The Weekend Report: Mega-Mischief!!!

So this past Saturday was another agility trial at one of my favorite locations. I've posted about it several times, even in my very first blog post ever! The only caveat is that it is an outdoor trial, no barn, no indoor soccer field, just out in the elements. The weather forecast wasn't the best, but it wasn't awful.....passing showers. That didn't sound so bad. When I got up Saturday morning, it was dry and cloudy. Great! I packed up and headed out. Now this trial is the furthest one I drive to, just about 100 miles from home. It involves driving on the Capital Beltway (always a treat!), then heading east to Annapolis and across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Well, it stayed dry and rain free until I got all the way to Annapolis, a solid hour into the drive. Just drizzle at first, and as I crossed the bay, heavier rain. Uh-Oh! Arriving at the farm where the trial was, it was POURING! The wind was heavy and the rain was almost sideways! Crap! I park, and go check out what's going on. Agility trials are rain or shine, as everything has been planned and paid for well in advance. Everyone was huddled under a couple of small tents and a few brave souls were running their dogs in this hard rain. I decided I would wait it out, hoping the rain would pass or at least ease to some drizzle. But after about an hour, it was still pouring! The ground was getting muddy, everyone was soaked to the skin and it was cold! I waffled for a bit, trying to decide if I wanted to run in the rain, or just scratch Jimmy's name off the running order. In the end, I  decided since we weren't chasing a big title, or trying to qualify for the Nat'l Championship as we were last year at this time, that I would err on the side of caution. There was no point risking either Jimmy or me slipping in the sloppy, wet footing. Agility is about fun, and this just didn't feel like fun. So I scratched us, and headed back to the car. The poor boys had never even set foot outside the car! No point getting them wet and muddy. Off we went, driving that same 100 mile drive back home. Back across the bay, heading west this time. And once we got just west of Annapolis....the rain....stopped! It just wasn't meant to be this time. It's funny, too, because it was really a three day trial, but being so far from home, I only signed up for Saturday. Friday was a cool but sunny day, and Sunday was a sunny albeit VERY windy day. I managed to sign up for the one day that was a total wash out! And while it was very disappointing to miss out on my agility adrenaline fix, it was even more disappointing to miss out on this beautiful farm at the peak of the fall season.  No walk in the leaves, no stroll down by the water, and no photographs! Mischief indeed!!!!!