And the Winner is......
By Ellen English

The 2003 National Amateur Retriever Championship was held June 15-21 in McCall, Idaho and of the dogs who qualified for this prestigious competition, there emerged a true Rose among the thorns. The 2003 Amateur title went to # 92. FC-NAFC Adams Acres Cherokee Rose. Her proud owners, John and Martha Russell, are doubly proud since John also handled Rose to victory.

Winning the National Amateur is a spectacular feat for any dog. Just qualifying for it is an achievement. Add the difficulty of the groups of tests (known as series) and the stiff competition, along with varying weather conditions and tough terrain, and you end up with a truly elite group of dogs in the final series. For Rose to do it at 9 years of age, while not rare, is still the equivalent of an approximately 60 year-old human winning a very physically demanding Olympic event.

John describes the setting and the event as "truly one of the better areas I've seen in the past 10 years. The weather was pretty good but the temperature could change dramatically between morning and night. Its a high altitude desert location with sage brush, swift moving mountain streams and mountain pasture. The varying winds, light and temperature certainly affected the results. A series that had one set of conditions the first day often had dramatically different challenges the next morning when the remaining dogs were called to the line." As for how Rose worked at the National, John speaks with genuine admiration for his partner: "Rose started out well and even with some extremely demanding series, especially the 5th, 8th, 9th and 10th, we were very pleased to have good results. I personally thought she only had one bird that she had difficulty with. It was in the 8th series- she hunted a flyer quite a while before she came up with it. The 2003 National Amateur was a gratifying one to win." After the National, the Russells hosted a party where, fittingly, Rose got to not only attend, but have a little Mexican food in celebration!

Sired by the well known field champion FC AFC Hammerin Hawk, Rose was born at the kennel of Wes and Kay Lee of Thomasville, Georgia. Her first owner was Jeff Adams who trained Rose until she was about 18 months old. While not sure exactly why she was given the name Cherokee Rose, it is also the name of a wild rose that happens to be the state flower of Georgia.

Rose was recommended to the Russells by Pat Burns and Merry Lake of Esprit Kennels in Fenwick, Michigan, which John considers one of the 3 or 4 premier dog training facilities in the country. "They do all of our dogs." Pat and Merry did the lions share of Roses training until she was four and by the age of five, Rose was living fulltime with the Russells at their New Hampshire home. During the harshest part of the New England winters, when the ground is often packed with deep snow and ice for months at a time, Rose usually heads back to Esprit to continue her training.

Rose showed great promise from the start. She accumulated 44 points as a Derby dog (for dogs under 2 years of age) and after running only 2 or 3 Open trials, she had an Open second place at only 2 years old. Pretty spectacular, as John explains. He started handling Rose himself when she was 3 and she continued to succeed, winning a 104 dog Open (the # of entrants) that same year. She qualified that fall for the National Open, the first of 14 consecutive nationals that she qualified for over the next 7 years. Rose ran 12 of those and was a finalist an impressive 8 times (in 4 National Opens and 4 National Amateurs.) She has now accumulated 225 all-age points. To add to her numbers, Rose had her first and only litter in 2000 and 2 of those puppies are now running field trials.

When asked how far and wide Rose has traveled in her career, John says as much as a good pilot for American Airlines! John's wife (and Roses co-owner) Martha, is from Texas and they have some training property there. Rose has also competed in Virginia, the Carolinas, the Ohio Valley, Oklahoma and of course near her home in New England, where she ran 2 trials before heading to Idaho and victory.

For Rose, life at home sounds fit for a champion. She sleeps in the bedroom next to Johns side of the bed, so close that if my arm falls out, she catches it, he says with a smile. As for preferred treats, Rose- like most Labs- likes anything remotely digestible, but rawhide chews are a favorite.








So what does the future hold for this national champ? Rose will continue to compete, John says, she's physically sound and never been seriously injured; she'll run in the National Open in November. She not only loves her work but is a dream to work with. While her training and experience have brought her far, John is quick to give Rose most of the credit because, clearly, her focus and her talent transcend that of most. Regardless of what handler is by her side, she basically says someone help me, but don't get in my way! John is just grateful that she occasionally lets me participate!

Tail End

For more on the National Amateur, visit Working Retriever Central.  For more on field trial terms, check out the All Labs Field Glossary.

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