Agility Club Chamionship Show

This was the start of a busy weekend for us.  We were at the Agility Club show near Crawley, West Sussex.  We were mainly there to run in the Crufts team, so we only took Doople running at grade 4 and Shadow at grade 6.  This was a Championship show so it was very busy and we were expecting some good courses and competition.

View of the scores of people around at the show

It was an interesting day with the weather, starting off really hot as it has been recently.  Fortunately we had half of our runs early on.  Then later on, the winds picked up causing a sand storm in the car park, followed by rain for 20 mins.  It all dried out and warmed up after that bizarre!

First up was Shadow in graded 4-7 jumping.  We put in a good round.  Still steady in the weaves but running the rest of it nicely.  She was working forward well which gave me time to get ahead of her.  We weren't placed but only 3 seconds off the pace.  Her next and last individual run was the combined grade 6-7 agility Crufts qualifier.  This was a tricky course with lots of interesting bits: running between jumps, me not running into the dog walk!  She picked up the tricky weave entry which was pleasing.  We did have one massively wide turn, I was driving her forward for too long and didn't steady for the turn.  We had a good run but again no placing.

Doople and +Susi Cooper started in the same jumping class as Shadow, graded 4-7 jumping.  They ran well with Doople charging down the first stretch.  She was wide into the weaves as she was distracted by ... something.  She ran well afterwards with some good cross behinds.  Clear but no placing.  NExt for her was grade 3-5 agility.  Unfortunately for Doople, this was in the middle of the downpour!  Doople is keen on rain so we were pleased with how she ended up running.  She was still pushing forwards with some good turns.  She missed the weave entry which can be a bit of a bain with Doople at shows.

We also ran in the Crufts team qualifier with the Poodle Training Club.  We ran with Sue and Heather Reaves.  We were only there for fun really and fun it was.  We got eliminated, a few times, but never mind.  The dogs all ran well so we were all happy.  Shadow missed the last weave but that was because I was starting to push her the other way.  Susi and Doople managed a clear round.

It was a fun and busy day but always good to see the top dogs and handlers.  Now from Sussex to Scunthorpe for the Dog Vegas Chase the Ace team finals on Monday, nothing like a bit of travelling!

Rugby DTC Show

Another scorching weekend at a dog, there are definitely worse ways to spend it!  This weekend we were at the Rugby DTC championship show.  We were looking forward to spending another sunny weekend outside with the dogs and so it was.  We had Shadow running at grade 6, Doople at grade 4, Winnie at grade 3 and Zazu at anysize.

We were prepared for the nice weather this weekend as it was very similar to last weekend at Wellingborough.  We did end up using a lot of water in the heat, about 100 litres in total!  It was a busy show with 10 rings, but that is to be expected at a championship show with Crufts and Olympia qualifiers as well.

Zazu leaping in anysize jumping

The high grade classes that Shadow was running in are always more interesting at championship shows as there are so many dogs entered, and this show was no different.  All of Shadows runs on both days were at the end so she had a relaxing time for the most part.  Her first run was combined grade 5-7 jumping.  It was an interesting course with a tricky weave entry.  I moved too much on the weave entry so Shadow went round too far and in the second pole.  A few jumps later Shadow decided to stop mid stride and smell something more interesting on the floor, something I've never seen her do in the ring before!  It was a little strange.  Next up combined grade 6-7 agility, a Crufts qualifier.  We got a few jumps in and I didn't send round a jump so she came in and over the wrong direction.  We were a little wide after that but I had relaxed a bit.  Finally we had graded 5-7 jumping.  Shadow was starting to tire but was still running nicely.  We started with a twisty bit which was a little slow but she picked up speed on the open parts.  We picked up the weaves nicely from the opposite direction and ended up 5th, only 3s off the winner of grade 6.

On Sunday, all of Shadows runs were at the same time.  We had a 10 minute break between but would have liked longer.  First up we had graded 5-7 jumping.  This was tricky but also quite a fast course.  We had a couple of wide turns but not too bad.  I took Shadow a longer way around some turns but I think it straightened her up better than a lot of others for the next section.  We were clear but unplaced.  Next was the combined 1-7 agility Olympia qualifier.  This was a bit of a disaster which was mainly my fault.  I managed to knock the fourth jump other with my arm, oops!  This put both of us off for the rest of the round with Shadow running around not really listening, and rightly so I think!  Finally we had combined grade 5-7 jumping.  We were both getting quite tired by this point.  Shadow was a little slower on her turns but was accelerating on the straights a listening well.  We ended up clear but again unplaced.  It was a good weekend with a few clear rounds over some tricky courses.  I just need to keep my flailing arms out of the way!

