2015 PKC Senior Showdown Final Four Interviews

The dogs, owners and handlers listed herein have won a prestigious PKC Truck Hunt in the years indicated.

Moderators: R D Carnegie, Kristi Denney, Jerry Moll, Shane Patton, Chris Freiberger

Jerry Moll
Platinum Member
Posts: 5957
Joined: Tue Dec 21, 2004 5:11 pm
PKC Name: Jerry Moll
City, State: Batesville, IN
PKC Member Since: 02 Feb 1989
Annual Membership Expires: 26 Oct 2023
Lifetime Handler Earnings: $30,080
Cell #: 812-212-1619
Contact:

2015 PKC Senior Showdown Final Four Interviews

Postby Jerry Moll » Sat Feb 07, 2015 8:14 pm

2015 PKC Senior Showdown Final Four Interviews by Amy Thomas

The time has come to see which one of these four handlers and hounds will drive home from the Isle of Capri Casino in Lula, Mississippi in a brand new truck from Lynn Layton Chevrolet in Decatur, Alabama. Starting out against 64 other senior dogs and top handlers, these four have risen to the top slots and will be heading out tonight to see who will emerge as the top winner and proud truck owner. The other three will not go home empty-handed though. The PKC truck hunt is co-sponsored by PKC, Purina, SportDOG, and the Isle of Capri Casino and in addition to the truck going to the 1st place winner, 2nd place will leave with $2,000, 3rd place will walk away with $1,000, and 4th place will have $500 in their wallet. Now it is just time to see who will go home with what prize!

Let’s get a deeper look into these four competitors and the hounds that brought them to this place in PKC history:


Mojo On Tapp, a Walker male owned by Moon and Crum and being handled by Jason Crum

Mojo on Tapp is a six year old Walker hound out of Boogar Hollow Mojo and Boogar Hollow Maggie. Jason Crum of Tennessee has owned him for almost two years now. It was through a Private Message from Scott Engle that Jason heard about this hound that has placed him in the Final Four of this year’s Senior Showdown.

Jason talked about how he came to own Tapp, “Steve Yant and Scott Engle were the ones that told me about Tapp. I was not big into the hunts at the time. However, Scott sent me a PM and told me that if I ever wanted to win a Pro Race, Tapp would be the dog to get. He told me that if he did not have Mojo Mason, then he would buy him. I ended up getting him from Ron Wiegmann. Ron was getting out of coon hunting, so he was selling him.”

Jason bought Tapp and it was an investment that he does not regret. In fact, Tapp was so impressive, that Zach Moon wanted to come in as a partner on him. Jason talked about how they ended up co-owners on Tapp, “Zach is my boss at work. He actually is the one who got me into coon hunting. He is more of a pleasure hunter though. I had Tapp for a while before we partnered up on him. Zach liked Tapp so much that he bought in to help me keep him in the hunts. Zach may be a silent partner, but he is a very supportive one.”

Since owning Tapp, Jason has done the winning that Scott Engle said was possible with him. Jason talked about Tapp’s past successes, “Since we have owned him, Tapp has won over $30,000. He won first at the Russ Meyer Invitational. He got into the Top 18 of World Hunt this year and into the Top 22 of the Nationals. We went to six Pro Hunts and got him into five semi-finals and two Final Fours. Tapp ended up with second place in the Michigan Pro Hunt. He also placed third in the South Carolina Pro Hunt with Steve Yant hunting him. Tapp has been very consistent about getting us to the pay window. Steve Yant was handling Tapp when he won the $20,000. He was also the one who was handling when Tapp won the hunt that paid the $638 that got him his truck ticket in December. I have gotten to the Finals of a lot, but never really finished him out.” Now they are in the Finals again and this time, Jason is hoping Tapp will bring him to the pay window at the Isle of Capri Casino! So far, the two have held their own, even when the going got rough.

In the first round, Mojo On Tapp and Jason found themselves going up against: Mr. Gibb owned by Cutright and Workman and being handled by Allen Chenoweth; Wild Star Saige owned by Derek Peterman and being handled by Josh Wollman, and Machine gun Sally owned by Landreth or Landreth and being handled by Dustin Weed. Tapp emerged with that cast win with 250 plus points.

