Nothing more boring than other people's dog show videos and behold! Some videos from Bayteam Santa Rosa USDAA Team trial.

Look at little Otterpop go in her Grand Prix. It's Otterpop 2.0!


OK, 2 different dogs, same course. This was the Team Standard course at Santa Rosa. Comparing Otterpop's runs to Gustavo's are sort of like comparing a cerveza to a rum drink served in a tiki glass. Both are always a good thing!

First, Otterpop. Nice and smooth. A pole bobble. We move on. Thanks Otterpop. Remember when she'd get to the top of an a-frame and stink eye the judge then come down and express her hatred towards them for looking at her? New improved Otterpop 2.0. Just do it.


Here's Gustavo. Same course. A whole different thing called I need to do EVERYTHING a hundred times faster and never just STAND there with Gustavo. Help me remember that. Once we get through the extra bits in the beginning (it's Team. Screeeming Monkeees. Most E's) it goes better. We call it inspiration to get better.

My favorite things about the DAM Team weekend in Santa Rosa, and don't even get me started on the Christmas cookies part.

Our Motel 6 room had 2 beds, and our room was super quiet and disease-free and I brought my own comforter and the dogs never barked. Hardly. They were like totally behaved and exhausted and fell asleep and didn't use the beds for launch pads all night. Mostly. Also Starbucks was almost right next door. Is this because I'm creepy and old that these are facts that make me happy?


Ruby ran in the exciting dinnertime class called Strategic Pairs. The prize was beer. This is the FUNNEST CLASS EVER!!!! Her teammate was Tantrum the speedy Papillon. And Tantrum's person J.D. who totally had the good strategy and I thought we were going to win some beer but Hobbes's team knocked our team off the podium at the very end. Where podium equals everyone is sitting around drinking beer and eating pizza. Ruby was SO HAPPY to have a turn and ran fast and not crashy and I was very proud of our little dogs who were so STRATEGIC almost winning beer with the border collies.


Otterpop ran like a champion all weekend. She got a team Q, and won her Grand Prix and Steeplechase. She ran fast and she ran like how we practice. I of course did manage to totally mangle her SuperQ attempt in Snookers, train wreck style. Me and Otterpop were like all in BFF land all weekend. No sore leg. No barking at judges or anybody. If Otterpop was a Facebook friend she would have been sending me farm ducks and fish and posting little hearts all over my wall and I told her if she keeps acting like this, I am totally getting an Otterpop tattoo.


Gustavo's team was fun yet disturbing. Perhaps we will talk more about Gustavo and agility tomorrow. I will tell you right now though, the Screeeeming Monkeeeees DID have the most E's in Agiliteeee and came in LAST PLACE. Wow. But we had the best shirts. Gustavo had some awesome, amazing parts of runs, and he had a lot of parts where he just disregarded that I was actually out there doing agility too, and sort of like, you know, the one IN CHARGE of the agility, and found extra tunnels or blew off all the weave poles or ran away. Although I will say he never got freaked out by anything, was blazing fast, and did dogwalk contacts, teeters, and some stunning weave poles. His team is made up of dogs that all have some bugs to work out, and some of my most favorite agility friends. Gustavo is special. We have a long journey ahead of us, me and him. We may need Dr. Phil. But he's the one sitting on my lap, right this minute.

Read all about it on my teammate, Vici's blog.

The tv just said that We make the joyousness of the season deliciously affordable, and I thought, I am going to shoot you, tv.

Perhaps you've heard of the Screeeeming Monkeeeees. Because I mentioned them here. You bought some shirts, right? Think nice presents for brothers-in-law. Aunties. Etc. Due to the shirts, this will be Gustavo's first time on a DAM team at the big before Xmas USDAA in the freezing cold Santa Rosa.

Yes, let me explain. I am taking the dogs on a weekend holiday to sleep overnight at a grody Motel 6 by the freeway. So I can spend all day, for 2 days, captive inside a freezing cold covered arena, while an icy cold rainstorm goes on over it's roof. And outside it's drippy walls. Wearing a spiffy, matching shirt with other blue-lipped agility ladies in that holiday tradition we like to call DAM team,.

