Most show dog people in the conformation world will agree that the so called Montgomery weekend is as important a weekend on their outdoor calendar as any throughout the year. Expanded by usage and I suppose tradition, as well to include Hatboro and Devon, it truly can be the aficionados paradise. What with Morris & Essex added to the mix, albeit (and thank God) every fifth year, the overall expectations grow even larger. Let's work from the beginning of the four days and move onward.
First of all, incredible Morris and Essex. A show attempting to dedicate itself “to the way we were.” Well, I doubt Mrs. Dodge would have necessarily approved of today's interpretation of her show, but any one of us reared in the atmosphere and conditions of the shows from the '60s on had to have been more than favorably impressed. Fortunately, the horrendous weather held off here (as it basically did the next day at Hatboro) so that the show went off without a hitch. The grounds and parking were expertly handled—Montgomery, please note—and the set-up of the tents were spread out but incomparably planned. Ring sizes—Montgomery, please note—were large, basically grassy and lacking potholes on LEVEL ground. There was ample room on the grounds—Montgomery, please note—for excessive tenting covering all the needs of the spectators, which meant plenty of grooming space—Montgomery, please note—to include a spectacular luncheon for all members and guests, as well as, through the generosity of Toni and Martin Sosnoff, and free lunches for all exhibitors, courtesy of Nestle-Purina. Breakfast, continental in nature, was provided as well through the generosity of Janet Lange for Take the Lead, whose presence was visible and recognized by all. By now you get the picture: The day was way above the norm and most positively so with magnificent floral arrangements—Montgomery, please note—and a plethora of golf carts, which at times turned the grounds into a dust bowl—Montgomery, please do not note. The pretentiousness of the hats, I thought unnecessary, but others seemed to enjoy the idea a lot.
By now you should realize how much I truly enjoyed the day. Group judging was intolerably long, however, and but for the lights which were hired (it seems someone must have anticipated the slowness of certain judges—again, Montgomery, please do not note) the finale would have been pitch black. The ultimate winner was the Colored Bull Terrier, which I make one hell of a dog and terrier. He has his detractors, though, and they basically seem to come from the U.K. For me, when in condition, he's truly tough to beat. Kathy Kirk has done and continues to do a great job with him.
 The next show was Hatboro, which was held in threatening weather that, thank heavens, really never materialized. Hatboro pretty much has its grounds and routines pretty well established and is run annually on as good a level as a show can get. Its marvelous fall backdrop for taking pictures grows in stature, as does the show itself. Now if it could just get its judging panel honed up a bit—or a lot, depending on from where one comes—it would truly be at the highest of show levels. As we all know, dog judging is a matter of opinions and, like certain areas of our body, we all have them. Some opinions being better than others. But when three, if not four, group winners of the previous day are beaten in their breeds—not the group but the breeds—something is amiss. This was the case with certain M&E Group winners, as compared to Hatboro breed winners. And don't get me wrong, I totally recognize that there is a difference between group and breed judging, just as I understand that a dog can go best one day and lose the breed the next. But the occurrences at Hatboro were too great not to at least mention these differences. The ultimate winner was the Airedale dog shown so well by Jennie Wornall, as the terrier dominance of the weekend continued.
Well, by now you all should know that as a result of the deluge of rain, Devon had to be cancelled. The grounds were, I am told, a total mess. The few people who pulled in were towed out or could not even go that far. The truth of the matter is that these grounds became questionable years ago when the development of homes began to overtake the entire area. When Sam Ewing first began what I then called “Ewings Corner,” it was country and a most attractive showground. Despite the field reps' attempts to limit the size of the entries, which Devon rejected, practically, the time has come for Devon to find a new venue. Not too far away is the indoor Philadelphia site, which could accommodate Montgomery as well. True, not overly glamorous, but at least the show could be assured of being held. If you read last week's “... And More” column, I raised the question as to how to handle cancelled shows and asked why the exhibitor is so heavily penalized financially in these type situations. Along comes massive Devon, and who, once again, is left to hold the financial bag? The exhibitor, of course.
The big day arrives at the new site, which dawned with fears on all of our parts of it having to have to be cancelled. I refer, of course, to Montgomery. First, let me say that for a first-time effort, and considering the weather problems, both the grounds and the set-ups are very promising. You know when Ambler was good it was truly a great—not adequate but great—venue. But when the weather was bad it was like that girl with the curl—Ambler was very, very bad. Conditions could have been worse at Blue Bell's Montgomery College campus, but compared to Ambler, this site on this kind of a day was heaven! That's not to say there were no problems, but most, through the years, I think, are more than correctable with proper type planning. The morning parking was a nightmare. True, the rains had subsided if not stopped, but the unloading plans had to be altered big time due to the conditions of the grounds. Which grounds for normal use, by the way, were not that bad considering the prior day and night's rainfall. Certainly no one could fault the drainage system of the grounds even on the low points of the fields. But when Peter Green and Gene Zaphiris had to help out, if not take charge of the unloading of cars in the early a.m., something was amiss somewhere.
 Personally, I loved the one giant, magnificent tent. It gave us the opportunity to see far more breeds at one time than could ever be accomplished at Ambler. The rings themselves, however were, too small, certainly in the case of the Airedales and SCWTs. One never had the opportunity as we had at Ambler to see the magnificent spectacle of, for instance, all the Airedales in an open ring field. And in my opinion this could have been accomplished by a refiguration of the tent set-ups. Why use all those good grounds for a luncheon tent just across from the big show tent? The area opposite the big tent could have been used for presentation of much breed competition. It would be easy to find another venue to eat that “old chicken a la king” on the more than ample macadam parking spaces. Really, which is more important, stuffing one's mouth or showing the dogs off at their best? And speaking of stuffing one's mouth, how about those of us who didn't have the time or desire to sit and be seen? Hopefully next year more food courts will be available. Similarly, I don't know whether grooming space was lost due to the weather, but grooming space was inadequate at best. I really don't want this to read overly negative because I do think the show and the day were as great as ever. This is the result of the attitude and the spirit and devotion of the terrier people themselves. These statements are made only with the hope and intent of positively improving the presentation of the show. And along those lines, something must be done to make the group ring more glamorous and dramatic. I mean, really, the fact that the ring was not used to its greatest advantage in terms of spectator participation is one thing, but to be as drab and lackluster in presentation is another. The show was won by an eight-year-old Veteran Smooth Fox Terrier bitch shown by Liz Tobin. And let me tell you something about the Group and/or Best in Show judge. I consider Ferelith Somerfield to be one of the most honest and best of judges in the U.K. She is a longtime acquaintance for whom I have nothing but the greatest respect. She does her own thing, and pity the person who thinks otherwise.
After all is said and done, I think the new grounds at Montgomery have much promise and much to offer in continuing the great tradition of the show for terrier people worldwide. I also think a lot of re-figuration must be considered before this goal will be achieved. •
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