"DUNN'S TRIED AND TRUE" WINS THE ALL AGE NATIONALS AT AMES PLANTATION

[chuck brunner]

Parker Friends

CONGRATULATIONS TO WILL AND RITA DUNN AND TO HANDLER LUKE EISENHART WITH " DUNNS TRIED AND TRUE" FOR WINNING THE 2019 NATIONAL BIRD DOG CHAMPIONSHIP AT AMES PLANTATION. TRACI AND I WOULD LIKE TO EXTEND A CONGRATULATIONS TO LUKE EISENHART, TOMMY DAVIS AND THEIR FAMILY'S FOR A WONDERFUL JOB OF HANDLING. WE WERE BLESSED TO BE ABLE TO ATTEND THE HALL OF FAME DINNER AND SPEND TIME WITH OUR FRIENDS HALL OF FAME LEGEND "JOHN REX GATES " AND HIS LOVELY WIFE DIANNE GATES. LUKE IS A GRANDSON OF THE GREAT GERALD TRACY AND NEPHEW OF HALL OF FAMER GEORGE TRACY AND COUSIN OF ANOTHER GREAT HANDLER AND FUTURE HALL OF FAMER MIKE TRACY. THE FIELD THIS YEAR CONTAINED TWO PAST NATIONAL CHAMPIONS " 2 TIME WINNER 'LESTERS SUNNYHILL JO" AND "WHIPPORWILL JUSTIFIED" . WE RODE THE BRACES IN RAIN AND MUD AND IT WAS A TRUE TEST OF DOG AND HANDLER. WHAT A GREAT STORY FOR THE DUNN'S , EISENHART'S AND TOMMY!
CONGRATULATIONS WILL, RITA, LUKE AND TOMMY FROM GREENES GUNS AND CHUCK AND TRACI BRUNNER !!!!!!! SEE YOU NEXT YEAR AT THE PORTRAIT UNVEILING!

[chuck brunner]

Pic of "Jack" " Dunns Tried and True " on the famed green steps of Ames

[chuck brunner]

The Man

[chuck brunner]

Yours truly, John Rex and my Father in law OG Greene in front of Johns statue at the Hall of fame

[chuck brunner]

last years winner
Gary Lesters
"Lesters Sunnyhill Jo"
unveiling at the hall of fame dinner
70172

[Dean Romig]

A magnificent dog. Congratulations!





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[Bob Jurewicz]

Mr. Rex probably went "Head to Head" with competitors I knew like Earl Crangle, Bob Wehle (Elhew Kennels), Bill McFadden, etc..
Bob Jurewicz

[Garry L Gordon]

Chuck,

Can I assume that the Dunns are descendants of Wilson Dunn? Many years ago when the National Bird Dog Museum had just opened, my wife and I stopped in and were fortunate enough to get the grand tour from Mr. Wilson Dunn. What a gentleman!

Thanks for posting these photos. Even a lifetime owner of Gordon Setters tips his hat to the winners at Grand Junction.

[chuck brunner]

Gary
Yes
Will is his grandson and the old Dunn's Supply was a have to when you visited Grand Junction. Wilson was deeply tied to the Bird dog world and was from the era of Nash Buckinham. He lived until 92 and was at Ames every year. Cabelas owns the Dunn's name now. Great old family name that is tied to fantastic dogs and great people. There is no place quite like the Hall of fame or the "old green steps". If you are a sporting dog owner you owe it to yourself to visit the museum. All sporting breeds are represented and their are some great photos of "Buck" and some of the other gentleman of a bye gone era. What a place...What a sport.
Buck, Dr. Benton King and Hobart Ames

[chuck brunner]

Wilson Dunn with one of his new prospects......

[chuck brunner]

* interesting tidbit about the Ames Plantation! Mr. John Walker Jones, who sold Mr. Hobart Ames the “Cedar Grove” Plantation, was the great-grandfather of Nash Buckingham’s wife.

All the giants of the sport, both men and dogs, traversed this terrain. Jim Avent, Er Shelley, Clyde Morton, Wilson Dunn, John Gardner, My friend John Rex Gates, John Olin, John Baily, Hoyle Eaton, and yes, Nash Buckingham gathered at this place, shared their wisdom, made their name, said a little prayer, made a little money, and had a lot of fun.

