UKC Coonhound Weekly Bulletin, Episode 8
June 17, 2025
Source: Trevor Wade, Coonhound Program Manager
Email: twade@ukcdogs.com
It was another action-packed weekend on the road. I spent a good portion of my hours since my last bulletin down on Sunflower Road in Tell City, Indiana at Plott Days. If you have never been to Perry County CHA in Tell City, Id suggest making it out there for something one of these days. The backdrop is perfect for a coon hunt. The hills, the holler, the creek, it looks like a scene from Where the Red Fern Grows.
We have a lot of information this week so lets jump into it.
PAST EVENTS
A couple of breed day events were on full go last weekend with National Plott Days in Tell City, Indiana and American Redbone Days in Bellevue, Michigan. Both of those events have a four-day slate full of events, or as Allen would say, they play all the games. It took me a couple hours to get all the event results together, but in all seriousness, thank you to the National Plott Hound Association for always being so accommodating for me at their event, and thanks to Lindsay Morrow and George Guthrie for getting results to me from American Redbone Days. That sure makes life easier.
- National Plott Days (includes Plott Youth Championship)
- American Redbone Days (includes Redbone Youth Championship)
- Wisconsin State Youth Championship (waiting on results)
* Also, it looks like pictures from English Days are now up on SmugMug, here!
UPCOMING EVENTS
The Major Event and Youth Championship schedules are quite a bit slower this weekend than they have been the past several weeks. One state youth championship is all I see. If you arent near enough to Pennsylvania to get a youth or two to that event, you might consider taking the opportunity to get your dog qualified in one of the five qualifying events over the weekend. Remember, qualifying season for the World Championship is winding down quickly with only a little over a month left. By my count I only show 36 RQEs left across the country with a dozen more Qualifying Slams left along the fringes. This weekend there are five Regional Qualifying Events in five different states including KY, NC, OH, SD, and TN.
- Pennsylvania State Youth Championship in Mt. Pleasant, Pennsylvania
* If anyone reading is going to be there, I would sure appreciate if anyone could send results over to me. For these youth events, make sure you are putting the handler names on the reports as it indicates. They deserve the credit and the Spotlight Series points.
WHATS HAPPENING?
We are halfway through 2025, and people are starting to look toward 2026. This includes competitors, vendors, and clubs. Most are noticing the calendar shift that takes place in 2026. Just for the sake of clarity, I will take a second to explain. UKCs Coonhound schedule is completely based on Labor Day weekend and Autumn Oaks. With that event being tied to that holiday for 60 years, it makes sense. Every six years, Labor Day shifts back into September. For those of you who are more visual, lets just look at the Autumn Oaks dates the past 10+ years.
2014 August 29-30 (Labor Day Sept 1st)
2015 September 4-5 (Labor Day Sept 7th)
2016 September 2-3 (Labor Day Sept 5th)
2017 September 1-2 (Labor Day Sept 4th)
2018 August 31 September 1 (Labor Day Sept 3rd)
2019 August 30-31 (Labor Day Sept 2nd)
2020 September 4-5 (Labor Day Sept 7th)
2021 September 3-4 (Labor Day Sept 6th)
2022 September 2-3 (Labor Day Sept 5th)
2023 September 1-2 (Labor Day Sept 4th)
2024 August 30-31 (Labor Day Sept 2nd)
2025 August 29-30 (Labor Day Sept 1st)
2026 - September 4-5 (Labor Day Sept 7th)
All of this was just a way for me to explain to you that yes, this calendar shift has happened every six years for decades at UKC, and no, we are not trying to ruin your event. No one roots for your success more than us. It is just how the calendar shift works. I am going to work on getting together a tentative major event schedule for next year as time permits this week and early next week to help anyone needing to make work/vacation plans.
Autumn Oaks is bearing down on us, and we have had a lot of questions about golf cart rentals. Allen received news last week that Cherie had unfortunately passed. She was a mainstay at Oaks for many years and will be sorely missed. Having said that, others are stepping in to ensure that the company can still provide golf carts to their faithful customers at Autumn Oaks. Allen shared the information on golf cart rental here on the UKC Forums: Golf Cart Rental 2025 Autumn Oaks
Here is the weeks update on what reports we need to finalize Spotlight Series standings:
- Polk County Coon Club - Cedartown, GA - 5/30/2025
- Martin County Coon Club - Pilgrim, KY - 5/31/2025
- Missouri Coonhunters Federation Youth Championship - Cole Camp, MO - 5/31/2025 (have report, waiting on handler information)
- Sooner Cooners - Stigler, OK - 5/31/2025 (Missing Spotlight Series Report)
DOG OF THE WEEK
Hopefully you all are enjoying the first couple installments of this segment. I could have gone a hundred different ways with this one. Since I was at an event this past weekend that had all the coonhound program licensed events each day, it makes sense to point out a dog that competed at the highest level in each of the four UKC licensed Coonhound Events, nite hunts, bench shows, water races and field trials.
