The Weekend Report: Still Trying!

Logging another one of our attempts at getting a double-Q....alas no luck once again! Sigh! I am beginning to think trialing just one day out of the weekend isn't enough for us to find our mojo! So often our weekend trials would end with success in 3 out of 4 runs. So now, with only one day and two runs, we aren't getting enough tries for a double-Q. I'll put this theory to the test at the end of the month when I do both days of the Pembroke Welsh Corgi trial.

Here are the maps:

The day started with Standard (map on the left) and the first obstacle was the tire. Tires are magnetized and break apart if the dog whacks it too hard. That is then considered a fault. Well, right off the bat, Jimmy broke the tire. When I put him in his stay, I had a niggling feeling I had set him just a bit too close, but didn't adjust him. Obviously I should have trusted my instinct! Then, oddly, the judge didn't call it. But I was thrown for a loop by the tire and made my own course mistake so we were very definitely NQ'd! If the rest of our run had been clean, I still would have told the judge about the tire. I never like to take a Q I didn't truly earn.

The Jumpers run had a few odd angles but otherwise went well and fast. Jimmy qualified and earned the blue ribbon! Still a speedy boy at 10!

I have gotten incredibly lazy about videos and for that I do apologize. These weekend reports aren't much without that! I'll share a few pretty flowers from my garden just to add a bit of color to this post....

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 58...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15 MJPS Title
Masters STD legs: 52...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 04/30/17 MXPS Title
Double Q's: 15(out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 1600 plus more! I have lost count!

The Weekend Report: A Double-Q Drought!

I have been getting lazy about my weekend reports! I actually had a trial last weekend and I never wrote it up! We didn't qualify and I didn't get video so I just let it slide by. Bad me!

So this weekend we had another trial given by the local Golden Retriever club. I only signed up for one day. I still didn't get video. Bad me again! But since we did get one Q, I want to write it up for the record keeping.

Here are the maps:

First up was Standard, the map on the right. The trickiest spot, or so I thought, was the #8 table to the #9 jump. You had to be sure you worked it well enough that your dog took the proper side. We had already cleared our dogwalk contact, and now made it past the table, so I thought we had a good chance for a Q, We made it all the way to #15 and then Jimmy knocked a panel of the #16 jump. A panel jump is one that the dogs can't see through, the bars hold a PVC panel so it looks like jumping a little wall. It's not a jump dogs usually knock because they give a bit of extra effort to clear the "wall", but it could be the big Aframe as the next obstacle played with Jimmy's eyes. You just never know for sure what brings a jump down.

Next up, the Jumpers run, and the left map. Nothing too tricky. It flowed nicely and ran fast. Jimmy finished in a tad over 32 seconds, quick enough for the blue ribbon! Good Boy!

Now, pretty much my only agility goal right now is to finish up Jimmy's PACH2 championship title. We have way more than enough points so we just need five more double-Qs. And we just can't seem pull one off! It's always something! We have no time frame to finish this title, but sooner than later is better for an aging corgi.


On a humorous note.... Jimmy's favorite canine masseuse was at the trial and lucky for us a spot opened up in her schedule. It was right after we were done for the day so perfect timing! Jimmy was so cute. He hopped up on Kim's table and immediately lay down on his side so she could get busy rubbing his back. We didn't even ask him to, he just assumed the postion! LOL!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 57...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15 MJPS Title
Masters STD legs: 52...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 04/30/17 MXPS Title
Double Q's: 15(out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 1600 plus more! I have lost count!

The Weekend Report: So Close!

This weekend was a trial given by the Weimaraner club. Just like last week, I only signed up for Friday.

The day started with Premier Standard. Premier is the more challenging version on Standard with less time to get it done and trickier courses.

Here is the map:

It wasn't super difficult. You just needed to be clear on where to go and keep your attention on your dog. I actually walked it incorrectly but it was fairly easy to add in the section I had skipped. Oops!

Jimmy listened very well even if some of his turns were a bit wide. Here is the video:




This run earned him a blue ribbon as the only other dog running in his class did not qualify.