I believe that at this same dog show last year, I uttered the words, "I have never, ever been so cold in my entire life." You did not hear me though, because my whole face and body were buried under 17 parkas and my teeth were chattering so hard it sort of sounded like iiiii hhhhhhhhhnnnoooot eeefffah pin soooooo ccccccccccld nnn my lfffffff. I could not even use pointy fingers whilst running courses because I don't know where my hands were.

All this and more!

Well, really, not more. Did I mention Motel 6? For some reason, Motel 6 is like Disneyland for dogs. I don't want to know why. Do not suggest reasons. I am turning off brain now to these thoughts.

It's actually sort of festive and jolly in this weird way that agility trials can be.

Gustavo's DAM team partners are 2 of my favorite agility friends with very cute 16" black and white dogs, a sheltie and a border collie/corgi/something type. Fast Paws Fin has her own Team blog! Their dogs are a little more, shall we say, consistent, than Gustavo. But it's Gustavo! Anything could happen. And he'll look great doing it and just think of all the screeeeeeeeming! Whatever happens, it happens with Gustavo's special flair and style and god just help all of us now.

Otterpop is on a Performance team with a great Jack Russell. This is a lot of runs for her crappy leg, but I really think she's holding up great, and has never been practicing better or faster in her life. Although she hasn't been practicing that much. But she is learning to do a handstand! A barking handstand. There is a lot of holding it together for Otterpop to do to exist in a covered arena with a million border collies for 2 days. God helps us all now.

There's even a night time dinner theater class called Strategic Pairs that will feature a run by Ruby! Anything can happen and there is pizza and beer to go a long with it.

So there you go. Barack Obama got a Nobel Peace Prize and last week signed off on troops to Afghanistan. Global warming global warming gang violence. Technology is moving so fast that it makes me want to roll up into a little ball screaming. There are freaking little cheerleaders in colorful knitwear accessories screaming on a Gap commercial about how cute are these boots. Ho ho ho, I'm going to the dog show.

The USDAA Witch Trial at Turlock, as manifestoed by Otterpop.

She put us in the car and it was dark. It was my preference to stay in the bed with the one that is so much less demanding and also has The Vehicle With Fine Leather Seats, but she put us in the car and obviously it would take a long time and be for the agility due to in each hand She holds one large mug of the coffee. Which equals two mugs because Otterpop can count as high as anyone would need to count.


Otterpop knows about these agility so called Witch Trials. Where historically, they ate hallucinogenic rats and they saw the witches then they burned all the She's at the stake. Otterpop knows this and knows many other things. Now the Witch Trials do not burn any She's and they wear skorts. This Witch Trial is in Turlock, which Otterpop likes somewhat because it is where the houses where no people are. Otterpop does not like people and houses without people are JUBILATION.


It is the USDAA and it is the goddamn team and goddamn sparkle and goddamn ariel are on the team with Otterpop but Otterpop does not have to look at them. Actually aside from humans and dogs, Witch Trials are not as terrible as Otterpop wishes She would believe. This one had some things Otterpop did not hate.


Otterpop will count these now to the number Eight. The following list is called Positive Attributes.

1. Otterpop kept Ruby in a box the entire time. Ruby had less treats and less FRISBEES and Otterpop believes Ruby should always have less therefore Otterpop more.
2. Otterpop did not allow Ruby or Screamy G to ever get the FRISBEE and many, many, many times Otterpop had the FRISBEE and WOULD BE THE ONLY DOG WITH SHE.
3. Agility with frisbees happens at the jumps out on the grassy park near where Otterpop keeps the other dogs in their cage.
4. She did not go in the Witch Trial with border collies, especially the hated one that stares at Otterpop and Hobbes who She lets touch Otterpop's FRISBEE and always GAH BARK SMOOSH about the Hobbes one.
5. The climate was temperate and many times Otterpop could step into the vessel of wet water then roll in grass then run and there was a FRISBEE.
6. She hands out a lot of finest cheeses at Witch Trial and carries FRISBEE around much of the time.
7. Screamy G was scared of tarps and a photographer and the freeway.
8. Otterpop did allow one new person to pet her at the witch trial and the person has red hair and used the correct method so Otterpop did not hate this person.


