One
of the highlights in the Bobtail calendar is the yearly staging of
the Euro Show. This
year,
Belgium
was the chosen host club, and
Genk
in the east, near the German border was the town we all headed
for. This was the
closest the show had been to
England
for many years, but the British attendance was surprisingly low.
Another great disappointment for me was the FCI rule that
dogs docked after 1-1-2006
were
ineligible to enter, and several
East Anglians
were unable to show their dogs as the English Kennel Club rules
differ.
Apart
from this however, I have to say that I enjoyed the whole four
days immensely, and the organisation was first class.
The Belgian OES Club were great hosts and not a euro was
spared to provide great entertainment, food, hotels, and a huge
hall with big rings.
The
drive from
Dunkirk
to
Genk
only took two and a half hours, so we felt refreshed to tackle the
Championship Golf Course on Friday.
Joachim Pils and his girlfriend
Regina
from
Germany
were waiting at the Clubhouse and Angie and myself were impressed
with the Hotel and golf complex.
The judges, Steve and Michaela Hall were staying here,
along with some other bobtailers from Czech Rep. and maybe a few
others. Most of us
were staying in hotels in central
Genk
where there was registration on Friday evening at the main hotel,
NH
Genk
. Name badges,
timetables, excursion details and directions to venues were
helpfully provided to ensure no-one was in any doubt about the
weekend’s activities.
The
hotel bar overlooked a magnificent lake and the veranda was a buzz
of doggy conversation with acquaintances being renewed and news
exchanged. The lovely
sunny weather demanded we find a local restaurant where we could
eat al fresco, and the
Town Square
was ideal with its dancing fountains and choice of eateries.
Saturday
morning is free time and so many Bobtails were walked around the
lake, before a visit to the local Brewery, Ter Dolen, or a trip to
a mediaeval town. We
visited Ter Dolen with about 30 others, set in an historic abbey
with lots of charm and a wonderful range of strong beers with
flavour and character. I had to restrain my imbibing as at 5.00
p.m I was presenting, on behalf of my judging experience, at a
Seminar back at the hotel on the “responsibilities and
opportunities” open to the Bobtail world in general.
Birgitte Schloth the famous Vet. from
Denmark
was presenting for the breeders, and Eef Ter Mors for the
committee members point of view.
Eef, from
Holland
, is a founder and existing member of the EuroShow Committee and
had sent out a questionnaire on the internet to gather opinion and
information before the show. The
Hall was packed and very warm, and the presentations and lively
discussions filled the 2 hours allotted.
Eef has promised to publish the final outcomes of his
seminar and content of the presentations on a website for all to
see and digest. It is
planned that this will be continued and taken further at the next
EuroShow.
After
the seminar it is time for the “welcome dinner” at the hotel.
Around 200+ sat down and enjoyed a sumptuous buffet and
music from a singer/guitarist.
Another chance to chat with old friends from all over the
world, I believe 23 countries were attending, many with their
dogs, from Australia, Canada, USA, Greece, Russia, Estonia, Italy,
Scandinavia, and all other European countries. A highlight of the
evening was an exhibition of line dancing from a talented troupe.
They managed to get a good number of people up learning to
line dance, amazingly also including myself (not a fan of
country music) and good fun and hilarity ensued.
Sunday
is the big day – Showtime at the local Exhibition Hall where
bobtailers were camped in their caravans and motor homes, a city
of its own. The huge
indoor hall was lined with trade stands, including the much-loved
Midlands
crowd with their Bobtail memorabilia and collectables, a massive
tombola and the Belgian Club’s own stand.
The ring matting on the floor was laid out in the Belgian
national colours in the form of a flag, and added to the colour
provided by the national flags of all those attending.
The grooming area was a hive of activity by
9.00 a
.m as the 187 bobtails were brushed and paraded in the two rings.
Steve Hall, next year’s Crufts Judge was to go over the
Senior classes and his daughter Michaela the baby and junior
classes. The day flew
by and at 6.00 p.m the BIS was announced as Champion The One and
Only Von Den Blue Zottels with the BOS being the bitch from
Russia, Champion Griland Beauty Bear,
Best Puppy was Checkpoint Charlies True Black Bandit and he
won my heart as he seems to be wearing his pyjamas with his dark
markings all over, Full details online at www.euro-show2009.be. Or
via the Belgian Clubs website.
The
novelty classes are always a joy to see, breeders class, progeny
etc. but they do make the judging go on to a later time.
We had to drive back to the hotel and shower and change for
the Gala Dinner Dance, which was held back at the Show Hall
complex. Dressed up in
our finery we were ushered in with champagne and a local dance
band to entertain. The
champagne and wine kept flowing as the meal was delayed so we were
all quite merry as we queued up for our buffet.
After
the feast Johnny Nielsen from Denmark was awarded the silver pin
of honour for his dedication to the world of bobtails, well earned
as he always videos the big shows around the world and distributes
his DVD’s to all who want them.
The auction of bobtail artefacts raised a lot of money and
the main attraction was an old spinning wheel donated by Elaine
Georgian and OES Health benefited from the sale as well as the
Belgian OES Club. The
Danish Club always provide the cabaret, and excelled this year
with a tribute to Abba featuring some amazing costumes and
hilarious dancing. This
leads into the traditional presentation of the BIS winner to the
tune of “Fly Baby Fly”. This
much-loved finale is the crowning moment of any Euro Show, and the
presentation of the “fluffy toy bobtail” to the happy winners
is a tearjerker. I
love it, long may it continue.
We continued merry making and dancing long into the night
and returned, tired and happy, to our hotels in the early hours.
Breakfast
is a long and pleasantly drawn out series of goodbyes, and then we
all drift away in our cars back to the airports and ferries.
What a great weekend, great show, superb organisation by
the Belgian Club and a wonderful attendance from the bobtail
world. I truly believe
there is nothing like it in the world of dogs.
Next
year the irrepressible Danes will host the show and the website is
already up and running. The
announcement for 2011 was made at the dinner and will be staged by
the Czech Club in
Prague
. So, will we see you
in
Denmark
next year? Try to get
there, you will not be disappointed.
Ray
and Angie Owen – EuroShow fans
