Premium List for the UBT Trackfest 2015 is posted at
Showing posts with label seminar. Show all posts
Showing posts with label seminar. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 9, 2014
Friday, November 14, 2014
United Blood Trackers Trackfest 2015
February 28 – March 2, 2015
Covered Gate Ranch, Uvalde, Texas
The UBT annual Trackfest has been held in various states throughout the country. UBT has provided testing at several Texas Blood Tracking Events, and now this will be the first actual UBT Trackfest held in Texas.
This workshop is for beginner and advanced dogs and handlers as well as anyone else interested in learning more about the use of blood tracking dogs for the recovery of wounded big game. There will be plenty of hands-on training in the field for dogs and handlers as well as presentations on topics such as Training Techniques, Working with Puppies, Equipment Choices, GPS Use, and Working with Hunters. Again this year we will also be holding the popular Hit Site Evaluation Seminar. This section of the seminar will focus on reading sign at the hit site as well as reading sign found along the trail in order to develop the proper strategy for tracking that particular animal.
The United Blood Trackers will offer evaluations for UBT-I and UBT-II on Monday, March 2, 2015. All individuals interested in signing up for evaluations, please check out http://www.unitedbloodtrackers.org/tracking-tests/ , for more information. Another announcement will posted when a premium list for the event is finalized.
Here are some pictures taken at Trackfest 2014 in North Carolina:
Sunday, August 31, 2014
Workshop for handlers and their blood tracking dogs: The UBT Trackfest 2014
This report is long overdue but as they say, it's better later than never. The official report was written by Cheri Faust and it can be found underneath my remarks (thank you Cheri!).
In the middle of May I (Jolanta) flew to North Carolina to participate in the Annual Trackfest held by United Blood Trackers. Because at the time we had a litter of pups and because some of our dogs have "special" needs (like 15-year-old Asko), it was not possible for both of us to go. This time was my turn. I really enjoyed the trip, and it was so good to meet finally trackers that had never had a chance to meet in person. Of course, a chance to work with good friends was a great attraction too.
A big thank you goes to Kirk Vaughan from Chapel Hill, NC, who found the great place to host this workshop and made possible that all our needs were met. You are never going to meet anybody more dedicated to blood tracking than Kirk. Of course, his wife Barbara Fields was there too helping whenever she could. And I got to meet mac, Kirk tracking dog, who is a beagle/walker mix.
 |
| Barbara Fields and Kirk Vaughan, who is holding Mac. |
By Cheri Faust
The United Blood Trackers held Trackfest
2014 at the J. Robert Gordon Sandhills Field Trial Grounds near Hoffman, North
Carolina, May 17-19.
Participants started
gathering on Friday to renew acquaintances and make new ones. Those who arrived early had the special treat
of watching Andy Bensing and his superstar tracking dog, Eibe, attempt the
first running of the UBT III test. The UBT III demonstrates the ability to resolve situations often encountered on natural tracks. The test is designed to be challenging and fun. Each test is likely to be unique, and handling teams may wish to take the test on multiple occasions.
Andy's track was about 1000 yards in length, four hours in age and was laid using just 3 ounces of blood and tracking shoes. The track included a directional challenge (a three ring spiral), a surface challenge (an area of the pine plantation had recently been burned and the ground was heavily charred) and a distraction (thanks, Alan, for picking up that road killed armadillo!) We were all impressed with how steadily and easily Andy and Eibe handled the track.
Andy's track was about 1000 yards in length, four hours in age and was laid using just 3 ounces of blood and tracking shoes. The track included a directional challenge (a three ring spiral), a surface challenge (an area of the pine plantation had recently been burned and the ground was heavily charred) and a distraction (thanks, Alan, for picking up that road killed armadillo!) We were all impressed with how steadily and easily Andy and Eibe handled the track.
 |
| Andy Bensing and his wirehaired dachshund Eibe at the start of the UBT III test. |
 |
| Cheri Faust was judging the test and Al Wade was a track layer. They followed Andy pretty close while observers were further behind. The picture shows well the kind of terrain we were dealing with - very sandy. |
 |
| Cheri congratulates Andy upon successful completion of the test. the test was not easy and Eibe had to work hard on carrying the line. |
Over the course of the
following two days, 32 participants received a variety of hands-on training and
classroom presentations from the 11 UBT “staff” members in attendance.
