Barry Magner is the new huntsman at Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds. / Middleburg Photo
As we approach the 2016/2017 season, Foxhunting Life reports on recent huntsmen moves around the hunting countries.
Round I
Ivan Dowling has retired from hunting Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds (PA). After ten seasons (and before that as first whipper-in), this comes as a major change at Cheshire because the Irish-born Dowling was a key figure in implementing a bold, highly unusual, and successful hound breeding program there. With Dowling’s departure, Cheshire loses a professional whipper-in as well—Stephanie Boyer—who will wed Dowling in September.
Barry Magner is the new Cheshire huntsman. Irish-born Magner’s professional career includes whipping-in at the United Foxhounds (IRE) and a stint whipping-in in England. In the U.S., Magner whipped-in to the Howard County-Iron Bridge Hounds (MD) for a season and became huntsman there in 2007 upon Allen Forney’s retirement. He came to Virginia as huntsman for the Middelburg Hunt where he remained for five years until leaving two years ago for Australia. Back in the U.S., Magner joined the Cheshire as professional whipper-in last season and was named huntsman upon Dowling’s retirement.
Ivan Dowling retires from hunting hounds at Cheshire in favor of marriage and a new career in horses. / Noel Mullins photo
Round II
Gerald Keal, who moved from the Old Dominion Hounds (VA) to the Los Altos Hounds (CA) three years ago, has retired after a long career hunting hounds. He had been planning to retire from the Old Dominion, but when the opportunity arose to hunt new quarry in new country—coyote, bobcat, and boar in Northern California—he couldn’t pass up the experience.
Huntsman Glen Westmoreland moves from the Woodford Hounds (KY) to the Los Altos Hounds (CA). / Sive Doyle photo
Glen Westmoreland will move from the Woodford Hounds (KY) to Los Altos to replace Keal. The Woodford will not seek a new huntsman and instead will participate in a trial merger with the Long Run Hounds (KY) through next season.
Both hunts expect to benefit from the additional country now available to them, and, according to Woodford MFH Jane Winegardner, the memberships are very compatible. Long Run’s Penn-Marydel pack will hunt both countries, and Westmoreland has taken the Woodford Crossbreds with him. “They were much too fast for our country,” said Winegardner.
Gerald Keal retires from Los Altos after a long career hunting hounds. / Karen L. Myers photo
Round III
At the Moore County Hounds (NC), the horn passes from David Raley to Lincoln Sadler. Raley served as Master and huntsman of the De La Brooke Foxhounds (MD) for six seasons, then moved to the Red Mountain Foxhounds (NC), and eventually to the Moore County Hounds.
Lincoln Sadler will carry the horn for the Moore County Hounds.
At the time he was at De La Brooke, Raley was a practicing architect as well as hunting and caring for the pack of Crossbred foxhounds on his own. He needed help badly. He and his staff were at a hound show, nervously waiting their turn in the Pack Class and trying their best to maintain control over their Crossbred pack when he had an epiphany. There was Doc Addis, also waiting his turn, completely relaxed and sitting alone under a tree with his Penn-Marydels clustered around him. With Addis’s help, Raley became a confirmed fan of the breed. “For the smaller clubs that have to get by with less help, Penn-Marydels are just easier to deal with,” says Raley.
Sadler has been whipping-in to Raley, so he knows the pack. He is experienced at hunting hounds as well, having hunted his own pack of beagles for many years.
Sadler has also filled the role of trial huntsman for several years at the annual Sedgefield Foxhound Performance Trials in North Carolina. Having had some experience judging performance trials in the past, it seems to this writer that anyone that can make a pack in a day out of hounds from perhaps a half-dozen hunts should have no trouble at all hunting a pack in which all the hounds know each other!
Huntsman David Raley retires at Moore County Hounds. / Martin Engle photo
Conclusion
As I’ve written before, having been a member of many fields in many hunting countries, the huntsman remains my hero. From the time we mount up in the hunting field and for the few hours that follow, it is the huntsman who is most directly responsible for the pleasure we field members derive from this activity in which we invest so much of our time, energy, thoughts, hopes, and treasure.
One might argue that the hounds have something to do with it, and this I grant. But the pack is the product of the huntsman, and the level of our sport really depends on how our hounds perform as a pack.
We invite readers to fill us in on any huntsmen moves that we’ve missed. Use the “Contact Us” link that appears on every screen to communicate directly with me.
Posted June 16, 2016