When I heard of Les’ passing, I wanted to write something special about who he was, and what he did both for the breed and for the ACC. So many thoughts swirled around in my head, of times together, things he had said, and things he had done. How to put it all together into a fitting tribute? Then, on the way home from work, I heard an interview with one of the astronauts on the space station. He said something along the lines of when you are 270 miles from the surface of the Earth, with only two other crew members for months at a time, you really learn how you are connected to so very many people on Earth. That’s when I knew what this tribute would be about, connections.

Les had so many connections both in and outside the Chessie world. Starting with his and Nancy’s involvement with both the RD and the WD programs. He greatly expanded on the original RD concept, and encouraged regional involvement on many levels, all across the country. Picnic days, fun trials, WD stakes, these were his favorite activities outside the duck blind. He loved to work with newcomers, and encourage them to develop their dogs to their fullest capacity, be it for hunting, hunt tests, or field trials.

WD/X/Q stakes were another favorite of Les’s. In fact, if not for Les, we wouldn’t have the WDQ title. It was Les who recognized the need for a handling title in the WD program. He strongly believed two things: every dog should be force fetched to retrieve reliably, and every dog should know at least the rudiments of handling on blinds, so as to be a more serviceable gun dog. He clarified running rules and judging rules for the program, and educated anyone within reach about the real reasons for the WD program: to develop good working skills in ALL Chesapeakes; and to develop a love for retrieving sports in their owners. Many people now running their dogs in hunt tests and field trials got bitten by the "bug" while attending their first WD stake.

Les loved hunt tests. How many people know that Les was one of the early movers and shakers of the hunt test programs? When the "new" organization, NAHRA, was forming and working with AKC in the early 1980s, Les was a member and liaison between NAHRA, AKC and the ACC. He contributed much information and ideas to the fledgling hunt test movement. After AKC and NAHRA went their separate ways, Les acted as an advisor to the early AKC hunt test. Many of the early developments to the AKC hunt test program were from Les, and some of the rules and testing concepts were lifted almost verbatim from the WD/X/Q program.

When it came to field trials, Les was a real trooper. He bucked the system when so many people held strong prejudices against the breed in field trials. When the breed was going through some lean times in the late seventies and early eighties, with very few QAA dogs running, Les and Nancy would "collect" as many QAA dogs as they could, enter and bring them to the specialty trials in the US and Canada, just to make sure that there were enough QAA dogs starting to make trial count for points. This was true dedication and sportsmanship. So many of our working Chessies also descend from Les and Nancy’s breeding program. Jake, Cappy, Harry, Sally, Clipper, Meg, Little Sally, Jesse, Jamie, Decks, Tiger...and so many more field trial stars all descended from Berteleda stock.

Les’s judging style was legendary. He did not believe that one needed to create a "trick" test to judge dogs. He believed that if one set up an honest test and let the dogs run, that the dogs would sort it out for themselves. Because of this clear judging concept, Les was one of the few people who could judge equally well for field trials, hunt tests, and working certificate tests. One of his favorite things to say during a hunt test scenario was "All the dogs should be able to do this." And this was true, for he believed that a straightforward test should showcase a dog’s skills, and a judge should simply record what he/she saw, without trying to play head games with the dogs or handlers. I ran under Les in WD stakes, hunt tests, and field trials. I found his approach to test design to hold true and work well for all these sports.

When it came down to judging, running dogs, or training, Les was more than willing to work for the good of the sport, and more importantly, for the betterment of this breed he loved so well. If you love the breed, then Les considered you a friend. Les was a terrific mentor, for training, handling, and for judging. He was always free with information and advice. All of us who train, test/trial, hunt with or just plain love our Chessies have some connection with Les, Be it through his mentoring at training days, kindly advice at WD tests, judging at hunt tests and field trials, or through the Berteleda bloodline. I feel privileged to have known Les!