Weather Woes of Agility and some stuff to be thankful for

So today was our third outdoor trial.  Let's recap the past two...first trial - rainy and cold for at least half the day.  Second trial - cold in the morning, severe thunderstorm resembling a monsoon during the midday and then heat in the afternoon.  The third trial was not perfect either.  The day both started and ended hot and humid.  Luckily, I have friends with a tent and shade, which helped a lot!  Let's face it, battling the elements is just another part of outdoor trialing.  I won't do it often, but it's fun to be outdoors every now and then.

So now that I have experienced both extremes, what would I prefer?  Definitely cold and rainy.  You can always bring extra clothes and it is manageable for at least half the team (the dogs).  This was definitely one of our tougher trials in terms of motivation.  Zoe ran much slower and we didn't even make time for the tunneler's class, which is usually pretty easy.  We did get one golden Q though in Touch N Go, which we were behind in anyways in terms of legs.  Honestly, the other runs weren't that bad.  Most were clean and Zoe did very well with the contacts.  She also had fabulous weaves - not having to restart them even once.  Ironic since this was our crutch at the last two trials :)  It was just being slower from the heat and being a little distracted.  I can chalk this up to at least two dynamic variables - heat and maturity.  The heat will not always be an issue and maturity just takes time.  Agility takes a lot of patience: for most dogs, it can take months to form a good team foundation and do consistently well in trials.  One of the most rewarding things about agility is that over time, you see that patience pay off.  None of the challenges are impossible, but they do take some time and work.  We have overcome a lot over the past year and I love running a course and breathing that sigh of relief when I know we've got a perfect run.  

Ok, so reflecting on a tougher day has made me a little sappy, but just bear with me.  Agility has totally gotten me hooked.  I love the teamwork with my dog, I love traveling, and I love the people I've met along the way.  But it's so important to remember how much of a privilege this is.  Especially with Zoe's recent injury, hearing stories about other agility dogs ending early careers because of injury and those not even making much of a career in the first place has made me feel really lucky.  I am also really lucky because I have the time, money, and energy for this sport -  things that don't come easy for everyone.  Before I get totally sucked into this agility world, I never want to forget that not only is agility a privilege, but the things outside of agility are a privilege too.  The time spent with your dog training, cuddling, playing, going to the park, going for walks, going to the vet, being greeted at the door are all things to be thankful for.  There.  Okay.  Done being sappy.  

Anyways, it was great getting out of the heat today and coming home to a happy and excited puppy.  I think Zoe was happy to see Breeze too because they resumed their usual wrestling session.  As I look forward to the next trial at the soccer blast in 6 weeks, I am going to focus on training and a lot on having fun.  We've been doing lots of long walks in the woods with our friends, which has been a nice escape and has kept all of us fit!  The dog park is having its annual fundraiser in July, so I'll be busy getting ready for that too!

Summer Fun

This weekend we are doing one day of a NADAC trial in Zumbro Falls and then we take a month off from trialing.  Mainly because there are few local trials in June and summer is starting to get in the way.  I have started some agility training with Breeze - she was introduced to the tunnel as well as a slightly raised board to simulate the dog walk.  She is catching on great and seems to have way more confidence than Zoe.  I also made a small teeter out of the board and she didn't seem to mind the movement at all.  Confidence can be great, but it can also be a challenge.  I'll have to supplement all of this with some solid obedience training as well.

Zoe is getting along with her new younger sister and seems to be enjoying the playtime.  I hope it helps her confidence and gives her more energy for shows.  We've also been taking a lot of walks in the woods, which wears them out a little bit.  I am looking forward to a lot of park visits and long walks this next month!

MMBC NADAC Trial 5.22.10

Exactly one year ago, I went to watch this trial in Savage, MN.  The weather was cold and the wind was gusting so hard, that the wind chill had to have been at least 25 degrees.  People were even wearing winter hats and gloves!  Well this year, I got the privilege of running in this trial and I can say that the weather was not much nicer!

I check the forecast almost daily and there was no rain in sight for Saturday.  It was just supposed to be warm and sunny.  Much to our demise, however, a storm rolled through late morning and stopped the trial momentarily.  It started with some ominous clouds and then the lightning and thunder came along.  And then the rain came...in huge drops.  Still the trial went on.  It wasn't until it got really bad that the trial was put on hold.  We actually had to run in that weather.  But it was all worth it because we ended up with our first Q in Touch N Go!  The rain and clouds eventually cleared up, but then came the sunny, humid weather we had all been waiting for.  So far, I've been to two outdoor trials and it hasn't been pretty.  After these past two rainy trials, I think I am up for almost anything!  The greatest part is that Zoe doesn't seem to mind a bit - she does better with the crappy weather!

Anyways, all in all we had a fantastic day.  We went 4 for 6 in Q's including two novice titles and our first Q in the open level!  It was definitely a successful day!  Zoe ran pretty well, but we are having a little trouble with weaves that are early in the course.  It's something nice and concrete to work on at least.  Otherwise, I was super pleased with her performance and look forward to competing at the open level in the near future!

Cannon Falls #2 and a New Puppy!

This past weekend we had another go at CPE at Simon Arena.  It was 50/50 weekend in terms of Q's, but the ones that weren't, I learned a lot as always.  The highlights for the show were getting our first jackpot and first two standard runs in level 3.  We also Q'ed in a really tough jumpers course, which was the very first run of the trial.  Zoe looks more and more like her old self and didn't have any issues with the contacts.  Surprisingly, weaves were her biggest issue this weekend - mainly when they were early on in the course.  I guess we'll have to focus on those again in practice.  All in all, she ran well and looked like she was having fun - one image that really sticks out was in our second snooker course, where Zoe really started to kick up some speed and had that look on her face that said "oh boy, I can't WAIT to do that tire".  Now a snooker course is really technical and tight, so to have a motivated dog who is running with enthusiasm is definitely a personal Q.  Alas, we did not Q in this run because she then took the tire again for an off course, but that look of total motivation was priceless!  

We're a little less than halfway through level 3 now.  We'll be taking a break from CPE until August, but then after that we'll have plenty of opportunities this fall to advance.  I am very excited that the CPE National competition will be in MN next June and am hoping that by then, we will be in the prime of our career.  There is lots to work on and I think we can accomplish a lot in the next year.  This will be an awesome event to participate in and watch - 6 rings of agility out in Lake Elmo with dogs competing from around the country.  It is bound to be a wonderful time!!

In other news, about a week ago, we welcomed a new dog in the family.  She's a 5-month-old blue merle border collie (mix?) whom we named Breeze.  We adopted her from the BC Rescue of MN, who got her from a shelter in KY.  She's got a tail, but a little thicker, so she may be part aussie as well.  Hard to tell until she grows into her body.  Nonetheless, she is a little spunk!  She's eager to please, has great toy drive, and is oh so sweet!!  She also has a lot of confidence, which will make agility training much different than her.  In some respects, it will make training easier, but I know it will come with it's challenges.  Right now, we are working hard on her foundation training and things are going very well.  I brought her to Simon arena for one day and she did wonderful waiting in her crate and also meeting new people and dogs.  She is definitely going to be an agility star someday.  Most importantly, she and Zoe get along great!  Zoe generally does really well with puppies and Breeze is no exception.  They love to wrestle and chase and Zoe doesn't seem to be too jealous.  I've been weary of having two females, but with their personalities, I think it will work just fine.  Stay tuned for more updates on her progress!