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A Collies Online Feature: CCA Nationals Of The Past

The Spirit of '76 and Beyond

(1976-1980)


By Sally Futh, Starberry Collies
starberry@snet.net

Photos from CCA year books 1976-1980

1976, the Bicentennial Year saw CCA looking patriotic by the riverside in Rochester, New York with the "Spirit of '76." As I remember, it was cold and snowy, but when isn't upstate New York cold and snowy during the winter? and the show was on Valentine's Day weekend. In their first national assignments, Ted Kjellstrom judged dogs and intersex, Bill Brokken presided over the bitches, and the oldest member of host Rochester Collie Club, Mrs. McGillicuddy, did junior showmanship.



George Horn's, Ch. Gingeor's Indelibly Blue, took BoB but there was another first for Smooths when Marianne Murray's Ch. Ledge Rock's Simply Smashing was BoS to BOB as well as BoV in her variety. Housers' rough bitch, Ch. Twin Creek's Scrumptious and Joyce Beddow's smooth dog, Ch. Tedjoi Silver Knight, were BoS in their respective varieties. The Gladiator son, Honeybun's Blaze of Tartanside and the Hawk son, Fire Hawk of Kasan, took the dog points and Shamont Sand Castles and Markay's American Beauty were WB. Total entry was 345; it was 5 points in both varieties.

Next year (1977) we went further (for us), to Dallas on Easter (April) weekend, after judging, with Bill Holbrook, the Ft. Worth specialty the day before. Dot Gerth had dogs and intersex; Bobbee Roos the bitches. Roughs had 114 dogs, 148 bitches, 47 specials; Smooths were 16-22 and 21. Dot's choice for BoB was the '75 WD, Joan Able's 'Prise son, Tamarack Asterisk and Tim Garrison held the lead on veteran, Twila's Twilight, who truly showed herself to BoS to BOB. Pati Merrill had BW with Merrill's Messiah (an Alltheway-'70 WD- grandson) and WB was J-Lauran's Star of Vi-Lee, bred by Vivian JaBaay. RD was the Alltheway son Helga Kane's Kanebriar Countdown, and RB Ric-El's Miss Golden Girl (by Alltheway son MacD. See note below). Eva and Leslie Rappaport had the Smooth WD, another Hawk son, Pied Piper of Kings Valley, Alteza Seigga Gambol was WB, and Mike Esch took RD while Ron McGee had RB. It's always nice to see familiar names still in the game cropping up.



Leila and Louis Wachtel urged us to go to the CCA banquet, saying they had plans for our kids. This involved an electric frying pan, hardboiled eggs and dye, so that next morning there were eggs hidden around the motel grounds for them. Shelley Roos was out walking dogs and Sweeper showed the kids how to find Easter eggs.

Ch. Antrum's Alltheway was the Hornadays' house pet, so he was not used as widely as were the other household names of the era, and that was before the day of RoM and showing any and all offspring that could finish to achieve the title. Hawk had come east to be shown and achieved a national presence, as did Cali Collaire. But that too is another story.



1978 was back to Louisville with the predictably huge entry in this heyday for the breed in the Midwest. There were 710 present of the 833 entries. Bill Holbrook had both intersex assignments (99 and 57) and handled the minor classes in rough dogs; Pat Starkweather took the rest of the dog classes and Jane Youngjohns had the smooth entry -- 19 and 30, giving the points to Meridian's Gold Standard (Barb Pickrel) and Carlos Sampayo's Arsam's Helen's Time Out. Steve Field judged 248 rough bitches, choosing Deauville's Merry Poppin as his WB and Burntree Cherokee Princess RB. Ada Shirley judged juniors.

Bill's WD was the Vohrs' tri Gladiator grandson, Shamont Stormalong. As with his sire, Zilverrijder, Linda Simmons and Barb Linder had to settle for RD with Donnybrooke's Lucky Lindy. Lynda Buckels' (Powers) and Joyce Galaich's Ch. Skyline Wooden Horse was BoV Smooth with American Beauty going BoS. Bill carefully sorted through his big specials class and chose the veteran Gladiator for a third win, tying Bright Future's record. Parolas' Ch. Tamisett Golden Dream, the half sister to WD, was BoS.

The sad part of this show was that in the locally unusual cold, a large number of Collies at the show came down with Coronavirus. Previously almost unknown, it spread through many dogs left at home, being particularly lethal to young puppies. We talked to our friend Drew Baker's staff at Cornell, who recommended trying cat vaccine. So we gave the live virus and only found out afterward that they were experimenting with only killed! The dogs stayed healthy, having been in our hotel room, not left out in the cold like too many, and didn't learn to meow. Exhibitors who have only heard vaguely about this terrible outbreak need to remember that vaccination or boosters before show season is always wise.



