This is truly a sweet sixteen story. Since the inception of the Champion Tracking Title award in 1995, there have only been 16 collies in breed history to attain the title – ten roughs and six smooths. Phrases like "This is the best day ever!" "It was the biggest thrill of my dog showing career!" "He rewarded me with a memory which I keep replaying to this day." "It was a day I will always treasure of me and my girl in the zone doing what she does best – making her mom happy!" All describing the exhilaration this event can bring to the owners of their collies or trainers.
The first Champion Collie Tracker was the tricolor rough dog, CT Highcroft Regal Rogue, UD TDX, "Reggie," who attained the title March 20, 2005. He was bred by Leslie Jeszewski and owned by Sylvia and Donald Schultz. Six years later, on May 22, 2011, the first smooth earned the title. She was CH CT Carealot’s Mesmeriz’n Eyes, VCD2 RN OAP OJP, "Rivah," owned by Patricia Schroder and Roger Schroder and bred by Tiffany Mercer and Tammy Mercer. This year, in 2025, three New Champion Trackers, two roughs and one smooth, earned the title making it a very Sweet 16 indeed. In 2022, we covered the first 13 Collie Champion Tracker in a feature called Get the Inside Track - Meet the Breed's 13 Elite Champion Tracking Collies. The 14th Champion Tracker is the sable rough bitch, CT CH Mountainside Mistletoe From Aryggeth, "Mistletoe," owned by Joany White and bred by Dona Williams, Anna Shook, Taylor Lafferty and Amy Shook. The 15th Champion Tracker is the tricolor smooth bitch, CT CH Wild Wind's Magical Mischief Maker At Fireside, "Potter" owned by Cynthia Casby and bred by Laura Bergstraser and Michelle Bergstraser. The 16th Champion Tracker is the tricolor rough dog, CT CH Mountainside Takin' The Love Train, "Boone" bred and owned by Joany White.
It's now time to meet all 16 Champion Trackers. Beginning with the most recent title earner in 2025, the 16th Champion Tracker in breed history and then working backwards to the first title winner, way back in 2005.
#16 CT CH VCH Mountainside Takin' the Love Train (2025) "Boone" OF NA NAJ NJP NAP NFP BN CD RE RNPairs PTsd FCAT3 CAA BPD TKA SOCIII THDA TDI FDC ATT CGCA CGCU PR, Top 10, Versatility Triple Crown, VCD1 MVC-Q GV ROM-P
"Boone's" story is unusual because he got his VST before his TDX. Trainer Penny Kurz inherited him after he'd had some TDX and VST training, and she entered him in both tests because he's a natural on pavement. He was the only 2024 VST Collie, and he didn't get into a TDX test until a year after his VST. We used to tease him that he didn't really like TDX because he'd have to mess up his beautiful hair by going through brambles and tall weeds. But he deeply loves working for Penny and making her proud of him, so he ended up barging eagerly into thick brush! For his TDX track, we were thrilled that 90-year-old Sylvia Schultz came to cheer him on his track and take some great photos and videos! He overcame the wind, tall weeds, smells of a skunk plus Mistletoe and another girl being in heat (he and Mistletoe had been making an X-rated movie for 2 weeks before the test), as well as the distractions of horses, dogs and joggers near the track. Boone's working style is the opposite of Mistletoe's. Penny says, "Damn I love tracking Boone. He was gorgeous, picking his way through the field with a bunch of deer cross tracks. He prefers to stop and think so he doesn't waste steps. He's just so cool! Just analyze, decide and go – amazing! He saved me at the end of his VST when he wouldn't leave, and I finally saw that article!" Victory for our favorites, Penny and Boone! Thank you, Nancy Kelso and Pelé, GCH Kelso's Takin' the High Road, Boone's sire)! Boone and Mistletoe's pups are the only Collies ever whose parents are both CTs. –Joany White
#15 CH CT Wild Wind’s Magical Mischief Maker at Fireside, VCD1 BN RE PT FDC OA AXP AJP OFP CA BCAT RATO CGCU TKI ATT FITB (2025) "Potter"
"Potter" earned her VST and CT at the Golden Retriever VST Tracking test at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, California on Mother’s Day, 2025.
It was a very warm day in Chula Vista, near the southern California border, when we arrived at the VST trial. We had been to this venue the year before and had not passed the test. In fact, this was our 5th try a VST. As Potter was getting older, I was very stressed about her age, how hard it was to get into a VST test (there were 22 applicants and only 4 tracks plus one alternate), and how no matter how much we trained, we had not been remotely successful.