Otterpop will also now count things that were terrible of the Witch Trial. Otterpop will count these now to the number Eight. The following list is called Seether.

1. There is agility without FRISBEE with judge standing near Otterpop's personal space bubble. Even if judge is so called facebook friend of She, she is terrible because she stands in no FRISBEE zone and looks at Otterpop. At least this one would get out of Otterpop's way and NOT STARE AT OTTERPOP.
2. If Otterpop is allowed to speak freely on Otterpop's feelings of judge, Otterpop gets put in the car and Otterpop believes Ruby and Screamy G and border collies touch Otterpop's FRISBEE during this time so Otterpop did refrain from speaking freely which Otterpop HATES.
3. Dogs and humans are walking, running, speaking and are not invisible.
4. Humans touch Screamy G and pet it and it just loves that and it has turns of agility and Otterpop wants that others not do things that Otterpop HAS NOT SCHEDULED.
5. Otterpop did hear various humans refer to Otterpop as male gender. Otterpop mostly tries to not listen to voices of humans and instead sings a brain tune that NO ONE KNOWS BUT OTTERPOP and wishes the humans would disappear.
6. On various occasions when Otterpop was having a nice time having FRISBEE agility before stepping into the no FRISBEE zone, humans start telling She some burden of unwanted advice about Otterpop or confounded teeters and Otterpop demands undivided attention of She especially if the hell of stepping into no FRISBEE zone is inevitable.
7. She's all GAH BARK SMOOSH to other dogs and Screamy G and humans. In fact She spends too much time speaking to humans when Otterpop believes She ONLY MUST SPEAK TO OTTERPOP.
8. The goddamn team of Otterpop somehow had the Q no matter how hard Otterpop tried to do Otterpop's worst and OTTERPOP WILL NEVER LET ON WHY OTTERPOP DOES THIS.


In conclusion, Otterpop will take this opportunity to inform the public that Otterpop one day, WILL RULE THE WORLD. Otterpop does not like you all, Otterpop does not hate She and wishes that she could see She AT ALL TIMES forever including during ruling of the world. Otterpop also does not hate The One Who Yells at Television and has Vehicle With Fine Leather Seats, Joel Warner, Laia, That Blonde Child, Girl at Barn. Possible Otterpop does not hate that red hair human that used correct method to greet Otterpop but is undecided.


Postscript. Not from Otterpop. Otterpop ran Team, Ruby nothing, Gustavo Adv. Jumpers, Gamblers and Starters Snookers, where he could be nowhere near the teeter. Otterpop, as is now usual, was manic and fired up and having a swell time until the second she set foot in the ring, would run slow but consistent enough, then want to go run around and do warmup jumps crazy fast as a reward. Otterpop seems relaxed and happy and not hating things and wanting to run crazy fast and show off her trained dog agility skills unless she is actually inside the ring. I am continually confounded. Gustavo had a good gambler's run, and then got sort of scarey freaky about a couple things as mentioned above by Otterpop. That gambler's was a good run. He got spooky during the other ones, though, I get anxiety and really, we both unglue. Otterpop's team Q'ed but not due to any lightening speed from her. Goddamn. Ruby really seemed fine just hanging out and not running at all. It was a nice, small, relaxed trial and I like all my agility friends. Thanks for everyone who understands my frustration with these trials and why I can't make them go like how we train.

Why the leopard doesn't change it's stripes when the pot is calling a kettle black in the forest for the trees.

So the biggest highlight of our long weekend, visiting the dogs' best friend Cole down in Marin on Sunday night. He is short, same size as the small dogs. He is a very fast runner. He loves flashlights. Basically one of them. Cole spent the evening training them and feeding them about 20lbs of dogfood doing so. And running through the house for 2 hours. Dogs never wanted to leave. Want to go live with Cole now.

