaging 13 minutes per dog to complete. 

10th Series – Land / Water Triple

Bird 1 – Dead Drake – 358 yards

Bird 2 – Drake Flyer – 180 yards

Bird 3 – Hen Flyer – 370 yards

Tenth Series Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

 

Series 9 – Water Triple with Two Retired

Our 9th Series is at the Wendland location on the Parrott's property (named for the previous owners).

The mat sits on a mound facing a long narrow pond with multiple fingers on the near side. The wind will be out of the south east 9 to 10 mph most of the day. This is a water triple with two retired.

Bird One is a dead duck on the right side of the test that is thrown left to right of the test. The gunners come out from a group of hay bales where they also retire. The throw is an angle back that lands in strips of cover at 359 yards from the mat. The line to this bird takes the dog across the road and in to the first part of the pond. They then exit the water and run parallel to the main body of water half way down the pond before reentering the water. They will swim to the end, exit into a field with the strips of cover then go out to their bird.

Bird Two is a dead duck located in the middle of the test. The duck is thrown left to right landing 342 yards from the mat. The gunners retire into a group of hay bales. The line to this bird crossed the road and into the first fingers of the pond. The dog then moves into the main body of water and swim half way down main channel and exit on the left bank. After that, they have an angled run  across the stripped field to the bird.

Bird Three is a duck flyer shot to the left out of the test landing 250 yards from the line. This bird is on the left side of the test. From the mat the dog will cross the road and angle through a small channel of water, then they will cover a wide open hill of stripped cover to get the bird.

Ninth Series – Water Triple

Bird 1 – 359 yards

Bird 2 – 342 yards

Bird 1 – Flyer – 250 yards

Ninth Series Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

8th Series - Land Quad with an Honor

Test 8 sits on the same hill as Test 7. The mat faces northeast looking over a beautiful basin. A pond snakes around on the handler's front left and ponds dot the field. The grass is divided between knee high tan grass on the right side of the test and light green shorter grass in the low area. A grass farm road runs from front to back. 

There are four birds. Two will land on all land, one will land with a finger of the pond to cross and one that catches the corner of a small pond. The wind will be off the handler's right shoulder.

Bird #1 is a rooster pheasant flyer shot from right to left. The gunners are on a high bald knoll shooting out over the basin with the bird landing 263 yards from the line.

Bird #2 is a duck flyer. These gunners are located behind a berm on the far side of the narrow pond. They come out, throw and shoot to the left and then retire behind a large pile of brush. The bird lands 275 yards from the line.

Bird #3 is a dead hen pheasant. These gunners are backed up to a tree line. They shoot and throw to the left and then retire. This bird is thrown along the tree line and lands approximately 180 yards from the mat. There is a small pond between the mat and the fall area. The dogs should take a piece of the water. If they do not they will be pushed to the left. They will be further influenced by a large pile of dirt just behind the left end of the pond.

Bird #4 we will call "Shorty." They are located on the handler's left. This is a stand out gun station in a wide open field. These guns shoot and throw to the right with the bird landing 140 yards from the line. 

There is an honor mat to the left of the mat. The test is taking between 10 and 12 minutes per dog to run.

Eighth Series – Land Quad

8th Series Test Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

 

7th Series - Water Blind

The Seventh Series is a Water Blind. The line takes the dog north/northeast down a hill into the bottom ground. There is a narrow bit of heavier cover to jump before the dog continues in the bottom ground past the stand out gunner sitting in his white coat. The dog will then proceed to the pond, have a short swim across, where he will find his drake mallard. The blind planter will be exposed and in white deep and left of the blind. This is a 230 yard blind taking about 2.5 minutes to run.

7th Series Water Blind – 230 yards

7th Series Test Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

6th Series - Day 2 - Water Quad

We are back for Day Two of the 6th Series Water Quad at the Fuller's #2 property in Paige, Texas. The mat for this test sits on a rise facing the south towards a pond that angles east and west with fingers stretching farther east.

Bird One (Long Retired) is located in front of the mat and is a dead hen pheasant that is thrown left landing 240 yards from the line. The gunners retire behind a well brushed blind. The line to this bird is over a knoll through the finger of the pond and half way up a hill on the far side. This is dotted with trees and covered in knee-high grass. 

Bird Two (Left Flyer) is a rooster flyer thrown and shot to the left and landing approximately 240 yards from the mat. This is the left hand bird in this test. The line to the flyer takes the dog the full width of the pond and up the hillside.

Bird Three (Short Retired) is a dead hen mallard thrown to the left onto the edge of the pond 160 yards from the mat. This bird is between the first and second bird and sits just to the handlers left. The line to this bird will take the dog over a small levee then across the pond into a shallow water of the far side. This bird lands with a splash.

