Kiln Agility Trial - Swamp Dog Agility Club

Maxie:  6 runs, 2Q's, 2 1st places, MX TITLE, 38 MACH Points - Videos posted
Lucky Lucy: 6 runs, 2Q's, 1 1st place, AXJ TITLE, 1 MACH Point (our first) - Videos posted
Judge:  Scott W. Stock

Diorama made by some Swamp Dog members,
an agility course with a Halloween theme. 
It was widely admired and created a festive atmosphere.

All of our 2011 goals have now been met, excepting the 6th QQ for Maxie and 400 MACH points by November 1st.  It's been a long row to hoe, with a much poorer Q'ing rate this year (about 33%) compared to last year's 66%.  Some of that is running 2 dogs at different heights, and on different courses while bringing Lucky up through Novice.  Obviously, the split focus didn't help my performance.  With both Maxie and Lucky in Excellent this weekend, I had no trouble memorizing 2 courses per day, and didn't have any personal off courses.  Maxie's MACH points after this weekend tally 305, but we would have 363 if AKC hadn't changed the rules in June, no longer giving double points for 1st place. Only 37 points off my goal (on the original system).  Close, very close.

We would have had that 6th QQ this past Sunday had I not pushed Maxie off the second to last jump.  But even if I hadn't, he ran out the gate and got eliminated.  Now we must go to Lake Charles trial over Thanksgiving, or give up the goal.

Maxie runs like the wind.

Maxie's speed was incredible all weekend (always among the top 3 in time even when eliminated), and mine was improved some as well.  The mini-running drills I've been putting myself through seem to be paying off, though the progress would be hard for anyone else to notice. Here's a thumbnail of a photo I'm purchasing, and a video of Maxie's MX TITLE RUN, where he was 1st place, 23 seconds under course time, and 9 seconds faster than the 2nd place dog.  I was so afraid he'd take the tunnel instead of the dog walk and the A-frame instead of curving to the jump, I was calling him harder than usual.  Next year I hope to replace my yelling with more confidence in our teamwork.

Lucky leading with the
wrong foot.

Lucky's speed was improved as well -- she NEVER ONCE exceeded course time!  And on her title run, she was 9 seconds UNDER course time, and was listed as 'HIGH IN CLASS", whatever that is.  Also, she never missed her weaves, though she walked them 4 out of 6 times.

Looking at the Michael Loftis professional photos, he caught a strange thing.  It looks like Lucky sometimes steps thru the weaves with her outside foot leading in, which I've never noticed before, and which would certainly slow her down.  I'll research that further real soon by studying her photos and re-watching her videos in slow-mo, and in any case will retrain the weaves this winter by opening the channel a bit.  (See next post on Weave Pole Performance).

KT Tape on my calf.

The KT Sports Tape I wore on my calf worked miracles.  I had no muscle problems whatever.  I got home and took the tape off (it lasted 4 days with no problem), and today the calf has twinges again!  I am totally baffled how this stuff works as there is no stretching when applying and it isn't medicated, but all the top athletes wear it over sprains and torn ligaments, so it must be doing something!  I also sat on one of my new instant ice packs for about 30 minutes on Saturday to soothe my aching sciatic nerve.  It stayed very cold for 30 minutes, and the sciatic never bothered me again.

It was a 3 day trial, with a match on Thursday.  I brought my pop-up, so we were on-site for 4 days.  40's at night but we were cozy inside.  I decided to run Lucky once in the match, the last dog on Thursday evening, around 6:45 p.m.  A great decision, it turned out.  It was quiet in the arena.  We had the place almost to ourselves.  We ran around helter-skelter with her tug toy in my hand, I threw it several times after she did fast weaves or contact equipment, and she ran her heart out and had an obvious blast.  They let us play longer than 2 minutes.  We both loved the spontaneity, not following course numbers.  Then during the trial, before and after each run, I bribed her with steamed shrimp, which I discovered motivates her more than the usual hot dogs and string cheese.  She is a shrimp fiend.  I show her I'm putting one in my mouth just before we enter the ring.  She thinks it's there during the run but of course I've swallowed it (no treats allowed in the ring).  I have another one stored just outside the ring and immediately after the run I fetch her tug toy, tug a bit, then toss her the other shrimp which I've slipped into my mouth.  The same for Maxie, minus the tugging.  I think I've got them both fooled for now.  They both ran faster than ever before.