And on Saturday night, we all stayed in a Motel 6 that had 2 beds. With a moat between them. Filled with diseased indoor outdoor carpeting. Dual Bed Moat should be an agility obstacle some day, maybe NADAC has this one already? Because leaping back and forth between beds with tragically patterned bedspreads, never gets tiring. Kind of like a treadmill. You think dogs are tired from all day and into the night agility, but there is enough energy to leap back and forth and back and forth for hours. For 2 dogs. Ruby, sound asleep under the leaping.

So our long trial, various highlights and lowlights. Like Christina Aguilera's post partum hair. Lessons learned? One, Ruby and Otterpop love agility. They hate trials and the stress and strain holding together their personalities requires for extended periods of time. 2 days of dog show in tight quarters, only so much holding together they can do. Two, people that live in glass houses, not nice to throw rocks. Three, Gustavo is super cute until it's raining.

Let's observe.

Highlight-What a pleasant brisk and sunny Saturday!

Lowlight-Is this stuff ice? Are those my teeth chattering? Where are my fingers? Who is going to clean out the inside of my soaking wet and muddy car today?

Highlight-Nice covered place to park and let dogs sleep away the day in their comfortable car crates, instead of in the loud and freezing and cramped covered arena. Much exercise for me running to the arena and to the car, to the arena and to the car. Much like Motel 6 bed leaping game, except farther and wetter.

Lowlight-Ruby, first thing on Saturday morning, climbed out of her Susan Garrett Crate Games™ warm bed, dug through my purse, and ate a ziploc bag full of all their treats for the weekend. 2 days x 3 dogs worth of delicious treats.

Highlight-Seemed to make her pretty fast Saturday morning.

Lowlight-Sugary, carby treat high seemed to not keep working as the weekend wore on.

Highlight-Otterpop's Saturday Team events. She was fast and holding it together and the sun was out and she could spend some time out of the crowds running around on a big field. Which always helps keep her sane. Which helps her knock out speedy runs, getting lots of points. Always right up there in her placings.

Lowlight-No Team Q for Saturday. Teammates, various degrees of success. That's how it goes on Team. Mary did a fine job! Other teammate, some big weave pole issues, mainly that she couldn't do them, so some big E's there.

Highlight-Ruby's Saturday Team member. Ruby on a "Special" Team, for Special dogs. Her teammate Tazz, stayed consistent and steady and was a huge contributor to their Team Q. Thanks Tazz!

Lowlight-Ruby wasn't so much bad, we just didn't really have it together. She ran fine. Just a little erratic. 5 faulty. Some bars, some weirdnesses, when she was good, I would pull a bad handling thing causing a snooker issue. That kind of day. Nothing bad, just nothing great.

Highlight-Gustavo! Beautful jumpers run, beautiful Steeplechase. Incredible times, and just incredible to run with him. He was trying his absolute hardest, and gave those runs everything he had. Because he just loves it so much. Having a dog like him, who tries so hard, who runs so fast, and who is so sweet and kind, I can't believe how lucky I am to have found him. I will remember that I wrote that down next time he is screaming his head off at feral cats at work and border collies running in the ring.

Highlight yet Lowlight-In Steeplechase, fast a-frame to poles. He missed the entry, entered at the second pole, then flew through them. Usually in Steeplechase you would pull them out and restart the poles. He had plenty of time, he ended up with the fastest time of all the little dogs. But I just couldn't do it to him because I could tell he was trying his hardest to get in those poles and do a good job. So just went on and he didn't qualify for the finals. So was a letdown to not have all 3 of them in the finals. I really wanted him to make it there with them on his first time in Steeplechase. I know. He's a baby. I compare him to my friends' baby dogs who have super stars and that's a lot of pressure and expectation. Sorry Gustavo. You do your best and I am SO HAPPY with that.

