10th Series – Water Quad

10th Series Test Description
Water Quad with 2 Flyers and 2 Retired Birds
Spangler Property

The day has dawned! It is very warm and very windy. Grounds, throwers and Gunners will face special challenges holding down the tents, garbage cans, etc. Shooting both a rooster pheasant and drake mallard flyers and keeping the fall area where the judges want them will require a special throw and an expert shot. The winds are expected to remain at 15 - 20 mph all day. The temperature will be getting into the low 90's.

The final series for the 2025 NARC is on the beautiful property owned by Randy and Mary Spangler. We are set up in their front yard looking out over a beautiful combination of manicured technical ponds. The grounds are terraced up on the far side, and lush green grass covers it all! This will be a Quad with 2 Flyers and 2 Retired Birds. The order of the throw will be as follows:

Bird #1 is the left middle retired bird station and is our longest mark, with the bird landing about 320 yards in front of the mat. These gunners are hidden behind a bushy tree throwing and then shooting the duck from right to left with the bird landing behind a small pond invisible from the line. The line to this bird takes the dog through 3 separate pieces of water before arriving at the fall. (We will refer to this bird as LR for Left Retired)

Bird #2 is the left rooster pheasant flyer station. The thrower and gunners are wide left of the line. These 4 men are facing the terraced hillside with the bird landing approximately 180 yards from the mat, to the gunners right side. The line to this bird should take the dog across the pond and up the hill, subject to where the wind and the pesky rooster decides it should go.) (We will refer to this bird as LF for Left Flyer)

Bird #3 Is our right middle retired bird station. The well brushed blind is located at the V-shaped point of a long point. The thrower will throw the duck to the right landing on the right side of the point. The approximate distance is about 245 yards and the bird lands on land. (We will refer to this bird as RR for Right Retired)

Bird #4 Is the last bird down and it is the right flyer located about 120 yards from the mat. The gunners will throw and shoot this hen duck and follow with a sluice. The throw is to the right with the gunners and thrower sitting on the bank to the front right of the mat. The line to this bird takes the dog for a swim across a channel, then back on land and then back into the pond for the bird. (We will refer to this bird as RF for Right Flyer)

This test is taking approximately 17-20 minutes to complete per dog.

Dog #24 Starts this Series

9th Series - Land Triple

9th Series Test Description
Land Triple 
Spangler Property

We are at the Spangler property for the 9th Series, with the Spangler house in the background. It is 82 degrees and sunny with 8-10 mph winds from the South. The mat is located at the top of a hill looking Northeast down into a large bowl shaped field. This test has a flyer hen pheasant, a dead hen mallard and a dead hen pheasant.

Bird #1 is a hen mallard that is thrown to the left into the water from a hay bale, where the gunners retire to when the dog is sent. This station is located towards the middle of the field. This bird lands approximately 305 yards from the mat. (We will refer to this bird as MR for Middle Retired)

Bird #2 station is located on the far right with a hen pheasant that is thrown angled back to the left landing 190 yards from the mat. These gunners will retire behind a small spruce tree after the dog is sent. (We will refer to this bird as RR for Right Retired)

Bird #3 Is the hen pheasant Flyer station. This gun station located on left side of the field, and the bird is thrown angled back up the hill at about 150 yards from the mat. (We will refer to this bird as F for Flyer)

This test is taking about 7-10 minutes per dog to complete.

Dog #82 Starts this Series

8th Series – Water Blind

8th Series Test Description
Water Blind
Lucy Too Property

This test sits on the hill just deep and right of the technical pond here at the Lucy Too property again. We are facing WNW and the wind will be hitting the handlers in the back and left shoulder. The mat is placed a few feet behind a small hay bale forcing a decision from the start. 

The line will take the dog just right of a large cedar and then across a small road. From here, the terrain angles down to the left towards the pond. The dog must hold their line and continue tight left of the 2 hay bales placed close together. From there they will move out onto a wide point where they will stay right and be careful not to fall into a cove on their left. 

From the large point, they will enter the pond and start their swim. They will swim past a skinny point that will be on their right. As they pass this point the next obstacle will be a container ring around a group of poles. The dog must pass on the right of this grouping. The bird is planted on the left end of a large peninsula just ahead from here, place approximately 210 yards from the mat.

This test is taking approximately 3-5 minutes per dog.

Dog #54 Starts this Series

7th Series Test Description

7th Series Test Description
Water Triple with 2 Retired
Lucy Too Property

We are still at the Lucy Too property for the 7th Series. (the same test site as Series 5 and 6) The mat for this test sits on the side of a hill facing SSW. At the base of the hill is a technical pond that goes left to right. There is a levee running down the left side of the pond, wrapping all the way down the far side. The wind is currently at the handlers backs.

Bird #1 Sits to the handlers left on the near left side of the pond in an area between the levee and the water. This hen duck is thrown left to right, landing 155 yards from the mat into the cattails. This hen is hip pocket to the island bird #2. The throwers retire into 2 hollowed out hay bales with a burlap curtain door made by Randy Spangler. (We will refer to this bird as LR for Left Retired)

Bird #2 Is located at the edge of a point that juts out from the near shore. The gunners shoot and then throw this hen duck to an island located between their well brushed blind and the flyer guns of bird #3.  This island bird is approximately 165 yards from the mat, the gunners retire after shooting the bird. (We will refer to this bird as Island for Island Bird)

Bird #3 Is the Flyer. They are exactly in front of the mat next to the water on the far side of the pond at approximately 200 yards from the mat. The gunners thrown and then shoot a greenhead from left to right on the shore or face of the levee. (We will refer to this bird as Flyer for Flyer)

Honor There is an honor to the left and slightly behind the mat.

