Helen's Home World: GOAL!

Monday, January 14, 2019

GOAL!

We had our first agility trial for 2019 this past weekend. Both boys ran very well and we achieved our agility goals for the year. My goal with Beckett was Expert Silver Jumpers and with that Silver Versatility. That was a pretty easy goal as we finished 2018 needing only one qualifying score. For Keltic, the goal was to get his first Masters Q.... in any event! Not really as easy as it sounds as he's been in Masters games for quite awhile now and some little bobble always seemed to happen that prevented us from getting a Q.

At this trial, I put Keltic in the first three events two Masters Gamblers and one Masters Snooker. He didn't Q in either Gamble but he ran really well for me; he almost got the second Gamble but once again would not go to the distance obstacle. Then it was the Masters Snooker; I don't think I'd ever entered him in Snooker before, as last year I was working to get Beckett's Expert Silver Snooker. Any way, luckily this Snooker course had no weaves and no dog walk which made me think Keltic really had a good chance at a Q.

Masters Snooker 1

I originally planned to run the two of red jumps nearest the teeter using the teeter as our obstacle of choice followed by a red jump then the A-frame as our opening but a friend pointed out there was a better line to jump 2 to start the close if I finished the opening with the teeter. So that's what we did, a red jump, then the A-frame, followed by red, teeter, red, and teeter then the close. Keltic needed to finish obstacle 6 to get a qualifying score. The course ran beautifully until I got myself out of position after 6 and as a result did a blind cross which Keltic didn't read, leaving him on the wrong side of me for the teeter. We got a refusal for the teeter but we had already Q'd with 41 points. We finished our run in just over 47 seconds and you have 55 seconds to collect 40 points. We would have had plenty of time to have done the teeter.

Keltic - Masters Snooker Q, his first Masters Q

Next up was Beckett, he had one Masters Snooker and two Master Jumpers events to run. Snooker was just a warm up event for him as we arrived at about 11:45 am and it now was close to 5 pm. Beckett ran well in Snooker getting a Q but that's not the Q I really wanted. The next event was a Jumpers, it walked really nice and ran really nice too but Beckett had the very last bar down.

Masters Jumpers 1

It was late and I did think about going home. The second Jumpers course while nice was a little more technical and quite similar to the first. I worried that with so few dogs in the event I would forget which course I was running and incur an off course. I told Beckett if he was going to knock a bar to knock an early one so we could relax and run the course.

Masters Jumpers 2

I shouldn't have worried so much, Beckett ran beautifully and I didn't forget the course. That was Masters Jumpers Q number 25 which gave Beckett his Silver Expert Jumpers and, because Beckett has three other Silver titles, his Silver Versatility title. Although we did it the hard way with Steeplechase as one of our Silver titles; in Steeplechase, you need 50 qualifying scores for Silver Expert.

Video of Beckett's Masters Jumpers runs

Beckett - Silver Expert Jumpers and Silver Versatility

What an extraordinary way to start off our 2019 agility season! Now though I have to come up with new goals for the year. For Keltic that's pretty easy, a Masters Snooker title. But for Beckett, he's a long way from any other title, so maybe it's just time to have fun and see where any Q's take us.

5 comments:

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥January 14, 2019 at 3:34 PM
Wow, that is fantastic!!! Mom wishes she were younger and could do that with us. Big congratulations!!!

Woos - Lightning, Misty, and Timber
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Lassiter Chase and BenjaminJanuary 15, 2019 at 2:39 AM
Pawsome ribbons
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DukeJanuary 15, 2019 at 10:56 AM
You guys are unbelievable! Congratulations!
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DawnJanuary 16, 2019 at 6:24 PM
Congratulations!!!! You already met your 2019 goals! You boys are beautiful. Katie and I did a little agility many many many years ago...but we weren't very patient about waiting our turn, and she was scared of the chute and the tire and the teeter, and it was expensive, and and and....so we didn't actually do any trials. But she did love jumps and tunnels...and running.
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My Dog Sam - Ruptured DiskFebruary 10, 2019 at 9:12 PM
Wow Helen. That is so cool. Congratulations and best wishes. Go kids go.
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Agility Blessing

May the tunnels not have too much suction,
May the course be fun and fast.
May your dog not stop to say "hello" to the photographers they pass!
May the table not be too slippery,
May the chute house no scary beasts,
May all the yellow parts be touched with one little toe, at least
May the wind be always at your back,
May no bars fall on the ground,
May the A-frame have no stop sign on the top,
May the judge's whistle never sound.
May your dog obey all correct commands,
And ignore the ones that are wrong.
May your heart be light, your feet be sure, and the bond with your dog grow strong.
At the finish line, may great joy abound, regardless of your score,
You have your dog, your dog has you, and who could ask for more?