 |
| UBT Staff: from the left Cheri faust, Al Wade, Susanne Hamilton, Chris Morris, Jolanta Jeanneney, Andy Bensing, Marlo Ondrej, Larry Gohlke, Kirk Vaughan, Kyle Stiffler and Sean Timmens. |
The Hit Site Seminar presented on Saturday was
an especially big “hit”. The seminar followed the format described in our post from June 2013.
 |
| The Hit Site Evaluation Seminar ended with participants examining several sites for signs of wounded deer such as blood, bone fragments, hair etc. In real tracking situations when a handler is asked to track a wounded deer or bear, he starts at a hit site and by careful examination of all the signs left by a wounded animal he has to reconstruct what had happened and come up with a tracking strategy for the specific situation. The Hit Site Evaluation seminar has become a very important part of Trackfests as it is an excellent educational tool for trackers and hunters. Just recently Cliff Shrader from Louisiana wrote: This past Sunday at Hunters For The Hungry Louisiana, I put on a small Hit Site Evaluation display. I set up several mock hit sites simulating what a hunter would find when he checked his shot on a deer. This is like Deer Hunters CSI. This form of education has never been seen in our area before and was very well received. I didn't count the number of people that went through it but it must have been over 40 people. Each and everyone that went through it had very positive things to say. Thank you Andy Bensing, Larry Gohlke and Alan Wade for the evaluation that you put on in May as I was able to pass this education on! |
Friday, January 24, 2014
Seminar on Blood Trailing Dogs in Texas
Texas Blood Trackers is hosting their annual event again this year in Hamilton, Texas.
2014 Blood Trail Seminar
2014 Blood Trail Seminar
March 1st, 2014 in Hamilton, Texas
Blood Trail Seminar:
10:00 am: Blood Trail class starts (Please arrive 30 minutes early to sign in.)
12:30 pm: Lunch Break
1:45 pm – Last dog ran: Finish up Blood-trail class
$100 for each handler and dog team running blood-trails for the day.
$50 for each handler without dog. Both include lunch and dinner plate.
TBT & UBT Testing & Evaluations: 28th - 2nd
10:00 am – 12:30 pm & 1:45 pm – 4:30 pm
TBT 1 $50, TBT 2 $75, TBT 3 $100
UBT 1 $75 , UBT 2 $100
Must have deposit in before 2/22/14. NO WALK ONS. We can only take so many dogs, and there is a cut off, so book as soon as possible to better insure availability.
10:00 am: Blood Trail class starts (Please arrive 30 minutes early to sign in.)
12:30 pm: Lunch Break
1:45 pm – Last dog ran: Finish up Blood-trail class
$100 for each handler and dog team running blood-trails for the day.
$50 for each handler without dog. Both include lunch and dinner plate.
TBT & UBT Testing & Evaluations: 28th - 2nd
10:00 am – 12:30 pm & 1:45 pm – 4:30 pm
TBT 1 $50, TBT 2 $75, TBT 3 $100
UBT 1 $75 , UBT 2 $100
Must have deposit in before 2/22/14. NO WALK ONS. We can only take so many dogs, and there is a cut off, so book as soon as possible to better insure availability.
To sign up contact:
- Paul Coffman-paul@texasbloodtrackers.com (214)289-9741.
- Troup Bishop- troupbishop@yahoo.com (325)642-5160
Friday, January 10, 2014
Saturday, August 17, 2013
Friday, June 28, 2013
Hit Site Evaluation Seminars for Deer Hunters
By John Jeanneney and Andy Bensing
The Hit Site Evaluation Seminar is a new idea for the United States. The goal of the Seminar is to educate hunters to better interpret sign at the point of impact and along the ensuing wounded deer trail. It’s important as an effective means of showing hunters how to interpret and deal with deer that have been shot outside of the quick kill target zone. Traditional hunter training programs don’t dwell on this subject, but in the real world deer do move just as the shot is taken. And bullets and arrows have been known to deviate from their intended course.
The center piece of the hit site seminar is a hanging road-killed deer. The idea originally came to North America from France, and John Jeanneney first witnessed it in Quebec, Canada, where two of his French friends led a seminar on finding wounded deer. In June of 2013 Andy Bensing and John tried out an expanded version of this hit site evaluation at the annual United Blood Trackers Trackfest at Arena, Wisconsin and then two weeks later at a North American Teckel Club event in Pennsylvania to which non-member deer hunters were invited. In both states the reception was enthusiastic. The seminar was certainly a departure from the usual presentation on the subject, and the practical applications of the new information were easy to understand.. Those who attended actively participated in the evaluations, and of course this is the best way to learn.