Lowlight-Gustavo's Gamblers. Felt like the honeymoon, done. Oh my god. I think I may have a video of this. Broke start. Hit the contact but not in a trained way on the dogwalk. Freaked out at something at the end of the arena, spooked like a naughty pony, came running across the ring. Did do weave poles. Did get the gamble. Just felt like I was running a completely untrained dog around out there. He was really different in that arena and unfocused. Otterpop had problems out there too, which you will learn about. Don't know. If they were ponies, I would for sure say it was some tents selling stuff like dog sweaters and lamb livers and sweatshirts with poodles. Always get the horses. The dogs, I dunno what they're freaking out about. But definitely deer in the headlights moment with a bolt. Poor little buddy. Just wasn't a confident and beautiful run like his others have been.

Highlight-Ruby and Otterpop with their nice Steeplechase runs. Ruby, even with a bar, had a great time and made the finals. She loves Steeplechase Round 1. Otterpop, great speedy time! She loves Steeplechase Round 1. I wish there was Sunday Steeplechase more often because it's all of our favorite thing to run. So fast!

Lowlight-You know we are cursed in Steeplechase Finals. Unless I'm running Hobbes, who ran with his actual owner all weekend. I just gave him treats. Maybe was a highlight that Gustavo not exposed to the curse? Ruby, I just scratched. The pressure of 2 days of agility just seemed to have unraveled her. Pulled her out of Grand Prix already that day due to unspeakably bad flinging herself over jumps, sniffing dirt and refusing an a-frame. Steeplechase, was very end of the day. She didn't have to run. Let her sleep it off.

Otterpop. Oh boy. I can see her just losing it on Sunday. Raining. Can't be away from other dogs and the dreaded People Wearing Raincoats With Hoods EVERYWHERE. She is on edge all day. Weird things like slamming on brakes mid weave poles when at scary end of arena, deer in headlights. Big spooky moments. A judge barking moment, but in pairs so I didn't pull her because of poor innocent pairs partner. Most places, she kept it together and kept running which I know she does for me and only me when she's like that. Love of agility has worn thin by the stress of it all.

Before Steeplechase finals, she seemed a little manic and unglued. Not a good thing to have building up in an Otterpop.

But our agility friend is the judge! Wow! A plus, someone she knows out there in the ring. She needed something though, and it was a big truck speeding by the ring almost at the end of her run. Oh man. Off she goes, tearing across the ring towards the truck, barking her head off, just completely reverting back to Otterpop From the Side of the Road the Evil Truck Chaser dog. Reverting to her roots. Leopard doesn't change spots. Stress does that. At least didn't actually run out of ring to road and all the way to Eureka after the truck. I wasn't very sympathetic. I think yelled at her and marched her out of there. Not a nice moment for either of us.

So there you go. Some Q's, some not Q's. Some good runs, some bad runs. And one car full of wet and dirt and mud just sitting there in the driveway with my name on it.

Team Portrait.

So while you are your Christmas parties this weekend, or the beach, we will be at a dog show. In Santa Rosa, where the dog show is in a loud and freezing covered arena that drips when it rains. And the internet says it's gonna rain. So we're gonna be dripped on. And freezed. Yet still brimming with excitement over this information!

Because this is actually a super festive and fun dog show, my non agility friends. My agility friends, many of you will be there! You know. Festivus! Because it is Team, and Team means a lot of hanging out hoping other Teams crash and burn and you can huddle together, trying to stay warm, and look for Teams getting E's. Which might be your own team, in which case you go to the ladies room and weep. But not for long because it's cold! And I don't think it's heated in there. Buck up, get over it, and look to the future is what you do in that case, a future where you can go back and time and remember that once upon a time you did a good job and didn't get an E and it's highly unlikely anyone has ever been killed by Teammates over an E. Unless a really tense moment in the big finale of 3 Dog Relay Race of Stress. Possibly people have lost lives over this but not trying to spread any rumors or anything, just conjecturing.

E=Eliminate. BTW. On Teams, this is a very bad thing. See above.

