2024 PKC Senior Showdown Champion!

[R D Carnegie]

2024 PKC Senior Showdown Champion
PCH History Repeats Itself
Owned by Lance Belcher/David Vanover
Handled by David Vanover

When David Vanover travelled to Good Springs, Alabama for the 2024 PKC Senior Showdown he would learn that his PCH History Repeats Itself (aka Pete) had ties to the area with his father being from that area and also that Alabama was going to be very good to both him and Pete when they won a new truck there! Pete’s ties to Alabama are definitely ones that David and his partner Lance Belcher are appreciative of in every way!

David has come a long way since he started hunting PKC in 2016 after Tyler Shell and Cody Mayne talked him into going to a $30 hunt. He reminisced, “I got addicted to it quickly. They also talked me into going to Labor Day Classic and that was when I got into my first Final Four.”

David has been to a few of the other Truck Hunt events, but he has never made it into the Final Sixteen before. He shared, “I have always gotten beaten on the tie breaker due to strike points. I finally broke the ice this year.”

The hound that made the crack in that ice was David and Lance’s 2015 model Treeing Walker male out of GCH Sun Makin History and Norris Lake Blaze. It was quite a process for these two to end up as Pete’s total owners. David talked about how they came to own him, “We bought Pete when he was around three years old almost ready to turn four. There was a guy that lived by Lance who had him and was getting out of coon hunting. Jeremy Vaught and Trevor Wade had him. Tim Tipton and his father, Lance, and I bought out Jeremy. That then made us all partners with Trevor. When he went to work with UKC, we bought him out. Then Tim and his father were ready to sell out, so that left it as just Lance and I as his owners.”

Both David and Lance shared what it is about Pete that they like. David started off, “He is just a good, old, honest coon dog. He strikes for 25 points and trees for 100 points most of the time and has them eye balls. He is just honest.”

Lance added, “What is there not to like? He is action packed. You cut him loose and most of the time he is gone, gets treed quick, and has coons. He has been a pretty nice dog. We got him right before his last Super Stakes and did not want to let go of him.”

In the time that they have had him, David talked about some of Pete’s bigger accomplishments, “We normally double him up at the World, but have not gotten him into the Semi-Finals. We won some Legacy hunts. We won the Bill Stokes Hunt overall. Pete has won a lot of Pro Classics also.”

In earning his truck ticket to be at this year’s event, David shared, “Earning a ticket is just something that we try to do each year. Pete earned his ticket to be there this year around March or April of last year. I won two tickets on two different dogs back to back and cannot remember which month he won his, I think it was March.”

That ticket was going to be a lucky one for the 2024 PKC Senior Showdown Championship too. Pete and David started off their run by going up against Heather Island Doc Holliday handled by Brett Denney; Dan the Man handled by Michael Overton, and White Oak Mtn Bo handled by Billy Keeling in that early round. David talked about how that round went, “It went pretty good. I took some minus right out of truck trying to get him treed in before Brett got Doc treed. Pete then got across the road and into a pocket of coons. That made up for his minus and he stayed strong to the end.”

That meant that Pete and David would be heading back out for the late round. This time their competition consisted of Mills River Strik 9 handled by Tyler Rhoton; Playboy Little Gal handled by Shawn Pinckney; and Willy’s Conor McGregor handled by Shannon Wiggins. David shared how this cast went, “It was pretty interesting. I got Pete struck for 75 points and treed for 125 points right out of the truck. He does not do that much. After I recut, Pete struck for 75 points, but the six got him. The strike opened back up and I got Pete struck back in for 50 points. Conor then treed for 125 points. As we were walking to him, Pete treed again and I tree him. Jackson Marlow and I went to handle him. As we were waiting for the cast, we started talking. I did not realize that Pete’s dad came from Alabama. It was neat to learn that fact while we were waiting on the cast to come into us. Strik9 was then treed in. The little female treed and leash locked us which finished up the cast. Pete had another coon at that tree.”

Pete’s first night had been a success. He lived up to the description that Lance and David had given of him just being a good, solid coon dog. That consistency that Pete is known for paid off and put him into the Final Four for Saturday night. They would be joined in that final round by Wipeout Gin N Juice owned by Cochran/Eaddy and handled by Will Deloach; Lost Creek Molly owned by Fields/Douglas/White and handled by Mike Fields; and Uncle Walter owned by Parker Reece and handled by Dustin Weed.

David described how this last and very important round went for him and Pete, “It was interesting. I got him struck for 50 points. Dustin stuck Uncle Walter for 75 points and then treed quickly for 125 points. As we were headed to him, Pete came treed. They let me and the backup judge go handle him. I think Gin got treed at that point. We got to Pete and waited. I got a text that Walter took minus on that tree and they were headed to us. They got to us and when we started to shine, he was looking at us and Pete was plussed up. Gin had a coon and that put her ahead. I got Pete struck back in for 25 points and then treed for 125 points. He had a coon on the outside of a den. I recut him and got him struck in again. He treed another coon. At that point, they congratulated me and started hunting it off for the other placement. The little Walker dog did a nice job. Had he not took a bad break, he could have won.”

When asked how it felt to win a new truck, David replied, “I was at a loss for words. This is something that I always wanted to do by winning a bigger event. I have been in a lot of Final Fours, but have not won this big. I have watched my buddies go on and win and I am glad for them when they do, but it felt good to win something this big on my own.”

Lance shared how he felt about Pete and David’s big win, “It felt good. I was so excited. I was not there, but I was watching the play by play and was on the edge of my seat. Pete is getting up there in age and he really deserved it. It was overdue.”

When asked if there were any people that they wanted to mention in conjunction with this big win, both David and Lance had those that they wanted to express their gratitude to. David began, “I want to thank Lance Belcher for being such a good partner. He has been wonderful and we have never had any trouble. I want to thank my wife Chelsey for her support. She will take the kids to babysitters and drive separate to wherever I am hunting to support me. I also want to mention Lance Buchannan for all his help with Pete. He has really helped out a lot. His kids have taken Pete and hunted him and won.”

Lance added, “I want to thank David and his wife Chelsey. I am just behind the scene. David and Chelsey have taken care of Pete and hauled him around hunting him. David has done all the work with him.”

David and PCH History Repeats Itself are just honest and consistent in their coon hunting. Both handler and hound are just out there night after night doing what they enjoy. It just happened that when they headed out to the woods in Goodsprings, Alabama for the 2024 PKC Senior Showdown that their dedication would pay off in a big way when they won the new truck! It was a moment in which David would emerge from a Final Four as the big winner and a time when all his friends that he has made in the sport got to be happy for him! Congratulations David and Lance for sticking by Pete and giving him the opportunity to make PKC History himself by being the Senior Showdown Truck Champion!