This was a really good crate space, near everything.
It was breezy and chilly in the mornings,
so I covered my crates with the blue sheet
seen here.

Swamp Dog trials are always fun.  They are run efficiently, the club members seem to really like each other and work well together, the atmosphere is festive, everyone is friendly, competitors are personally invited to help and thanked profusely, they call you by name and praise your dog, the food is plentiful and delicious, and the placement and titling rosettes are nice.  They let me wait until all my runs were done for the day, then I helped with the novice and open classes and tearing down the rings after the last dog has run.  My red wagon came in handy moving those heavy sandbags.  I love my ringside crate space, close to everything.

Coolaroo bed, just Lucky's size

Swamp Dog's raffle had awesome items. To my surprise, I won 2 prizes-- a large Coolaroo raised dog bed stretched on metal legs selling on Amazon for $30, and a bleacher seat, both exactly the kind I've been wanting to get.  I bought 14 tickets for $10, mostly just to support the club, so winning $50 worth of loot was a totally unexpected bonus.  I rarely win anything in the raffles, and as my crate space was right next to the raffle table, I watched many people plunk down $20 and $40 -- a lot more than I did.

The bleacher seat has no brand name showing, but it's the identical one I bought at Wal-Mart last year for $18, then went back for another one for John and they were out.  It's wide, light, has great cushioning and support, arm rests, clips firmly to the bleacher, lots of storage pockets both front and back, and stores really flat.  It's the best one I've ever sat in.

Pumpkin Carving with Swamp Dog RV'ers.  I did a witch flying
over a jump, held up by 2 ghosts.

The Swamp Dog RV'ers outdid themselves with a Halloween pumpkin carving party on Friday night, and a birthday cake and outdoor gumbo dinner for the judge on Saturday night.

Judge Scott Stock was very engaging, and regaled us with stories of football, his travels, and other trials.  He said we had "the slowest dogs and the worst Q'ing rate he's ever seen, but we were more fun to be with."  He said up north he can attend 35 trials a year without ever driving more than an hour from home.  He said those Yankees take their agility seriously and get agitated quickly with anything they don't like.  His courses were interesting, challenging but not impossible, he judged fairly and cheerfully, and he watched each and every dog intently.  During the breaks he pumped disco music into the arena.  Everyone was dancing around to Thriller and such. That was a first for us, but he says he's not the only judge who does this.  During Sunday's Excellent briefing he told how last year at a Halloween trial he came "costumed" as AKC Judge Scott Chamberlain -- white pants and jacket, white shoes, blue tie!  We had the impecably dressed Judge Chamberlain at a Kiln trial earlier this year so we knew what he was talking about! Everyone roared with laughter.

I'm still streamlining my camper set up and take down routines, eliminating, adding or changing items for efficiency and comfort.  Every movement counts. I'm getting better at it.  Still, it takes me two hours to set up, and I was by far the last one to leave even though I started packing up in the early morning and more between runs.  Sharon Mc stayed in the park until I pulled out, which I really appreciated.

The excitement is hard to explain, since a run
lasts less than a minute
John took this i-photo of Lucky and me at a trial, rare
since I'm almost never in a photo.

After all that comradery, excitement and hard work, coming home was a let-down.  Two hours behind the wheel and I was stiff as a board and really tired.  There were no bands playing, no champagne, no dinner prepared, no cake to celebrate our titles.  The house was dark, nobody came to greet me at the door, and the porch light wasn't even on.  When my husband finally heard the dogs barking and roused from his TV chair, his first comment was about a new TV series he's watching.  This totally burst my bubble and led to a less than stellar evening.  After helping me unpack and set up the new doggie bed, John resumed his TV viewing while I disappeared into a hot bath with a stiff drink, gave Willow a shampoo and blow dry, ate my boiled crabs, and slunk off to sleep in the guest room.  Amazingly, I slept like a baby, and had sweet dreams.