[Garry L Gordon]

Gary
Yes
Will is his grandson and the old Dunn's Supply was a have to when you visited Grand Junction. Wilson was deeply tied to the Bird dog world and was from the era of Nash Buckinham. He lived until 92 and was at Ames every year. Cabelas owns the Dunn's name now. Great old family name that is tied to fantastic dogs and great people. There is no place quite like the Hall of fame or the "old green steps". If you are a sporting dog owner you owe it to yourself to visit the museum. All sporting breeds are represented and their are some great photos of "Buck" and some of the other gentleman of a bye gone era. What a place...What a sport.
Buck, Dr. Benton King and Hobart Ames

Chuck,

Thanks for the confirmation. Your description of Wilson Dunn and his love of bird dogs is consistent with my very fond memory of the couple of hours he spent with us giving a personal tour through the then new Museum. Mr. Dunn and I did speak of "Mr. Buck" during our visit, and for a young guy (at the time!) just getting his feet wet with bird dogs and their history, I was in seventh heaven.

I grew up listening to good Southern story tellers, and I've never tired of listening since those boyhood days. Mr. Dunn sure had some good stories to share.

Thanks again for posting the photos, news, and some of the history that you have here in this thread. I really appreciate it.

[Dave Noreen]

There are pictures of Andy Devine at Grand Junction in the museum in Kingman, Arizona.

[Reggie Bishop]

Bird hunting, bobwhite quail of course, has such a rich heritage in the South. I grew up chasing quail and have so many fond memories of dogs, shotguns and the hunts. Yes, thanks Chuck!

[chuck brunner]

The collecting world and trial world are closely tied. IMHO the upland sport would be nothing without our dogs or our doubles. Walking the field watching dogs work allows all of us to connect to friends, family and God and nothing brings us closer. My love of double guns and Parker's in particular came from my grandfather. He was all to me and at the time of my youth was bigger than life. A lifelong pointer guy he kept a kennel of some of the finest gun and trial dogs ( 72 strong at one time) in the Mid Atlantic area. I cut my teeth on feeding, roading and caring for dogs and horses and was able to work and share in the breaking responsibilities of both when I got a little older. My grandfather shot Parker's and taught me early on that these guns represented quality and the double gun was a gentleman's gun when so many were going the route of the auto or pump. Ames brings us home.

Friend Jamie Daniels with Dominators Rebel Heir crossing the 3 hour mark
3 finds and a finish......Jamie middle

[chuck brunner]

There is a bond between us and our dogs that NO one will understand like a gundog owner. Traci and I have had some wonderful dogs and everyone of them have a special place.

Burke Hendrix with Hendrixs Signature
2nd Brace Ames 2019

[chuck brunner]

For all the Setter guys, here is a pic of "Shadow Oak Bo" at Hoffman after the Nationals
"Bo" was handled by Robin Gates brother of my friend John Rex and son of John Sr. (Lesters Enjoys Wahoo) and won the Nationals 2 years consecutively
in 2013 and 2014
It had been 45+ years since WC Kirk won it with the little Setter fireball
" Johnny Crockett"

45 years later frozen semen has been used by a friend of ours Dale Bush to inseminate a "Shadow Oak Bo" daughter and it made history....... 6 healthy pups and Dale has a male and female that will be joining hopefully the all age circuit.
sire Johnny Crockett .... Dam Shadow Oak Bo (daughter)
Should be fun
Congrats Dale!

[Garry L Gordon]

IMHO the upland sport would be nothing without our dogs or our doubles.

Chuck, Well put! Add "the bird" and it's all complete. I love those photos.

[chuck brunner]

Here are Robin Gates handling with Mark McLean scouting and the great setter "Bo"

[chuck brunner]

Dale Bush and Family with a new generation of Johnny Crockett Pups from Shadow Oak Bo

[chuck brunner]

Legacy of Champion Johnny Crockett Continues
By J. P. Reed | Feb 20, 2018

Three-time Champion Johnny Crockett, a precocious white and orange setter male weighing 34 pounds, but born with tremendous “bottom” and natural toughness, made history under the whistle of W. C. Kirk of Bowie, Tex., by winning the Holy Grail of the bird dog world: the 1970 National Championship, long dominated by great pointers.

This little dog with the heart of a champion was bred by Texan Claud Patterson with Wonsover’s Crockett Jed as his sire and Patterson’s Flying Lady as his dam and whelped July 20, 1964.

Johnny Crockett, callname Boy, was raised in Texas and was owned by John S. Fisher of Garland, Tex., through his Derby year and he was placed with W. C. Kirk at four months of age.

Harold “Hank” P. Sheely of Irving, Tex., obtained Johnny Crockett in 1966 and W. C. Kirk, his wife Mary and Hank Sheely guided Boy’s development, amassing twelve wins while producing 40 winners with 147 wins.

These numbers may be increasing!