Like most performance dog sports, any stress on the handler’s part travels straight down the leash to the dog. I had worked with my teacher on this, but it was still a problem for me. The campus was not an easy place to track as it was mostly paved and built up, and that only added to the heat and stress! But somehow, on this day, in this place, I started to feel resolute. I put in my ear buds and listened to peaceful music, which helped. Potter and I also had a wonderful practice about 4 days before. Luckily, I had used my GoPro to tape the practice and decided to watch it repeatedly. It really put me in a Zen-like state, and I am sure that is why, in the end, we were successful. Potter was a real trooper and I couldn’t have been more proud of her. Achieving such a challenging goal just put me right on Cloud 9, and she clearly knew that she had done well too as she jumped around like a puppy when everyone congratulated her! It was a day I will always treasure of me and my girl in the zone doing what she does best – making her mom happy! –Cynthia Casby
#14 CT CH MOUNTAINSIDE MISTLETOE FROM ARYGGETH Herding HIT HXAd OJP NJP NFP NF NA NAJ BPD RA BCAT TKA FDC ATT THDN CGCA CGCU SOCII TDI, Top 10, MVC-Q GV ROM-P (2025) "Mistletoe"
"Mistletoe" had just finished her TD when our tracking trainer retired. I'm forever grateful that Andrea Bixby referred us to Penny Kurz, an amazing tracking gal who agreed to do a trial week with Boone and Mistletoe to determine if she would track with them. Penny ran her first Champion Tracker in 2000 and has finished more CTs than we have CT Collies. She has a fantastic ability to read my dogs. She said she'd never have thought she could work with us since we live over 1100 miles from her. But after our trial week, she said she "was willing to try because they're amazing. I've tracked and watched many, many dogs, and you know I am crazy in love with 'my' Collies. Of all of the dogs I've trained, I've never seen better." They love Penny and give their best to her! My favorite horse trainer says that our horses work better when they know we like them. After about 40 days of training spread through the summer, Mistletoe passed her TDX and VST. Mistletoe (definition: a symbol of love and a natural pest), my favorite wild thing, loves getting covered with sticks and weeds, going through thick brush, and solving problems like following scent in the grass growing in sidewalk cracks. Penny describes her working style as fast, so we call her Little Rocket Girl! "She's phenomenal! Full speed ahead, check check go! I couldn't even imagine any dog being able to learn so quickly." Months after Mistletoe finished her CT, Penny took her for a fun run on one of Boone's practice TDX tracks (which took Boone about half an hour) which was 24 hours old when Mistletoe did it. Mistletoe ran that track in about 10 minutes. Penny and Mistletoe are amazing! Thank you, Dona Williams! PS – I've always heard that trimming their whiskers handicapped their tracking ability. Mistletoe passed her VST 2 days after doing great in Most Versatile Collie and the breed ring at our National. She aced her VST with her whiskers completely trimmed off. –Joany White
#13 CH CT Chelsea Kissed by the Sun, BN VST TDX OA OAJ HIC (2022) "Natalie"
On July 10, 2022 our "Natalie" had quite a day: she earned two new titles and also made CCA Collie history TWICE, with her trainer and handler Paula Cingota. Natalie passed her Variable Surface Tracking Test at Southwestern College campus on a beautiful warm Sunday morning at the German Shepherd Dog Club VST test in Chula Vista, California. Natalie’s track was 664 yards (1/4 of a mile), and she tracked over blacktop, grass, concrete and also across a road. The items she found were a plastic dish, metal cookie tin, scarf, and a leather glove. Being a college campus with summer school in session, there were many distractions: students, construction vehicles, bicyclists, cars, loose dogs, food and litter on the ground. Natalie completed her VST track in style and in 12 minutes, beating