Bluegrass '10 Day One

Oh, boy! There have been alot of runs here today. I'll try to remember the highlights of our dogs. I'm sorry that I don't have much about other people's runs today but between trying to catch Scott's runs on both fields and my own run, I haven't seen much of anyone else's. I can tell you that on the open field, Lyle Lad and Shep had a beautiful straight fetch and on the nursey field, Ron Enzeroth was awesome running in the middle of a horrible storm and ended up 2nd I believe.
The definite hero of the day for our kennel has been Donnie.

Don on the fetch

These sheep are very hard to get off the top of the open field. They try to keep running around the dog until about 50 yrds high of the fetch panel - and this is a 450yrd or so outrun! Certain times of the day they have been very heavy. The weather started out cool and rainey. We had the BIGGEST claps of thunder I have ever heard in my life (yes, Bob lived through them although he didn't believe he would). Then, when the rain left, it got warm and SUPER humid. Now at about 6:30 it is cooling down. They are still running on the open field and are about 2 hour's behind schedule.
When Don ran it was still cool and rainey. He lifted them off the top like they were no problem and kept his characteristic cool head. We wondered how he'd react to these sheep because he is just 3 years old and has never encountered a fetch or sheep like this. He was off line to the right for a little while before the fetch panels but got them back just as he passed through them. He had a nice turn around the post and made all his drive panels, even with a clap of thunder on his crossdrive. His shed was quiet and calm and he and Scott made it look easy.

Scott and Don in the shed...

They were patient at the pen and made it in with no points lost. They have an 86.5 and there is still a whole day to go tomorrow but they are near the top right now.

Lad was our other open dog today and I'm afraid our run was a bitter pill to swallow. Lad was very good and people keep telling us what a spectacular run we had but unfortunately things didn't work out for us. It was blazin' hot when he ran but it didn't affect him that much. It was the first time he had done an outrun here at the bluegrass without needing help to get to the top and only pulled up a little short by my calculations (and Scott's) but the judges seemed to feel he was dramatically short and took 6 points off of him. The sheep were heavier at 3PM and so he was slow to lift but wasn't too far off line and made his fetch panels. He had a wonderful drive and got a 27 out of 30 points but our downfall was the shed. The sheep spread out quite easily and got to eating so I called Lad in and he made one pass through and back again on the sheep. I thought it was good enough (and so did Lad who turned to regather) but the judges are consistently having the dogs hold longer. So we reshed. And reshed. And reshed again when they finally called it. I had 50 seconds to make the pen and Lad was extraordinary there. He never let the sheep settle or run behind the pen. Back and forth as fast as he could he wore the sheep down (who were harder to pen than Stampede sheep) until they went in. THEN, I made the mistake of trying to close the pen a fraction of a second too soon and one popped out. It ran behind the pen and Lad got it and put it in without loosing the other two out of the pen but before I could shut the gate they called time. 63 disappointing points.

The lower classes have been rough but the dogs have now been up the field and should be better tomorrow. Kuro in the nursery, had one redirect on the outrun and just missed the fetch panels. His turn was going to be good but the sheep slipped around the post the wrong way. From then on, Scott did some training, knowing he couldn't place today but hoping tomorrow he could do better. He got a 65.
Jr./Sweep had a crossover but then had a great drive. Hopefully, he understands the outrun now and will show his talents tomorrow. He had a 51.
Due to a mix up in entering dogs, Scott decided to throw a dog in the Pro-Novice that he trained over the winter for Roger Millen. Rock hasn't been tuned up to trial but was game to give it a try. He finished with a very respectable 67.
Rainey is also running this evening but as of yet I haven't heard how she did.
For all of the scores check out the Bluegrass website http://www.bluegrassclassicsdt.com/index.html

Chinquapinwood Trial '10 - Day Three

The great weather has held out for the last day of this trial. Today we had the "ranch" class which was a combo of nursery and Open Ranch.
All our dogs did nicely with maybe the exception of Meg who didn't find her sheep until Scott walked out and helped her. (but once she found the sheep she looked really good) There is a hill then a dip and then the sheep are spotted on the next hill so it's not an easy outrun which makes us proud of the dogs who did get out there.
Jr./Sweep was first and had a good outrun but then was a little crazy on the fetch and not very clean on the drive.