Next came the regular Standard. It was a bit similar to the Premier, but a bit easier. It ran nicely and Jimmy was clean! Another blue ribbon. Good boy!

And finally Jumpers. I had been the leash runner for the big dogs so I had watched lots of runs. I knew right where the most screw-ups happened. If the handler did not properly support the 2nd to last jump (#18), the dogs were pulling off too soon and not taking it. So when it was my turn, I knew I needed to place my rear-cross close to the jump so Jimmy was sure to jump it. To pull off a rear-cross successfully, your dog needs to be ahead of you. Unfortunately, I out ran Jimmy, and couldn't do a rear-cross. So I ran past the jump, hoping to turn Jimmy on the landing side. It worked, but it messed up his stride and he knocked down a bar on the very last jump. Sigh! So close to a double-Q! Completely my fault! I'm not in a hurry to complete my PACH2, but I don't want it to take too long....Jimmy and I aren't getting any younger! LOL!

Sorry, but you will have to use your imagination as I didn't video either STD or JWW. Here are the maps to help visualize!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 56...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15 MJPS Title
Masters STD legs: 52...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 04/30/17 MXPS Title
Double Q's: 15(out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 1582 plus many more! I have lost count!

The Weekend Report: So Close to Home!

Jimmy and I had another agility trial this weekend given by the Mattaponi Kennel Club. They chose a new location for their trial. Door to door, it was just 20 minutes from my house. Plus it was Tall to Small in the running order so I didn't even need to set an alarm clock! It just doesn't get any better than this! It was  a really nice indoor soccer building with lots of crating space, good climate control, great bathroom facilities (that's important!), and nice grounds for walking the dogs. There was only one caveat, the turf was slippery for the fast dogs. Sharp turns often resulted in face plants. That is something no one wants their dog to experience!

We had a pretty good weekend, Q'ing in 3 out of 4 of our runs! Saturday our Standard run had a bar down, and because of the bar down, Jimmy also missed his weave entry which was the next obstacle. The footing made an odd thunk each time he landed and I think it weirded him out just a bit. By the time Jumpers came around, he had gained a bit of confidence. He put in a speedy run, but was edged out of 1st place by less than a second. His run was speedy enough to earn 19 points.

We came back on Sunday to try again. Jimmy was much happier and raring to go! We put in a nice, clean Standard run and earned 28 points!

Here's the video:





I didn't video Jumpers but again we had a nice clean run, earning the blue ribbon and another 19 points. Plus this was double-Q # 9 toward our PACH 2 title.

If I kept my count correctly, the Jumpers legs I earned this weekend should have qualified for Jimmy's MASTER SILVER JUMPER WITH WEAVES PREFERRED title (MJPS). That's 50 succesful Jumpers legs!



We are off for the next couple of weekends and will trial again in mid-November!

AKC Nationals 2017: Perry, GA
Double-Q's: 12 (out of 7 needed)
Points: 742 (out of 550 needed) We qualified on 07/09/2016 !!!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 50...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15 MJPS Title 10/23/16
Masters STD legs: 42...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 10/11/15
Double Q's: 9 (out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 1308

The Weekend Report: A New Nickname

Well, I haven't posted a weekend report in a very long time! Our last trial was back on the last weekend in July. After that, Jimmy tweaked something in his left front leg that took a very long time to heal. Fortunately the very hot months of August and September helped keep him calm and resting as it was just too hot to want to be outside! During that time, I also had tweaked my back and that took a full two weeks to stop giving me spasms. I guess we were both down for the count!

This past weekend was the trial out in the mountains near Culpeper, Virginia that I love so much! The location is just so perfect. Oddly, the leaves have barely started to turn yet, so there was very little color. The weather was absolutely gorgeous both days so fall colors or not, it was a great place to be! And I never once got my camera out! I had it with me but just never got around to using it. Bad me!