Now I've got to figure out how to photograph Maxie with all his ribbons thru MX and MXJ titles, and Lucky with her AX and AXJ's.  I've got a box full of them for each dog, all in a jumble, which need sorting out and displaying somehow.

And I've got to decide whether to sign up for more trials this year, or just concentrate on training "back to basics" skills 'til January.  If all that counts now are QQ's for Maxie to reach MACH status next year, and Lucky has to run faster to attain Masters titles next year, we'll have to improve our speed and accuracy considerably.  On the other hand, with 15 more QQ's to acquire Maxie's MACH status by the end of 2012 (is that a realistic goal?????????), maybe I'd better get started as soon as possible.  We only got 5 QQ's this year!  But most of the misses were near misses (only one teensy weensy mistake), so we almost QQ'd several times.

Today I tallied all our runs to date on that Competition Records Sheet I designed earlier this year in Excel, and here's the summary:

Maxie: 82 runs in 17.5 months, 15 trials, 40 Q's, 35 placements (23 1st, 5 2nd, 4 3rd, 3 4th), MXJ Title, MX Title, 5 QQ, 305 MACH Points
Lucky: 46 runs in 7.5 months, 8 trials, 22 Q's, 17 placements (9 1st, 6 2nd, 2 3rd), AX Title, AXJ Title, 1 MACH point
Michele:  128 runs, 62 Q's (not quite 50%, but this is misleading because there were about 66% Q's in Novice, Open, and Excellent A for Maxie).  Our Excellent B performance has been about 33%.

Our dog club is revising its Constitution and By-laws, in particular the membership requirements (I was on the Constitutional Revision Committee earlier this year).  Tonight it's being put before the membership for discussion, so I've been reviewing the document.  Not as fun as running dogs, but we must make progress, and updated governing documents are an important part of our 48 year old club's ability to grow and thrive.

Upwards and onward!

Kiln Agility Trial - The "If Only" Trial

Lucky's AX title ribbons

Maxie: 6 runs, 1 Q, 1st place, 20 MACH Points
Lucky Lucy: 6 runs, 1 Q, 2nd place, NEW TITLE AX

"If Only" moments are those we all tend to review and review and kick ourselves for. My weekend was full of them.

To start with, 12 runs and only 2 Q's.  Have I ever done this bad?  And almost every NQ was only one tiny mistake, or in Lucky's case, no mistakes just exceeding course time.  If only I had made one small adjustment this way or that . . . . . on each run.

If only we had left home 45 minutes earlier or not taken the scenic route to Kiln, we wouldn't have had to pitch the camper in a downpour.

If only we hadn't pitched the camper towards one end of the mounded RV slot, we wouldn't have been in a ditch 3" deep in water.

If only the clip I was using to hold my hair back during Maxie's 2nd run on Friday hadn't started falling out at jump 14. In the split second it took me to decide whether to grab it or let it fall, I lost my concentration, handled jump 15 as if it were 16, and went to 17.  Maxie ran fast and perfectly, but we missed a QQ.  If only I had used a different barette. . . . If only I had worn my cap.. . .  If only I had tied all my hair back in a twist the clip would have held . . . . if only I had let the damn thing fall without wondering whether the judge would make me stop to pick it up.  I flubbed up.
If only I had the endless energy these other competitors seem to have, I could have joined the RV'ers for their Friday night communal meal, but I was too exhausted.  Saturday night I mustered enough energy, brought whatever I could scrape up (cantaloupe, herbal cheese), and enjoyed their terriki chicken on a stick, grilled shrimp, shishkabob, big salad and some champagne.  It was very relaxing.  Everyone was animated and friendly. The talk was all about lure coursing, hunting and herding dog training.  I got on the RV email list to help plan future meals.

If only I had taken the time to kill the wasp nest I suspected was in the eves of my camper before leaving home, But I was in a hurry, feeling lucky . . . . . being stupid.  I paid the price on Saturday afternoon while tying my tarp to a corner post.  I got stung, within 3 hours my hand swole up so you couldn't see my knuckles or wrist bone, and the Benedryl I took that night and the next morning gave heart palpitations all day Sunday.  Fortunately, my RV neighbor had some wasp spray and I used it to knock out the nest.  But  somehow 6 groggy wasps found their way inside, over the next few hours I found them crawling on the walls and sheets, had to squish each of them with a towel, inspect every inch of the camper carefully, and now I have to set it up when I get home and caulk those holes.

