None who saw it
Will forget it
Silverwood’s hour at Chinquapin
In January 2002
If an hour race
Can be called magic
This one was it
Plus it was Hunter’s first year as scout
The judges were Luke Weaver
And Vernon Vance
The bracemate
Last year’s Champion Million Dollar Man
Seventy-six towed the line
But when Big’s race was in the book
The rest were seeking
Runner-Up
It was on the second morning course
For all hallowed ground
Offering every chance
To show a goodn’s stuff
Starting at the foot of Buck’s burial hill
It reaches west a half mile
with swale to the left and rising beyond
Course path on ridge, fence and sand road on right
Here a dog that fills the country shines
But he better get out there and search
Which Silverwood did strongly today
Stood at 9 at the corner on a covey now bears his name
Robin watered and released him headed him south
He rolled to next corner and stood again at 15
Another covey in the book
Then he reached east and at 22 had a single while Man on his right had a covey
On they rolled to the front
Crossing the power line they hove right
Man in the firebreak by the fence
Big on his left just in the wire grass
Fred lifted his cap and rode expecting to find Man
But alas it was Big had the birds
He’d wiped Man’s eye
Clock said 33
From here they rolled with big sweeping casts
All to the front each bigger than the last
The gallery stood in their stirrups
Rattle of bit chains and clomps of hooves mingled
Robin and Fred sang to their dogs
As they reached deeper and deeper
Swinging left away from the road
North toward the point of beginning
All riding now knew they were witness to an epic brace
As minutes ticked past and the gallant dogs raced
Deeper and deeper they coursed unaided
Guided only by the songs of their handlers
At the hilltop pipeline where the course turns left for its finish
Robin and Fred called them around in distant arcs
It was time to show a fitting finish
All wondered if Big would have enough left
They needn’t have worried
His ten year old heart was that of a lion
He filled up the country all the way to the corner
Where he’d scored his second find at 15
On another day Man’s race would have yielded a title
But today it was again Big who had won
His ninth open all-age title
In a few weeks he’d win his tenth
So it was for 2002 five months after 9/11
The Georgia, the Florida and the Southeastern
These by a dog not expected to compete much less win
After major spinal surgery
For six seasons 96 through 02
Big had dominated the piney woods
Winning the Georgia and Southeastern and Continental
Twice each plus the Masters and Florida and for good measure Runner-Up twice in the Continental and once in the Invitational
He won too on the prairies
The Dominion and the Saskatchewan
He produced great females often bred to Joe Shadow
He was simply a bird dog for the ages