This test is taking approximately 9-13 minutes per dog

6th Series - Water Mark with a Blind and an Honor

6th Series Test Description
Water Mark with a Blind and an Honor
Lucy Too Property

Test 6 is on the same property that we were at for the 5th Series, but we moved over about 50 yards from the previous line. It is 81 degrees currently at the start of this test, with cloudy skies and the wind at our backs at about 4-6 mph.

This test is a Water Mark followed by a Blind with an Honor. The mat sits on top of a hill, looking down at a small pond and then up a hill on the other side.

The Mark is thrown to the left into the pond. The guns are sitting on a point at the corner of the pond. It is thrown first and retrieved first.

The Blind is run after the mark is retrieved. The line is across the corner of the pond behind the guns and then across a curving dirt road twice, going up the hill. The blind is planted about 200 yards from the mat in a small bush to the left of the trees.

Honor After the dog retrieves the blind, they move to the honor.

This test is taking approximately 2-3 minutes per dog.

5th Series - Land Quad with 2 Flyer and 2 Retired

5th Series Test Description
Land Quad with 2 Flyers and 2 Retired 
Lucy Too Property

The 5th series is a Land Quad with 2 Flyers and 2 Retired Birds. We are sitting on a hillside facing SSW with the wind coming out of the NNW. This site is in the shape of a bowl with a pond at the bottom. The Long Flyer station is on the the opposite hill side from the mat, the Short Flyer is at the bottom of the hill. Both retired birds are at the base of the bowl right off of a dirt road that runs along the bottom. The terrain is fairly close cropped grass with a  few evergreens and 25 to 30 hay bales. The order of the 4 birds is as follows:

Bird # 1 (LR)  The long retired gun station is behind a large evergreen tree just right of the the road. The Rooster is thrown to the right landing approximately 215 yards from the mat. This bird will be referred to as LR for Long Retired.

Bird # 2 (SF)  This Short Flyer station with a hen mallard flyer is on the back side of the pond. This bird is thrown and shot to the right, landing 130 yards from the mat. This bird will be referred to as SF for Short Flyer.

Bird # 3 (SR)  The short retired gun station is located behind a hay bale with bushes around it about 40 yards deep of the Short Flyer station. This bird is a hen pheasant and is thrown sharp angled to the left and lands 170 yards from the mat.  This bird will be referred to as SR for Short Retired.

Bird # 4 (LF)  This Long Flyer station also uses hen pheasant. It is thrown and shot to the left and lands approximately 200 yards from the mat, high up on the opposite hillside. This bird will be referred to as LF for Long Flyer.

This test is taking approximately 7-10 minutes per dog.

Series 5 Test Photo

Official Test Drawing

5th Series Test - View from the mat

Rough drawing of test

4th Series – Water Blind

4th Series Test Description
Water Blind
Fox Hollow Retrievers Property

This test is facing NW with the wind at about 10 mph out of the SE currently.

The mat for this water blind sits in front of a dirt road. The line the dogs will take is to cross the road, and go down a hill to the pond. Once in the water they will have a peninsula to cross and then the dog will go back into the water over the peninsula and cross a point that is left of a dead tree. Next they will go back into the water again and swim to the far shore where the blind is about 8 yards up on the land from the shore approximately 239 yards from the mat.

This test is taking approximately 6-8 minutes per dog to complete.

3rd Series – Water Triple with 2 Retired

3rd Series Test Description
Water Triple with 2 Retired
Unbehaun Property

The mat sits on the side of a beautiful technical pond facing Southeast. There is good cover around the pond, the grounds and the islands. 

Bird # 1 (RR)  As you stand on the mat, Bird station #1 is in front of a tree at the far end of the pond shooting and then throwing a drake to the right landing about 230 yards behind a small mound and spit of water. The gunners retire after the dog is sent. The line to this bird will have the dog doing several water re-entries into the pond. This bird will be referred to as RR for Right Retired.

Bird # 2 (MR)  is a hen duck. This gun station is at a bush by a mound located just left of the far end of the pond. The gunners shoot and then throw the hen duck to the right. This bird lands fairly close to Bird #1 at 165 yards. The gunners retire after the dog is sent.  This bird will be referred to as MR for Middle Retired.

Bird # 3 (F)  is a drake flyer. The gun station is located on the handler's left, closer in, but not far from Gun station #2. The gunners tent is by a large willow tree, the gunners throw and then shoot a drake to the left, landing approximately 110 yards from the line. There is no water involved with this flyer. This bird will be referred to as F for Flyer.

This test is taking approximately 8-10 minutes per dog.

1st & 2nd Series – Land Double and Land Blind

1st and 2nd Series Test Description

Welcome to the first test of the 2025 National Amateur Retriever Championship!

102 dog/handler teams will start this morning, after having traveled from all over the US to compete here in Mondovi, Wisconsin.

It is currently 55 degrees and cloudy with a slight breeze - wind coming from the East.

Land Double and Land Blind

This test uses all pheasants.

The mat is placed at the top of a hill looking down at this test. 

2 shots are fired at the long Right Retired, 1st shot is before the throw and the 2nd shot is at the top of the arc.

Bird # 1 (RR) is a Rooster pheasant, thrown to the left past some bales and lands to the right of a large tree at about 275 yards. The gunners retire when the dog is sent. 

Bird # 2 (F) is a Rooster pheasant "Flyer" thrown to the left at 157 yards. 

Bird # 3 (B) the Blind is far right of the double marks at 205 yards from the mat. The line is between a post and a clump of growth. 

This test is taking approximately 5-7 minutes per dog to complete.