her Dad’s pass in April by four minutes. This tracking success earned Natalie the AKC Variable Surface Tracking title or VST. She also passed this test on her first attempt. The VST was the final requirement she needed to be designated an AKC Champion Tracker or CT. Natalie is the 13th Champion Tracker Collie. Our Rory, her father, is the 12th Champion Tracker Collie and so these two, I believe, are the first father and daughter Champion Trackers in Collie Club Of America history. I am so proud of them and the lovely sound intelligent beautiful dogs Gayle Kaye breeds at her Chelsea Collie Camp. As Natalie’s Track layer said, “This is the best day ever!” –Jeannette Poling
#12 MBISS GCH & CT Chelsea Here Comes The Sun, VCD1 CD BN TDX VST MXP MJP CGC HIC (2022) "Rory"
My good boy . . . my Sun King . . . on this momentous day our "Rory" passed his Variable Surface Tracking Test with his partner Paula Cingota at the Southwestern Rottweiler Club of San Diego’s Variable Surface Tracking Test at Southwestern College in Chula Vista, California. Rory’s track was the 4th one drawn, and he began about 11AM. It was Easter Sunday, and the day was warm and sunny. I was unable to follow along because two days before I had fallen and broken my leg and was in a wheelchair. But his trainer and handler, our friend Paula Cingota, was there for Team Rory, and I was just a cheerleader. Tom and I waited at “Base Camp” to hear the news. Rory’s VST track was 640 yards long (235 vegetation and 405 non-vegetation), three different surfaces (concrete, mulch, grass), these articles: small food tin, small plastic container, scarf, and leather glove, four turns, and with many distractions: students, construction vehicles, cars, loose dogs, food and litter on the ground from Easter egg hunts. Rory is a steady, confident worker who completed his VST track in 16 minutes with a bounce in his step and a happy tail wag to the judges and the team. Rory passing this tracking challenge gave him the AKC Champion Tracker Title. He joined a very elite and accomplished group of collies. –Jeannette Poling
#11 CT MACH2 Trinity All That ‘N Then Some, RN MXS MJG XF T2B SWE SCM SCM (2021) "Flair"
#10 CT CH Wild Wind’s Traveling Man, BN RN SWA SCE SBE CGC TKN (2020) "Travis"
"Travis" is By CH Wild Wind’s Free Fallin, CD RA PT NA NAJ x GCHP Bit O Heavens Sorceress, CD RN PT. Bred by Laura Bergstraser, Michelle Bergstaser and Jessica Lafrenier and Owned by Stuart Lease and Galann Lease. He earned his CT in 2018.
#9 CT Carealot’s Meant To Be Magical, VCD2 RN MX AXJ OF CGC (2020) "Marlo"
"Marlo" is my third CT. Here again, I think these smoothies enjoy presenting challenges! There were days she’d do a wonderful track and the next time in the field, not so much. Again with cohorts pushing, nagging and most of all, ultimately, helping, we continued. The first leg of the VST was past a couple of brush piles – Mr. Woodchuck’s home. Marlo thought it a good idea to investigate. This was not the start I’d hoped for. I stood my ground, using all the best handling skills: patience, backing up, quietly telling her to “track” . . . finally she proceeded down the track. There were a few other places of interest for Marlo and I had such a cotton mouth and pounding heart when I saw the last article – Lord don’t let me die on the track now! Miss Marlo is 10-1/2 now and doing fine. We still track, go for walks and schmooze a lot. All three dogs passed on the first try . . . what’s the saying about “no amount of planning takes the place of pure, dumb luck! –Pat Schroder
#8 CT Wild Wind Howlin Smokestack Lightnin, BN RA SCN SEN CGC TKN (2018) "Electra"
"Electra" is By GCHS Cyndella’s Splitting Image x CH Wild Wind’s Dressed To Kill, CDX RA HT AX AXJ. Bred by Laura Bergstraser, Michelle Bergstaser and Jessica Lafrenier and owned by Stuart Lease and Galann Lease. She earned her CT in 2018.
#7 CT GCHB Highcroft Bourne Ultimatum, CD RN HT (2018) "Brett"
"Brett" is the only rough collie in the history of the breed to have achieved a BEST IN SHOW and Champion Tracking Title.
