Weekend Snooker Report

SUMMARY: With videos.

Team Snooker:
This was a 3 or 4 reds class; I couldn't come up with anything I liked with 4 reds that was comfortable enough for Team, so I opted for 3 (with 6-7-7 in the opening):

• Tika: When I sent her to one red and then turned and ran, she turned also before taking the red and I had to get her turned back around to take it. As a result, we ran out of time partway through #7 in the closing, which dropped us from winning to 4th of 13 dogs.
• Boost did an OK opening, but then, in a weird flashback to last weekend where #4 in the closing was also two jumps and the first one was also basically parallel to our path, I did not succeed in pushing her out over the jump for a refusal, so whistled off. 

Sunday Masters/P3 Snooker:
This one had only 3 reds--thank goodness, I'm just tired of always having to decide whether a 4th red will help me or hurt me on top of the basic strategy. I had a 7-7-7 (double tunnels) opening plan for 51 pts and a 7-7-5 (5 was Aframe) opening plan for 49 pts. I figured that the first was completely doable for a fast dog but probably not for Tika any more, so didn't want to try it unless I had to (meaning other dogs had done it successfully).

• By the time Tika ran, most of the dogs in her class had already run and only one--a very fast Catahoula--had gotten the 51, and the next highest was 46. I wanted Top Ten points, but decided that 2nd place (for 5 top tens) would be plenty good enough and stuck with the 7-7-5. We made it with only a couple of seconds to spare, so I'm glad I didn't get greedy. (We won't mention where she stood up from her down-stay to go searching for treats. At least she didn't take off after me.) And look at that nice right-angle rear cross approach to the weaves! She's such a good girl.
  
  
• By the time Boost ran, there were already 9 dogs with 51 points, and only 12 super-Qs available, so I went for the 7-7-7 plan. I was glad to get all the way through it with her--unfortunately, we ran out of time as we started our final #7. That's because we had trouble getting to and from the farthest red (the 3rd one we did), plus she turned the wrong way after #2, slowed to look at me for a while before #4, turned in front of me before going to the weaves at #6 and all those little things added up to the time we needed to complete the course. So 44 points for a Q but no Super-Q. Frustratingly, no one else got 51 and a 49 (my 7-7-5 plan) would've been a superQ. So close!
  
  

Monday Masters/P3 Snooker:
3 or 4 reds again. I decided on a 6-7-7-2 plan for the opening.

• Boost: A couple of wide turns, a knocked red that I recovered from but not gracefully, she didn't catch a rear cross and turned the wrong way--again, we got through to #7 and ran out of time about pole #7 of 12, sigh. In this case, Super-Qs were 52 points, so even if we'd completed the weaves, without our 4th red and that extra 2 points, we'd have not Super-Qed. But so close...but just a 43-point Q. But check out those great, difficult sends to the weave poles then executed at a distance! Happy weave pole mom!
  
   
• Tika: Well, after that first red where I pulled boost between the next red and the Aframe to the teeter? I pulled Tika the same way but hadn't stepped far enough towards the Aframe, so instead of the teeter, she did the red. Whistle. Crap.