Written by: PJ Hughes

What is a Title!

Not just a brag, not just a stepping stone to a higher title, not just an adjunct to competitive scores. A Title is a tribute to the dog that bears it, a way to honor that dog, an ultimate memorial. It will remain in the record and in the memory for about as long as anything in this world can remain. Few humans will do as well or better in that regard, and though the dog himself doesn't know or care that his achievements have been noted, a Title says many things in the world of humans, where such things count.

A Title says your dog was intelligent, and adaptable, and good natured. It says that your dog loved you enough to do the things that please you, however crazy they may have sometimes seemed. And a Title says that you loved your dog, that you loved to spend time with him because he was a good dog, and that you believed in him enough to give him yet another chance when he failed, and that in the end your faith was justified.

A Title proves that your dog inspired you to have the special relationship enjoyed by so few, that in the world of disposable creatures, this dog with a Title was greatly loved, and loved greatly in return. And when that dear short life is over, the Title remains as a memorial of the finest kind, the best you can give to a deserving friend, volumes of praise in one small set of initials before or after the name.

A Title is nothing less than love and respect, given and received, permanently recorded.

Written by Sandy Mowery, Wisconsin

The Last Battle

If it should be that I grow frail and weak
And pain should keep me from my sleep,
Then will you do what must be done,
For this -- the last battle -- can't be won.

You will be sad I understand,
But don't let grief then stay your hand,
For on this day, more than the rest,
Your love and friendship must stand the test.

We have had so many happy years,
You wouldn't want me to suffer so.
When the time comes, please, let me go.
Take me to where to my needs they'll tend,
Only, stay with me till the end

And hold me firm and speak to me
Until my eyes no longer see.
I know in time you will agree
It is a kindness you do to me.

Although my tail its last has waved,
From pain and suffering I have been saved.
Don't grieve that it must be you
Who has to decide this thing to do;

We've been so close -- we two -- these years,
Don't let your heart hold any tears.

Author Unknown

Beyond the Rainbow

As much as I loved the life we had and all the times we played,

I was so very tired and knew my time on earth would fade.

I saw a wondrous image then of a place that’s trouble-free,

Where all of us can meet again to spend eternity.

I saw the most beautiful Rainbow, and on the other side

Were animals of every sort as healthy as could be!

My own tired, failing body was fresh and healed and new

I wanted to run with them, but I had something left to do.

I needed to reach out to you, and tell you I’m alright

That this place is truly wonderful,

Then a bright Glow pierced the night.

Twas the Glow of many candles shining bright, strong and bold

I knew then that it held your love in its brilliant shades of gold.

For although we may not be together in the way we used to be,

We are still connected by a cord no eye can see.

So, whenever you need to find me, we’re never far apart,

If you look beyond the Rainbow and listen with your heart.

Do you think the time is right?

May I say goodbye to pain filled days and endless lonely nights?
I've lived my life and done my best, an example tried to be.
So can I take that step beyond, and set my spirit free?
I didn't want to go at first, I fought with all my might.
But something seems to draw me now to a warm and living light.
I want to go, I really do; it's difficult to stay.
But I will try as best I can to live just one more day.
To give you time to care for me and share your love and fears.
I know you're sad and afraid, because I see your tears.
I'll not be far, I promise that, and hope you'll always know,
That my spirit will be close to you wherever you may go.
Thank you so for loving me. You know I love you too,
And that's why it's so hard to say goodbye and end this life with you.
So hold me now just one more time and let me hear you say,
Because you care so much for me, you'll let me go today.

I Loved You Best

So this is where we part, My Friend,

And you'll run on, around the bend.

Gone from sight, but not from mind,

new pleasures there you'll surely find.

I will go on; I'll find the strength,

Life measures quality, not its length.

One long embrace before you leave,

Share one last look, before I grieve.

There are others, that much is true,

But they be they, and they aren't you.

And I, fair, impartial, or so I thought,

Will remember well all you've taught.

Your place I'll hold, you will be missed,

The fur I stroked, the nose I kissed.

And as you journey to your final rest,

Take with you this...I loved you best.

-Jim Willis

The Price We Pay

There is a cycle of love and death that shapes the lives of those who choose to travel in the company of animals.

It is a cycle unlike any other.

To those who have never lived through it's turnings and walked it's rocky path, our willingness to give our hearts with the full knowledge it will be broken seems incomprehensible.

Only we know how small price we pay for what we receive; our grief, no matter how powerful it may be, is an insufficient measure of the joy we have been given.

Suzanne Clother