If only I had taken Maxie to do his business before his last run on Sunday instead of volunteering to work the novice class, he wouldn't have gone behind the tunnel and peed, and got us whistled off.  Not a great way to end the weekend.

TRIAL NOTES:
The trial must have been advertised locally, because several observers showed up.  I met a very interesting elderly gentleman in a scooter, who trains search and rescue dogs in Slidell.  He was the first soldier in Vietnam with a rescue dog, and very active in changing the military policy of leaving war dogs behind.  It's a cause I believe in, and offered to help him spiff up his website.  We'll see where that takes us.

All weekend between runs one lady laid back in her recliner and played with her Apple iPad 3G.  She's got perfect internet connection, can surf the web all she wants, handle her emails, read books, compose, upload docs, take photos and videos, stream movies, etc.  Way out here in the boonies!  It's just a huge iPhone, except it can't make phone calls. I am pee green with envy.  If only I had $900 to burn!  Not having an internet connection for 4 days sucks!

My air conditioner struggles to keep the camper cool past 85 degrees on these treeless, asphalt RV campgrounds.  By Saturday afternoon the roof fabric over the beds was hot to the touch. I had been planning a possible fix for this problem, so I rigged up a silver reflective tarp over the big bed roof to see if that would make a difference.  It really did.  Problem resolved.

I learned that Mississippi Mavericks, the host club, is down to 2 or 3 members.  Most everybody has quit!  Seems there are conflicts among the leadership that need working out.  Swamp Dog Agility, on the other hand, seems to be blossoming.  Apparently they enjoy teamwork, and do all sorts of stuff together besides dog agility, such as tubing and kayaking.
One lady brought her Lure Coursing machine out each evening for anybody to try.  I wrote all about the experience in my previous post, here.

Trial Site Summary  (see links):  The restrooms/shower area is complete, as is most of the construction we encountered last year, and I like that the sites are on grass, not limestone or asphalt. Made a huge difference in the heat factor.  What is with these RV park designers that they cut down every single tree???  Have they no appreciation for shade or grass?

Willow (left) and Maxie (right) ringside,
resting up for the next round.

GOALS MET:

• Lucky's AX title
• Maxie's 8th Q in XS towards the 10 needed for his MX title.

GOALS SET:

• One more XJ Q for Lucky, and her AXJ title.
• Two more XS Q's for Maxie, and his MX title.
• One more QQ for Maxie by November to reach the 6 he needs to qualify for AKC Nationals next year.  Unfortunately, he won't have the 400 MACH points by then, with just 267 right now.  If only AKC hadn't changed the rules mid year that no longer double 1st place MACH points, and 1.5 2nd place MACH points, we might well have made it.  Still, I'll get as close to the goal as possible.
• A few more QQ's for Maxie in 2011, leaving fewer QQ's to achieve in 2012 to reach MACH (CHampion status) next year.

Upwards and onward!

Lake Charles Agility Trial

RV Campground at Burton Arena,
view at sunrise over a swamp.

Maxie, 6 runs, 2 Q's, 2 Titles AX AXJ

Maxie got his Excellent Standard (AX) and Excellent Jumpers (AXJ) Titles on Thanksgiving weekend! I am so proud, even though we made it by the skin of our teeth.  Out of 2 runs per day on Friday, Saturday and Sunday), he got 4 NQ's and 2 Q's.  He only needed 1 Q in Standard and 1Q in Jumpers to get his titles, and he got them both on Sunday!  Was that perhaps because on Sunday morning, at daybreak, in my desparation, I wished upon this star?

I've spent the last 2 days after the trial (Monday and Tuesday) unpacking, resting my weary bones and posting the videos of the trial, analyzing, taking notes, etc.  (Anyone who dares accuse me of obsessing over details, hasn't met any of our members who follow football -- every player, every play, every coach's every decision from years gone by!  Listening to the games between every run, groaning over the scores.)