Jason talked about how that first hunt went for him and Tapp, “In the beginning, Tapp split by himself with a coon for 200 plus. Then he went 100 yards from that tree and treed again really quick. Allen’s dog Mr. Gibb treed too. Mr. Gibb had already treed a slick and Allen said he was going to stay out of my way. I was the only one with plus points and that put me under the pressure to tree Tapp. Tapp had a coon there. From there Tapp went almost a mile and he got treed right off a highway. It was sickening, but he was either going to cross it or he was not. We walked away from him and ended up losing him on the Garmin with an hour left in the hunt. I was holding 250 plus at that point, but then Saige made it interesting. With six minutes left in the hunt, Saige got treed. If she had a coon, she would beat me. Everything got quiet. We circled around to another dog and I heard Tapp treed, so I treed him. We started to Saige, but she left and drew minus. When we got to Tapp, he was actually about 60 yards from the highway. I had been on pins and needles. Tapp had another coon, but we did not have to plus it up.

On the second round, the two were competing against a tough crowd, but also people that Jason knows well. They were joined by: Thousand Dollar Bill owned by William Cochran and being handled by Coy Sullivan; Top Gun Sadie owned by Salfen or Rodgers or Taul and being handled by Rick Salfen; and Wipeout Hell Chamber, owned by Sean Hawley and being handled by Bradley Beaver. On this cast, a score of 150 points would take Mojo on Tapp into the next night.

Jason talked about that cast that would be just as intense as the first one, “Coy is one of my good friends. I knew a lot of people on this cast. I also do not live too far from Conk, who guided us. They took us to a really open spot for this area. Tapp is a hard hunter and moves around a lot. He is the type that is going to be split a mile from the cast when he trees. With the moon being bright and it being cold, I did not think it would be good for me. The dogs got way out of pocket on first drop. They all ended up handled on a hole that was so big you could park a four wheeler in it. I took a big part on that because the stationary was on me. When we cut them again, they got deep. Tapp, Bill, and Sadie were all treed. All I heard was Tapp and I was trying to say he was split. Coy and Rick said they heard their dogs. We walked and stopped. I said I did not hear theirs. Long story short, Tapp was split and their dogs had gotten into a hole in the bottom of a tree. When we got to them, they were out of it and standing there. They were minused, but I could not get officially moved up because we could not prove that they were actually split. I had a coon there. Then I made a big mistake and thought I had more plus points then I actually did. Coy and Rick got a bad deal from then on because their dogs kept going in and out of that hole. They ended up with getting the coon out of it. At this time, Brad treed Hell Chamber behind us. Hell Chamber had a den and we circled it up. Then Tapp went around 70 yards and got struck. He treed again, but he did not sound right. Coy treed Bill again, but got minused again from that hole. Hell Chamber came in to Tapp. When Hell Chamber treed, I played defense and I only took a quarter. Tapp had a coon and if I would have treed him like I should have, I could have been out of reach with my score. With twelve minutes left in the hunt, I had 150 plus and Brad 125 plus. When we released, Tapp went one way and Chamber went the other. Tapp fell treed when really I wanted him to leave the country because I had it won at that point. With the stationary on me, I had to tree. It ended up being a controversial tree. At first we thought it was circle, but Brad though it should be minused. We only had eight minutes to score it. They said the tree was minused and I questioned it even though Mike Hensley did a great job judging. That is the first time that I have ever taken a panel out. The panel of David Dial, Jeff Nelson, and James Love all came back to it and circled it. They all said that it should be circled and it was just a difference of opinion. We did not get it settled until daylight. I felt horrible keeping them out that late.”

Even though he felt bad keeping everyone hanging until daybreak, Jason’s question paid off for him in a big way. It took him and Tapp into the Final Four tonight. When asked about what strengths Tapp would be brining into this last and very important round, Jason said, “He looked really good last night, but I played too much defense with the moon being so bright. I will not do that tonight. I have to say that what Tapp brings to this Final Four is what it always is, his hustle and drive. They will not out hustle him. If the coons are on the ground, I have never owned or drawn a hound that could keep up with him. He tore his back open pretty good on a fence and my wife and I have cleaned it up, so I do not think that will hinder him too bad.”

