EWO, thanks for your input.

I would like to know if Ch. Splash has winning littermates. Not that it will make me run out and get some, but it would be nice to know. LOL...
You are correct. Everyone gets to feed what they want and everyone is entitled to their opinion! I guess the Mims dogs I saw in that era or heard of amongst our friends, were not bred for success like those you've seen perform and made you a believer. Experience is the best teacher it appears that yours has led you to what you like, so I can't argue with that.

I myself tried my hand with a few different redboy strains and the end result for me is; the Haymaker blood is where I need to be. Aside from the C'ham dogs I've owned or been around, my success is in the bottom half of that breeding.

I took my daughter of Heavy D (redboy/ buck) and bred her to Ch. Gunner (redboy-jocko/ hell bend) and got something to write home about but not enough to stick with it.
Both mother and father were redboy crosses but I didn't get what I needed. Overall, it wasn't a bad (RBJBT) breeding but maybe if I had more time to work with them, I could have seen more out of each.
IMO, having a good outcross with the Haymaker strain can still produce great competition stock, versus, brood dogs with an out.

P.S. - Seven knew how to close it but I canceled her debut to give another female of the same size an opportunity on the big stage. So I guess the Deacon dogs do have it in them.