We weren't sure how well Doople was going to run with the heat but we had some idea from last weekend.  She had one run early on, first with +Susi Cooper in graded 1-4 jumping.  She started off well but Susi was a bit messy going into the weaves and Doople turned the wrong way after a jump.  They had a nice finish with pull-throughs round a box.  Not too bad and still a clear round.  Next up I ran her in the combined grade 4-5 agility.  She was a little slow again with the heat getting to her.  She listened all the way around and we did get another clear.  We decided not to run Doople her last class as she was out for count the rest of the afternoon!

Sunday had an early start with me running Doople in graded 1-4 jumping.  I was a fairly straightforward course and Doople was running fairly well.  I only got slightly lost and nearly went the wrong way, but managed to pull it back for a clear round.  Next up was graded 1-4 jumping.  This course was a little trickier but Susi managed it well.  They managed a back of jump and a good cross behind and ended up 7th.  Finally at the end of a long day Doople had combined grade 1-7 agility, the Olympia qualifier.  Susi and Doople had a much better round than me and Shadow, although that wasn't hard!  Doople was a bit slower by this point but still running and enjoying it.  she managed the tricky weave entry, albeit at a walk.  They ended up clear.  Doople ran quite well again this weekend considering the heat.  We knew Doople runs much better in the cooler weather but she is much better than this time last year.

Winnie is another one affected by the heat, but she also has less desire to run at shows than Doople, so it becomes quite tricky.  We gave her two runs on Saturday but decided she'd be best with just one on the Sunday.  She started with grade 1-3 jumping.  She was running forward fairly well, not getting distracted and not missing any jumps.  Dare I say she looked like she was enjoying it?  We also ended up with a clear round.  Next up she had grade 3 agility.  By this point in the day she was mentally very tired.  We did half of the course and then decided it was best to stop and she wasn't really running.  She did a few jumps and the dog walk but at this stage we are just trying to build her confidence.  Any time we go into the ring and she at things correctly we are taking a step forwards.  On Sunday we had grade 1-3 agility.  This was very slow, although she did run of the A-frame and kept momentum for a few jumps.

Zazu was running at anysize over small jumps, his last anysize before he is entered in a proper class!  Susi ran him of Saturday in a fairly straightforward course.  He ran ahead well and Susi turned him round jumps out of the tunnel from behind.  They ended with a clear round.  We need to keep working on his turns and learn to turn him a bit earlier.  He is really responsive when you tell him where we're going.  I ran him on Sunday and the course was much trickier but still fun.  He had a lot of drive that kept pulling him towards the flat tunnel.  We managed to go round the back of a jump out of the flat tunnel, which is something that a lot of grade 5-7 dogs were struggling with in later classes.  We'll just ignore the fact that we weren't supposed to do that!  He was really excited to be there and enjoyed his time running around.

It was an enjoyable show and makes us want to go to more championship shows next year, even if we're not running in the championship classes.  It's good to see where we need to improve and what we're up against.

Nottingham DTC Championship Show

This weekend we were off to Nottingham for a championship show.  Championship shows bring together some of the best handlers in the country with twice as many grade 6-7 dogs than at a normal show.  We had Shadow running at grade 6, Doople at grade 4 and Winnie at grade 3.

The weekend got off to a bad start when our 2 hour journey took 3 hours thanks to bank holiday traffic on the M1 bringing it to a standstill, twice.  Also a road closure on the A46 for a while after a car flipped over the central reservation.  Trying to find out where your camping spot is in the dark is always fun.

All the courses over the weekend were very challenging, but not beyond our abilities so they were very enjoyable  There were a few things that we haven't seen before but most of which we managed.