Now, not only had we not been trialing, Jimmy had not been practicing or going to lessons either. So he was very enthusiastic to be back doing agility. So enthusiastic that he couldn't be bothered with doing the dogwalk contact either day!  (The dogwalk contact is the yellow safety zone on the down slope at the bottom. Dogs must put at least one foot on the yellow or they are disqualified. This is to ensure they are safely leaving the obstacle and not launching from too high up.) Jimmy just hopped right over the yellow. Sigh. No double-Qs for us! His jumpers runs were perfect and both earned the 1st place ribbon and 30 points combined.

It was very fun to be back doing agility so Qs or no Qs I had a wonderful weekend!

Now, on to explain what my title means......

When you are at an agility trial, there is a running order list by the ring, and a gate steward calls out who is next to go in, plus the next two dogs as well. This is to keep things flowing quickly. Usually the line gets five or six deep as people queue up. Now Jimmy loves this game and he gets very impatient for his turn! As we are waiting, he starts to vocalize quite loudly. BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK, BARK....I imagine he is screaming "my turn!" over and over. Of course not everyone appreciates his big mouth and probably feel I should train that behavior out of him. But under his tough exterior, Jimmy is actually a soft boy. Yelling at him to be quiet right before a run would be sure to dampen his spirit, so I just let him be himself for those few minutes and apologize. Anyway, now that I have set the scene...the gate steward is calling out the names of the dogs who should be ready to go, and when she gets to Jimmy, she calls out Jimmy the Mouth! Is Jimmy the Mouth ready go?! She says, you know, his Italian mob name....

She got quite a few giggles for that one, and it pretty much stuck for the rest of the weekend.It's a pretty fitting nickname as Jimmy is never at a shortage for words, either at a trial or at home!


There's another trial this coming weekend at a new location just 15 minutes from my house. Gotta love that!

And since I hate to have no photos at all on a blog post, here is one from a trial earlier this year. Can you see Jimmy's enthusiasm for the sport? (Click to biggify!)

Photo credit: Terri Keiffer of Key4Prints

And here is the very last photo I'll ever have of Jimmy going through the chute. This obstacle (also known as the collapsed tunnel) has been removed by almost all of the various agility venues on safety concerns. As skill and training methods have improved, so has a dog's speed and injuries have been reported too often with this obstacle.

Photo credit: Terri Keiffer of Key4Prints

And finally, here is Jimmy, attentively waiting for me to release him from his start line stay.

Photo credit: Yes, you guessed it....Terri Keiffer!

AKC Nationals 2017: Perry, GA
Double-Q's: 11 (out of 7 needed)
Points: 676 (out of 550 needed) We qualified on 07/09/2016 !!!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 48...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15
Masters STD legs: 41...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 10/11/15
Double Q's: 8(out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 1242

The Weekend Report: Jimmy Was on Fire!

This weekend was another agility trial given by the Potomac Valley Golden Retrieve Club. Jimmy definitely had his game on, as we qualified in all four runs with all 1st places! That hasn't happened since last October. We had great judges who designed fun, fast courses.

I had both my Standard runs caught on camera.

This is Saturday's:




And, for Sunday, first the map. This was a very challenging course with many places to lose your dog to an off-course obstacle. It was closely spaced and was especially hard for the bigger dogs with their longer strides. The two worst spots were Jump #11 to Table #12, and the Weave Poles #14 to Jump #15 which was actually a backside.

Here's Jimmy doing a great job on a tough course:

AKC Nationals 2017: Perry, GA
Double-Q's: 9 (out of 7 needed)
Points: 524 (out of 550 needed)

Tracking Jimmy's PACH 2 progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Sunday 5/1/2016

QQ#20: 
Masters JWW legs: 42...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15
Masters STD legs: 39...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 10/11/15
Double Q's: 6 (out of 20 needed)
PACH Points: 792 (We are starting with all the points we need, so I'm not even going to track them!)

