Cheryl,

                There are a few articles on the Greatland Chapter web site related to training, mostly on what to expect in a test and some essentials on how to prepare for them. However, there really is no substitute for a good hands-on clinic or one-on-one session with an experienced handler when you’re trying to learn things like how to force fetch a dog or encouraging a pup to cast properly during a search.

                We really do suffer from geography in Alaska when it comes to group sessions, even with people in and around the Anchorage Bowl. It must be much, much harder for those of you in Nome or other outlying areas.

                The best solution appears to be a means of appealing to other people through a forum like this discussion board for small-scale training opportunities on an ad hoc basis. Something like, “Hey, I’m going to be at the local pond on Saturday morning and could sure use a training partner who knows how to do the NAVHDA “Retrieve of Duck” drill. Give a call!”

                As John Haddix pointed out in his recent post, putting together a larger training session has proven to be exceptionally difficult over the years, and we have tried lots of formats.

                I encourage you to get together with individuals in Nome whenever you can stimulate the interest, and to call any of our members in Anchorage or Fairbanks whenever you’re planning to be in the area. I join up with people several times a year that do that.

                We’ll take another look at running a test next fall and will schedule one if we can get sufficient interest.

                                Thanks, and good hunting,

                                                Thanks,

                                                                Roger