The decision was made by the Kennel Club that my dogs were to start competing in Grade 3 as they have won 1st places in Australia - Grade 3 is the class in which novice dogs with experienced handlers start out.
Tooheys was eligible for and entered in 3 classes - Grade 3 Agility, G3-5 Combined Agility, G3-4 Combined Jumping. There was no any-size or veterans classes, so Hollie didnt get a run. It is entirely up to the club what classes they offer, and whether they combine any of the grades..there is no requirement for all classes to be run.
Tooheys ran well over the day, and is jumping the high jumps well..I'm actually finding it quite exhilerating to run with him soaring through the air, much to my suprise. And the difference that I'm quite excited about - no nipping on his part!!! And there were a few times when he would have almost been justified in biting me!
We didnt have any clear rounds, small mistakes here & there, mostly on my part. And I still found myself making the same mistakes in training last night.
Being my first show, I was a little bit worried about the procedure for running & making sure I did things right, but all was fine. The running of the trial is slightly different to aus. You recieve you number & running orders in the mail prior to the trial, and just have to turn up in time for your classes. All 3 of my classes were first in their rings so I got there early, and had to walk all 3 courses at once.
Walking the course was interesting. We complain at times about there being too many people on the course in aus but nothing compares to this..there were times when you couldnt move on sections of the course due to the huge number of people!
Because the classes are large, it isnt practical for them to run in strict running order. If your number is early you're expected to run early, but thats about it. The ring will call up to eg. the first 3o dog and then you just have to queue up ring side and get your number marked off. If you turn up too early the steward can turn you away. I had one early running order and 2 late so had to keep checking with the rings what they were calling up to - it was announced over a tannoy but that was near impossible to hear in the parking/camping area...you dont set up ringside here!
I have been asked about how the courses compare and to be honest its difficult to make a comparison..they are different but I cant label how. I really liked all 3 of our courses, although I did hear many people commenting that the 3-4 jumping was far too hard for that level, and even some that the G3 agility was too hard. I have attempted to draw them to give some idea, but they arent to scale & I may have got 1 or 2 jumps out of position since they're from memory.
My only other comment? Bring on next weekends show!
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