In both seminars a road-killed deer in good condition was used. Acquiring a road-killed deer is not difficult, but local game laws regulations should be consulted, and it must be kept in a suitable cooler or freezer before the event. The deer was hooked up, in a standing position, suspended by a rope stretched between two trees. A plastic sheet was hung up about five yards behind the deer and extended forward under the suspended deer. Its purpose was to catch hair, flesh and bone fragments blown out of the deer by strategically placed shots. Shots were taken with bow and arrow, shotgun slugs and high caliber rifle bullets.
After each shot the instructor and hunters together inspected the hit site and the hanging plastic sheet behind it to evaluate the results. The first thing that most of us have learned from the hit site evaluation is that we hunters miss a great deal if we inspect only the ground right where the deer was standing.
After the shots we found “sign” on the plastic sheet well behind the deer that probably would have been missed by most hunters in a real deer hunting situation. It seems likely that many American hunters are not inspecting a broad enough area behind the hit sites as they look for the sign that will tell them where they have hit the deer and how they should deal with the situation.
One of the many things hunters learn at the hit site is that flat sections of bone usually come from the legs; they are not “pieces of rib” as is often reported. They learn the difference in the amount of hair that comes from a grazing hit as compared to a solid, more straight-on shot. The physical results of high back shots can be shown and the identification of types of hair can reveal where the animal was hit.
Additionally bowhunters learn how the sloping surfaces of the rib cage can deflect broadheads so that there is no effective penetration into the chest cavity and vital organs. They also realize that the real kill zone is considerably smaller than what is presented on 3-D Tournament targets.
The shot analysis outdoors on the hanging deer was even more effective because it was preceded by an indoor PowerPoint presentation priming the attendees’ consciousness for what they were about to see outside. Photos were shown revealing such “unexpected” information as the location of part of the stomach and liver within the rib cage. Other anatomical photos, showed the kidneys lying quite far forward, just back of the ribs. The indoor segment also discussed recovery strategies for deer wounded in different ways and under different environmental circumstances such as bad weather and predator competition.
The hit site program is effective because it is simple, graphic and deals with a real deer. It was so realistic in Pennsylvania that a young turkey vulture landed to check things out during the introductory PowerPoint session.
The hit site evaluation seminar concluded with a “Walk in the Woods”. Nine stations were set up to simulate wounded deer sign both at a hit site and along the trail. Seminar participants were asked to identify and interpret wounded deer sign such as splayed hoof prints, blood smears, bone fragments, and arrows covered with different types of body fluids and tissue.
The Hit Site Evaluation Seminars have great potential as an interesting half day event. No doubt the seminars would improve hunter effectiveness in recovering the deer that they shoot. For more information about the seminar contact Andy Bensing, abensing@pbkennels.com.
Many thanks to the NATC, Kirk Vaughan and Joe Kopcok for the pictures!
The Hit Site Evaluation Seminar is a new idea for the United States. The goal of the Seminar is to educate hunters to better interpret sign at the point of impact and along the ensuing wounded deer trail. It’s important as an effective means of showing hunters how to interpret and deal with deer that have been shot outside of the quick kill target zone. Traditional hunter training programs don’t dwell on this subject, but in the real world deer do move just as the shot is taken. And bullets and arrows have been known to deviate from their intended course.
The center piece of the hit site seminar is a hanging road-killed deer. The idea originally came to North America from France, and John Jeanneney first witnessed it in Quebec, Canada, where two of his French friends led a seminar on finding wounded deer. In June of 2013 Andy Bensing and John tried out an expanded version of this hit site evaluation at the annual United Blood Trackers Trackfest at Arena, Wisconsin and then two weeks later at a North American Teckel Club event in Pennsylvania to which non-member deer hunters were invited. In both states the reception was enthusiastic. The seminar was certainly a departure from the usual presentation on the subject, and the practical applications of the new information were easy to understand.. Those who attended actively participated in the evaluations, and of course this is the best way to learn.
In both seminars a road-killed deer in good condition was used. Acquiring a road-killed deer is not difficult, but local game laws regulations should be consulted, and it must be kept in a suitable cooler or freezer before the event. The deer was hooked up, in a standing position, suspended by a rope stretched between two trees. A plastic sheet was hung up about five yards behind the deer and extended forward under the suspended deer. Its purpose was to catch hair, flesh and bone fragments blown out of the deer by strategically placed shots. Shots were taken with bow and arrow, shotgun slugs and high caliber rifle bullets.
 |
| The hanging deer carcass was the centerpiece of the seminar. |
After the shots we found “sign” on the plastic sheet well behind the deer that probably would have been missed by most hunters in a real deer hunting situation. It seems likely that many American hunters are not inspecting a broad enough area behind the hit sites as they look for the sign that will tell them where they have hit the deer and how they should deal with the situation.