The Weekend Report - The Season Finale......Maybe

This was another weekend out in the country for agility. The warm fall temps of late had morphed into more seasonal chilly temps! Saturday was about 28 degrees when I arrived at the farm. Sunday was warmer, maybe low 40s but with a biting wind. Fortunately I had dressed for the chill and it wasn't too bad.

Not a lot to tell. Both days went about the same. An awesome Jumpers run started each day, and just one handler-induced error in each Standard run cost us a Q, and also a double-Q. So we are ending our season still needing 3 more double-Qs to finish our PACH title. On a positive note, our Jumpers runs were both first places,  and Jimmy did his dogwalk contact correctly both days!

I was very lazy and did not snap even one photo all weekend long! Egads, I've become a bad blogger!

Now, I titled this the Season Finale....with a Maybe.  There are a few days left to sign up for a trial at this same (cold!) location in December. I could do a Friday and try out the new AKC class called Premier. Very tempting! So maybe I'll have just one more Weekend Report yet!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 31...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15
Masters STD legs: 28...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 10/11/15
Double Q's: 17
PACH Points: 1331


November ends the qualifying period for the 2016 AKC National Championship. Jimmy and I did well over what was needed to get in. I'm not sure I'll make the long trip to Tulsa, but at least we have the option!

AKC Nationals 2016:
Double-Q's: 10 (out of 5 needed)
Points: 813 (out of 600 needed)....We QUALIFIED!!! 10/11/15
Masters Legs: 37 (out of 20 needed)

The Weekend Report: Farewell to a Beautiful Farm

This weekend was an agility trial given by the Talbot Kennel Club. I've talked about how gorgeous this spot is before, like here, here, and here. I've gone every year since I started trialing 8 or more years ago. The farm is a small slice of heaven on Earth. Beautiful scenery made even better by being on a waterway off of the Chesapeake Bay. The day started out with light rain and luckily moved on to just cloudy and then even sunny! When I arrived at the trial, I soon learned that this was the last time the club would be holding their trial at this location. The unpredictability of the weather has made attendance drop off over the last few years. Without enough entry fees, the club just can't afford to stay. So they have chosen a new location....one with a roof. It is even further away for me, so I won't be going. But for me it is the loss of visiting this farm that really hurts. I will truly and deeply miss having the opportunity to spend a day there. I never really cared how my agility turned out so long as I could enjoy the farm. SIGH......

Our friend Chris and her cute Cardigan Quigley rode with us to the trial. We wandered around looking for photo-ops....

The Tres Amigos!

So how did the agility turn out, you might wonder? Well, we could not pull off a double-Q. Jimmy did qualify in Standard and earned 1st place and another 23 points. We had a very rare weave pole meltdown in our Jumpers run that cost us the Q. No worries, as we went off to walk the farm after that. You just can't sulk when you are surrounded by so much beauty!

Farewell, Spring Cove Farm! May you forever stay a beautiful piece of undeveloped land!

PS I hear they do Barn Hunt at the farm....I'll definitely be looking into that when Jimmy is done earning his PACH ;-)

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 27...MJP Title 01/25/15 MJPB 10/11/15
Masters STD legs: 27...MXP Title!10/24/14 MXPB 10/11/15
Double Q's: 16
PACH Points: 1231

AKC Nationals 2016:
Double-Q's: 9 (out of 5 needed)
Points: 713 (out of 600 needed)....We QUALIFIED!!! 10/11/15
Masters Legs: 32 (out of 20 needed)

The Weekend Report: Bee Sting!

This weekend was yet another agility trial, this time given by the Weimaraner Club. There is plenty of mischief to report!

First, to explain my title....the landscaping outside the soccer building was some sort of laurel bush (I think) and it was in very full bloom. The blossoms were cloyingly sweet in fragrance and attracted all manner of insects. At one point during the day on Sunday, I took Jimmy out for a potty break. I wasn't even that close to the bushes, but a wasp did a super fast fly-by, stinging me, through my sock, on my ankle. It felt like being stabbed with an ice pick! I went right inside and got a bag of ice from the snack bar. A fellow competitor even had a first-aid kit with a bug bite pad, so I used that too. I haven't been stung by a bee or wasp in years, but I wasn't really expecting too much of a reaction. Between the ice and the medicated pad, I pretty well stopped the reaction. It was a bit itchy and sore where my shoe rubbed it but not too bad. I was very thankful the wasp stung me and not Jimmy! To my knowledge, he has never been stung before, so I certainly didn't want to see what his reaction would be at an agility trial, and away from our usual vet.