When asked if there was anyone out there rooting for him that he wanted to mention for their support, Jason replied, “I have to thank my wife Emily for coming here to cheer me on. She is in pharmacy school and has been living at school for the past four years. We have been seeing each other when she can. She just got home late Friday and cared for the dogs. I have to be at work in the morning. I could not do anything without her. I run a working kennel and have Tapp pups that I am starting, I work in steel mill, and I help my dad and yet she makes me feel lazy most days with all that she does. I truly appreciate her. I also want to mention Scott Engle. Scott has texted me more than anyone this morning. I have not heard from him ten times this year, but I have heard from him about fifteen times today. I also want to mention Steve Yant. Steve and I travel everywhere together. He went home, but he is usually here when I get in and vice versa. I would like to mention my buddy and partner Zach. He could not get off work to be here. Last, I would like to mention Mark Hall. Last year, Mark owned half of Tapp. Mark has been a good friend and a huge help. He has helped get Tapp’s name out there and get him bred some.”

Now the time has come to find out if Mojo on Tapp will not only make PKC Truck Hunt history, but to see if he is going to continue to add to the legacy of the Mojo line of Walkers. Jason Crum only has to wait for dark and see if his fine hound is going to keep up the winning streak that he has already established on this trip to the Isle of Capri Casino. So far, he has managed to beat the odds and make his way through to each round. Best of luck on carving a place into the pages of coonhound history and collecting a new truck at the PKC pay window!


Fifty X Tiny, a Walker female owned and handled by Don Pearson

There is no doubt, that Fifty X Tiny has the chance to be one of the oldest hounds to possibly win the truck hunt. This Walker female out of Hardwood Elvis Attack is ten years old. What is even more amazing about her story is that she has only been hunting in PKC for the past two years and yet here she is in one of the most prestigious situations a person can hope for – the Final Four of the Senior Showdown. She is definitely showing how a senior dog can get the job done too!

Don Pearson has owned Tiny for the past two years. His friend Jay Hartwick bought her off of a dog jockey in Indiana. At the time, Tiny was eight years old, but she showed that eight was just the perfect number for her. The first night that Don hunted with her, Tiny treed eight coons! It was then that Don knew that he had found what he was looking for!

Don described why Tiny was the perfect fit for him, “When I hunted with her that first night, I told my friend that she was just want I wanted! I was looking for a dog that could get me a truck ticket. That really was the only reason why I wanted her, to get to where we are now. I earned my ticket in January which was the first month that I tried.”

Tiny was not a rookie to winning though, she had already made herself a name when she placed third in the 2010 UKC World Championship. Since she was the high scoring female, she walked away from that event as the World Champion Opposite Sex winner. However, for Don, PKC has been the route that he has taken her.

Don talked about Tiny’s PKC successes in the past two years, “When I got her she did not have a dollar won in PKC. Now she has $1957 won and more than that with added money. Since I have owned her, she won the Arkansas Children’s Benefit Hunt and also several added money hunts.” Now she is racking up the wins at the 2015 Senior Showdown

The first cast that Tiny and Don Pearson had to compete in consisted of the following hounds and handlers: Lonesome Fork Sadie, owned by Blane Burdette and handled by Caleb Burdette; Prime Time Jimmy owned by B or B or B Kennels and being handled by Scott Burden, and Burton’s Stylish Woody Two, owned and handled by Raymond Burton. Tiny’s score of 225 plus points put her into the next round.

Don talked about how that first round went for Tiny and how she earned her score, “Tiny jumped out there and treed a coon by herself. Then when we cut her loose again, she treed a second coon. After that, we cut her loose again and she was running a track, but the hunt ran out. I called her off of that one. That is one of the nice things about Tiny, she is an easy handler. I have called her from 800 yards out before. When you call her, she will stop what she is doing and come in.”

