HRC Mentor Night – A Teaching-Focused Evening for Handlers – OPEN TO ALL SKILL LEVELS

Goal

This session is designed to help handlers better understand the intricacies of an HRC event and how to effectively train for them. The emphasis will be on education and skill development for the handler—not simply running dogs through a setup.

Depending on interest and participation, this may become a series of mentor nights where we continue to evaluate and address the needs of participants as we go.

What We’ll Cover

• Teaching Your Dog to Follow the Gun – bucket drill fundamentals, gun communication, and proper gun handling and timing.
• Blind Running Tactics for HRC Success – line mechanics, pre-send communication, calling in, and handler strategy.
• Coming to the Line – communicating with your dog while birds are going off and maintaining control.
• Test vs. Training – understanding what is acceptable at a test versus training standards.

Format

This will not necessarily be a traditional setup where dogs run multiple marks and a blind in sequence. Instead, the format will focus on drills and mechanics.

Handlers and dogs will rotate through the bucket drill, working step-by-step through the process. Depending on interest, dog skill levels, and time, we may incorporate a modified test setup or run a blind to break down HRC blind mechanics in greater detail.

Participation

This is intended to be an interactive, hands-on learning experience for handlers. Participation will likely be limited to approximately 10–15 dogs/handlers to maintain a productive learning environment. Final numbers will be determined based on interest.