Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/116174
T Framed within a piney, sunlit meadow, the he dogs hit the ground and immediately plowed into the thick stuff, taking up where they'd left off before lunch. Within minutes Dan called "Point!" and we circled from the narrow track that meandered above the creek and shouldered our way into the adjoining hardwoods and loblollies. Within a few yards I spotted Brute locked up solid, backing his bracemate who had the covey nailed 20 yards ahead. I whispered " . . . gooood dog" as I eased past him, making my way through the tall brush with the little 16 gauge. I could not see Shooter in the thick undergrowth and so I paused for a moment, trying to spot him. But it was as though he had disappeared. And so I exhaled and then stopped breathing and closed my eyes and let my ears guide my inner vision until I detected the faint but unmistakable sounds of quail hurriedly scurrying a few feet ahead, urgently conversing among themselves and trying to decide what to do next. Finally I opened my eyes and cautiously took a step or two forward, and I'm pretty sure I was in the middle of the covey when it broke. There were quail in the air in front of me, there were quail in the air behind me and there were quail coming up on either side. I felt the percussive thrust of the wind off one bird's wings as he thundered past my ear, and by the time I managed to pick a single bird from the covey, they were all nearly gone. When I fired, all I saw was a mass of autumn leaves disintegrating 15 yards ahead. My sight picture looked good and my lead had felt proper, but when the dogs tore past me I knew that finding the bird would be a real challenge for them. author (center) and guide Dan Torgerson move in to flush a covey pinned down by Shooter and Brute. Several days after the hunt, Brute and guide Matt Behe won the World Championships of the Bird Dog Challenge. Below: the author rewards Shooter with a big kiss. Opposite: For Sporting Classics Editor Chuck Wechsler, this lovely little Fausti Class Round was just the ticket for gunning the hard-flying birds in thick cover. S P O R T I N G C 124 L A S S I C S