Event: Puppy Derby Classic
Result: Associated Field Trial Clubs of Florida
Location: Punta Gorda, Florida
Post Date: Apr 13, 2026
Submitted By: Petie Brown
Open Derby: Beth Brown with Myakka Mistake and Katie McEwen with McEwen's One Night Stand. (Back row): Carl Womack (judge), Daniel Linehan, and Justin Muzynski (judge).
The Muzynski family once again outdid themselves as chairs for our club's Puppy Derby trial. Prior to the Friday night drawing, they put on a delicious fish boil that fed us all over the weekend. Besides using their buggy as a dog wagon, they are always ready to be of assistance; that's the kind of people you want around you at a field trial. Sure, we are competitive, but we also look out for each other.
Pleasant temperatures and dry conditions kicked off Saturday morning's Derby stake with Carl Womack and Justin Muzynski in the judicial saddles. Carl, a special education teacher, grew up field trialing with his parents, Jim and Maryanne Womack; coming to the Webb is a family reunion for Carl, and we are grateful for his support. Beth Brown teamed with Carl to judge the Shooting Dog and All-Age, and Judith Hamilton joined him for the Puppy stake. Their decisions were well received, and we are grateful for their time in the saddle and attention to our dogs and handling.
Saturday night's cookout, besides being a party concluding day one of the running, also came off like a history lesson of the club as many names of dogs, handlers, and owners are read off prior to the announcement of the winners and presentation of the trophies; in this case, the Derby, Shooting Dog, and All-Age stakes.
Again, we thank Purina for their sponsorship, which is greatly appreciated, as they donated Purina Pro Plan to the winners. We thank the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission for their dedication to maintaining the land set up for field trialing.
The Puppy Derby Classic concluded our field trial season, and we all felt it ended too soon. We will gather again in April for our spring meeting, where we will celebrate the marriage of the club's secretary, Katie McEwen.
The Winners
The Derby stake of littermates ended up with a first and second placement, as one was on the ground just getting exposure to the commotion of a field trial, and another, who started the season the same way, turned into an AWOL All-Age. "Goose," or "Gouda," as he is often called, handled by Katie McEwen, ran a decisive all-age with a few directional moments when the courses turned, but definitely made contact with Katie, taking second place. Taking first was Myakka Mistake, handled by Beth Brown, who had a strong finish (didn't want to call time), listened attentively (until time was called), was out front running a big shooting dog until time was called, when she went all-age. With only four Derby entries, the Shooting Dog stake was also on board for the morning.
The first brace got off to a great start when Justin Muzynski's Manatee Sam went on point shortly before the one-hour turn. Justin did a great job getting the birds trying to slip away. There was a pine tree down at an angle, and the birds were nearly under it when they flew. Unfortunately, a good number of them flew back towards Sammy, nearly hitting him. He ducked a bit and did a spin to mark, as Judith Hamilton's Bonnie backed like a statue, taking it all in. The second brace was uneventful as far as bird work, and the temperature was rising, making the third brace very exciting for Justin Muzynski, as his dog "Mack", aka snake bite, was seen standing in the middle of the large open area just before the "horseshoe," so named because of the way the course turns. It is a very birdy area, but this time, instead of being in the palmettos, the covey was sprawled out feeding, and Mack handled the birds to perfection. The last three braces of the shooting dog were uneventful as the temperature climbed. Manatee Sam took third place, with Bonnie placing second, and Holopaw's Mack taking a justified first place.
Three braces of All-Age followed, but only one winner emerged. Multiple unproductives told us the birds were running as the temperature cooled off, landing "Tawna" back on the dog wagon. Her bracemate, "Miller," was enjoying himself immensely, being naughty with multiple coveys before his handler, Katie McEwen, could get a handle on him. The excitement of calling point for this scout quickly turned to "Get on him, Katie!" The second brace had Justin Muzynski pulling the tracker out for Holopaw's Cracker ("Buddy") who got out of pocket as his bracemate had an exciting find for us to watch, because she looked like a coiled spring coursing with energy The final brace had Alex pointing a newborn fawn and a moment later knocking into his bracemate who was picked up, leaving Checkmates Catch Me If You Can the clear winner. Congratulations to owner Vince Feltner and handler Paul Daniel.
Sunday morning's first of two braces of puppies, littermates who ran as derby dogs the day prior, placed the same, with Goose coming in second and Misty placing first. Petie Brown's Diva from breakaway was gone and when the tracker was pulled, it was given to Kenny Muzynski to collect her on the big area. The season may be over, but there is a lot of training and conditioning that still needs to happen. Since we only had an hour of running, we took out more dogs to train our way back to camp, winding down on an uplifting note.
Punta Gorda, Fla., February 7
Judges: Justin Muzynski and Carl Womack
OPEN DERBY - 4 Pointers
1st-MYAKKA MISTAKE, unreg., pointer female, by Checkmates Prime Time One-Silverline Destroyer Gold. Beth Brown, owner and handler.
2d-MCEWEN'S ONE NIGHT STAND, unreg., pointer male, by Checkmates Prime Time One-Silverline Destroyer Gold. Debbie & Katie McEwen, owners; Katie McEwen, handler.
Judges: Beth Brown and Carl Womack
OPEN ALL-AGE [One-Hour Heats] 6 Pointers
1st-CHECKMATES CATCH ME IF YOU CAN, F1706156, pointer female, by Myakka Time Shifter-Nacho's Drama Ma Ma. Vince Feltner, owner; Paul Daniel, handler.
Judges: Beth Brown and Carl Womack
OPEN SHOOTING DOG - 9 Pointers, 1 Setter, and 1 German Shorthair
1st-HOLOPAW'S MACK, F1690237, pointer male, by Holopaw's Axel-Hot Digity Dot. Kenneth & Justin Muzynski, owners; Justin Muzynski, handler.
2d-HIGBY BON HIVER, F1684702, pointer female, by Erin's War Creek-Higby Rilo. Judith Hamilton, owner and handler.
3d-MANATEE SAM, F1690412, pointer male, by Holopaw's Axel-Hot Digity Dot. Kenneth & Justin Muzynski, owners; Justin Muzynski, handler.
Judges: Judith Hamilton and Carl Womack
OPEN PUPPY - 4 Pointers
1st-MYAKKA MISTAKE, unreg., pointer female, by Checkmates Prime Time One-Silverline Destroyer Gold. Beth Brown, owner and handler.
2d-MCEWEN'S ONE NIGHT STAND, unreg., pointer male, by Checkmates Prime Time One-Silverline Destroyer Gold. Debbie & Katie McEwen, owners; Katie McEwen, handler.
Open Shooting Dog: Justin Muzynski, Kenneth Muzynski with Holopaw's Mack, Judith Hamilton with Higby Bon Hiver, and Kayleigh Muzynski with Manatee Sam. (Second row): Beth Brown (judge), Carol Muzynski, Katie McEwen, Laura Dykstra, Page, Daniel Linehan, and Carl Womack (judge).
Justin Muzynski flushing for Manatee Sam as Judith Hamilton's Higby Bon Hiver backs.