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The 13th annual Leatherstocking Sheepdog Trials will be held in a field off Beaver Meadow Road from Aug. 16 through 18. Photo by Michelle Miller.
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Sheepdog trials will begin Friday
By MICHELLE MILLER
Staff Writer
Sheep handlers from all over
the world will be coming to Cooperstown
for the 13th annual Leatherstocking
Sheepdog Trials that will
be held in a field off Beaver Meadow
Road from Aug. 16 through 18.
The trials will start at 8 a.m.
each day and will run until about 4
or 5 p.m., rain or shine. Admission
charges will be good for the whole
weekend. The cost is $5 a person
and children are admitted free.
The sheepdog trial is put on by
the Leatherstocking Sheepdog Trials
Committee, which is sanctioned
by the North East Boarder Collie
Association (NEBCA). The event is
a competitive dog sport in which
dogs move sheep around a field,
fences, gates, or enclosures as directed
by their handlers. According
to committee member Linda Hotchkiss,
the handler instructs the dog
with a whistle or with voice commands.
For this trial, three sheep
are used and one dog goes through
the course at a time.
Hotchkiss said there are bleachers
for people to sit on during the
event, but she encourages visitors
to bring chairs and blankets because
there is limited seating. She
said the event typically attracts
about 200 people each day, depending
on the weather.
Hotchkiss said organizers are
expecting approximately 70 dogs to
participate in the event each day.
She said the novice class, which
usually is a four-minute course,
will be held on Friday and the more
experienced classes, which can
take close to 10 minutes, will be
held on Saturday and Sunday.
Each test element is assigned a
maximum score, and a judge will
deduct points for each fault made.
For example, during a drive the
judge may deduct points when the
sheep move off line. Competitors
must negotiate each element in sequence
before proceeding to the
next. There is a set amount of time
for the whole course; there is no advantage
in completing the course
in a short amount of time, but if
the competitor runs out of time,
points will be lost for the element
they were in the process of completing
and all those that they have
yet to attempt. The competitor’s
score is the sum of their score for
all completed elements, and the
competitor who receives the most
points wins.
According to Hotchkiss, awards
will be given out at the end of each
day to the top 10 competitors. This
year’s top prize will be a pet portrait
painting by Barbara Armata.
Hotchkiss said the committee tries
to come up with something a little
different to give out with the ribbons
each year.
Hotchkiss said Armata is also
providing the sheep for the event.
She said Armata will lease approximately
80 Scottish Blackface
sheep from her farm.
Hotchkiss said not every breed
of sheep work well for sheepdog trials
because they cannot be too big
or too small.
The event is open to any breed
of dog, but mostly border collies are
used. According to Hotchkiss, border
collies seem to work best, and
are fun to watch because there is
no set standard for the breed.
Hotchkiss said border collies can
be black and white, brown and
white, all white, short haired, long
haired, and look different in many
other ways. However, Hotchkiss
said a German shepherd was used
in the event in the past.
Hotchkiss said the sheepdog trials
are a fun and inexpensive event
for people to enjoy.
``It’s close by so people won’t
have to spend a lot of money to
come have fun,’’ said Hotchkiss.
She said if people grow tired of
watching the dogs they can go visit
the many vendors that will be at
the event. New this year will be
Reiki Master Ellen Sokolow, who
will be providing a form of pet therapy.
Leashed pets are welcome.
To get to the trial, follow the
trial signs in Hyde Park off Route
28 South of Cooperstown. The
event is sponsored by the Farmers’
Museum and Blue Seal Feeds. For
more information, call (607) 293-
8385.
- Local Sports
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Pair complete lake swim
EMILY KERR, LEFT, David Bonderoff and Amy Hage Delli-Coli were all smiles after their lake swim on Saturday.
David Bonderoff, 17, of Cooperstown and Amy Hage Delli-Coli, 41, of Exeter, N.H swam the entire length of Otsego Lake last Saturday. They began their 9.2-mile swim at Springfield Landing at 7 a.m. on the north end of the lake, along with their friend, Emily Kerr, of Exeter, New Hampshire.
Continued ... -
Patriots have shot at another stellar season
The Cherry Valley-Springfield boys soccer team had a dream season last fall, coasting through the regular season undefeated and capturing its third straight Tri-Valley Championship title with a 3-0 victory over Morris.
