What a weekend!

 I've had an intense two weeks at work and haven't had time to write updates on the blog. Luckily most of the research classes I was teaching were in the evening so I had time to train the dogs every morning (the weather has been perfect). I have continued to train Summit with the bars at 20" and 22" (I randomly mix them up throughout a course). I've really been working on my arms (and I'm proud to say that the few bars he dropped this weekend were not because of a flinging arm as you'll see in the videos). We had USDAA a couple weekends ago and out of 11 runs, Summit dropped ONE bar. This was outdoors on grass. He had some Q's in the regular classes but we did not get that final GP qualifier for Nationals. He missed a wp entry that he had already nailed in Masters Standard (that section of the course was the same in GP). I took the entry for granted (not an easy entry) and verbally cued the weaves while I turned and took off too soon and he entered in at the second pole. We still have plenty of chances left for the GP leg this Summer.

This week I got to relax at a three-day AKC trial. Two rings, indoors...

I am really happy with our runs all three days. With the exception of a single bar in three of our classes, the runs were very nice. Of course, after watching the videos, I see places where I could have tightened up a turn here and there (its funny how you *think* you decelerated early enough when you are out there). But overall, we had no other faults but a bar.

Friday:
Jumpers with Weaves - one bar (would have been 1st place). Standard - one bar (would have been 2nd place).
Saturday:
Jumpers with Weaves - one bar (would have been 1st place). Standard - 1st place by 1.5 seconds!
Sunday:
Jumpers with Weaves - 2nd place. Standard - 2nd place. Double Q!

I have watched carefully when he dropped the bars this weekend and it seems when he is turning over the bar in extension (for the most part, the Saturday jumpers bar he was jumping into a wall) and I am ahead of him. Something we have been working on at home.

Friday Jumpers with Weaves



Friday Standard - I was late picking him up from the tunnel and as I rotated out of the FC (trying to stay out of his way), I said "weave" and hoped he'd find his entry independently. He did!


Saturday Jumpers with Weaves - he dropped the bar on the jump facing the wall.


Saturday Standard - 34.10 seconds. 1st place!


Sunday Jumpers with Weaves - 2nd place by two 100ths of a second


Sunday Standard - 2nd place and Double Q! (yes, I whipped out the OA at the jump before the teal tunnel. Last minute weakness as I watched so many dogs not read the turning cue and take the third jump past the tunnel. Also pushed him out too far to the red jump).




I am so glad I have video of our runs. It is so hard to remember everything you did out there while running the dog (it goes by too fast). I am thrilled to see the large improvement in my arms. I am happy with the lines I set. I do see where I had thought I had decelerated soon enough, I did not and cued more extension in the turns than intended (resulting in some wide turns). Fairly happy with the placement of my front crosses (except for Saturday's jumpers run where I went too far out after the weaves-pinwheel section and place my front cross too far from the take-off side of the yellow jump).

This Friday I leave for Amarillo, Texas for a three-day AKC trial over Memorial Day weekend. I have heard great things about this venue (indoor soccer field) and look forward to going.