Carrot tops it off
Horse & Hound|June 22, 2023
The championships are awarded to the Beaufort and Heythrop, but local packs also shine at Ardingly
Catherine Austen
Carrot tops it off

THE first visit by the Duke of Beaufort’s hounds to the cedar-shaded ring at Ardingly since the 1990s was a triumph, culminating in Carrot 21’s capture of the bitch championship.

A daughter of VWH Crackshot 14, Carrot had won the entered couples class alongside Delphi 21 – by North Cotswold Draycot 17 – and moved with ease and grace in the final run-off at the end of a long, hot afternoon.

Joint-master and huntsman Matt Ramsden said: “Carrot goes back to a bitch called Middleton Votive who was brought to the Middleton country from Ireland. It is a very old Middleton line that goes back to Warwickshire Comfort 1820 and it was given to me at the Bedale by Tom Holt in the form of a bitch called Gracious, and I bred from her at the Bedale and brought one bitch with me to the Beaufort, Canvas.

“We have had three or four litters from her and now about a quarter of the kennel have that female line. It’s very dear because they are tough, hardworking, have great voices and hunt like fury, so it’s nice that one has won a prize.”

He added: “Carrot has her head down and doesn’t muck around. She’s a no-nonsense bitch, basically.”

She was walked by Freddy Tuck, whose parents farm on the Badminton estate.

The Beaufort also took the two-couples class with Brevity 22, Dabchick 22, Delphi and Fortune 22. The latter was reserve champion.

Frank Houghton Brown, who judged the bitches with the East Cornwall’s Neil Starsmore, said: “We were both struck by Carrot in the couples class. I thought she was outstanding and had everything: size, amazing movement, vitality and presence. She’s got great balance – you could never catch her wrong.”

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