Summer is here!

We kicked off summer in Southern Colorado doing what we do best-playing outdoors!

photo by Alex

Mountain biking!

photo by Alex

Rafting!

photo by Alex

Dreaming!

ATVing!

Enjoying spectacular views!

photo by Alex

Eating!

 Hiking!

photo by Alex

Friends!

Swimming!

Thanks Mariah and Derek for a great start to summer!

Prize 1:NAVHDA Natural Ability Test

Sunday was a big day for us.  A day I've excitedly been anticipating for months.  The day Bird Mountain "Run to the Hills" (a.k.a. Dudley Brown) took his NAVHDA Natural Ability test which is designed to evaluate the inherent natural abilities of young dogs and gain insight into their possible usefulness as versatile gun dogs. It rates seven important inherited abilities: nose, search, tracking, pointing, water, desire and cooperation.

To be truly meaningful, tests for versatile hunting dogs must meet certain criteria. They must be conducted in an environment which reflects actual hunting conditions and situations. They must test the important qualities of a good versatile dog. Judges must be knowledgeable, consistent and objective. All testing and evaluation is to be within the context of judging dogs as useful, productive hunting companions. NAVHDA tests have been designed with these requirements in mind. In addition, our record keeping provides an accurate, complete performance evaluation on each dog tested.

In order to eliminate direct competition between dogs, entrants in a NAVHDA test are judged one at a time, by three judges, with their performance scored against a standard. The only exception to this is the Invitational Test, in which dogs are braced in the field so each dog can demonstrate his willingness to back and work effectively with another dog. Prizes are awarded on the basis of numerical scores achieved in the test. Each dog that meets or exceeds minimum standards in all areas of work is placed in one of three categories: Prize I, II or III. Prize I being the highest classification. If all dogs entered in a NAVHDA test perform well, all can receive a prize.

Dudley Brown Results:(1-4)
Search and Pointing: 4
Pheasant track: 4
Swimming: 4
Physical examination: Normal
Gun Shyness: Not Gun shy
Temperament: Normal
Coat: Medium thickness,Medium coarse
Work and Cooperation: Strong
Final score: Prize I with a perfect score:112!

The test was run in Norther Colorado at Cobb Lake.  It was a bit windy at times, but otherwise we had perfect conditions.

Alex walking with the judges during the first section of the test.  There are birds in this field and DB needs to find them and point them.

Which he is successful at!

It was a 10 hour day  so we brought the Skamper along and had a place to rest, eat and nap while we awaited our turns between tests.

Dudley Brown found two birds during his tracking session!

The judges check each dog over for coat, fur, teeth.

Each dog needs to be able to swim.  Which luckily is one of DB's favorite things to do!

Brown loves his boy!

It was a family affair!  From left:  Dudley Brown; siblings Lucy, Rosa, Eddie and Mom Ada.

A well deserved nap on the ride home!

Sisters on the Fly

I was stoked Monday morning when I saw this sweet little rig sitting on LaFarge Street in Old Town Louisville.

My mind was reeling about what my life would be like if only I had a little rig like this.  I have dreamed, practically  all my life, of the adventures and freedom that being on the road (or sea) presents.  (If you remember from a previous post my first desired career was to be a truck driver.) So you can imagine I was even more stoked this morning when I had the opportunity to chat with her owner Juli Thorson from Idaho.  Juli is here in town for two reasons:  She works for Horse and Rider Magazine, which just so happens to have an office on Main street in Old Town.  But also for the debut of a new book by Irene Rawlings called Sisters on the Fly.  I was only sad I missed the book signing event and chance to see more of the rigs last night.  But it made my day to chat with Juli and hear of her life with her little retro rig and horses in Idaho.

Here's the article form the Denver Post:

Sisters on the Fly bring their retro rigs to the Mile High City

Posted: 05/15/2010

Sisters on the Fly members Debra Bolnik and Krista Cartwright. (David Foxhoven)

Irene Rawlings was working on a book project just outside of Big Sky, Mont., about a decade ago when she spotted the most unusual parade.