One of the many things hunters learn at the hit site is that flat sections of bone usually come from the legs; they are not “pieces of rib” as is often reported. They learn the difference in the amount of hair that comes from a grazing hit as compared to a solid, more straight-on shot. The physical results of high back shots can be shown and the identification of types of hair can reveal where the animal was hit.
Additionally bowhunters learn how the sloping surfaces of the rib cage can deflect broadheads so that there is no effective penetration into the chest cavity and vital organs. They also realize that the real kill zone is considerably smaller than what is presented on 3-D Tournament targets.
 |
| The bowhunter demonstrates the risks of a head-on shot |
 |
| The PowerPoint introduction to the seminar |
 |
| Andy demonstrates shot placement |
The Hit Site Evaluation Seminars have great potential as an interesting half day event. No doubt the seminars would improve hunter effectiveness in recovering the deer that they shoot. For more information about the seminar contact Andy Bensing, abensing@pbkennels.com.
 |
Hunters who attended the seminar sponsored by the NATC.
Friday, April 26, 2013
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Upcoming North American Teckel Club events
Dates: Thursday, June 13th - Sunday, June 16th
Judge: Wolfgang Trumpfheller, hunting and conformation judge from Germany
Location: 1411 Cross Keys Road, Reading and Weiser Forest, Hamburg, Pennsylvania
Entry forms can be found at www.teckelclub.org, for more info e-mail Alexandra Weber, NATC Secretary dbarw@dejazzd.com.
Pictures from previous NATC events can be viewed at http://jola.smugmug.com/NATC
Judge: Wolfgang Trumpfheller, hunting and conformation judge from Germany
Location: 1411 Cross Keys Road, Reading and Weiser Forest, Hamburg, Pennsylvania
- June 13: 12 pm JGHV Judges Seminar (required for all hunting judges and great tool to understand FCI hunting tests)June 14: 8 am Gun Shyness Test (blood tracking participants only), Blood Tracking Test 40 hours
- June 15: 9 am Hit Site Evaluation Seminar, Gun Shyness Test, BHP (DTK Companion Dog Test), Water Test
- June 16: 9 am Zuchtschau (DTK Conformation show), dogs will get a written evaluation according to FCI Standard #148
Entry forms can be found at www.teckelclub.org, for more info e-mail Alexandra Weber, NATC Secretary dbarw@dejazzd.com.
Pictures from previous NATC events can be viewed at http://jola.smugmug.com/NATC
Monday, February 25, 2013
UBT Trackfest 2013 and East Coast Lacy Fun Day
The
United Blood Trackers is going to hold a three day Blood Tracking Workshop on JUNE 1-3 at Coon Rock Horse and Hunt Club, Arena,
WI, 45 minutes west of Madison. This workshop is
for both beginner and advanced dogs and handlers as well as anyone else
interested in learning more about the use of blood tracking dogs for the
recovery of wounded big game. There will be plenty of hands-on training in the
field for dogs and handlers as well as presentations on topics such as Training
Techniques, Working with Puppies and Adolescents, Equipment Choices, GPS Use,
and Working with Hunters. As a new feature this year we will also be holding a
Hit Site Evaluation Seminar. This new seminar will focus on reading sign at the
hit site as well as reading sign found along the trail in order to develop the
proper strategy for tracking that particular animal. The Workshop Instructors
will be UBT Judges: John Jeanneney (NY), Larry Gohlke (WI), Andy Bensing (PA),
Cheri Faust (WI), Chuck Collier (MI) and Al Wade (AL).
The premium list for this event is located at http://www.unitedbloodtrackers.org/images/pdfs/trackfest2013.pdf
The premium list for this event is located at http://www.unitedbloodtrackers.org/images/pdfs/trackfest2013.pdf
We
hope to see you there. We'd also appreciate any help you can give the UBT in
getting the word out about this event.
*****
UBT testing will also be available at East Coast Lacy Fun Day, where all breeds are welcomed. This event is going to take place soon, on March 15-16, in LaGrange, GA. For more information contact Rebecca Ferrell at rebeccaferrell@comcast.net or 850-508-6981.
*****
You get to see all kinds of tracking dogs at a UBT Trackfest. The below pics were taken at various trackfests in the past.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)