Photo credit: Key4Prints

On Saturday, just after our first run of the day, a thunderstorm rolled through. It came with several loud peels of thunder and sent Jimmy into a meltdown. We spent the next hour holed up in my car with the A/C running. Jimmy feels much safer in the car so we went out there to try to re-gain his sanity. Fortunately, I had a really good audiobook going, so the time flew by. Also, a fellow competitor had a product used to reduce anxiety called VetriScience Composure which comes in biscuit form. She gave me one for Jimmy to try, and I do believe it helped. The trial was a one-ring trial so our runs were spaced out by many hours, so Jimmy had pretty much recovered by the time his next run came due.

Photo credit: Key4Prints

On Sunday, the day dawned sunny but oh, so HOT . It took your breath away to go outside. There was no walking the dogs to kill time, or get exercise. It was quick business....(get stung by a wasp!) ....and hurry back inside. Thankfully the A/C kept up with the heat and the building stayed pleasant all day.

Photo credit: Key4Prints

As to how our runs went.....Meh! Jimmy and I were only 1 for 4 by the end of the weekend. Each run had just one mistake....a dropped bar, a table refusal in the run after the thunderstorm. I don't think Jimmy wanted to have to stop as he was still a little stressed and moving felt safer, and finally a dogwalk contact got us. Sigh. Jimmy did redeem himself in the very last Jumpers run, Qing and getting the blue ribbon.

The view of the trial from an upper mezzanine.

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 19...MJP Title 01/25/15
Masters STD legs: 18...MXP Title!10/24/14
Double Q's: 10
PACH Points: 858

AKC Nationals 2016:
Double-Q's: 3 (out of 5 needed)
Points: 336 (out of 600 needed)....
Masters Legs: 15 (out of 20 needed)


Update: Forgot the maps! D'Oh!

The Weekend Report: But Not What You Are Expecting

While the Weekend Report is usually the place I showcase and record Jimmy's adventures in Agility, this time it is all about Wilson!

We ventured back into the Rally Obedience ring for the first time in over three years. In Rally Advanced, the dog and handler teams do many of the same moves they learned for Novice, but this time the dog is off-leash. There are also a few more complicated ones as well. In Rally, the judge sets a course similar to the way there is a course in agility. It has stations with signs telling you what to do, where agility has obstacles to jump/climb/run through, etc. Of course, the pace is primarily at a walk in Rally. The handlers get a map before hand and get a walk-thru just as in agility.

This event was held outdoors at a fairgrounds. Unfortunately the weather chose to be hot, humid and muggy, and sunny. A thick-coated corgi does not appreciate that! Plus there is the challenge of keeping curious noses out of the grass without a leash.

One beautiful thing about Obedience/Rally competitions is that there is a set time to arrive. You don't have to guesstimate how long 175 dogs in front of you will take as in agility. There aren't anywhere near as many competitors, so the club holding the trial can pretty accurately pinpoint the times. Our time each day was the very reasonable 11:10 and it was only about 45 minutes from my house, if that.

Saturday's course had just one station we weren't particularly proficient at doing, but we had practiced it. The trick is to not get lost and go to the wrong station, remember your left from your right, and hope that your dog doesn't wander off to sniff something interesting  in the corner.  Since it was so very hot out in the sun, Wilson was a tad sluggish and we lost a few points to what's called lagging, Wilson not quite staying in proper heel position. That was it! He got a full score on all the stations! So we ended our first  Rally Advanced course with 96 out of 100 points and this earned us first place! Woohoo Wilson!

