A Voice from the USA
Press Release - Fairfax Hunt Kennels Fire
Fifty-five foxhounds survived a barn fire at the Fairfax Hunt Club Wednesday. All but one of the hounds hospitalized were released yesterday, Joseph Keusch, Joint-Master of the club, said, adding that "it looks very promising for the rest of the pack." He credited Kevin Palmer (Huntsman) with saving the hounds by breaking the wire that confined them.
Flowers were set up to memorialize the three horses and 17 hounds killed. Keusch said that the barn is a "total loss" and that fire officials told him that the blaze might have been caused by a short-circuit in a refrigerator.
Fairfax Hunt Races - Help our Hounds
Red Letter Day
The Los Altos Foxhounds hunt country is south of San Francisco, California, USA. having originated in the Bay Area, they gradually migrated further south with registered country around San Jose. Hounds are now kenneled near Hollister, high up in the mountain Pass.
There is a quite a tradition in hiring a long succession of British & Irish huntsmen, amongst those are Pat Ellis (old Sparkford Vale fame) Brian Walters (ex-H.H.) Chris Allen (author, ex-Wigtownshire), Simon Probin (Limerick & the Tipperary) Alan Coady (Tiverton), to name only a few.
The indomitable Albert R. Shreck (‘Al’) has watched over these hounds for many years and held the Mastership for two terms, and was instrumental in securing the strong breeding line to the Limerick, helped by his good friend, the late Lord Daresbury MFH., Al later went on to become a Joint-Master with his Lordship in Eire at the Limerick.
One of the best and longest hunts I enjoyed, with over 40 years experience hunting hounds in many varied and different parts of the world, was whilst hunting the Los Altos Foxhounds during the 1980s...
We met at Schwabachers at Tres Pinos, near Hollister, and went to the top of the range where two coyotes were spotted, looking at us from the next hill, laying hounds on, they split, and our pilot took off to the West of the Ranch.
Wes Martin got to the boundary fence as they went away across Bayley’s, with the field catching up, we jumped on to the Idria road, and got to the Main Road at Airline Highway, Paicines, to find they had already crossed into the old sandpit by the Almaden Winery.
Taking on tail hounds, we got back on to home territory at Cienega Ranch to find that the pack had gone over the San Benito River, South of the Kennels, with a good view by Bonnie Mitsui at the Trash Pit, they had climbed out over the next range.
With horses now cooked we took to the pick-ups, going around Cienega Rd, and found hounds by the FWD Adventure Track on the edge of the town of Hollister. A good hound hunt of 15 miles as they ran, with a ten-mile point, untouched the whole way!
They gave all indications that they might have caught and broken up their coyote.
Altogether, a memorable performance from an Old English (Limerick Bred) pack of Foxhounds.
Chris (‘Tiny’) Allen