National USA

The 23rd of April and it was time for the planning to end and the journey to begin. Together with my Spanish friend Jesus Gomis Escobar and two Newfoundland breeders from Barcelona, we were off to San Francisco via Madrid and Chicago. We enjoyed three wonderful days in the sunshine. The cable cars, Fisherman’s Wharf, Lombard Street, Golden Gate and China Town were just a few of the unforgettable attractions that we saw. Indeed, after a trip out into the northern mountains, a visit to the art town of Sausalito and a journey across the bay, we eventually left San Francisco with a heavy heart.

The show began on Tuesday evening 26.4.2005 with the presentation of the

„Top Twenty of 2004“.

This social event took place in the conference centre of the Hyatt Regency Hotel. And if our beloved Newfoundlanders were all spruced up, so, too, were the owners, who turned out accordingly in evening dress. One of the most striking things was that Pouch Cove kennels was responsible for a large proportion of the dogs or had bred one of the parents of the other dogs. I really liked these well-built dogs with their slightly cuddly noses and marked stop.

The winner of this Creme de la Creme was:

Ch .Pouch Cove`s Goliath 

We wasted no time in getting to know other Newfoundland fans, after saying hello to Diana Price (Kendians) and Dave Helming (Pouch Cove’s), who I already knew personally. Jesus Gomis introduced me to the Salina family (Fairwether). 

Both the Hyatt Regency Golf Hotel, where we stayed and the events were held, and the Monterey Fairground provided the ideal location for the show. A dog washing area had been set up and baths by Booster Bath were available for everyone to use. A separate arena had been organized for the grooming, meaning that dog hairs were not scattered across the rest of the site. Indeed, given the cleanliness of the site, you would hardly have guessed that a dog show was taking place.

Never before had I seen a cleaner mobile-home parking lot before, during and after a show. We here in Europe might want to take a leaf out of their book!

Courses going under the name of "Presenting the dogs“ and "Grooming“ were held and were very popular. These extra events should also be offered at our special shows.

Wednesday, things get serious!

Only 8 am in the morning and things were already getting underway. First the national anthem; everything was quiet and even the dogs seemed to know what was going on (or were they just confused?). I nipped quickly over to Pamela Rubio (Capriccio’s), to give her the rosettes donated by VND and us. I would like to express my gratitude to her in particular. Both before and during the show she looked after our needs with incredible patience, nothing was too much and she never lost her calm.

35 veterans had been registered. It was great to see these old dogs; some of them were really sprightly and you could see that some of them had been involved in shows in the past. Others, however, had adopted the right (?) approach: couldn’t care a toss..…..! In the meantime the weather expert, Ruth Landmann, had arrived, who surprised us with the latest forecasts from the weather station in her school: Warm, sunny with the chance of some rain overnight. Her forecast was better and more accurate than the ones being given out on the radio and TV.

The Living Legends provided a major attraction, experienced past masters that still make an excellent impression today. The youngest was 9 and the oldest 14!

101 Newfoundlanders had been registered for the Sweepstakes and the Obedience trials, which were being judged by Mr. Kim Griffith, Mrs. Susan Digiorno, Mrs. S. Fulkerson and Ms. Diane Allen.

We just had to laugh at some of the antics of the dogs, especially from the younger ones in these categories, to the annoyance of their handlers.

I got to know an old lady involved in breeding black & white Newfoundlanders. Mrs. Willmott from Canada, „Topmast“, who runs a small but very good breeding centre on her ranch. It would be impossible for me to mention all the people that I met and got to know on this trip. The foreign guests alone, from places such as Spain, Austria, New Zealand, Japan, England, Ireland, Hungary and Demark, filled a platform for the NCA magazine’s final photo. Bela Siklosi was another famous European breeder who had made the trip. Manlio Massa from Italy was missing. Mr. Larry Hansen from Phoenix/Arizona, who was our judge last year in Syrgenstein, was there with his wife. I had some great conversations with both of them. 

Given that there were no judging duties to perform, Jesus and I decided to do some sightseeing in the afternoon. We drove the famous 17 Miles Drive, which is famous for its natural beauty, to Lonely Pine, we took in Carmel and were in Point Lobos National Park. We saw seals, sea loins, sea otters and sea eagles. The weather held and it was a perfect afternoon. We spent the evening in Cannary Road, famous for its sardines , and we took a nightcap back at the hotel. We met up with just about everyone once again at the bar before going to bed. 

On Thursday Mrs. May Bernhard was responsible for judging the 111 males registered for the open category. While we saw some wonderful males that were full of character, we also saw some less impressive examples. I didn’t like some of the pointed heads that I saw, which the haircuts had clearly been designed to cover. Some of the hind legs also looked weak, a sign of kennelling and not enough freedom of movement. We also missed a straight back in too many instances. The grooming, however, was exemplary. It didn’t take the judge long to separate the wheat from the chaff and we agreed with her decisions. Everything was done and dusted by 3 pm, despite stopping for a lunch break.

Another opportunity for sightseeing. Once again we headed south on State 1, the famous Californian section of the “World’s most beautiful road“. And what a treat it was to take in the breathtaking views of the coast and pacific as the road snaked and twisted. Travelling through Big Sur, we arrived at Nephete, the private house formally belonging to Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth. Today it’s a restaurant high above the coast with fantastic views. 

Friday the 29th of April. Ms. Patricia W. Laurans has been allocated 159 Newfoundland bitches. It was almost like a re-run of the males from the day before, except some of them were even more delicate. The show dogs, of course, were easily recognized and finished ahead of the rest. One of the things that struck me the most was the heads of the black & white Newfoundlanders, which were less characteristic. Be it brown, silver (not recognized by the FCI, but very nice), black and black & white – all colours were on show and were all well received.

Today’s attraction was to be Bay Aquarium – and it was great. Unfortunately, the white shark had already been released into the wild, but it was still a unique experience. We spent the evening in Fisherman’s Wharf. Compared to the previous days, the food and its price were extortionate. Enough said. We decided to make up for it with our usual nightcap. 

Saturday, the last day of the month, was the day of all days. The day began later than usual. First of all an army unit marched through parading flags. This was followed by the presenting or arms accompanied by a solo artist singing the national anthem without musical accompaniment.  When this was finished the aspiring “Best in Show” dogs appeared groomed and spruced up, almost as well as their handlers. Once again all the stops were pulled out during the presentation – it was now or never. Of course, we made our own judgements and betted among ourselves as to which dog would be the winner? You could feel the tension among the audience – and it was clear that the decision was anything but easy.

The judge was Mrs. Beverly Bonadonna-Vics and she made a good impression on us as someone who knew what she was doing. 

We were right on the money, the winner was:

CH. Cypress Bay See Sea Baby

V: CH Pouch Cove’s Goliath - M:CH Darbydale in Style At Cypress Bay
Peggy Lange & Debra Thornton (Züchterin)

 Best of Opposite Sex was a dark brown bear:

We decided to go on one last sightseeing tour of Monterey’s old town area and to do some last-minute shopping before preparing ourselves for the evening’s banquet.

Once again, the banquet was held in the conference centre of the Hyatt Regency Hotel. It went as usual – good food but just “Bush” drinks (water and coffee). The prizes were awarded and we all said our goodbyes: ”See you next year in Cumberland“. At 3.30 am the next morning we were on our way to San Francisco Airport to begin our long flight back via New York and Madrid. Happy, satisfied and the better for the experience (both good and bad), we landed safely in Valencia on Monday morning.

 Moraira/Spanien