Is Team Small Dog a Team? They just play one on the internet. Different people need to run different dogs in real life dog shows. We could be a team somday. Ruby will run for anyone that gives her a treat at some point in her life. Just have to be a fast runner. Would be quite an event, running her at 16" again. Otterpop? Maybe runs with me. Gustavo? Suspect he would run for anyone too, someone ready to run the Goo. He's still like running a little ziplock of crazy. One day though, with the help of my friends, Team Small Dog could be a DAM Team

For freezing/dripping, Ruby on a team with my friend Vici and her sheltie who has been known to do weirdo things here and there. Their team, the Bi-Polar Express. Christmasy, yet borderline personality disordery. Perfect!

Otterpop's on a team with my friend Mary and a lady named Jennifer we don't know. What if she doesn't like us? She has a border terrier. Those are those scruffy little brown dogs, always very cute yet always seem to look alike? Sorry, border terriers. Start the hate mail. Our team is called Ariel and the Dreamsicles for reasons I don't remember anymore, mostly because we could not think of a name. No one usually likes my team names. Offered up lame, obscure punk rock references and outdated feminist cliches. Festive! Yet poor branding for a dog team.

Gustavo, no team. It's a big committment. He's only run in 4 USDAA classes ever! Not going to expose him to potential heartbreak yet. Or teeters in a freezing, loud, clanging metal building. He is doing Steeplechase, of which I am more excited than anything. Kind of forgot about all the Team stuff, thinking about running Gustavo. This will be his first time doing 3 whole runs, though, spread out over a period of 2 whole days. Big stuff for him.

2 whole days of dog show? I think I've done that like 5 times exactly my whole dog agility career. I have a small business which is small enough that I need to micro manage every speck of it and it is just too hard to leave it on Saturdays. But thought we would be having bad weather this time of year and it was my holiday special thing to come to Team. Ho ho ho. No Christmas tree but I'm going to a dog show! And spend all my stinkin' money. My dog agility friends, who regularly go to 2 days of dog shows, OUCH! Even with Ruby only running a few classes, and Gustavo only running a few classes, only Otterpop running a buncha classes, youch. A lot of dinero goes into taking 3 dogs to the dog show. This has Steeplechase and Grand Prix , besides Team, which we don't get to run a lot, and those cost extra to enter. So we dumped out the money pot into this dog show this month.

See you there!

Hello and welcome to the USDAA Southwestern US Regional Championships Report!

Here are some things I can tell you about. Um, you wanted to know who was winning stuff? Uh, I am probably the wrong person to ask. I am really bad at keeping track. I don't even know if I made the second round of the Grand Prix? I assume not, unless someone tells me I have to run tomorrow. But my dogs were ok. They've been better, but they've been worse. I'm not sure if Ruby wants a dog show career anymore.

Really, everyone seemed like they were having a pretty good time. Festive! No freaking out that I was hearing. A scarey moment when a super champion dog had a seizure right in his weave poles. He'll be ok. I ran leashes for a big chunk of the Grand Prix, and I CAN tell you what the latest style in leashes is. Sort of plasticky, woven slip leads with some little beads on them sometimes. Also saw a whole buncha dogs I don't know from far off lands like LA and Oregon and I don't know where else. An agility tattoo of a dog in a tunnel-maybe this is a famous agility lady?

I didn't see anyone weeping in the ladies room. Always a good sign!


The people from the news came.


Eric is videoing my good runs. He will try to be at another ring during my bad runs.


Rob took REAL pictures of dog agility.


I don't know what Sue was trying to tell me. This lady is one fierce competitor. In a do-rag.


People came in all kinds of rvs. Some were really super gigantor ones.


Super cute little ones.


Jim and Sue did a lot of course building.


Karey demonstrates Stop in the Name of Love hand, a useful dog agility move.


This Laura looks VERY supermodel in her skort.


Mary does the robot while her dog weaves.


This is also a Mary. Hey and she is doing the robot too!


Derby did a fine job on this weird angle first jump. Tammy is catching up to me in age now. She just turned 40.


Hobbes, not so much on his weird angle first jump. He is kind of having a first jump thing.


Hobbes, why do you do that?


Sometimes, you can just be a big huge dork.


