COVERTSIDE STORIES
HONORING THREE HUNTSMAN: THE 2022 HUNTSMAN’S ROOM INDUCTION
The Museum of Hounds and Hunting in the Westmoreland Davis mansion at Morven Park in Leesburg, Virginia, houses important and valuable artifacts of mounted hunting with hounds. Founded in 1985, the museum provides preservation and display of the sport’s rich history…
THE BATTLE OF THE HORNS! ASHLEY HUBBARD WINS MFHA NATIONAL HORN BLOWING CHAMPIONSHIP
On Saturday, May 28, 2022, the Hound Show Dinner, sponsored by the Virginia Foxhound Club, was held under the tent on the lawn at Morven Park. After dinner and the presentation of the HSBF Ian Milne Award, the MFHA invited professional staff to compete in the Annual…
MFHA HUNTING HABITAT CONSERVATION AWARDS PRESENTED AT MFHA HEADQUARTERS
Daphne Flowers Wood, MFH, Live Oak Hounds, presented the 2021 and 2022 Hunting Habitat Conservation Awards during the board meeting dinner at the MFHA headquarters. The 2021 Conservation Award recipient was Andrews Bridge Foxhounds and the 2022 Conservation Award…
THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM COVID CLASS GRADUATES WITH HONORS
The Professional Development Program (PDP), sponsored by the Hunt Staff Benefit & Development Foundation, was founded in 2006 to supplement the education professional hunt staff receive on the job. The PDP is led by MFHA Director of Hunting Andrew Barclay. During…
STEVE CLIFTON HONORED WITH 2022 IAN MILNE AWARD
On the eve of this year’s Virginia Hound Show in Leesburg, Virginia, Steve Clifton joined an exclusive group of honorees who have blown the legendary Ian Milne’s horn. As a recipient of the 2022 Ian Milne Award, it is a tradition and honor that only five other…
ED KELLY: A LIFETIME OF SUPPORTING MOUNTED HUNTING WITH HOUNDS
After 37 years as a Master, Edward Kelly has stepped down from his leadership role at Golden’s Bridge Hounds. The club can’t begin to offer enough thanks for what Ed has brought to our organization through his many years of service. “He’s been a good fox hunter: He…
JOHNNIE GRAY PASSES THE HORN
Four fields followed the Hillsboro Hounds pack the morning of March 26, 2022. It was a large turnout viewable from various vantage points as they poured across the middle Tennessee hills and ridges and through the trails of the Hounds Ear fixture in Cornersville…
PHOEBE DRISCOLL: FOXHUNTER FOR LIFE
For her 85th birthday, Phoebe Driscoll’s children joined her in a day’s hunting with Mr. Stewart’s Cheshire Foxhounds in Chester County, Pennsylvania. “Oh, that was such a great surprise!” she said, since four of them live scattered across the continent, and most…
GONE AWAY: MARTIN LETTS, MFH, COLLEGE VALLEY/ NORTH NORTHUMBERLAND FOXHOUNDS
John Martin Letts, 88, passed away. He was joint Master and former huntsman of the College Valley/North Northumberland Foxhounds from 1964 for 58 seasons. A highly regarded breeder of Hill hounds, the bloodlines of his Fell cross modern English foxhounds are found in…
LIVE OAK HOUNDS SPONSORED A LOCAL RIDER AWARD AT RED HILLS HORSE TRIALS
Not only have the Live Oak Hounds been parading at the Red Hills International Horse Trials for more than 20 years, they also present a Local Rider Award to the rider that places the highest and lives within 100 miles of Tallahassee, Florida. It’s a silver frame with…
THE WIDE-OPEN SPACES OF THE TEJON RANCH SET THE STAGE FOR THE WESTERN STATES PERFORMANCE TRIALS
Spring in Southern California comes in February. California poppies, lupin and daisies are just a few of the wildflowers that carpet the huge, rolling hills that make up the historic Tejon Ranch, the site of the 2022 Western States Performance Trials held Feb. 19-20.
WICOMICO HUNT’S PENN-MARYDEL HOUND PERFORMANCE TRIALS
On the first weekend of March, eight Penn-Marydel packs traveled to Wye Island Natural Resources Management Area (NRMA) on the Eastern Shore of Maryland to participate in Wicomico Hunt’s Regional Performance Trials. This was the only Penn-Marydel-exclusive…
CLAY BRYANT AND DAKOTA REACH THE CENTENNIAL MILESTONE
Years ago, Clay Bryant seemed unlikely to become a veteran fox hunter and achieve his centennial status. However, the dynamic duo of Clay and his trusty steed Dakota reached this milestone last year when Clay turned 74 and Dakota marked his 26th birthday. This…
JUNIORS PROMOTE FOXHUNTING
Members from Keswick, Deep Run, Glenmore, Old Dominion, and Farmington Hunt Clubs went to Richmond, on Feb. 11, to meet with state senators and delegates about the importance of mounted hunting with hounds in Virginia. We met with Senators Peake, Hanger, Stuart and…
NO LAND, NO FUTURE: WHY CONSERVATION MATTERS
The Masters of Foxhounds Association awarded this year’s Hunting Habitat Conservation Award, which is given annually to a hunt that has made significant and enduring contributions toward the preservation of habitat and biodiversity of their flora and fauna, to the…