Albertson fox hunt held
By Ethan Smith
Published in News on February 21, 2016 1:45 AM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Dozens of people chow down for lunch at the annual Washington Day fox hunt and trials in Albertson.
ALBERTSON -- Trucks and dogs crawled the landscape of Duplin County on Saturday as Albertson held its annual Washington's Day Fox Hunt and Dog Trials, and community members converged on the Albertson Ruritan Community Building to enjoy 45 gallons of fish stew, the barbecue of eight hogs and eight cases of chicken.
More than 250 dogs were registered for this year's dog trials, and roughly 1,200 trays of food were served at a cost of $7 per person.
"The fox hunting started in the 1940s, and it turned into a fundraiser some time in the '60s," said Ruritan Willie Rouse. "The Fire Department always does a great job with the chicken and barbecue."
Dog trials ran from 7 a.m. until 12 p.m., and dogs were judged on speed and drive.
Dustin Raynor, J.J. Arnette, Skyler Grady and Shelley Smallwood shared Raynor's truck for the day, using antennae to track their dogs whereabouts.
Ms. Smallwood began participating in fox hunts when she began dating Raynor, her boyfriend of a year-and-a-half.
"The trucks you see driving around with the little pink flags on the antennas, those are the judges," she said. "They go to where the dogs are chasing the deer and fox out, and they mark down which dogs are crossing the lines first when they're chasing the deer."
Handheld antennas gave Arnette and Raynor an idea of where their dogs were throughout the day, and the rest was up to the men's ears, requiring them to listen to their dog's bark to locate them and eventually chase them down to put them back in the truck at the end of the day.
Arnette was the designated dog chaser, often running down the dogs after spotting them to get them back to the truck as the day came to a close.
Raynor said none of the men's three dogs placed in Saturday's competition.
"None of ours got a point, but it's been a good time," Raynor said.
As the fox hunt raged on throughout Albertson, non-hunters packed into the community center to enjoy the food being cooked up by the volunteer fire department and Rouse.
Gerald Simmons, 78, said he has been coming to the community meal and supporting the Ruritan Club since the 1950s.
He is originally from Albertson, but now lives in Kinston with his wife, Carol, who is 76.
They come back every year to eat with the community.
"I good food, and it's a chance to see people I wouldn't get to see otherwise," Simmons said.
Mrs. Simmons said she and her husband lived in Albertson for a brief time after getting married before they moved to their current home in Kinston.
"He grew up right around the corner from here," Mrs. Simmons said of her husband. "We both went to the Outlaw's Bridge Church, which has been here since 1905."
Saturday's events began with a breakfast consisting of eggs, grits, sausage and biscuits at 5 a.m. before the fox hunt began.
No animals were shot or harmed during the fox hunt and dog trials, as it is not hunting season.
Proceeds from the event are split three ways, equally, among the Ruritan Club, the Alberston Volunteer Fire Department and the Albertson Recreation Center.
Rouse has cooked the fish stew for the annual event every year since 1964, with help from Braxton Grady since 1985.