April AKC Agility Trials

Our first outdoor Agility trials of the year!
April 26-27, 2008 - Mid Hudson Kennel Assoc - Dutchess Co. Fairgrounds, Rhinebeck, NY
Brisk weather but we were spared the predicted showers, for which I'm grateful :-)

Dandy qualified both days in Novice B Standard, 24", for his first two Q's in Standard.
Saturday: Score 95 (1 Refusal), Time 42.33 (SCT:73, 153 yards) - 1st Place
Sunday: Score 100, Time 41.05 (SCT:69, 143 yards) - 2nd Place

Token had 2 very nice runs in Excellent A Standard although not qualifying...just one refusal on Saturday, and one refusal & one bar down on Sunday. Overall I was very pleased with our runs.

April 28, 2008 - Clumber Spaniel Club of America - Shawnee, PA - RAIN all day!!!
Dandy shook off the rain & qualified in Novice B Standard, 24", for his 3rd leg finishing his Novice Agility title (NA)
Score 100, Time 39.75 (SCT: 69, 143 yards) - 1st Place

Novice B Jumpers With Weaves was the last class of the day, as the rains started to come down harder, and both boys were running in the same class. Dandy ran in 24" and Token in 26", and I only had 4 dogs in between. The SCT was 39 seconds, 118 yards. They BOTH ran clean, qualifying with scores of 100, and Dandy was right on the heels of his papa! Token's time was 20.18 and Dandy's time was 20.56! This is Dandy's second leg in Novice JWW, and finally, it's Token's 3rd leg for his NAJ!

April 2008 Flyball

April 5-6, 2008 - Flyball tournament in Dover, NH. (An extra bonus to our NH trip was we got to see Lynn & Fran this time!) Both Token & Dandy raced fulltime, and Dandy also raced a few extra heats as a backup on our Regular Division 5 team.
Token & I are getting better at passing (running "3rd" position, as opposed to start dog), but it's still a work in progress. His team placed 3rd in Regular 1 Division, and Token earned his FMX (Flyball Master Excellent) title by hitting 10,000 points!
Dandy races as the Start dog our our Multi Division 1 team, who placed 3rd. Dandy earned his FDCH-Silver title (Flyball Dog Champion-Silver) and now has over 1,000 points.

March 2008 - Dandy's Agility Debut

March 20-21, 2008 - Dandy made his official debut in Agility competition at an AKC Trial hosted by the Hudson Valley Golden Retriever Club. It was a nice, small one-ring trial, indoors at the Sullivan County Community College. The surface was Max Trax, a type of indoor carpeting designed for dog agility. But it is sometimes a difficult surface for the big, fast dogs to run on, as it can be slippery. Neither Token nor Dandy had ever run on this surface, so I was pleased that they both did pretty well on it. Dandy was jumping 24" while Token was entered in the 26" division.
In the Novice Standard class, Dandy did great, he nailed everything except the collapsed tunnel...he would start to go in, then turn around & come out...he just didn't trust this in a "new location". So he didn't qualify either day since he never completed that obstacle.
In Novice Jumpers With Weaves, he knocked one bar the first day. But the 2nd day, he ran clean & got his very first "Q" and a First Place.
Token didn't bring home any ribbons, but he had some really awesome runs; just one bar down in Jumpers both days, and in one standard run, I caused a refusal...otherwise, he did great, nailing his contacts & weaves just beautifully.
To commemorate Dandy's debut, I bought a lovely big print from the show photographer, Dog House Arts. It's a great shot of Dandy coming over the double jump, a wonderful memento!