Sunday was overcast and even more humid due to lots of rain Saturday evening. Just plain unpleasant to be outside for man or beast! Sunday's course was a bit trickier and tightly packed. As our turn neared, the clouds started to thin and full sun shown on us by the time it was our turn. I had hoped the clouds would last just long enough, but not so. As soon as we stepped in the ring, I could tell Wilson's enthusiasm wasn't as great as the day before's. Right off the bat he was slow, and his nose went down to sniff. He also probably remembered from the day before that he wasn't going to get any treats while in the ring. What's up with that?! It took a bit of effort to keep him engaged but we moved onward. Unfortunately I asked him to sit when a sit wasn't supposed to happen, and that particular station was rated as a fail and we lost 10 points. Totally, totally my fault! We lost another five points to his lagging here and there so we ended with a score of 85. Not great but still a passing score. Another dog also scored an 85 but because he was faster getting around the course, he earned 2nd place and we earned 3rd.

So there we have it! Wilson has two out of the three legs he needs to earn his Rally Advanced title. What a good boy! Now we need to find another event to try to finish off the title. I don't think there are any close by in the near future so it may have to wait a bit. Wilson has been enjoying his training time (all those treats!) so he won't mind the delay.

I'm very proud of my senior boy. He did a wonderful job and I bet without the heat/humidity/hot sun he would have put in a perkier performance. Hopefully next time is indoors in the A/C!

The Weekend Report: Odd Mistakes

Jimmy and I had another weekend of agility. This one was given by the Potomac Valley Golden Retriever Club. Unfortunately, I must report that we were largely unsuccessful. It only takes one mistake to be disqualified, and that's what we had. They were weird ones as well.

On Saturday we started with Standard. The course wasn't too difficult, just a couple of places where you needed to pay attention. We were off to a great start, made it through the 7, 8, and 9 turns and Jimmy ran right past the teeter. Ordinarily I talk as little as possible to Jimmy. I don't tell him to jump or go in a tunnel, etc. unless it is not at all obvious. He is expected to seek and take the next obstacle, so I never said teeter. I don't know whether its location made it somewhat less visible to his doggy vision, or if I was out of position to a degree that made him doubt it was next. Who knows, but he ran past and we were disqualified. He finished the rest of the course nicely.

The Jumpers run had one real challenge, a backside jump at #4. Almost all of us handled it just fine. The judge did point it out in her pre-class briefing that AKC is really encouraging judges to put in those kinds of challenges more often. AKC wants all of us to get used to tougher stuff as they get ready to roll out their new Premier class which will have a much more international (read that as harder) flair. So listen up agility peeps, if you don't have a good backside jump command now is the time to train one! I've good a pretty good "around back" and I definitely practiced it several times on the warm-up jump! You can see it in the video:




Jimmy did a beautiful, speedy job with this course and was rewarded with 1st place and 21 speed points. That's a good points tally in Jumpers!


Sunday again started with Standard, and an old issue reared its ugly head. Jimmy did not get on the table on his first approach. That is considered a refusal and we were disqualified. Not sure what was going on, but I hope and pray that won't be repeated!

Here's a look at it:



The Jumpers run wasn't too difficult and was actually set up for a nice speedy course. The weave poles were at #5, and for whatever reason, Jimmy popped out a pole too soon. It may have been that I started my turn too soon, or that he was distracted by a nearby off-course jump (it was much closer than the maps made it look!), but whatever it was, Jimmy will be working on completing ALL 12 poles independently of where I am. He did not get to complete the course. I walked him off the course, also known as the walk of shame. Getting to continue would have rewarded his pre-mature weaving exit.

So all in all, a rather disappointing weekend. I do try to remind myself it is just a game and to not take things so seriously, but occasionally I let it get to me. I need to work on keeping a better attitude! Shame on me, Jimmy deserves better!

