Old Friends

[Flattop]

A couple of weeks ago, Mike Vigar called to see if my son-in-law and I were going to the hunt at First Capital Rabbit Hunters Club. We hitched a ride with Mike and headed South. It seems like we don’t see each other much anymore, with work, family and grandkids. The only time we get together is going to a hunt or turkey season.
When we got to the clubhouse, before I even got through the door, I heard laughter coming from some old friends. There sat the Bryant’s with old man McGuire telling stories of old times and old dogs that are long gone. Those two, Lonnie and Orville, can babble off more than their dogs.
It was a two day hunt and on Sunday Jim McGuire Jr, Orville, and me drew out in a cast with Jared Macallister and Matt Cliffton as judges. It was nothing but cutting on each others’ dogs and each other. There was another cast member that was probably thinking “who the hell are these guys”? We even had Orville thinking that his dog was about 500 yards away, running down the road. So as he was heading out to get it, he knew he’d been had.
That weekend Flattop Kennels sucked, Mike and the Bryants lost a dog each on Saturday. My son-in-law, Josh Elker, had to run the dogs on Saturday, as me and Mike were looking for dogs with no luck. On the way home he had to think that this was a shitty weekend for me but it was one of the best hunts since Mike and I started running ARHA in ‘89. While the Bryants I had not seen in years, it was great to hear the stories being told that weekend with old friends.
While waiting on the dogs to be rolled out I thought back to the day the first hunt was held at that building. I was half expecting to see old friends come through the door that you could compete with like Jim Hughes, Carl Arnes, Guy Boyer, Don Nash, Lloyd Gray, Ray Smalley, Ron Dysert, John Snyder, Gil Davis and Paul Webb. I am sure I have forgotten some. We did have some of the old time competitor’s in Mike Klaibber, Steve Penwell, Jim and Jim McGuire, Tony Upton and Mike that was there that weekend.
I got to watch open finals between Bryants Crying Kennels and Logan Elm Kennels right down to the wire, just like old times. The missing dogs were found on Sunday.
Thanks Lonnie and Orville for bringing back a lot of great times we had running after these little hounds and all the miles we traveled together.

Jeff Kerns
Flattop Kennels

[JCM]

That was definitely a great weekend. Anybody that has ever met Orville and Lonnie Bryant knows that they are as good as it gets. Their sportsmanship is the best.

[carl arn]

Me bob and guy were just up the road hunting wish we would have known we would have stopped in to bs

[Flattop]

That would have been nice. Don,t know if you still work for miller,s but every time I see one of their crews I look for you . Take care.