Even though Tiny is ten years old, she held her own and took both her and Don into the late round on Friday. That second round and one that put Tiny and Don into the Final Four, found them drawing out with: Stylish Bankers Big Easy owned by Bill Rector and being handled by Brett Denney; Hillbilly Deluxe owned by Cody Stallard and being handled by Jeff Stallard; and Mtn Hills Track Max owned by Lawrence Gilbert III and being handled by Ross Crumpton. It was a score of 75 plus that got Tiny and Don into Saturday night.

Don described how the second round went for them, “When we got out there, Tiny treed a coon and had it by herself. I was sitting pretty good then since some of the other dogs had drawn minus. Tiny then got a good ways away, probably about a mile from me. I was kicked back in the driver seat at that point. Then about 20 minutes later, she came in and just stood there, prancing, and looking at me. We had another one of the dogs on the leash waiting to be released. Tiny just kept standing there with the fifteen on her. When we cut the other dog, she took off with it. That broke my fifteen minutes, but they had to put the time on her to stay gone. She was gone about two minutes when she came back in. It got down to where I only had one minute left on my fifteen when she ran out there and struck. I struck her and that finally broke the fifteen and kept me from getting scratched. It came down to the last moment. However, Tiny got me in the Final Four and that is the big plus. She is the oldest dog out there and I am proud that we are here.

Being older, one has to wonder if Tiny still has enough gas for the truck! Don talked about how she is feeling today, “I got her out of the box and she is prancing around. Being ten years old, you can get more issues, but Tiny is in perfect health. She is as healthy as she can be and in the best shape she can be in for her age. I think she will do well tonight. Most of the time when we are in a two night hunt, she does better the second night because she tends to take it nice and easy. She usually has higher scores the next night. I just went to a two night hunt. On the first night, she ran track all night, but on the second night, she had 575 plus. I think she will probably get under two coons tonight by herself tonight. She will have them too.”

Don went on to talk about what strengths Tiny will be bringing to this last and very important round, “Tiny is the best coon dog that I have ever had. She is a good natured dog and will not argue with anything. I know that she may go out there and tree three coons or being old, if she is done hunting, she is done. It does not matter to me because I have enjoyed her and have had fun hunting her. I am tickled pink with her. Tiny is an extraordinary dog and a one of a kind. You do not get one like her every day. It is really nice to have her. ”

When asked if he and Tiny had any people out there rooting for them that he wanted to mention for their support, Don said, “My wife Bronda is here rooting me on. We also have a lot of friends here from Arkansas like Doug Compton, Greg Wilson, Tyler Young, Matt Tenn, and Danny Raper. My friend Kasey Dooly from Louisiana is also up here hunting. I want to mention my friend Randy Minter who is also here judging. Bud Hood is another who is pulling for me. I have to mention my family back at home too. My kids Don, Bailey Carson, Jimmy, Riley and Calvin are all at home rooting for us too. They all love Tiny and they love to go coon hunting with her. I also want to mention my mom, my step dad and my grandma who are pulling for me.”

There has been nothing Tiny about the Walker female who has earned her way into the Final Four tonight. Even though she is the oldest dog in this Final Four, she has pulled out enough big blows to her competition that now she and her owner handler find themselves on the edge of their seats seeing what this last cast holds. If it all plays out right, the next seat they will be in will be that of the new Chevrolet truck and they will be smiling for the cameras! Good luck!


Chilly’s Midnight Buddy, a Walker male owned and handled by Calvin Cash

Being at a casino seems like a pretty good omen for a person with a last name like Cash. However, it is not money that Calvin Cash hopes to go home with from the Isle of Capri Casino, it is a new Chevy truck. His odds all lie in a four year old Walker named Chilly’s Midnight Buddy out of Neosho River Chilly and Jeremy Ulbelhor’s Pine Ridge Kate, off of the Buck Creek line.

