Tuesday, May 9, 2017

The 2017 Cardigan Welsh Corgi Club of America 75th National Specialty



On Saturday April 29th I headed northwest to Huron, Ohio on the shores of Lake Erie. I've been there before. Some of it, like my agility results and the weather, felt like a repeat!

Of course I went for the all-Cardigan agility trial. Last time it was held outdoors in just horrid weather conditions. This time the CWCCA rented an indoor soccer building. Yay! And we needed it as Monday May 1st was a very rainy day! A big thank you to the club as I would not have even considered going if the trial was held outside.

If you read my last Weekend Report, you know that the day before was also an agility trial. Alas, my results on Monday were not as successful. That doesn't mean I didn't have fun, it just means I was a bit disappointed with our results. Jimmy is a wonderful little agility dog and I wanted him to shine at a trial filled with his own kind. There were two back-to-back trials held that day. It ran Jumpers then Standard for Trial #1 and Standard then Jumpers for Trial #2.

Here are the maps for Trial # 1:


In Jumpers Jimmy was super speedy and I left the ring thinking we had qualified. Happy, happy! When I saw our results on the electronic score board, we were NQ'd. WTF? When I watched the video, I could see where the judges hand went up. I didn't understand the refusal called and even asked him afterward. I sort of understood what he said but was still incredibly disappointed, especially since I thought we had Q'd!

Here is the video:





My favorite photo from Trial #1 !!!


Next was Standard. I didn't have to wait long to know we would not earn a Q. It was tunnel, tire, teeter , jump, to the weaves. It was a bit of an odd angle so you needed to shape it just a bit. Looking at the video I can see where Jimmy thought he might be going to the Aframe instead, so he blew right past the weaves. NQ!

Here is the video:





Trial #1 was over with no Qs. It really hurt. It may be just a game, but a lot of emotions get invested in it! Just as with the NAC, this will be Jimmy's last time at this big event. It moves around the country and he will be fully retired before it comes within a day's drive again.




We had a short intermission between the trials, and I have a really cool photo to share. We did a group shot against the far wall (my idea, ahem!). The photographer had to get waaaay back to get us all in! This was a completely full trial with 60 some Cardigans playing agility. The club actually had to turn away a few final entries as it was full before the closing date. Be sure to click to enlarge this photo for full effect. Jimmy and I are to the left of the tall man in green in the back row (on his right). The other thing that was cool was that with all these purebred Cardigans gathered together it just so happened to be National Purebred Dog Day! How cool is that?!

Photo credit: Phyllis Ensley Photography
A short while later, Trial # 2 started. Because the last one ended with Standard, #2 started with Standard. (No point moving all the large, heavy equipment out of the ring!)

Here are the maps:


Fortunately there were no bobbles to report! It went fairly smoothly and we came out of the ring with a good time. We earned 2nd place, beat by about a second or a bit less. I didn't care about being beat to the blue, I was just SO thankful for a Q at this point! I knew I would have at least one ribbon as my souvenir!

Here is the video:




All photos are from Phyllis Ensley Photography!





















And last up was the final Jumpers run. We made it so close to the end. I was thinking we would get it. But Jimmy ran right past a jump, heading for the tunnel a bit too soon. SIGH!!! I was hoping this would be our Double-Q trial, but again it was not to be.

Here's the video:




Coming out of that tunnel one jump sooner than he should have!

A few observations from the day. This was a very noisy trial! There is always lots of barking at agility trials (duh!), but these Cardis were extra talkative! Holy Moly it was loud! Jimmy was of course happy to contibute to the din. The percentage of intact dogs was much higher here since many were going on to show in the breed ring. I think this amped up the energy level for all the dogs. Jimmy was much higher than usual which may have had an affect on our runs, who knows. And I was more nervous than usual wishing to do well. When it is all said and done, I am just glad I got to go. In the long run the results don't matter. It's the being there and sharing that day with Jimmy that counts!

Now, there is yet more to this tale. Following the regular trials, the club so wonderfully scheduled what they called Glory Runs for any retired dogs who might like a go at it. The jumps would be set to 4 inches or the bars taken out altogether. But what is an emotional day without a bit more drama? Check back for my next post where I tell you all about Wilson's turn. There are photos and video!

Jimmy's Q ribbon and 2nd place ribbon

On our only sunny day, Jimmy posed on the edge of Lake Erie

3 comments:

  1. Love the post, Taryn! I'm glad you had fun - Specialties really are special!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I luffs the videos!!!! Watching Jimmy have soooo much fun makes me SMILE!!!!!!
    Loves and licky kisses
    Princess Leah xxx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Beautiful post! As for the call in the first jumpers run, that was a bit dicey. Just a flubbed rear cross not really a refusal. Drat!

    ReplyDelete

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