The Shiner
I could use many words or expressions to describe The Shiner but I will settle for one word only and that is tenacious. She never gives in and always gives 100%. She arrived in Pam's household in the Autumn of 2001 and, as some of the pictures elsewhere on this site show (see Puppy Photos Page 1), she was greeted by the towering presence of her new house mates: Sheba and Bracken. The Shiner quickly settled in and was in no way overawed by the size of the others. After all, I doubt she knew she was small!
Early in the following year we took The Shiner to watch the whippet racing at the club in Newmarket. She quickly became fascinated by the presence of so many other dogs, the sound of the traps opening, the waving of the various flags and the overall excitement of the day. It wasn't long before she was doing short trials. The sight of her throwing herself into competition was something to behold. Entry into traps did not faze her - she loved every minute of it.
In time, as The Shiner passed her first birthday, she began hare coursing with East Anglian WCC. It was in this arena that she became tenacity personified. Never the fastest in the run ups, never the quickest to turn, but boy did she have stamina - and still does of course. She would pull you for ten miles in the day as we walked up in the fields and go into slips and run her heart out coursing the beautiful hare and show no signs of fatigue at the end of the meeting. Due to her attitude and character The Shiner enjoyed her share of success, particularly in the season in which the hunting ban was imposed.
The Shiner now courses the lure with the same gusto and tenacity and appears to love this discipline as much as ever. She will eventually be mated with Zorro. If the resulting pups inherit the character of their mother, they will do well and we will have the opportunity to replicate her deeds and write a further little chapter in the Born To Run book of memories. We look forward to that.
Christopher Doyle, January 2006
