About Lumber River Retriever Club
Between 1982-1983, friends Tony Leonard, John McLellan, Roy Sealy, Eddie McNeil and Gary Britt formed the Lumber River Retriever Club, with seven or eight dogs participating in the first LRRC club trial. LRRC was originally running retriever dogs under the NAHRA (North American Hunting Retriever Association) guidelines. The first licensed trial to be ran in LRRC as a club was a NAHRA Hunt Test in November 1987. Eventually, NAHRA was no longer a part of the club activity as it died out in the southeastern part of North Carolina over time.
Later LRRC started running hunt tests under the umbrella of the AKC (American Kennel Club) according to AKC guidelines. LRRC was licensed through AKC in 1999 and held its first licensed hunt test on 5-22-1999. At the time the club was started, each member owned retrievers of various types including Labrador retrievers and Chesapeake Bay retrievers. Now it is even possible that you will see members with standard poodles, once thought to be just pets, running with labs and chessies in hunt tests and field trials. Members today include those from all over Southeastern North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Georgia.
Purpose
The purpose of the Lumber River Retriever Club is to further the quality and preservation of the breed of purebred retrievers as hunting, field trial and hunt test dogs. There are three levels of hunt tests that consist of Junior, Senior, and Master Hunter levels. All purebred breeds of retrievers are eligible for participation in these tests. Members also run UKC-HRC hunt tests for this purpose as well.
LRRC Membership Fees
Membership fees for LRRC are Single-family, Honorary, and Lifetime memberships. The fee for membership is $12.00 yearly and are prorated, due January 1 of each year.
Club Tests
Club tests are held on the third Saturday during February through August; other months they are held the third Sunday starting in September through January. During the month(s) LRRC has an AKC Hunt Test, usually during the months of March (Spring AKC Hunt Test) and October (Fall AKC Hunt Test), there are no monthly club tests held. LRRC club tests are composed of a diverse group of hanlders, trainers, dog lovers, and owners that share the appetite and desire for competition with purebred retrievers. Also, LRRC encourages youth to participate as Junior handlers and are judged on various dog handling skills and abilities, accordingly.
Contact Information
If anyone has any questions about LRRC contact any club officer, club member, or board member through their respective contact information.