Starting with Shadow, we had some very tricky courses as there were many experienced dogs and handlers.  We started with grade 6-7 agility Crufts qualifier.  There was a common theme in the grade 6-7 courses over the weekend, interesting weave entries.  The first entry was from the opposite direction, the second set was immediately after and in the opposite direction again.  We managed the first set but I pushed her too far round the second set as I was also trying to avoid a jump that was in the way.  I tried a second time and managed so was pleased.  The second run was graded 6-7 jumping.  This was fairly straight forward, I felt Shadow didn't have as much drive as before, perhaps as we lost a bit of confidence in the previous round.  We still managed a clear round so that always helps rebuild the confidence.  The final round of the day was grade 6-7 agility.  This started with the back of a wall whilst avoiding the dog walk contact, which unfortunately was just too tempting for Shadow.  We carried on and she was running well, not always listening but running forward nicely.  She back jumped the long jump after turning the wrong way which was a bit odd.

It's a hard life being a dog

On to Sunday.  The courses were of a similar calibre so we had some good challenges.  The first run was combined 6-7 jumping.  The weave entry let us down again but I needed to straighten her up a bit more before sending her in.  Next was grade 6 agility.  Shadow didn't have much drive for this one to start with, again we had two sets of weaves but straightforward entries.  We had a back of jump after the see-saw but I ended up pulling Shadow right round the other side so we missed it.  She had a good running dogwalk contact which didn't help as I wanted her to come in and go in a different direction.  She came in eventually.  We finished with graded 6-7 jumping.  This was a very fast flowing course but also tricky.  We got off to a good start, picked up the tricky weave entry, almost got a refusal, then missed a jump entirely on a long run round.  Doh!  She was running well so I can't complain.  We finished the weekend with only one clear round but with some positives to take away as well.

On to Doople.  Doople first run was graded 4-5 agility.  This was an interesting course, very long.  9 weaves caught a lot of dogs out, especially large dogs.  Two parallel tunnels on a turn, lots of large circles.  Out of all heights, about 160 dogs, there was one clear round within the course time!  Doople put in a good run was really going for it.  She finished with 5 time faults, i.e. 5 seconds over the course time.  Originally the course time was 10 seconds shorter, but the judge reconsidered, just not very accurately!  Doople was still the fastest small dog, so she actually won the class!  The good thing about winning with faults is that you don't move up to the next grade.  We need some more practice at grade 4 before moving up.  In the graded 1-5 jumping, Doople was going well but missed an in on the slalom, Susi needed to turn her shoulders more to get her attention.  She was a bit steady after having gone wrong but picked up towards the end.  Her last run was combined grade 3-5 agility.  Doople had regained some of her lost confidence and managed a 6th place.

On Sunday, Doople had a long wait until her first run which was in the afternoon.  She started with graded 1-5 jumping.  It was a fairly straightforward course, but Susi did get a little lost!  She went over a few jumps, then had a mind blank.  Doople just wandered around for a bit not knowing where to go.  They carried on and in the end managed a clear round!  Next up was graded 1-5 agility.  Susi didn't feel up for running this so took the baton.  Doople ran well and had all her confidence back.  She was listening well but unfortunately I pulled her off a jump.  Even with this she was still over a second faster than the rest.  But the 5 faults for a refusal meant that we didn't win.  She finished with combined grade 4-5 jumping run with me.  Doople carried on her form, running and responding well.  We managed a clear round but just weren't fast enough at the end of a hot day.

Last but not least we have Winnie.  She has come on a long way in training, really driving over the jumps and starting to turn after.  At the moment, she doesn't have anywhere near that much drive in the ring.  The first jumping run she was going well, turning nice and tight and listening.  She got a bit distracted towards the end so missed a jump.  The agility round later was not as good, she didn't have any drive.  She did the obstacles in front of her and I just made it a simple course.  She did jump the wall nicely.  She started Sunday as she finished Saturday, again a made the course nice and straight.  When we got going in a straight line she started to perk up and run.  We finished with the agility, she started well with a couple of turns, into a tyre then round the outside.  She still seems to fatigue mentally throughout the weekend.

It was a good weekend with challenging courses.  We have a lot to take away and practice so it was definitely worthwhile.  Watching the top handlers shows that we have a way to go, but it's not out of reach.  The weather was gorgeous, which does help you relax over the weekend.  Next week we're off to PADS near Birmingham, hopefully the roads will better and the M6 won't be closed due to a bomb scare!