What a way to spend a Thanksgiving weekend!  In 64 years I don't believe I've ever missed a family/neighborhood Thanksgiving and since an adult, having it at my house or at least baking the turkey, corn bread dressing, Spinach Madeleine, and baking a dozen or so pecan pies to distribute to friends, then feasting on frozen left-overs for months afterward.  But this year, I needed to complete my 2010 goal of putting two Excellent titles on Maxie, and Lake Charles is the nearest trial (2.5 hours away) thru the end of the year.  If not then and there, I'd have had to go to Pensacola over New Years (4.5 hours away), which would be even worse.

L to R:  John, Jonathan, Lucky, Willow, Maxie.
We hunkered down cozily in the camper while the winds
howled outside and the freezing rain pelted down.
The boys kept entertained with their smart phones.

It wasn't so bad, though.  John took 2 days vacation so he came with me all 4 days, Jonathan joined us for a 4 day camping adventure, Audrey drove over on Friday, Nathan and Allison drove over on Saturday, so I got to see my family anyway.  My neighbor Thom had brought me a delicious fried turkey on Monday, so I cut up and froze the meat in 1 lb containers, half light and half dark, with gravy poured over.  I gave one tub to Audrey and brought 1 for us to eat Thursday night.  Besides which, the neighborhood kids are growing up and going their separate ways.  The old era is coming to a close.

I served up some instant garlic mashed potatoes, Audrey's oyster dressing, some canned green bean medley, and Little Debbie Chocolate Cakes!  It was close enough to a Thanksgiving feast to suit us  We ate off of paper plates and there were very few dishes to wash before rushing off to the movies (another Thanksgiving tradition) to see Harry Potter: The Deathly Hallows. It was dark, but truly awesome.  We left the dogs locked in the car (a huge crate), rather than risk leaving them in the camper where Lucky could claw her way out within minutes if she wanted to.

Of course, the trip started out with a car problem.  As we pulled out the driveway the hitch hit the ground.  Curious!  It kept hitting the ground over every major bump.  Crap!  Of course it was Thanksgiving Day and nobody was open so we pulled into a closed gas station and tried using the air machine to over-inflate the back tires.  Instead of adding air, it sucked more out.  Double crap!  We had to unhitch the camper, go home and use our own air compressor, filling the back tires from 32#'s to 38#s.  This lifted the car up a few inches. We went back for the camper, and made it to Lake Charles and back safely.  Of course, now I realize the rear shocks on my car are shot and need to be replaced.  When did that happen?  Whatever. Will take care of that later this week.

Trial Site Summary:  click here.
Hosting Club: Calcasieu Kennel Club
Location: Burton Arena at McNeese State University

This arena is very nice, but open on 3 sides and not air conditioned. It was bitterly cold and winds of 25 mph whipped thru there all day Friday and part of Saturday.  Gloves and ear muffs, and 4 layers of clothes, were all essential for keeping warm. The bleachers are wonderful, aluminum, closed in back, steps are regular, have railings and are not too steep. The walkway in front of bleacher is wide, so setting up the tripod was no problem for people passing behind.  The seats were cold, though, so a bleacher seat or blanket to sit upon is recommended. 


Our crate area, showing my beautiful new rug.
L to R: Jonathan, Audrey, Maxie, Lucky, John, Willow

Crate area: on concrete, but rug is still needed as fine red dirt from arena gets tracked everywhere.  Having my new black rubber WELCOME mats in front of each crate helped knock the dirt of my doggies' feet before crateup, and kept them relatively clean
My favorite crate area:  Near rest rooms and concessions, the wind doesn't blow there.  My second choice would be the other far corner behind the bleachers. There were steps to get ringside, but not too many.
Camper facilities:  No freezer available at concessions, but one in a nearby building.  No showers.  No trash cans in RV area.  Our hookup number was N-6.  N-1 is closest to the arena.  The sites are level concrete, with grassy area behind for pottying dogs.  Of course, being the second unit to arrive we put up our awning to claim more space for ourselves.  Then we went to the movies and came back a few hours later to find our awning had blown over the roof and the poles were all bent up.  But it didn't rip the fabric off the camper, so we came out pretty okay considering. Poles are easily replacable.
Insects:  No mosquitoes, but the flies were terrible.  Within minutes our camper was full of them.  They didn't bite but buzzed around the food.  Nathan brought me some fly strips, which caught a bunch of them. Jonathan amused himself catching/swatting/killing flies.
Weather:  Being near the gulf and alongside a swamp, the weather was raw.  I told another RV'er as we passed her on Friday evening: "You never know what you're going to encounter at a trial." She replied:  "No, it's always the same in Lake Charles in November -- cold, windy, and wet." We heard coyotes howling late in the evenings, coming from the swamp.  That was a neat touch, along with bright stars and magnificent sunrises.
Hosting Club: The Calcasieu club members are very friendly.  They seem to work well as a group and have lots of fun.  Chip Grafe, another Papillon owner and experienced handler whom I befriended at our Baton Rouge trial last April, was their course setter.  John and I helped him set up courses each morning.  We learned quite a few tricks.