Maps:

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 14...MJP Title 01/25/15
Masters STD legs: 16...MXP Title!10/24/14
Double Q's: 9
PACH Points: 699

AKC Nationals 2016:
Double-Q's: 2 (out of 5 needed)
Points: 181 (out of 600 needed)....
Masters Legs: 8 (out of 20 needed)

The Weekend Report: TWO Degrees in Winchester!

Last Thursday was another huge snowstorm followed by an arctic blast of cold air. Everything pretty much shut down around my area for the day. Fortunately Friday was a sunny, albeit cold, day. This helped melt the roads ahead of the weekend agility trial. Saturday was also sunny but dawned (because, yes, I had to be up before dawn to get to the trial!) at about 8 degrees at my house. BRRRR!!!! I needed to head west over the mountains to be in Winchester by 7ish. By the time I got there, the temperature had dropped to 2 degrees! Egads that is cold, especially for March! Not the weather for a leisurely dog walk before going indoors but Jimmy needed to poop. Heaven forbid he ever did it in the ring. That disqualifies you for sure! So we wandered around the snow covered area until finally he could find one tiny square of grass to set a foot on and pooped. Hallelujah!

We've had snow on the ground and walking trails for at least the past couple of weeks. It's made for treacherous dog walks or none at all depending on the day. Jimmy and I have also had agility practice cancelled thanks to the weather as well. All of this meant Jimmy was under-exercised and a tad wilder than usual going into the trial. It really showed up in our first run of the day, which was Jumpers. It was quite a tricky course and we couldn't make it through. It was one of those runs I would love to have a "do-over" for so I could try out a different plan. Oh, well, if it was always easy, and we always Q'd, where would be the challenge in that?

Here's the map. It was numbers 4/5/6 to the #7 tunnel that took us out!

A bit later on came our Standard run. It was really quite easy and Jimmy was also calmed down by then. He did a great job and earned us a nice blue ribbon for first place, and 29 points. Good boy!

The map:

So none of the coveted "double-Qs" that we need, but still a good start to the season. And I am back once again to my blogging break. I just didn't want to miss getting my agility write-up out here while it was fresh!

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 10...MJP Title 01/25/15
Masters STD legs: 14...MXP Title!10/24/14
Double Q's: 7
PACH Points: 564

AKC Nationals 2016:
Double-Q's: 0 (out of 5 needed)
Points: 46 (out of 600 needed)....
Masters Legs: 2 (out of 20 needed)

The Weekend Report: Jimmy is Such a Good Boy!

Yesterday, I attended an agility trial given by the Capital City Cocker Club. This was held in an indoor horse arena so no worries of a rain-out like last weekend! And of course, with no worries, you get nice weather! That's just how Murphy's Law works. LOL!

Both courses had their challenges. The Standard run was first and was definitely a small dog course. There were many off course opportunities for a dog with a long stride or merely an independent thinker. I had to make a couple of adjustments on the fly (not as I had walked it) when Jimmy was too fast for me to get where I needed to be, but we made it through cleanly and quickly. This earned us 1st place and 22 PACH points.

Very soon after came our Jumpers run. It was set up in such a way that the dogs thought they were finished but the course actually kept going. By virtue of where Jump #16 was placed and the fact that it had the electronic timing equipment on it (the dogs learn to recognize the last jump due to that equipment!), it surprised some of the dogs that they had to keep going. There was only one spot I was a bit worried about, but Jimmy read it just fine. He was even speedier than I expected, too. The dirt surface usually slows him down, but not on this run! We got 1st place again, and 20 more points!

So this gave us Double-Q #7 toward our PACH. ......YAY!

Unfortunately, I was lazy about asking anyone to run my video camera. With such great runs, I regret that now.

Maps.....

And finally.....I posted this on Facebook but will add it to this post as well. On the back of someone's car was this bumper sticker. It gave me a good chuckle. No offense, of course, to any of you who do the breed ring......

Tracking Jimmy's PACH progress:
Very 1st Double-Q: Saturday 06/21/2014
Masters JWW legs: 9
Masters STD legs: 11...MXP Title!10/24/14
Double Q's: 7
PACH Points: 458