#6 CT Carealot’s Moovin’ So Marvelous, VCD2 RN VST MX MXJ (2013) "Miss Moo"
Miss Moo was my second CT. That splashy coat reminded my husband of a Holstein calf, thus the call name, “Miss Moo.” Moosy presented more than a few challenges! We really struggled to earn a TDX. She could get distracted so easily, but the day she passed that test she did a beautiful job. Several of my tracking cohorts told me we couldn’t stop now! Forged ahead, we did. Moosy got more confident in her tracking abilities and more focused. That was amazing to watch the change in her. One thing I thought was a little strange, I always carried water when we trained but she’d always refuse. Test day I carried water as usual and I’ll be darned, at a point she was having a little trouble, I offered water and she took it! Missing “The Moo” too! –Pat Schroder
#5 CT CH Rosepoint Tribute, CDX (2012) "Ryan"
Last Collie I trained for VST was CH CT Rosepoint Tribute CDX. "Ryan," a gorgeous sable male, was my most unforgettable CT. The day he passed (third attempt) his track ran close to a railroad track which was down a slight embankment; perhaps because of recent movement or the fact that the actual VST track had been laid up a hill and NOT along the train tracks where the scent had pooled, he had trouble distinguishing between the two. From experience, I recognized that Ryan was really good, so I trusted him completely. He rewarded me with a memory which I keep replaying to this day. Having found all but the final article, Ryan was tracking confidently and heading for the corner and long wall of a tall building in front of us. As he neared the corner, he stopped on his own, put his head up as if to say, “I forgot something.” He then circled BEHIND me and proudly sat about 35 feet ahead of me, indicating a flat metal disk in mid-calf grass. I had not seen it and I then realized he had been following the tracklayer out of the field when he remembered his JOB to find article #4." My dear Collies have done so much for me. Now that I cannot go into the fields I doubt there is another CT in my future. My baby, Scout (CH Chatham’s Memory Keeper, CD TD) earned his TD at eight months and would LOVE to pursue VST. I feel he has the ability to get advanced tracking titles, but I doubt I can guide him any longer. Not all TDX dogs have the stamina and drive required to complete a VST track; as with all dog-related endeavors however, the joy is in the journey together, even more than in that final find! –Sylvia Schultz
#4 CT CH ROSEPOINT RAVE REVIEWS, UDX TDX (2011) "Toby"
Next Collie of mine to pass was "Toby" (CH/ CT Rosepoint Rave Reviews, UDX). Toby had to go on sabbatical before he earned the CT because he had “start” issues. No point in doing entire tracks if the dog won’t start cleanly! Taking a year off and doing only starter tracks really paid off because he finally gave me some clean starts and passed at the DuPage Government Center. –Sylvia Schultz
#3 CH CT Carealot’s Mesmeriz’n Eyes, VCD2 RN OAP OJP (2011) "Rivah"
Tracking is my #1 event to do with my dogs. Although earning the titles is a big thrill, working with the dogs up to that point is a challenge and great fun. The way I look at it, basically, the ball is in the dogs’ court, they are the ones with the noses and we as handlers have to learn to read the indications. I’ve found these smoothies, especially the bitches, to be very sassy, independent types. "Rivah" was my first Champion Tracker (CT) as well my first Champion (CH). She had a good work ethic for tracking and enjoyed it. When she passed the VST to earn the CT, as far as I know, she was the first smoothie, first bitch, first champion of record to earn the CT. She was a tough, beautiful and fun girl. She got off the VST start flag very nicely, had a couple of problem spots, especially around the bus barn, but worked through it. When she was headed for article #4, it was the biggest thrill of my dog showing career! I’m very proud of “Rivah The Divah” and miss her so much. –Pat Schroder
#2 CT Shepherd’s Song Of Praise, UD TDX (2006) "Nicky"
Once Reggie was retired, I realized tracking was in my blood, so the next dog I trained was Nicky (CT Shepherd’s Song of Praise, UD). Nick passed on the first try because with Reggie’s recent and sudden death I was too miserable to “help” Nick at all. Remarkably, he did his thing and found all the articles, ignoring circling cars trying to figure out what that handler and dog were doing; at one of his interim articles, a loose dog confronted us and almost did us in. –Sylvia Schultz
#1 CT Highcroft Regal Rogue, UD TDX (2005) "Reggie"
About that time (1995), I heard of a few dogs passing (mostly high-powered German Shepherds and Goldens). I still didn’t commit because I knew what VST required and I just didn’t think my beloved and beautiful Collies had the tenacity or drive to compete. With encouragement from a close friend I took another tricolor Collie who had his X and UD and dabbled in variable surface training. As I watched Reggie (later CT Highcroft Regal Rogue, UD) he bounced along happily having no problem with finding articles even on a hard surface. Because of his inept handler (me) it took Reg quite a few tests to finally pass, becoming the very first CT Collie. If anything else I learned training him, it was that I cannot do the track: it is strictly up to the dog as he has the scenting ability. Giving up control to “the one with the harness” is very difficult for those of us used to the formality of the obedience ring. –Sylvia Schultz
Feature Story by colliesonline.com :: November 15, 2025 | Contents
Related Features: Get the Inside Track! | On The Right Track | And now there are 13 | And now there are 12
Credits:
Cover Photo courtesy Jeannette Poling of "Rory"