Continued ... -
Former CCS star to play for Hartwick
Former Cooperstown girls basketball and Herkimer County Community College star Samantha Fox is taking her hardwood talents to Hartwick College next season.
Continued ... -
Deer suggestions made
A citizen task force for the 4F Wildlife Management Unit, which includes most of Otsego County, has recommended the DEC set a no net change in the estimated deer population.
Continued ... -
Hawkeyes players honored
Two Cooperstown Hawkeyes players earned Second Team All-League honors from the New York Collegiate Baseball league on Monday.
Continued ... - Thursday, August 19, 2010
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Girl is in a league of her own
Some may argue that girls do not belong on the ballfield playing among boys, but a 13-year-old Little League girl from Plant City Fla., has proven she can hold her own.
Continued ... -
Perez to represent the East for National Title
Last spring, Elias (E.J.) Perez was the recipient of Cooperstown Youth Football’s inaugural Youth Football Camp Scholarship award, and recently attended the Offense/Defense football camp held in Rochester.
Continued ... -
Benefit golf tournament is Aug. 29
Prizes, good food and fun will be ``par for the course’’ at a benefit Golf Tournament on Sunday, Aug. 29, at the Otsego Golf Course. The Tournament is organized by the newly created Cooperstown Rotary Foundation (CRF), a nonprofit, tax deductible organization.
Continued ... -
Edmonds named athlete of the year
Cooperstown’s Caleb Edmonds did more than enough to earn Daily Star Athlete of the Year honors in track.
Continued ... - Thursday, August 5, 2010
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Petroskey homers, but Hawkeyes eliminated
Cooperstown Hawkeyes owner Tom Hickey said on Monday the team’s inaugural season was a success on every level except for one.
Continued ... -
C’town Legion finishes season 11-8
The Cooperstown American Legion baseball team completewhat head coach Ed Dubben called a successful season by defeating Herkimer, 5-2, last Thursday at Doubleday Field.
Continued ... - Thursday, July 29, 2010
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Dawson has harsh words for steroid users
Andre Dawson entered the Hall of Fame wearing a Montreal Expos cap on Sunday, but it was clear his heart was still in Chicago.
Continued ... -
Hall voting process restructured
Thanks to a restructuring in the way the National Baseball Hall of Fame selects veterans for enshrinement, the late George Steinbrenner might have a plaque in the Cooperstown shrine next summer.
Continued ... -
C’town girls lose first
The Clark Sports Center hosted four games in the girls summer basketball league last Wednesday.
Continued ... -
Hawkeyes will host playoff game
This much is sure: The Cooperstown Hawkeyes will host a playoff game at 5 p.m. on Saturday at Doubleday Field. Who their opponent will be though, is still very much up in the air. Cooperstown clinched a playoff berth with a 4-1 victory over Albany Tuesday evening at Doubleday Field and played two games on Wednesday. They are currently 21-19, a halfgame ahead of fourth place Glens Falls. They played Glens Falls at 1 p.m. on Wednesday and with a win would lock up third place and a likely first round match-up with the Oneonta Outlaws beginning Friday night.
Continued ...
The Outlaws ended their regular season on Tuesday with an 8-5 win at Albany. - Thursday, July 22, 2010
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'Hawk,' 'Whitey,' 'God' to enter Hall
When former Cubs’ second baseman Ryne Sandberg was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2005, he took time during his speech to single out former teammate Andre Dawson, who was in attendance that day.
Continued ... -
Tennis tournament 'a success'
The third annual Chris Gentile Memorial Tennis Tournament was held last weekend at the Clark Sports Center.
Continued ... -
Ozzie to host Play Ball on Friday
He blazed a trail across the baseball world for parts of three decades, forever changing the game with fielding accomplishments never before seen.
Continued ... -
Hawkeyes in playoff hunt as season winds down
If the New York Collegiate Baseball League playoffs were to begin today, the Cooperstown Hawkeyes and Oneonta Outlaws would meet in a first round series. The top four teams in each division qualify for postseason play, and currently Oneonta is in second place and Cooperstown in third with one week left in the regular season.
Continued ... -
Cooperstown All Stars fall in final
The Cooperstown Major League All Star team advanced to the finals of the week-long Oneonta tournament, but fell to the hosts, 15- 8, in the championship game on Sunday.
Continued ...
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