SUMMARY: I'm not so good at clever palindromes; am I better with plans?
So here's what I started thinking about last week:Tika has (to be exact) 402 Qs in USDAA Masters/Perf 3. She needs 500 for her Lifetime Platinum, the highest one can go. She's averaged just under 4 per day of competition this last year. So she needs 26 days of competition.
By this time next year, if I keep up at my same pace and Tika and I both stay healthy, we'll have done about 13 weekends of trials, 2 days each on average--so, voila, a year from now, dog willing, Tika will be at Platinum LAA.
Tika will also be 11 and a half.
If Boost can't get 2 snooker super-Qs and 2 jumpers Qs by then for her ADCH, really, there'd be no more point in competing with her in USDAA.
Here is the plan that's forming--a year from now, take a break from agility for a year, or two, or three. Spend all the money and weekends and vacation time that I'm now spending on agility doing some of the vacations and traveling that I used to do and that I want to do.
The plan is still forming. And, so far, it relies on an assumption of continued Tika health and enthusiasm. And on an assumption that I won't continue losing my head and doing stupid things like leaving her collar on.
More, as I mull it over.
Certainly a dilemma. In sort of a good way...to do agility which you love or to travel which you love. I guess it all does depend on the merle girls...good luck deciding!
ReplyDeletesounds like a plan of sorts is gelling ...
ReplyDeletegood luck figuring it out :)
Well I think you should come to USDAA Nationals in Colorado and combine it with a vacation.
ReplyDeleteI saw that you'll be having nationals almost in your back yard! That's pretty cool. That's not a terrible idea for a vacation--come see the steeplechase & gp finals & tootle around CO. Is that too early for the aspens to turn?
ReplyDeleteYou might catch the tail end of the aspens in the high country the week before nationals but I found a photo from Oct. 19, 2008 and the aspens were totally bare at around 8600'. Peak time for aspens in the high country is typically the 3rd week of Sept. We're having unseasonably warm weather so this year the peak is a week late. I can't seem to find many photos for the 2nd week of October since I'm typically at a DOCNA trial and not up in the mountains so it's hard for me to say down to the very week but I do have photos from Oct. 6 2008 and the leaves at the Continental Divide are still good and are only starting to change at lower elevations (Glenwood Springs, about 5800'). However Denver will be peaking around mid-October so the lower elevation trails should still have a lot of color.
ReplyDeleteI just re-checked the dates for nationals and they start Oct. 10 which is earlier than I thought so if you came the week or even a few days before you'd be just about perfect for the aspens. But it sounds like you wouldn't compete?
ReplyDeleteOK, thanks. No, I doubt I'll have a dog to compete with. Tika is past her prime in performance, and Boost, well, I'd be lucky if she even qualified. Hasn't gotten a GP Q in 2 years, I think, and only a few team Qs in her life, mostly through the efforst of her worthy teammates.
ReplyDelete