Scott and Jr. turn the post

He did have a nice pen though and earned a 60 which placed him in 8th place in the Open Ranch but didn't get him a leg in the nursery.
Kuro was next and was very good. He had a nice outrun and fetch and drive BUT just in front of the crossdrive panels he took a wrong flank (there was alot of pull on the high side of the drive panels and many dogs messed up at the panels when they tried to cover) and missed the panels just short but then had a good pen.

Kuro on the last leg of the drive

He ended up with a 71 which put him 4th in the Ranch but SECOND in the nursery and got him his first leg towards the finals!
Roxy ran in only the Ranch class and with one redirect on the fly she made it out on the outrun.

Roxy turning the crossdrive and starting the third leg of the drive

After a little time to settle on the fetch she finished well and ended up with a 67 and a 6th place.
Last to run was Sava who had heavy sheep. Despite that she pushed on and did her best. Her final score was a 53.

Scott and Sava spot sheep

Tomorrow we move over to Masterson Park and the Bluegrass starts on Wednesday!

Ranch Class - 43 dogs
1. Vergil Holland and Scott 79
2. Bob Washer and Spain 75
3. Mary Thompson and Rio 72
4. Scott Glen and Kuro 71
5. Nancy Schreeder and Fox 67
6. Scott Glen and Roxy 67
7. Vickey Russel and Devi 65
8. Scott Glen and Sweep 60
9. Jan Thompson and Hannah 56
10. Allan Hickenbottom and Jill 56

Nursery Class - 23 dogs
1. Robin French and Bill 79
2. Scott Glen and Kuro 71
3. Mary Thompson and Frost 71
4. Maureen Robinson Hellbender 68
5. Chris Chambers and Molly 67

Chinquapinwood Trial '10 - Day Two

Day two weather was, if possible, even nicer. Cool but sunny and almost no wind today. Lad was the first of our dogs to go and although he was underflanking a little, it was really pilot error. I asked him for an away flank on the fetch to get the panels and he underflanked just enough to miss it but I just had a little slower reaction time and I should have been able to fix it. He made the rest of his panels, but my crossdrive was low and hurt me. We had a split, pen and then single a collared sheep today. Lad did very well on both of his sheds but only got an 84 today (out of 110).
Scott had a great run with Don. Really nice with great lines and made all his panels. Not much else to say about it because there wasn't too much wrong. His score was a 102 and stayed in the lead until the end of the day when his mother, Star, and Alasdair MacRae topped him by one point.
I was hoping to get some points on Hemp but he wasn't going to play today. He wasn't listening to my "there" whistles and was just running too free on his flanks. Just before the fetch panels he almost headed them and I never really got them exactly on the line the rest of the way. It continued on the drive when I got mad and abandoned the "there" all together and just went with hard stops. I actually had my nicest crossdrive of the weekend but I didn't like the way he was running. When we got to the first shed, he was slicing and when I called him in, he never really took control. He was lazy about it. I decided to retire but I was not happy with him, especially since he really needs those points for the finals.
Scott didn't have a great run with Maid but it wasn't the worst run either.

Maid turning the post

She was better than yesterday and Scott kept her pretty tightly controlled. She made her fetch and drive panels and had a good line to the crossdrive but it was a tad high and 3 sheep skimmed the high side of the panel while just one went through.

Maid and Scott on the split

Both her shed's were good and her final score was a 96 which was good enough for 9th place.

Scott and Maid on the single

Tomorrow we have the "Ranch" class which is going to be a class within a class for nursery dogs and ranch dogs.

