Videos Videos Videos!

SUMMARY: I splurged this weekend.

I have such a hard time remembering to find someone to videotape my runs, and just doing so is a pain when everyone's busy and I'm busy and I'm just wanting to concentrate on getting my dogs engaged & warmed up & ready to run.

This weekend I splurged on videos from 4 Legged Flix--they're one of a couple of vendors who have the video set-up to look down on the course and they really automate the process of selling the vids. I didn't buy all of them; just ones of particular interest.

So here are as many videos as you'd like to watch! (If there are any course maps you'd particularly like to see, ask and I can scan them in.)

My biggest observation: I always feel like I'm hustling out there, but in the vids, I look like I'm lumbering and barely picking up my feet. Someday I'll learn how to really run.

Tika Sunday Jumpers

Tika's Jumpers run is nice and fast. I over-called her before the blue tunnel, causing a slow-down and bobble, and one wide turn before the last tunnel, so her time ended up being only 3rd fastest of the 88 dogs who ran the course. But she works so hard to do the right thing! And I love the little clouds of dust she kicks up as she runs.

Boost Sunday Full House

I love Full House with my dogs! Plot my own course and see how many points we can rack up in 30 seconds. Boost gets 47 points here, highest of all 122 dogs; next closest was 42, then my Tika with 40 (my error on her course).

Tika Sunday Standard

Tika just has a really nice Standard run. Except--one *#%@ bar, which is all that kept us from a perfect weekend (Qing in all classes). Not sure why that bar came down, either; I don't think I was saying anything, and it wasn't that sharp a turn. Fastest time of any of the 66 4/5/C dogs at 34.46 secs; only 3 others were even under 40 seconds. Notice her "modified running contacts". (AKA relaxed criteria that sometimes works out ok.)

This doesn't look like a 10-year old dog with occasional arthritis!

Boost Sunday Standard

Same course as Tika's run.

Boost doesn't take the jump in front of her on my lead-out pivot, instead cuts across and slams through the next jump. I did take my eyes off her and probably turned my shoulders too soon. Then she pops out of the weaves at #10, another ongoing problem. But she handled my rear cross on the weaves without a second thought, and does the correct tunnel under the dogwalk, a challenge that many, many dogs and handlers missed.

Tika Saturday Jackpot (Gamblers)

The world's longest 30-second Gamblers opening. We were supposed to have 30 seconds before the buzzer. We ran out of obstacles and then I asked the judge where the buzzer was; he said it wasn't at 30 seconds yet, then it finally went off. (Time it as you watch it, starting as Tika passes the large orange cone--it's about 50 seconds.) It was a manual start, so I think the timer just didn't get started until we'd been out there for almost 20 seconds already. Not surprisingly, we had many more points than anyone else who ran this class, even though I obviously wasn't always communicating perfectly with my dog.

Boost Saturday Jackpot (Gamblers)

I meant the first obstacle to be the Aframe for both dogs, but both dogs go into the tunnel instead. Obviously handler error. Thought I gave more room after muffing it with Tika, but Boost did the same thing. Ah well.

Boost exhibits one of her issues--pushing off a tunnel entrance when I'm trying to rear cross. Skims through two sets of weaves instead of doing them correctly. Knocks the first bar in the gamble (maybe because I yell "climb" right as she's going over it, but still--), then doesn't even look for the final jump after coming out of the tunnel. Ah, well. But she had 2nd highest opening points even without the weaves of all 4/5/C dogs who ran this course. (Tika had more due to that timer error.)

Boost Saturday Standard

Boost having a pretty nice Standard run. 2nd fastest of all 65 level 4/5/C dogs; I made sure to hold her on her contacts. I'm noticing that she's really slowing down going over the Aframe and at the end of the dogwalk. Hmm. Also, the three jumps side-by-each after the first set of weaves, I don't know how we managed to get through that. I didn't get the front cross in that I wanted before the first jump so tried to rear cross it and my timing was apparently awful based on her behavior--I have no idea how she didn't knock that bar!

Boost Saturday Colors

Boost at her best--I'm ahead of her so she doesn't have to check in with me; she holds her contact until released. Fastest of all 59 dogs who ran this 9-obstacle course (yeah I don't really get the point, either), a blazing 13.71 seconds. She's really stretching out to run.

Tika Saturday Colors

Same course with Tika; Tika had the 2nd-fastest time of all 59 dogs who ran this course. Notice that she does NOT stop on the Aframe down contact, whereas boost does and waits for my release--Tika is still .4 seconds slower than Boost.