I've never been to a trial that had so many scratches. And of the dogs that did actually run, most of them literally walked...with tongues almost down to the ground. I've never seen so much walking on the course. But it really was too hot for all these black dogs and dogs with long coats.
Our dogs were hot but they had the luxury of being in an air conditioned RV between runs. I think that makes a big difference. And Mike completely drenched them before each run. Even Wazzu, who hates the heat, ran nicely.
This was 2iggie's first try at doing courses with contacts.
She did the A-frame perfectly. But the dogwalk was a different color than she's used to so she was afraid to go on it. Mike convinced her it was okay but she crept across all hunkered down. It was sweet and sad at the same time. She was afraid but she was trusting her daddy.
The most interesting thing with 2iggie was that she ran around most of the jumps. After we got home, Mike did some agility with her in the backyard and she did every single jump...so it's not a physical problem. Hmmm. But she did take a few jumps at the trial and did them very nicely as you can see.
She had really nice distance for such a newbie.
Speaking of distance, Boogie was The Man this weekend getting two (yes you read it right), two Elite Chances Q's. And he had some of his fastest Yards Per Second runs this weekend as well. He was really moving.
We think maybe it was the heat. He was too hot to bark much which meant he could concentrate better. See, we should have moved to Phoenix full-time!
When Boogie is weaving really fast, his rear end gets really low to the ground. So you can tell he is scooting here as his knees are almost touching the ground!
And I guess when you run super fast you have to use your rudder.
Great form, great speed...yup, that's my boy!
Most surprising this weekend was Wazzu. She hates the heat. Anything above 60 and she melts. But she ran fast and she was happy. How many dogs do you see smiling this big when they run!
We've never noticed Sparkie being bothered by heat or cold....during agility that is. She must be bothered by something as she barks the entire way around the course. You can see in this picture she is all watered down.
I rarely take open field pictures but this one seemed like it would be a little interesting since there were lots of tunnels in the shot. Sparkie sure does stretch out when there is room to run.
How many bars do you think Sparkie knocks? Tee hee.
Now for some show specifics. You won't find a nicer place to have an agility trial. Outdoors at Argus Ranch is the best. Nice surface, nice scenery, nice facilities, nice places for the dogs to play, great RV spots and hook-ups. The best!
And I normally love trials put on by this club. But in all our years of doing agility there has never been a trial that was planned so poorly...in terms of running order.
There were numerous times when the same level (Novice, Open, Elite) was running in both rings. Extremely poor planning. And they could have changed levels right at the trial to avoid this but they didn't.
Poor Boogie had to run Regular, in 97 degree heat, ....and he ran his little heart out in that run...and then he had to immediately go run Touch N Go. Mike and Boogie literally ran Regular, ran from that ring to the other ring and immediately did Touch N Go.
On a normal weekend that would have been rough. But in this heat it was unacceptable. Just ask Boogie. He did a few obstacles in Touch N Go then ran into a tunnel and laid down....he wouldn't come out. They could have let him rest a little between runs and it wouldn't have taken as long as it did to get him out of the tunnel.
I was not happy about that at all. Shortly after that, the same thing happened to 2iggie. She had to go from Chances directly into Regular. That's really not fair at all...especially for a Novice dog...and in this heat.
Sparkie had to run very close together...three dog break...twice. Very poor planning indeed!
But I loved lying in the sun next to the rings watching. Everyone kept telling me to move into the shade. Are you kidding?! I've been waiting a year for some sun, there is no way I'm hiding in the shade like everyone else! All that and not even a hint of a tan. Oh well, at least I wasn't cold.
Stat highlights:
2iggie got her Novice Tunnelers title and her Outstanding Novice Hoopers title.
Boogie got two Elite Chances Q's, 8 Q's all first place, super fast YPS.
Sparkie got seven Q's.
Wazzu ran in the heat!..and got a few Q's.
What a nice weekend.
Debbie
8/15/10
No comments:
Post a Comment