Team One Participant - Ray Desmarais
CH CT Mirasol's Femme Fatale VCD2 MX MXJ
Ray Desmarais has been active in Golden Retrievers for more than 15 years. He is competing in the 2005 National Tracking Invitational with two of his dogs Ch CT Mirasol's Femme Fatale VCD2 MX MXJ (Nikita) and Ch CT Mirasol's Usual Suspect VCD2 MX MXJ (Keyser). Nikita finished her breed championship in 2003 with three majors. Through much difficulty and perseverance she also earned her Champion Tracker title that same year making her the second Golden Retriever to earn both titles. She's an extremely precise worker in obedience and is a High in Trial winner in both the U.S. and Canada. Nikita is also successful in agility and Ray is working toward her MACH title.
You may have seen Nikita on television as she successfully competed two years in a row with Ray in the Purina Outdoor Adventure high in the Colorado Rockies.
CH CT Mirasol's Usual Suspect VCD2 MX MXJ
Keyser earned his TD at seven months of age and earned points from the puppy class at his very first AKC conformation show. He went on to earn his American and Canadian championship and then passed his TDX on his very first try. Keyser is the third Golden Retriever to earn a breed championship and a Champion Tracker title when he passed the VST test in 2004.In March and April of 2005 Keyser earned the CD and CDX titles. He was also awarded a Dog World Award and a High In Trial. Ray is casually training Keyser for field titles, but is mostly focused on agility right now and is halfway to Keyser's MACH title. Keyser loves agility, but he has a great time no matter what he's doing!
Under Ray's guidance as Tracking Chairman, the Yankee Golden Retriever Club now offers a full complement of tracking events and seminars. Ray has earned five TD titles, two TDX titles and two VST titles with his family of Golden Retrievers. If Ray isn't tracking you can usually find him at the nearest agility trial.