And very, very fierce.


I hope I didn't give you a phobia. But can you see why I am so crazy about Hobbes? He is the cutest border collie I have ever seen.


Killy is a multi talented border collie.


Very tricky trick. Dave told me Erika loves my blog. I think he was rolling his eyes.


Tater just came for the Grand Prix on Saturday. Tater is one of my most favorite dogs. Him and Ruby go Way Back.


This was Otterpop's pairs partner. Thanks for being a good dog for pairs and Grand Prix Otterpop! You held it together. Baxter the corgi was very happy about that.


Jeep flew all the way from Connecticut. Her and Katie are super champions! We hope you win!


For Team Small Dog, it's mostly about just going down to a giant, empty field before getting back in the car and playing frisbee for a while. Eating some pieces of cheese. The agility part? It's ok. The running and barking and biting and frisbee and cheese part? Right on.

This is kind of boring unless you like dog agility.

So here's how this whole team thing works, at a team tournament. You might not want to read all this. It involves math. A lot of it. They use computers to track it all and it's sort of like magic. But come on now. If dog agility is going to be the new black, it is fun and it is cool, you are going to want to someday be on a USDAA DAM Team.

You and your dog are on a team with 2 other sets of dogs and handlers. You make up a funny name. Or in Ruby's case, because she's in performance so she can jump lower, you have just one other teammate. Some people make t-shirts with dog pictures on them. You know how I feel about those. I have some plans for future team outfits and they involve Santino and tennis skirts and no dog t-shirts.

There are 5 team classes that you have to compete in and get points based on time and faults only. But, if you go off course at all, you are eliminated and lose half your points. In classes that use points instead of faults, like snookers and gamblers, it helps to have a small fast dog because the small dogs get some extra seconds allowed to level the playing field. The rules are all a little bit tweaked from how normal classes run. The final event is worth the most points-it's a 3 dog relay race and if you go off course in there and get eliminated, you lose ALL the points from everyone on your team for that event.

I am not sure how they calculate this, but it involves excel spread sheets and an adding machine and everyone that does accounting has to run the score table for team events. And never leave. They are kept chained to the score table and fed candy. It is all about the numbers. For those less numerically inclined, then it's all about going really fast, trying to stay clean and not letting an off course happen.

Ruby got an off course in her first class of the day-Standard. Which she never does, except for when she's on a team apparently. It was just a dumb thing, she backjumped something because I got into a wrong spot for an instant and I couldn't stop it. The rest of her run was great, but it put her team low in points at the beginning. But she worked hard (pretty hard, let's not talk about the slow weave poles or the uninspired jumpers run though) and got a lot of points back in her other runs. Then, when her team mate went off course in the final relay race, any hope of moving up to just barely get the team Q was squashed. Ruby's teammate felt bad, but the pressure was off of her since Ruby had gotten the first E and we were pretty much squarely in the middle of the pack, so maybe we could have moved up and gotten the Q but maybe not.

So you not only feel real bad because you screwed up if you go off course, you also screw up someone else.

Otterpop's team was solidly in there when one of her team mates went off course in the final relay race. There's a lot of stress around that relay race-everyone is watching, secretly hoping the top teams go off course so their teams move up to win a Medal! And the team Q. And the course is purposely designed to make it very, very easy to go off course. Tricky. Her teammate just looked like she wanted to barf and crawl into a hole because she's been trying for a while to get that team Q and things always happen, and it seemed like that last elimination was putting our whole team out of the running. She went home. But we had enough points we still got it.

But I never wanted to beat her up or anything. It could just have easily been Otterpop doing something wrong out there and messing up. That's just how I saw it. Ruby, I was a little more surprised about but they are damn dogs. They do stuff like that. You have to train them better and they do less stuff like that. It's just how it goes. Here's a little motto. Train-Don't Complain. People have it on t-shirts. Usually that also feature a dog cartoon. In size XL. No matter what size the t-shirt wearer is. But if you are going to do dog agility, you sort of have to listen to that if you want to win. So we have a lot to work on.