Perfectly Executed 180° Turnaround.

We had one of those runs the other day that tend to get more spectacular, the more time separates it from the actual event.

Dutch brought along "the incorrigible Bob Schulz" (Gazehounds & Coursing, pg 142), and Bob came with his truck box full of young, old, black, red, and silver staghounds. I brought the girls, Willow and Ashley. Dutch's gang included Phyllis, and Stretch (his new hotblood). We were at the big, open field that has produced some very photogenic runs already this season.

We had a couple of 30-second sprints that ended with a spectacular, diving grab by Willow that ended with her muzzle on the hare on the ground and her back legs straight up in the air in the first, and Dutch's Phyllis making the most of the second.

Now, Dutch has a bad back, which has curtailed a lot of his walking in the field over the last month or so. He generally walks with us as far from the trucks as he feels comfortable getting, then waits while the rest of us make big loops in the desert, looking for more jacks to chase. He then watches with his binoculars, and kind of acts like a de-facto "judge". It was during this "resting" period that the third jack jumped. Immediately in front of me, as it turned out, and it wasn't the most fortuitous of starts, as there were no less than two hounds right in front of him.. in his path of travel.

Somehow, the hare negotiated that obstacle, with a hard left turn that left the dogs with their jaws snapping at air.  And the race was on.

When you hear the term, "survival of the fittest"... this is the kind of critter they're usually talking about.  For nearly three minutes- more than a mile and a half- the hounds chased, and turned this jack until they ran out of our site into the draw to our south.  Even then we knew the dogs were still turning it, because we could see periodic puffs of dust arise from the horizon.  Finally the dust stopped, and we knew that either the jack had been caught, or it had made its escape into the heavy creosote bush field across the draw.  It was several more minutes before the very knackered pack of hounds made it back to the trucks. Bloodless.

Later, when we were reliving, and embellishing the tale of the third race over steak and enchiladas at The Campos' Cafe, Dutch remarked that there was one time when he saw Phyllis running right next to the hare, and was looking right at it, when it doubled back, and gained some serious separation from its pursuers.  He thought that was pretty spectacular.

When reviewing my images from the day, I was very happy to find the exact sequence that so impressed Dutch.  And so, without further ado-

We can only hope that this hare, having survived the best our hounds could throw at it, survives further attacks from coyotes, and golden eagles, and bobcats, and other predators, to procreate, and pass these amazing survival skills on so we can continue to have  exciting chases for years to come.  Here's looking at you, kid.

Scanners! After The Flood.

Don't worry, kids. I went outside the immediate family for this one. I'm thinking I need to photoshop in some water snakes.

"Tech.": Combination of Picnik for the color and "HDR" effect, and ACDSee filters for the water and "mirror" effects.

Scanners! Before the Scourge of Pantyhose!

More 1960's reality enhanced.

I'm running out of black and white prints of  Mar .... this model. Not to worry.

Fencing.

One of the most important abilities a hound should have when hunting jackrabbits on rangeland, aside from the obvious talent for running at high speed, turning at said speed, and catching the damn thing, is the ability to fence. No, I'm not talking about grabbing the rapier and challenging the hare to a duel. I mean the ability to clear the barbed wire without tearing up their back, and to do it at speed so as to not lose ground to the hare.

Willow demonstrates:


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She learned the hard way. On her first crossing last winter, she tried to go through the middle strands. The technique can be trained with the simple use of bait and a leash or long rope and, of course, a fence. One without barbs would be ideal, but not necessary. Two people make it easier, too, but again it's not necessary.

With the dog on one side of the fence, and you, with your bait (food, cookies, etc) on the other side, run the lead under the bottom strand of the fence and call the dog. Stop him if he tries to go come through any part of the fence except the bottom strand of wire. When he does it right, give him the treat and praise him. Do it a couple of times a day, without being excessive, then start doing it without the leash or rope. Soon you'll have a hound who can dive under the wire after the hare without even appearing to slow down. The best dogs at this are a wonder to observe.

Have fun, keep your dogs safe, and every day will feel like today was for us

Scanners! Margaret. And Women Who Are Not Margaret.

I have a lot... a lot... of black and white images and negatives, and recently I've begun to manipulate them using the tools available on an editing website called Picknik. I may be on to something here, which I'll call selective coloring. It's easy, but mostly it's fun! I see no reason I couldn't also manipulate color images as well, once I've converted them to black and white. I can create my own reality. In fact, the Hooters model on the Harley, below, began as a color print.