Open 2

1. Alasdair MacRae and Star 103
2. Scott Glen and Don 102
3. Vergil Holland and Brook 101
4. Allan Hickenbottom and Vic 99
5. Alasdair MacRae and Nap 98
6. Bob Washer and Briggs 97
7. Emil Luedecke and Spot 97
8. Marianna Schreeder and Nan 97
9. Scott Glen and Maid 96
10. Jim Valley and Lita 96

Chinquapinwood Trial '10- Day One

Mike and Laura Hanley's Trial, just outside of Lexington, Kentucky is always a wonderful trial. In tonight's handler's dinner (above and beyond the small price they charge) they spoke of this possibly being their last year. I wanted to scream "NO!" Hopefully they will change their mind and they will find sheep again next year. This year's sheep are provided by Vergil Holland and are the same sheep we used last week at Shaker Village. I love these sheep. They are a crossbred flock that are healthy, fit and sensible. They are also very good looking sheep.
Our judge Linda Tesdahl, is doing a great job and fortunately doesn't have bad weather to worry about. It was a perfect dog working day. Sunny but with a cool wind that is keeping the temps in the 60's.
The course is on rolling hills that make the crossdrive dip quite a bit with a very tricky crossdrive panel. Everyone thinks they are high and ends up missing it low.
Hemp ran 4th this morning and didn't start out very well. I needed an away flank on the fetch to make the panels but he gave too much ground. I asked him to walk up to bring in that flank but he just slipped back behind the sheep which kept them off line and missed the panels. With the caliber of competition, I knew we were out of it with that panel missed. I usually walk off when that happens but I decided to train on him and see if I could impress upon him to smooth out. I felt like it was a good choice -we'll see tomorrow. We did finish the course and got a final score of 71. I did have nice turns around the drive panels which was nice to have because I've been working on that.
Scott ran Donnie in the late morning and did very well.

Scott sends Don on the outrun

He made all the panels (with a small panic at the crossdrive panel!)

Don on the first leg of the drive

Don was pushing a little bit and Scott had to get on him a little but he made his pen and had a nice shed.

Don holding the single on the shed

His final score was an 87 which put him in 5th place.
Scott ran Maid in the afternoon but she didn't have a great go. There was some confusion at the top and Scott wasn't sure what happend. She ended up overrunning the sheep by quite a bit. He had to send her back and it was sloppy enough that he decided to train on her like I did with Hemp. Maid's final score was a 75.
Lad's run wasn't too bad. He had a good outrun (I know- go figure!) and a decent lift. A few bobbles on the fetch but a nice turn on the post.

Lad turning the post- photo by Catherine Laria

He made both his drive panels but was a little low on the crossdrive.

Lad on the drive - photo by Catherine Laria

I had the sheep ready to go through the crossdrive panels and just needed a little adjustment but Lad, who was running a little more like Hemp today (pushy) overflanked and we almost missed it. It was an easy pen and then he had a nice shed which pleased me since that is another weak spot. His final score was an 86 and he placed 8th.
Alasdair MacRae and Nap won today with a 94 and Bob Washer and Briggs were just behind.

Open 1 - 61 dogs
1. Alasdair MacRae and Nap 94
2. Bob Washer and Briggs 91
3. Allan Hickenbottom and Vic 89
4. Allan Hickenbottom and Meg 87
5. Scott Glen and Don 87
6. Vergil Holland and Brook 86
7. Christine Henry and Tweed 86
8. Jennifer Glen and Lad 86
9. Robin French and Zac 86
10. Alasdair MacRae and Star 83