Bird Four (Right Flyer) is a hen pheasant flyer shot out of the test to the right at approximately 200 yards. The gunners are on the right side of the hill with a finger of water on the way. The dog's line to this bird will take it out across a small finger of water and up a wide open hill side, landing it in knee high grass.

This is a tight quad. The two flyers on the right and left sides are stand outs. The two retired birds are in the middle of the test and are very well disguised. The mixed bag of birds will cause even greater difficulty towards the line to the left stand out flyer and will be confusing to the dogs facing them up hill on the wrong side of the gun.

Sixth Series Water Quad

Bird #1 – Long Retired – 240 yards

Bird #2 – Left Flyer – 240 yards

Bird #3 – Short Retired – 160 yards

Bird #4 – Right Flyer – 200 yards

Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

6th Series - Water Quad with an Honor

We are back at Fuller's #2 property in Paige, Texas. Test Six is a Water Quad with an Honor. The temp is 71 degrees with a wind coming from the southeast between 3-5 mph. The mat for this test sits on a rise facing the south towards a pond that angles east and west with fingers stretching farther east.

Bird One (Long Retired) is located in front of the mat and is a dead hen pheasant that is thrown left landing 240 yards from the line. The gunners retire behind a well brushed blind. The line to this bird is over a knoll through the finger of the pond and half way up a hill on the far side. This is dotted with trees and covered in knee-high grass. 

Bird Two (Left Flyer) is a rooster flyer thrown and shot to the left and landing approximately 240 yards from the mat. This is the left hand bird in this test. The line to the flyer takes the dog the full width of the pond and up the hillside.

Bird Three (Short Retired) is a dead hen mallard thrown to the left onto the edge of the pond 160 yards from the mat. This bird is between the first and second bird and sits just to the handlers left. The line to this bird will take the dog over a small levee then across the pond into a shallow water of the far side. This bird lands with a splash.

Bird Four (Right Flyer) is a hen pheasant flyer shot out of the test to the right at approximately 200 yards. The gunners are on the right side of the hill with a finger of water on the way. The dog's line to this bird will take it out across a small finger of water and up a wide open hill side, landing it in knee high grass.

This is a tight quad. The two flyers on the right and left sides are stand outs. The two retired birds are in the middle of the test and are very well disguised. The mixed bag of birds will cause even greater difficulty towards the line to the left stand out flyer and will be confusing to the dogs facing them up hill on the wrong side of the gun.

Sixth Series Water Quad

Bird #1 – Long Retired – 240 yards

Bird #2 – Left Flyer – 240 yards

Bird #3 – Short Retired – 160 yards

Bird #4 – Right Flyer – 200 yards

Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

3rd Series – Water Triple

Day Two brings us back to the Parrott's property and their technical ponds with a Water triple. The mat sits on the side of a large mound facing northwest. 

Bird One is a dead hen duck thrown from right to left landing 201 yards from the line. These guns throw the duck from the point of land to another point, then they retire behind two hay bales. The line to this bird takes the dog through two or three fingers of water.

Bird Two is in the middle. This bird is also a hen duck thrown left to right landing 287 yards from the line. These guns throw the duck than retire behind a hay bale at the base of a tree. The line to this bird has the dog crossing multiple fingers of water.

Bird Three, another hen duck flyer is located on the left side of the test. The gunners throw and shoot the hen with the bird landing approximately 220 yards from the line. The bird is shot out of the test.

This is a relatively flat field. The wind is currently blowing gently at the handler's back. The technical water covers the middle of the field with multiple fingers reaching out in different directions. There is also a heavy stick pond half way to the long bird located between the long and right hand birds. This test will take approximately 11-12 minutes per dog.

Right Retired – 201 yards

Middle Retired – 287 yards

Flyer – 220 yards

Diagram and Sketch by David Morrison

2nd Series - Land Blind

Test Two is a land blind close to the First Series. The mat was moved about 15 feet to the left and angled out across the field to the southwest. The line to the bird takes the dog on an angle down the side of the hill through two strips of cover. There is a hay bale at the base of the hill. To the left of the bale is a piece of broom straw and just left of that is a clump of limbs. The line takes the dog close to the bale and ideally between the broom sage and bale. They then proceed to the right of the next hay bale and out to the clump of brush 208 yards from the line. The test is taking a little over one minute per dog.

Aerial View of the 1st Series

 This aerial view of the fist series was created by Roger Fuller …

Test One – A Close-Up View

First Series Land Triple with Two Retired

L to R: Flyer and    Long Middle Retired – 310 yards

Right hand Short Retired – 168 yards

Flyer – 170 yards