A quick note on the image above. My memory is sharp! 45 years or so after I took that picture, I still nailed the correct color of the dress! Margaret confirmed it. Is that love, or what? And the cigarette? Everybody did it then. Don't judge.

The inset is the original black and white image, which was taken with an Argus 75 and (now defunct) 620 roll film. Also, off topic but interesting, is that the clothing Margaret is wearing in this and the previous Scanners! images, were made by her, and that includes the swimsuits. She was, and is, hell on a sewing machine! Now if I could only get her to move the buttons on all my trousers.

Following are more selectively colored images of women who are not Margaret. If I can build a big enough collection, maybe we'll work on prints or notecards.

I'm A Roadrunner, Baby...!

...and I sound like this. Not like this.

He was on the front porch! I've been trying to get a picture of one of these shy suckers on the run for, like, years. Hallelujah!

Scanners Plus! O Tannenbaum.

Yes.. it's a Shoe Tree. Don't strain your eyes, the original image will appear in its full size in a future post. Meanwhile- the best to you in this holiday season!

Scanners! I Think She Named It "Danny"

Polaroid. The digital camera of the 60's.

Cabinetlandia.

Yesterday, I posted about the Cabinet National Library, discovered while geocaching. Since then, I've done a lot of reading and discovered there's much more to this astonishing little half-acre in the middle of nowhere in Southern New Mexico. I decided it deserved another post.

While the library was built by members of Rebar, the rest of the features of the half acre plot, were created by editorial staff of a magazine called Cabinet, which curiously has nothing to do with cabinets, but art!

Their story can be found here. Be sure to read about the rebuilding of the library after the ravages of the great flood of 2005, and definitely don't miss the photos at the bottom of the page of the celebratory "Prom Night", when the reconstruction was completed. Also beware: "plumber butt" image exists.

The more I dig, the more impressed I become with both the artists from the East Coast who created Cabinetlandia, and those from the West, who built the Library. What can you find?

Scanners! Another Semi-Dressed Human.

The year is 1969. The place is a tropical paradise, many thousands of miles away. I'm still trying to figure out where I misplaced that body.

Art Is Where You Find It.

A couple of weeks ago, I got an email notification about a new geocache in the area. It was out beyond the interstate in a forgotten "subdivision" called Sunshine Valley Ranchettes.* The name of the cache was "Dry Well Cache", and sure enough.. there was a dry well there. The cache was pretty easy to find, but I was more interested in this cryptic note at the end of the cache description: "Be sure to check out the "Library" 1/3 mile to the East". Trust me.. there is nothing out there but dust and mesquite, so I had no idea what this was referring to. Being only a third mile away, I was about to find out. I assumed it was some joke, and was probably a pile of old "mens' magazines" someone had dumped out there.

I was totally unprepared for what I found:

A library!

These are the kind of things that make you go "WTF?"

Looking about, I found that someone... or probably several "someones" had put a lot of work into the landscaping and design of this... installation. Because that's what this is- an art installation. I found the clue in the bottom drawer of the file cabinet.

(Below the drawer with every issue of Cabinet Magazine.. the top drawer contained the card catalog).

Not only is there the Library, but a horse shoe pit, (with horse shoes), a cemetary, and even a "Biodegradable Toilet"!

But who put it here? And when? Being the desert, things remain pretty much unchanged from season to season. I would have to wait till I got home to get the story.

Which is what I did. Googling "rebargroup.org", I came face to face (after navigating a few pages), with the very installation I had just been exploring! You'll have to admit, that's quite a story!

So, who is REBAR Group?

"REBAR is an interdisciplinary studio operating at the intersection of art, design and activism."

Be sure to check out their website to see some of the many installations they've done all over the country. Very clever. Very entertaining. The story of the building of the Cabinetlandia National Library (with pictures!) can be found here. I wonder how many people, other than me, and a handful of geocachers, have seen this place? Somehow, I think that's not important to the artists.

*This part of New Mexico was peopled by schemers and dreamers who, decades ago, laid out dozens of subdivisions in anticipation of the housing boom that never happened. If you look at a detailed Google map of Luna County, NM, you'll see the roads, hundreds, maybe thousands, of them. In reality, they don't exist, which is why, if you're going to visit us: don't trust your GPS for directions!

Lane Changer..

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Why this? Why now?

This is what's known as a "workaround".. Animated .gifs don't animate if you put them on Facebook by themselves. But.. if you share them as a link.. they do! At least that's my hope.