Lessons Learned:
From Chip, when setting up the course, after placing all the obstacles, you can fine-tune the angles by holding up the properly oriented course map right over the bar and adjusting the obstacle to the proper angle.
From the judge: NEVER walk out onto the course with your dog, even before the trial begins, even if NOTHING has been set up out there.  I did this upon arrival on Friday, to see if Maxie would even walk over the huge tire tracks with the 1 inch deep holes everywhere.  The judge appeared out of nowhere and told me anyone entering a course area with their dog before their official turn can be eliminated from the whole trial!  I didn't know that.  Fortunately, she let me go, then later came back and said I couldn't loop my dog's leash over the gate and go help out.  Dogs must be crated, or held on leash by a human. I didn't know that applied when the arena was almost empty.  I guess she cut me some slack due to my inexperience, but now that I'm Excellent B, I'm told I'm supposed to know everything. HA!

Titling Ribbons:  the Calcasieu Kennel Club is the first trial I've been to that didn't provide Titling Ribbons.  I was mightily disappointed and complained to one of the workers.  After all that work and all that travelling to finally get Maxie's Excellent titles, and no rosettes to show for them, no photo with our ribbons. When I got home I looked up the rules, and sure enough the AKC doesn't require a club to provide titling ribbons. I think they should be required, and I am newly proud of the LCCOC for offering the beautiful red ones I got for Maxie's Novice titles. I was told by the Trial Secretary to pick up these ribbons the next trial I attend.

Things to bring or buy: Ear muffs, thin but warm gloves, bleacher pads.  Because of low light pollution, the late night sky was bright with many stars.  It could be good to bring the telescope if the weather is right.
Nearby attractions:  In Iowa, about 6 mi east of Lake Charles, is a truck stop with the best, biggest boudin balls ever, at .89 cents apiece.  We bought a dozen of them on the way home and by the next day they were gone.
Proofing against horses:  There were horses in the stalls surrounding the rings, and horse poop piled up around the rings.  Many dogs, including Maxie and Charlie, were pulled off course multiple times by sniffing poop or looking up to see the horses moving around, swishing their tails, shaking their heads, etc.
New Friends:  I was crated near Patricia Horton (with Sadie) and Sherry Neumann (with Spangles), who both have Papillons competing at Excellent B level, 8".  Pat and Sadie have competed at AKC Nationals. They are from Houston and invited me to their club's trial at Reliant next spring, with it's carpeted rings.  We talked quite a bit about our paps, training history, etc.  Both outgoing, savy competitors, who travelled to the trial together.  I look forward to seeing them again, swapping more stories, etc.  They were both very complimentary of Maxie, which of course made me happy.  They gave me their emails for a link to the videos.
When The Judge Gets In The Way:  next post, with video snippets and comments.



L to R:  Jonathan, Maxie, Willow, Michele
We rest up after the trial.
The big rigs just unplug and drive off,
but we still have an hour or 2 of packing up to do. 
We are the very last to leave, including the ring crew!
This is making me think about convenience and parting with my darling little pop-up.

 Now that I've met my 2010 goal, I won't do any more trialing until at least February 2011.  I'm going to concentrate on Christmas, New Years, a visit to my parents in southern Florida for their 90th and 95th birthdays, looking at my training DVD's, improving my competitive edge, and practice, practice, practice.  We are going to have some low pressure fun.

Upwards and onward!