February again for 1979; we had a bunch of slow learners in charge -- or else that is when the sites would be willing to have us. "Sun Time" in San Diego; it might have come out once or twice, but our kids thought that when you went to California you could go swimming. The Holiday Inn manager came out to watch in amazement and Hal Sundstrom, who had promised to go swimming with them, wisely begged off.

Ted Paul judged dogs and intersex (roughs: 122 and 60 BV; 110 total Smooths, 22 and 44; and George Horn had the 173 and 33 bitches. Thelma Brown judged 25 juniors and Marion Hodesson had 55 in Obedience. Grooming quarters were downstairs in the unheated garage; the show was in a fairly small ballroom upstairs. I remember watching the dogs in the hall ready ring as it was not possible for all the spectators to squeeze into the actual room which held the ring. That was probably the first time we realized how much better you can see dogs upfront and close outside the ring instead of just sitting in one place ringside. Bob calls it "pre-judging," as he makes his choices and then watches to see what the hired judge decides.

Debbie Blundell (Falk) took BoB with her and Michelle Altier's Ch. Rio Bravo Achilles; BoS again to a smooth, who was also BoV, Ch. Windamere's Firstimever, bred by Susan Nance, owned by Emma Slusser. BoS Rough was Ch. Mel-Bar's Powder Puff of Tremont, bred by Emma Slivkoff, owned by Mel and Barbara Ridgway, Smooth BoS was Ch. Nostalgix Paradise Lost, owned by Betty Johnson, Sondra Calhoun and Jane Youngjohns, bred by the Mike Resnick.

In Roughs, Ted's choice for WD was the Gladiator son, Glenecho Set the Style; reserve to Aurealis Skylarking, Debbie's with Mary Hutchinson. In Smooths, Hagens' Foresse Wild Mtn. Peregrine and RD Romek's Trojin Masqerade -- Susan Romek Royd's by Fire Hawk out of the BoS ). George chose Westwend's Paper Rose, Joyce Houser and Carol Fabeck's True Grit daughter with RB to Vanity BluBlu Daze, Joyce Kosub and Larry Willeford. ShalCam's Whale Song, a Zilverrijder daughter, was WB in Smooths for Pat Wright and Gail Rudowicz; the Groskys' McMaur's Foxy Filly was reserve.



Back to Atlanta for 1980, in a hotel ballroom which was dark but otherwise acceptable; the rest of the building was in the process of, or badly in need of, repairs. The tortoiseshell carpet made it hard to see the dogs, and I never did find my matching glasses, which were lost ringside! John Lindeman again judged dogs and intersex and Barbara Schwartz the bitches. Of a total 439 there were 168-185 and 60 in Roughs, 43-43 and 40 Smooths, 36 in Obedience, and 19 juniors. Lindeman found Ch. Azalea Hills Top Man, handled by the ice cream suited man, George Schlinker, for BoB, Ch. Lee Aire's Amazing Grace, the WB at St. Louis Collie Club the day after the '75 national, was BoS. Ch. Mel-Bar's Murmur in the Night and Ch. Lochlomun's Carolier topped Smooths.

Les Canavan handled Royal Rock Minstrel Man, owned by her and Verna, by Ch. Arrowhill Oklahoma Tribute, to WD, with Steve Caldwell's Halcaldee Signed and Sealed, RD. Whispering Pines Windsong, was WB for Katherine Huber; Wanamakers' Candray Jubilee was RB.

Lilah Williamson's Scot-Dales Riverboat Gambler was smooth WD; the Esch-bred Sujim's Smooth Talker was RD for Irene Smith. His half sister, Verlor's Fascination in Black was BW and Best Smooth Puppy for Mike's parents, Vern and Lora. Maureen Burrell's Braemar's Gotcha, RB; Baylor's Advantage of A son, Largo's Rogues Revenge, bred by Gayle Kaye and Nancy Gustafson, was Best Puppy in Show.

For some reason neither show committee nor superintendent thought to order rosettes for the national specialty. When we saw the 6-inch strip of purple ribbon for WD we were all horrified. Some of Royal Rock's had the local horse show ribbon vendor make up a proper rosette. I guess the rest of the winners had to be satisfied with their little ribbons.

We were heading for larger and larger entries, at least in mid-country, and going to a three-day show. No more four-ring circus, like Louisville.

Related features previously published on COL:

> Something Magical! CCA National Specialties of the Past, Part 3, (1971 - 1975)

> Back in the Day: CCA National Specialties of the Past, Part 2, (1960 - 1970)

> A Word from Dickens: CCA National Specialties of the Past, Part I, (1954-1959)

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