So, if you're also a "fan" on the Shot On Site Facebook page, you're getting a sneak preview of tomorrow's "Today's Image".

That is all.

Crockpot Bound...

Yes, that's Willow running ahead of Sandia! Momentarily, she will turn that hare, and Sandia will then be in the lead... until he turns the hare yet again, and Willow (oh yes!) will make her first take! Good girl!

This run lasted about 90 seconds, featured lots of turns, and two journeys under the barbed wire. They didn't quit on this jackrabbit, and I'm proud. They will also enjoy it mixed with their kibble tomorrow.

This Just Seems Wrong...

This image of the rare conformationus curmudgeonus captured live at the ASFA Greyhound Specialty Conformation Match.

A Hot Product: A Shot On Site Calendar!

As you probably know, we have a Facebook page, where we post pictures on a daily basis, and throw in the occasional promotion for items in our CafePress store. A while back, I had the brainstorm that we could create a 2011 calendar featuring the most popular images of the year, based on the number of "Likes" they got from the page's members. Margaret now has the calendar 99% done! Above is the cover.

The calendar will be available through Lulu.com, at our storefront there. The price will be $20 each, (includes postage).

BUT!!!

If you act now... you can receive your 2011 Shot On Site Facebook Calendar for only $15! (Includes postage). To get this $5 savings, you must order, prepaid, directly from Margaret: shotonsitemargaret@gmail.com, before Midnight November 14. That's this coming Sunday, folks! You can pay using your PayPal account, or make alternate arrangements with Margaret. After that, you may order your calendars from Lulu.com at the link above.

It's a heck of a deal. I'd jump right on it!

UPDATE 11-16-10: Pre-Orders are now closed. Standard price orders can be made by clicking the new link at the top of the right sidebar.

We Found 'Em..!!

The jackrabbits, that is...

...and it's a secret.

"At Least Our Percentage is Good"

The wry comments of one M. H. Dutch Salmon, after Ashley ran down this hapless hare in the tall cover, (with a little help from Sandia, and Dutch's dogs, but it was pretty much all Ashley's hare).

Things have improved only marginally since the previous post bemoaning the lack of jackrabbits in our area.. in about 6 trips, we've run 4, caught 2 for sure, and had one hole up on Ashley and Willow. 75%. Will we still be catching them at that rate when we've run a hundred? I'd really like to find out.

Wildflower Season

Wildflower season in the Desert Southwest is ramping up.  On Easter Sunday, we took a long drive into the hills, first to do some Geocaching Northeast of Deming.  The purpose of this was to work up an appetite for the huge buffet Albert Campos was laying out at his restaurant.  (It did not disappoint.. especially the Chicken Cordon Bleu with the surprise inside: Green Chiles).  The entire hillsides of the Goodsight mountains were yellow.. somewhat from the Mexican Poppies, but mostly the huge carpets of smaller yellow-green flowers which may or may not be mustardseed.

Following our huge dinner and desert, we needed more exercise, and drove the Mitsubishi up the power line "road" to a point about 3/4 mile from the big blankets of poppies.  Far from showing signs of fading away, new bunches of this beautiful flower are showing up every day.  Our yard is overrun!

In addition, we spotted many other flowers which are just beginning to pop up.  Most of them we've been unable to identify.  Some of them we think we've identified.  We're leaving it up to you, our loyal readers to look at the pictures in the slide show (below) and help us identify what we're seeing.  (It may be easier to click through to the album at Picasa Albums, and look at the larger versions).

S'cuse Me While I Obsess..

"Follow the Yellow Brick Road...."  as far as the eye can see.  In this picture are the two things that are floating my boat these days.. (figuratively, of course, I am in a desert)..  These billions and billions of golden beauties, and the "Red Mr. Bitchy".. (yes, it now has a name).  Spotted some more car parts in an arroyo today.  Aboard Red Mr. Bitchy all is still intact.

In a few weeks when, either, the novelty wears off (unlikely), or the poppies vanish for an unknown number of seasons again, I'll get back to normal.  I foresee a slide show in your futures.

De-Natured

Yesterday, we posted a number of images of the spectacular, and interesting flora and fauna of Southwest New Mexico.  These images, taken during the same ramble around the area....  don't quite fall into that category...

"Wanna make out?"

Perhaps you shouldn't be out on the trails in your Crown Vic..

(bonus if this plate was ripped off of your vehicle trying to cross the arroyo)