Richard Reynolds: The honor of judging at Morris and Essex is right up there with Westminster and Crufts. While the panel at M&E consists of about 88 judges being selected from the thousands of approved Conformation judges, it is an unequaled privilege not soon forgotten. Letters go out a couple of years before the show date and judges are sworn to secrecy until the panel is announced. That’s a tough secret to keep, but the opportunity to participate in this singularly unique dog show is one to be cherished. The site, the decorations, the rings, the stewards, the tenting, the electrical system, and everything else are planned to be the best they can be. I know well in advance that I have been gifted a day that I will enjoy from the (very) early morning hours until the big rosette is handed out well into the evening. This year was no exception and my thanks and appreciation go to Wayne Ferguson and the entire Show Committee for the incomparable honor of being a part of it. (You also get judges’ parking, which is a pretty big deal by itself!)
Richard Reynolds: This year I had the honor of judging not one but three National Specialties, two of them for the second time. M&E tries to connect judges with breeds for which they have a particular affinity and I was assigned National Specialties in three breeds: Bedlington Terriers, English Foxhounds, and Harriers. These are low entry breeds, to be sure, but the entries at M&E were the best of the best from around the world.
My 55 Bedlington entry was an amazing number and I don’t think many would argue that the overall quality for this “Founder’s Specialty” was among the best the world has ever seen. The incomparable Rock Ridge Night Rocket won Best in Show at M&E in 1947 and 1948, and the Bedlington Terrier Club of America was actually founded at an M&E show, so we had high hopes for the breed. My Best of Breed was flawlessly presented and in wonderful condition. I was so very proud of her in the Group ring.
A Harrier National isn’t quite as exciting, but we still mustered an entry of twelve. My Best of Breed winner looked as if he had just stepped out of a Megargee painting that hangs in the AKC Museum of the Dog. It was a pleasure to reward him.
English Foxhounds drew an amazing 17 entries, with Monocacy Bend’s Farnsworth claiming the Breed. Of note, though, was the fact that my Best of Winners was a lovely bitch entered to the Princess Anne Hunt. (IYKYK). Showing an “entered” hound in AKC shows is a major accomplishment and I was proud to reward a true working hound!
Richard Reynolds: “There must have been some magic in that old silk hat they found; For when they placed it on his head, he began to dance around.” So went the lyrics of “Frosty the Snowman,” but it just might be equally true of M&E. The club has created not just a dog show but an event surrounded by an unmistakable aura, and the best of everything. One has only to spend an hour or so on the grounds to feel the spirit that M&E creates. The large entries and the time required to judge them results in breeders and exhibitors actually sitting (or more likely standing) around and talking to each other. It’s like the old days, only better. Once every five years we are reminded that we literally stand on the shoulders of giants, and those giants are present in body or in spirit at each M&E. That’s at the core of our sport. Always has been and will always be “relevant.”