Calvin Cash is very invested in Buddy. Calvin owned Neosho River Chilly who is Buddy’s sire. Calvin talked about how he came to own Buddy also, “I have owned Buddy most of his life. When Buddy was a puppy, a kid back home owned him. I bought Buddy off him when he was around nine months old. I wanted Buddy because he was out of my Chilly dog and I had a couple other pups out of that litter that I liked. I have owned Buddy with a couple of people over the years. Jeremy Etienne is my current partner on him though he is not on the papers. Jeremy came in on Buddy about a year ago when he bought out Bobby Taylor.

Calvin shared the successes that he has had with Buddy over the years, “Buddy placed in Top 20 of the UKC and PKC World Championships this year. Then we got our truck ticket in July. Buddy went to all $30 hunts and had about $850 won. He was top money earning dog that month. Right now, he has about $4600 won on him in PKC and hopefully he will have a whole bunch more after tonight.”

Buddy and Calvin started off their run at the casino against the following dogs and handlers: Wipeout Slim, owned by Jimmy Pierce and handled by Doug Jackson; Many Bawls owned by William Cochran and handled by Steven Smith; and Byrd and Rivers Bounty Hunter owned by Byrd Jr or Rivers and being handled by Clifford Rivers. They started their cast win success with a score of 250 plus points.

When asked how that first round went for them, Calvin replied, “Good. We did not have any minus points. Buddy got off and treed two coons. He had another at the end of the hunt, but I did not need it, so I did not tree him.” It was a good clean win and one that propelled them further into the night.

Buddy and Calvin’s second round found them in the company of: Full Throttle Jiggs owned by Pete Olivia and being handled by Nicky Hale; Lockdown Daisy owned by Cody Cherney and being handled by Wes Hamilton; and Huff Hollow Homer owned by Travis or Axford and being handled by Jeff Travis. Buddy edged out the cast win on a tie breaker with his 350 plus points.

Calvin talked about how the second round went for him and Buddy, “It came right down to the end and was exciting. Buddy got under three coons. At the end I treed him deep and two of the other dogs backed him. Then Jiggs treed and leash locked us. Jiggs would have won, but Homer came off the tree, so I got to recast. Buddy treed another coon, so that tied Jiggs and I. I had the tree points to break the tie.”

Buddy had brought in the second necessary second win by the skin of his teeth, but a win is a win and that found the two of them in the Final Four for tonight. When asked what strengths he felt Buddy will bring to this Final round to win the truck, Calvin said, “Buddy is a low end strike dog, he hunts hard, he gets deep, he gets by himself and he usually has his coon.”

Tonight is a pretty exciting moment for Calvin who is still new to the competition coon hunting venue, he shared, “I have only been competing about six years. I started with Jeremy and his dad, Doyle. Doyle taught me everything I know. With Buddy’s sire Chilly, I got into the Final Four of the Sophomore Super Stakes. Other than that, this is my biggest success. Last year, Buddy was in Pup Truck hunt with Bobby handling him and he won his first cast. This is my first year hunting him in the truck hunt and we now we have gotten to the Final Four.”

There are a special group of people out there rooting for Calvin and Buddy too to see if they can bring home that new truck. Calvin said, “My wife, Kelly, and our three kids, Kendall, Cadence, and Calvin are all rooting for me. Jeremy is here with me to support me tonight. I want to thank everyone who is out there rooting for me and Buddy.”

Buddy not only made his way into the elite Final Four, but his score actually went up from the first round to the second round. This looks like the kind of odds that you want when you are at a casino. We are about to see if Buddy can keep up that streak and bring Cash home in the new truck from the Isle of Capri Casino!


Neosho River Stewart’s Lil Red, A Walker female owned and handled by Boyd Stewart

The 2015 Senior Showdown is not just memorable for Boyd Stewart because he is in the Final Four, but because there are two hounds in it that are off of his old stud dog. Neosho River Stewart’s Lil Red is a five year old female out of G CH Neosho River Rudy and G and G’s Palin. It just so happens that Chilly’s Midnight Buddy is a grandpup off of Neosho River Rudy. Having two dogs in this last and very important round is quite the sentimental moment for Boyd Stewart.

