2016 Inductee – Green Mtn. Moonlight Serenade “SARA”
Owner/Hand
ler: Jerry & Barbara Rainwater
350 Champion Points
Legendary Status Champion
22x Champion
1 Super Major Championships
4 Major Championship
“She was the puppy nobody picked, and I knew early on she was special.” Jerry Rainwater would go on to say about Sara. Her sire was an AKC U.S. National Open Champion & Canadian National Champion. Her Dam was one of the best “Bird dogs” I ever saw.
Sara was a tough little Springer Spaniel from proven bloodlines. She was a competitor and she knew when it mattered. She was also a tomboy and not afraid of anything.
When she won the 2001 Washington Shooting Dog Champion at 13 months old, and the 2002 California Open Pheasant Champion at 20 months… Jerry was hooked.
The 2003 Oregon State Chukar Championship followed, which she won, so Jerry had an idea. He was watching BDC TV and figured he could compete with the best. He wanted to prove himself and Sara versus the best bird dog competition in the country. So he loaded up from Carlton, Oregon and drove the 3,600 mile round trip to the 2004 BDC Players Championship. That year everyone was there, and it was being filmed for National TV at the Flying B Hunt Club in Guthrie Center, Iowa.
A host of top competitors like Dan Sojka, Casey Powell, Ken Neese, Jeremy Hoyt, Doug Lunde, Jamie Gunn, John Turnquist, Phil Hinchman were all there.
Jerry’s little tomboy cruised through the qualifying rounds with ease and made it into the Finals.
Loading up that morning of the Final Run-off day, Jerry remembered how nervous he was. “I was shaking in my boots! Seriously, I was a wreck! I looked at my little Sara and I knew she was good. She seemed to look back at me with her playful eyes and say Dad, don’t worry, …we got this.” And we did.
Sara diced up that field like the special dog she was. She left everything out there on that field. She was fast, steady to wing and shot, quartered in huge waves, and Jerry did a great job shooting. On the last bird they did it, they won the BDC Player’s Championship on National Television.
They took down the best competition in the game.
With only a few BDC Super Major’s annually back then, and living so far from the main events, we’ll never really know how many Championships Sara could have won? We’ll never really know how many points Jerry’s little tomboy could have achieved? One thing is for sure, for one weekend in December 2004, …we surely have an idea.
On this day, Thursday, March 17th, 2016, Green Mtn. Moonlight Serenade, “SARA”, enters the BDC Hall of Fame with 350 Champion Points, 1 Super Major wins, and 4 Major wins. A phenomenal dog who graced our game that will forever be remembered.