It was a caravan, actually, of vibrant vintage trailers, each revealing the personality of its cowgirl-boot and denim-clad driver. This one had a mural of a woman galloping through the high country on horseback. Another featured a series of colorful palominos. Another spotlighted a martini glass beneath the words "Sisters on the Fly."

Rawlings was hooked. She needed to know more about Sisters on the Fly, a collective of women, now nearly 1,500 strong, who are bonded by fly-fishing and refurbishing vintage trailers."I got to know them, and I fell in love with them," says Rawlings, a longtime Colorado journalist who enlisted her favorite photographer, David Foxhoven, to help chronicle the Sisters' adventures. "They're such endearing, intrepid women."

Rawlings will gather up a few of the Sisters and their trailers for an appearance and book signing at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday at The Tattered Cover, 2526 E. Colfax Ave. Her new book is "Sisters on the Fly: Caravans, Campfires, and Tales from the Road." You can read more about the sisters and their cross-country exploits at sistersonthefly.com.

Desert Beauties

Trax's 15th Birthday

We went back to Friuta, CO to celebrate Trax's 15th Birthday.  It's still amazing to me that he's 15.  A whole new adventure lies ahead of us:  driving, girls, jobs...makes my head spin!For now lets just look at some of the adventures we had this weekend:

 Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore!

 Trax brought his friend Wyatt along for the riding.  The boys were stoked to be there!

Even Dudley Brown brought his friend Layla.

The boys shot off rockets which turned out to be a lot of hootin' and hollerin'.  Especially when parts of the  rockets started falling off and the rockets shot out of control.  Luckily the nearby campers were cool when a rocket shot up, then sideways, then shot onto their camp!

More from the Cloud Foundation! Exciting news!

AWESOME news from Ginger:
New Foals in Cloud's Herd

Dear Cloud Fans;

It took four days of searching, but Makendra and I finally found Cloud and his family on Tillett Ridge, or maybe I should say he found us. 

I think he and the band had crossed through Big Coulee canyon (how I don’t know!) and arrived on Tillett just as we were creeping uphill in our 4-wheel drive vehicle. The whole band looked great with a very pregnant Aztec amongst them. Cloud looks just wonderful for early May---better than I have seen him looking in years.  This is the time of year when the horses are typically the thinnest, having survived the rigors of a Montana winter. Now the grass is coming up and new foals are being born. It's an exciting time.

Durango and Buffalo Girl's foal, just hours old!

Jasper

Perhaps the single most exciting moment was the discovery of the other foal in Bolder’s band, his son and a Cloud grandson. 

I felt like I was in a bit of time warp---transported back to 1995. The pale colt we watched racing on a ridge top on Sykes is very like Cloud in color and in spirit. He is the daughter of the flashy black mare, Cascade. Her son is the only living foal she has ever had after years of infertility, an out of season birth, and a foal she may have aborted or lost soon after birth last year. I had trouble taking pictures of him, he ran so fast and turned so quickly only to race back in the opposite direction.

He very sweetly went to say hi to his newborn sister on the second day we spent with the band. As he tried to touch her nose, she laid her ears back and tried to kick him. This little filly has spunk and I can’t wait to see her in a few weeks when she too can race with her big brother. We pray these proud Cloud grandchildren can survive and we will work very hard to see they are never removed from their mountain home.

Bolder

Our goal is to change the philosophy of wild horse and burro management on our public’s lands. This new philosophy would focus on freedom and family, fiscal accountability, and the need to manage for viable herds on the range, in lieu of managing (at a substantial loss of taxpayer dollars) millions of head of welfare livestock.

Merlin and Belle Star's new filly

Thanks to all of you who have contributed with your donations, your ideas, your encouraging words, and your volunteer efforts.  Trust that our collective voices are making a difference. Change is on the wind. Never ever give up the fight! 

Happy Trails,

Ginger