Boyd talked about the line that helped create half of the Final Four tonight, “Neosho River Rudy has been gone five years now. Having two dogs off of him in this Final Four is a little emotional for me. Rudy made the Final Four of Super Stakes and chalked up some major wins. Even though he is gone, having dogs off him out here doing this is big for me.”

It is even nicer when one of those dogs happens to be yours too! Boyd Stewart has owned Neosho River Stewart’s Lil Red her entire life. He talked about her start in life, “We bred her mom to Rudy, my stud dog. I got her in the end with a little trading. Red started at about five months old. What I really like about her is that she has her coons when she trees.”

Even though Red is a good hound, Boyd has not hunted her all that much. He talked about what she has accomplished so far and how she got to this point, “Red has not been in a whole lot of hunts. This past year though, I hunted her in the Spring Classic and we got into the Final Four two of the three nights. That was when I decided to try for a truck ticket. It was not something I was really after, but after the Spring Classic, I knew it was possible. I picked up a few more cast wins in April and got her qualified.”

This may be the first time Red has been in the Truck Hunt, but it is not the first time for Boyd. He shared, “In 2009, I was in it with my other dog out of Rudy, Pistol Pete. Pete is a Silver Champion. My last trip here was a rough one because my mom had just passed away. We came down anyway.” This trip has been a much better one for Boyd in general. Not only is he in a better state of mind, but he is seeing Rudy’s legacy living on.

Red and Boyd’s first round in the truck hunt found them going up against the following competitors: Bertha, owned and handled by Chad Kennedy; WCH Hardtime Awesome owned and handled by Jason Bullard, and Wright’s Little Rimshot, owned and handled by Robbie Wright. Red emerged from that cast as a winner with 275 plus points.

When asked how the first round went for them, Boyd replied, “Lil Red went in there and does what she does. She treed coons and treed more than the other dogs. She was by herself the whole night.” That was what it took to put them into the next round.

For their late round, Red and Boyd would find themselves hunting against Charlie Brown owned and handled by Bobby Lowe; Mo Phrisky owned by Marchant or Horne and being handled by Jarvis Marchant; and Trackman’s Lethal Heat owned and handled by Eric Hooten. Red made it out of that cast with a score of 150 plus.

Boyd shared how the second round went for them, “We started out pretty rough. One of the other dogs scored a coon on us for 100 and 100. I heard Red and thought she was treed and I called her, but she moved on. We took a 175 minus right off the bat. Then Red had a comeback and she treed two coons. The other dog that was beating us took a minus and that gave me an opportunity to win in the last 12 minutes. However, in the last two minutes, the dog that could beat me treed. If it had a coon, I was done. When we got there, it was a circle den tree. I felt that was one of my lucky breaks. Really any dog that is down here can win and deserves to win. It is just about treeing coons and getting breaks.’

Everyone wants a lucky break when they head to the casino and it just so happens that Boyd and Lil Red got theirs. When asked what strengths Lil Red is going to bring to this final round that will help her out besides just lucky breaks, Boyd replied, “Lil Red is good about keeping her nose clean, staying out of trouble and treeing coons with or without company.”

Now everyone will be watching to see if Red and Boyd have what it takes to bring home the big win. Boyd wanted to mention some special people that are hoping that the top honors are going to go to him and Red, “I think the whole state of Ohio is rooting for me. The phone calls I have gotten have been great. There are a lot of guys in PKC who have been calling to wish us luck. My wife Sara, son Mason and daughter Morgan are home rooting me on! I came down here with my friend Jimmy Wrigley and I am hoping I have some of the luck that he has had here at the casino already. We were only here about fifteen minutes and Jimmy won big on video poker!” We are about to see if the lucky streak continues for Boyd and Red tonight.

This year the new truck from Lynn Layton Chevrolet is red, just like the name of this little redheaded Walker female who has made her way into the Final Four tonight. Is that an omen of her future? We can all place bets that Boyd Stewart is hoping so. This could be the biggest win that he has ever walked away from a casino with! Good luck!

Return to “(Historical) PKC Pup Shoot-Out, Senior/Handler Showdown Match-Ups”