That dog is CGRCH GRWCH(4) GRNITECH(3) GRFCHHOF GRCHHOF PR Hogans Ruby HTX4. Ruby is owned by Lee Hogan in Rudolph, Wisconsin. What makes her stand out in my mind? It could be a variety of things from her amount of multiplier titles to her dual Hall of Fame achievement having earned that highest title in both the bench show and the field trials. To me, the fact that she is the only dog to have ever achieved the Field Trial Hall of Fame title is the most impressive feat. Anytime a dog is the only one to have achieved something, it sure impresses the heck out of me. Lets learn a little more about her.
Name: CGRCH GRWCH(4) GRNITECH(3) GRFCHHOF GRCHHOF PR Hogans Ruby HTX4
Breed: Bluetick Coonhound
Date of Birth: 8/11/2011
Owned by: Lee Hogan of Rudolph, Wisconsin
Bred by: Greg McDowell
Three-Generation Pedigree:
--- PR DD Riverbend Blue Buck
- CH GRNITECH 'PR' Sons of Squaw Crks Blu Hank
--- GRCH PR DD Riverbend Blue Kayt
CGRCH GRWCH(4) GRNITECH(3) GRFCHHOF GRCHHOF PR Hogans Ruby HTX4
--- GRNITECH 'PR' Deans Blue Mose
- GRWCH GRNITECH GRCH 'PR' Hogan's Jazz HTX2
--- NITECH CH 'PR' Shanias' Amazing Grace
Ruby has a lot of wins to sort through so I could talk all day, but Ill keep it fairly short. She quickly rose through the bench show world, earning her CH title in April of 2017, her GRCH title in July of 2017, and ultimately her GRCHHOF title in April of 2021. She ended her bench show career with 55 GRCH wins. Her win list is sprinkled with a variety of clubs from Wisconsin, Michigan, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, etc, with some impressive wins at major events.
In the hunts, Ruby has made her way all the way up to GRNITECH(3) with 16 GRNITECH wins. I havent asked Lee about this personally but I know one win that stands out to me was when she made the Grand 16 at the 2020 Autumn Oaks having scored 575+ on Friday night. She is also a GRWCH(4) in the water races having won 27 Grand Final lines and 31 Grand Final trees since achieving the GRWCH title. She currently sits with 12 HTX passes and has her CGRCH degree in conformation shows as well.
Lastly, lets look at her Field Trial record. She made FCH in July of 2017, GRFCH in May of 2018, and ultimately became the first and only dog to make GRFCHHOF in July of 2021. She did so with 35 Grand Final Lines and 40 Grand Final Trees. She is truly one of a kind.
UKC HUNTING OPS PODCAST
In last weeks episode of the podcast, Allen and I sorted through all 24 years of the UKC Youth National Championship in advance of the 25th Annual Youth Nationals coming up in July.
We went through 24 years of history, over 60 combined National Champions, $221,000 in tuition money awarded, all in one episode. Also, if you listen, you'll hear a lot of names who cut their teeth in UKC's youth program over the past 25 years. Some of which have gone on to win at the highest level of our sport. I hope you give it a listen! To follow along with the list of winners from the events, you can see the full list of National Champions here: Youth Nationals Historical Winners
Lastly, please consider bringing a kid to Milton, Indiana on July 18th and 19th for the 2025 UKC Youth Nationals. Wayne County Coonhunters Association and Hanna's Creek Conservation Club are both top notch and are tag teaming this deal. You can bet they are pulling out all the stops to make this one of the best youth events yet. And lets be honest, one trip to Richmond, Indiana a year just isn't enough. See event ad and get more details here: Youth Nationals
Guided by the belief that dogs make a difference by being the best partner a human can have in the field, on the job, or in a competition event, UKC is a community for people and dogs to pursue excellence together. Founded in 1898, UKC has been dedicated to enhancing the lives of Dogs That Do More, and their owners, by providing essential resources to help owners and breeders make informed decisions. The dog-human bond is celebrated through family-friendly programs highlighting the instincts and heritage of purebred and mixed-breed dogs alike at over 18,000 licensed events annually.