With the Federations starting in the month of March at the Southern Let me tell you about a federation record that may be hard to beat!

Last summer in August of 2001 I had a chance to set down with West Virginia professional handler, Bob Bibbee after the last class had finished running at Border Beagle Club in Stockbridge, Michigan.

During our conversation the talk turned to great dogs and some of the records they have sat. The discussion turned to Bobs field champion, Big Ben Luke. As it turned out Luke was really a great dog and set a record that no dog may ever challenge.

In 1994, during Lukes futurity year, he won six of the seven federation events and placed second in the other one. Needless to say Luke won the Purina Futurity Award that year. Bob believes this gave him the record for the futurities and to the best of his knowledge Big Ben Luke still holds that record to this day.

Big Ben Luke also won the Joy award for derbies the previous year in 1993. All total, during his during his derby and futurity years, Luke won ten trials and came in second three other times. Now that is really some kind of record. As I remember the great Big Rock Reba had a great record also. However, I dont believe it begins to approach Lukes record.

Bob says he can thank his grandson for helping him decide to keep Luke when he was a pup. Luke came from a litter of 4 males. Bob wasnt going to keep any from the litter but his grandson took an interest in the pups and became attached to one of them. Lucky for Bob the pup his grandson liked turned out to be Luke. So because of his grandson Bob kept Luke but sold the other three. Luke was sired by Field Champion Big Ben Bumper. His dam was Witcher Creek Dollie.

According to Bob, Luke was special right from the start and he finished him before he was ever entered in a derby trial. Bob said he ran Luke in licensed trials around home in the fall of 1992. In six trials he picked up a win and 5 other places. At Christmas time he placed Luke on the truck with Joey Smith. Joey ran him in 3 trials in nine days. During that stretch Luke won a trial on a Monday. He came back high in another trial the next day and won that one also. In those 2 trials Luke beat the same dog twice to finish for his championship.

Bob described Luke as a very special animal and as a very intelligent dog. He said he was independent to a fault. Bob said you could run a herd of elephants over him and it wouldnt bother him in the least. He said he would never dog track.

With a bit of nostalgia echoing in his voice Bob said he would love to put Luke on a rabbit for me that very afternoon. The temperature at Border that afternoon was in the low nineties and it was very, very dry. However, Bob didnt seem to be the least bit concerned. I could tell by his voice that he had total confidence in his dog. Bob went on to explain that there are very few dogs that you are unafraid to place on a line anywhere. But that was not so with his dog Luke because he could track a rabbit anywhere under any condition. Bob said, I could put him down on gravel, even a driveway, in scent high or low and Luke could always handle a rabbit without ever changing speeds. He always controlled himself very well.

As a stud dog Luke produced twenty-eight or twenty-nine champions and he is still alive today. In fact one of his sons just finished during the Flint River Licensed pack trial called Lakeside Luke II. The dog is owned by Mike Floyd of Georgia and was bred by John Haley.

Luke is still alive today. He was 10 years old last October. Last year Bob said he produced a litter of thirteen pups, twelve of which were females.

Bob started beagling over fifty-two years ago in 1947 when he was in high school. He went to a licensed trial with his brother and a friend and immediately got hooked on the sport. Bob said, my brother, who had always owned rabbit dogs, became a golfer and left the sport but I stuck with the beagles.

Bob judged licensed trials in all parts of the country but nowadays he just sticks with professional handling. He is very good at what he does. Last year he won the Joy Field Champion Award with a dog he owns called Chapel Grove Charley. I can attest to the fact that he will take the very best care of your dog and will do the best he can to put it in the winners circle.

Jess Snake Wilson got Bob started judging licensed trials in Michigan. However, Snake advised him to take no more than two trials during a licensed trial season. He explained to him the reason being that if you see a dog one week you will remember its good and bad points. Concerning this, Bob said I took Snakes advise.

Bob spoke fondly of the time that he judged a licensed trial with General Myrick and they looked at around 300 dogs during the 4-day trial.

Concerning the science of judging Bob said, Let the dogs action on the line tell you what to do and dont let your dislikes for either the dog or its owner influence your decision on how the dog performs.

If you attend any of the federation events this spring undoubtedly you will run into Bob Bibbee. He will be there competing for the laurels like he has for most of his adult life. If you think of it just mention the name Big Ben Luke and watch a smile light up his face. He was a great dog as Bobs smile will surely tell you. The record Big Ben Luke holds will be hard to beat.