Shaker Village '10 - Day Three

I'm sorry. I have no scores. It's so wet that there was no way for me to write them down! There has been more rain here than I have ever seen. Don't get me wrong. We are still having a good time! It's really fun to try the difficult sheep on the hilly course. It's just so wet and boggy that we are uncomfortable. Quite a few people didn't get to run their dogs today due to the fact that the one lane bridge that leads across the creek flooded and no one could get in or out of the trial area. (Except Bob Washer who walked and waded through the water to get up here and run his two dogs at the end of the day - then, he walked and waded back!) Still, there was roughly 50 dogs run. Our poor judge, Lyle Lad was stuck judging from a golf cart with a tarp around it but she gamely stepped out of her only protection to make sure she was able to see over the hills to judge the dogs.
To make a long story short, Scott and Don tied with Paul Tucker and Rick with a 94. They had a run off for first place and Donnie won!
As for the rest of the dogs - Kuro was awesome in the nursery and he just gets better all the time and seems to have tons of confidence. I'm sure he will qualify any day now.
Sweep/Jr. - crossed over on his outrun but then had a great run around the course.
Maid didn't have a bad run but gripped a little in the shed as the sheep ran back to the exhaust. I don't know if she was called on it.
Hemp worked wonderfully. I was so happy for him as he marched those sheep around with good flow and went every where I asked him to.
Lad was also good and ran at the very end of the day with extremely difficult sheep (and had a good outrun!) who didn't want to move and wanted to go in all directions when they did move. Lad kept them together and still kept his lines and finished well.
In a couple of days I will try to bug Leigh Ann for the scores to post but it's going to take a little time for them to get out of here and cleaned up so I won't rush them.
Shaker Village has been wonderful too. They have been monitoring the water over the bridge and comped rooms at their hotel for stranded handlers. They have also been trying to find a way to get food over here. (we have plenty for ourselves)
Keep your fingers crossed that the water goes down tomorrow!

Shaker Village '10 - Day Two - Update

Claudia Frank won the first day of open in a run off for first place.

Shaker Village '10 - Day Two

OK - no pictures today. If you wonder why, turn on your tv and take a look at the Kentucky Derby. Rain, Rain, Rain. Oh, yeah, and thunder (those that know my old retired dog, Bob - he's doing fine) I will try to get today's scores tomorrow. It's supposed to keep raining but if I get a chance to go write them down during a break I will. Right now if I did they'd be nothing but smeared ink by the time I got back to my computer. I can tell you that Christine Henry and Rook have a 91 and Vergil Holland and Brook do too. Linda Fogt ran first this morning with Mickey and got a 90. Scott and Maid had a nice run and got a 90 also. Maid ran tight on her outrun and had to be blown out twice. Without that she would be in the lead. Donnie ran really well but was hit hard on his lift. I didn't see what the judge saw that lost him those points but other than that he looked really good. His score was an 87.
Both Bob and Hemp took really bad tumbles on their outruns. Hemp left my feet too wide and got on a road and was going too far up the hill. I called him back and redirected him and as he took off he must have caught his feet in the high brush and did a 3 summersalter. He found his sheep and was a little funny on the lift. I think he was trying to guard the draw but he kept flanking off instead of just lifting and going. He wasn't avoiding the lift, just over compensating for the draw. The sheep had gotten heavy and felt extremely heavy for Hemp. They grazed alot and he had to keep scooping up the lagger. Scott told me that even tho Hemp was trying to be good and was taking his flanks, he was "pulling a Pleat" and shutting the the sheep down by catching their eye. I didn't see this so obviously there is something I need to be aware of. The difference between him and Pleat (we compair them alot) was that Pleat knew and enjoyed doing that to sheep and Hemp seemed bewildered by the results. He finally gripped a hock on the third leg and then had a very nice shed before he ran out of time. He got a 73 with no pen.
Laddie needed 2 redirects on his outrun which he took on the fly so I was pleased with that. The rest of his run wasn't fancy but like Hemp he made all his panels. He came in on his first attempt at the shed but his sheep were jumpy and the two took off to the exhaust so Lad didn't commit to his single and had to go get the sheep and bring them back to the ring. His second attempt was good but his sheep raced back to the exhaust and hit the gate and opened it. Lad got right under their nose and stopped them from getting in with their buddies and worked them back to the ring and then we took them to the pen and put them in. His final score was a 74.
They postponed the nursery until tomorrow. Pray for less rain.