Mr. Ed Soph of Houston, Tex., was the brains behind the development of the Crockett setters. Mr. Soph’s Crockett breeding was firmly anchored by Kid Crockett, producer of the well-known Eugene Crockett which passed his quality traits to Eugene Crockett II and on down the line to Johnny Crockett, a great dog that made bird dog history.

The Crockett history is replete with great dogs from the Eugene M family possessing the qualities sought by everyone who has ever owned a field trial competitor.

Ch. Johnny Crockett died July 24, 1972 at eight years of age due to a malignant brain tumor but not before he was “collected” for future artificial insemination. One notable early winning setter that came from artificial insemination using collected frozen Johnny Crockett semen was the setter male Crockett’s Deep Freeze, a 22-time winner.

It is ironic, but the very first litter of puppies by Ch. Johnny Crockett from frozen semen was raised by Dale and Cathy Bush in College Station, Tex., and that litter, referred to by Cathy as “pupsicles,” contained Ch. Crockett’s Deep Freeze.

Johnny Crockett was elected into the Field Trial Hall of Fame in 2008 and vials of his collected semen have been stored by the International Canine Semen Bank in Sandy, Ore., for future use since they were collected.

Hall of Fame member Mr. Dale Bush approached Mrs. Hank P. Sheely in August, 1995 asking for permission to access a vial of Johnny Crockett semen in the future should he have the opportunity to breed a good setter bitch.

Mrs. Sheely readily approved Dale’s request.

The second opportunity to breed a nice setter bitch to Ch. Johnny Crockett came in 2017 and a vial of Johnny Crockett semen collected November 1, 1971 was then shipped to Dr. James Bell of Castroville, Tex. On October 20, 2017, Dr. Bell was presented by Dale Bush with a daughter of 2x National Champion Shadow Oak Bo to be artificially inseminated with the Johnny Crockett frozen semen.

The procedure went well and an ultrasound was performed on November 20, 2017 indicating that six puppies were being carried by the dam.

Six (6) healthy white and orange setter puppies were whelped December 26, 2017 comprised of five males and one female!

Dale Bush has these Johnny Crockett setter puppies in his possession and they could not be in better hands. Time will tell if the pups from this “Hall of Fame” breeding will possess the range, drive, determination and bird-finding ability of the great dogs represented in the pedigree.

Where else can a setter enthusiast who knows the great lineage of Ch. Johnny Crockett go to pull in the strong genetics of Wonsover and the Eugene M family of great setters to blend with the strong genes of two-time National Champion Shadow Oak Bo?

This breeding brings greatness from the past into the present and it will be interesting to see if a great one emerges.

Editor’s Note: The December 4, 1971 Christmas Issue of

The American Field carried the first of two articles by Dr. Stephen W. J. Seager dealing with the use of frozen semen in breeding dogs. He followed with a second article in the December 2, 1978 Christmas Issue, and accompanying that article was the photo appearing here of Dr. Seager and Johnny Crockett.

Dr. Seager and his colleagues at the University of Oregon were able to successfully store canine semen for later use, a signficant breakthrough for the sporting dog world.

Dr. Seager subsequently worked with the propagation of endangered species.

[Rich Anderson]

If it wasn't for the bird dogs I wouldn't bird hunt. A good friend and a good gun help but it's all just a walk in the great outdoors without a dog.

[chuck brunner]

Great dogs and lots of history

[Rich Anderson]

I'd love to walk those hall ways.

[chuck brunner]

If it wasn't for the bird dogs I wouldn't bird hunt. A good friend and a good gun help but it's all just a walk in the great outdoors without a dog.

I couldn't agree more rich

[chuck brunner]

Rich
Everyone here should make this trip. It is a place steeped in history but so much more than that it is a place that all of the great dog stories of our youth were born by guys like Mr. Buck who rode these hallowed grounds chasing dogs and writing about them. Buck covered the Grand for the American Field and Sports Afield and was a Trial judge as well. The Hall of Fame museum takes hours to see and it is a treasure trove of old photos and stories behind every nook. The staff is incredible and very knowledgeable and like I said all of the gundog breeds are covered. Then ride out the 5 minutes to Ames and walk the grounds.......Like stepping back in time. All of the original structures are still in place and Ames is an active agricultural extension of the University of Tennesee with lots of research in place. Rhea cabin to the stables and kennels to the old green steps. It is some place. 1hr easy drive east of Memphis or 50 minutes from Central BBQ Midtown.....Oh Yeah! A must see as well.

[chuck brunner]

Here is the link to the 2019 Nationals at Ames with some great pics of Dogs and competitors...

https://amesplantation.zenfolio.com/f1023194127