EID Classic Day Two

Today started out nice and cool - just right in fact, but got very hot in the afternoon with no breeze. Our first class was the Pro-Novice. Scott and Donnie started the day and it was another great run. Donnie didn't miss a step and finished with an 84. Let me end your suspense now and let you know that Don won the class again and got the overall award for the pro-novice. Unfortunately, Tuque didn't get out to her sheep today. She understands how to go up a hill to get her sheep, she just can't comprehend how to go back down a dip and then back up another hill. Scott has some ideas for her and we have a little while before the finals. However, I think the finals will be a flat field and she'll get out there just fine. Shortly after, Sleat and Scott ran.

Sleat with a great turn around the crossdrive panels

She needed one redirect and a little chastisement but after that she ran so nice she got a 74 and a second place!

Sleat in her 2nd place run

She was also 3rd for the overall Pro Novice.
River and I ran next.

River starting out on his fetch

I was again proud of him. He needed two redirects on his outrun but even tho he doesn't like the horse setting out, he got over it and took the flank I asked of him.

River and I turning the post

He made all his panels and had a nice pace. Sometimes it's hard to hold him on the line but he is trying.

River on his drive

We had a nice pen and got a 66 for a score today which put him in 6th place!

Pro-Novice Day Two : 22 dogs (unofficial)
1. Scott Glen and Don
2. Scott Glen and Sleat
3. George Stambulic and Bill
4. Chris Jobe and Fly
5. Bev Lambert and Esther
6. Jennifer Glen and River
7. Peter Gonnet and Meg
8. Lee Lumb and Rex
9. Ian Zoerb and Lexi
10. 11. Gayle Cochlan and Leah
Louane Twa and Rob (tie not broken

We had a wonderful "half time" entertainment in the form of the only handler running in the 4-H class. Wendy and Chris Schmaltz's six year old nephew, Joey and his dog Joy ran a course.

Joey and Joy spotting sheep at the post

Joy is 8 years old and has only lived with Joey for a few months but watching Joy follow her young master around the trial you would swear they had been together for years. With Aunt Wendy coaching from the sidelines this pair stayed calm and had an enjoyable run.

Joey and Joy heading towards the pen

The Open class started in the afternoon. Hemp and I were third to the post and we did our best. We made all our panels and even made the pen! He was a little pushy but working well and after a nice single we got an 81. Scott and Drift ran a little later and had a smooth run without incident and they finished with an 86. Scott then ran Lucy who had a really nice run that was similar to the day before. Her final score was an 83. Maid and Scott then ran another great run. Other than a bobble on the fetch she was really smooth and listening well. She again won the class with an 89 and won the overall for the open too. I ran Lad at the end of the day and even tho it was hot, the sheep were really running, even when you kept the dog off. It made for wide turns and when the sheep passed the pen, I realized there was no chance of him getting into the double lift and I retired before he got too hot chasing sheep around the pen.

Open Day Two: 42 dogs (unofficial)
1. Scott Glen and Maid
2. Lee Lumb and Nan
3. Jennifer L'Arrivee and Spot
4. Scott Glen and Drift
5. Ian Zoerb and Peg
6. 7. Peter Gonnet and Jill
Wendy Schmaltz and Gin (tie not broken)
8. 9. George Stambulic and Kate
Scott Glen and Lucy (tie not broken
10. Bev Lambert and Hemp

They were going to take 12 handlers to the double lift but ended up taking 13 because the last 4 dogs were tied with a 156. The good news is I made it in with Hemp! The bad news is that he drew up first and he is not finished with his turn back training. This is a hard outrun and I was hoping to let him see one of the lifts so I don't expect much but at least it will be over early. Scott made it in with all 3 of his open dogs! He drew up 3rd with Lucy, 5th with Drift, and 8th with Maid.
Double lift competitors: (not in running order)
1. Scott Glen and Maid
2. Ian Zoerb and Peg
3. Bev Lambert and Hemp
4. Peter Gonnet and Jill
5. Jennifer L'Arrivee and Spot
6. Scott Glen and Lucy
7. Lee Lumb and Nan
8. Scott Glen and Drift
9. Bev Lambert and Mirk
10. Stormy Winters and Roy
11. George Stambulic and Kate
12. Corey Perry and Jill
13. Jennifer Glen and Hemp

EID Classic Day One

August 21, 22, &23, 2009 Brooks Alberta: Jo Anne and Ian Zoerb's EID Classic Sheepdog Trial is always a quality trial worth attending, but this year, it is also a great warm up for the Canadian Championship held next week and of course the up coming Soldier Hollow, Meeker and National finals. The angle of the outrun has changed a little bit from the past years but it's still difficult terrain. The dogs can see the sheep, set on horseback, when they leave the post, but go down in some dips and up some hills that can confuse them. The sheep are the same as we had in the One Tree trials - also put on by Jo Anne and Ian but they are much better behaved at this one. I thought they would go round and round the pen as they did in the last trial, but other than sneaking their nose around the corner, they penned pretty easy. Thad Buckler was our judge.
We started the day complaining that it was too cold and ended the day complaining that it was too hot. The wind stayed pretty steady all day blowing from our left on some runs and in our faces on others. There was maybe a little hearing compromised at the drive panel but it seemed that the dogs that wanted to listen, heard just fine.
The open class was first and Stormy Winters and Roy had a very good run, making all his panels and pen. Perhaps the only criticism was when he called his dog in on the shed and it turned first on the wrong sheep but then turned around to the right ones.
Scott and Maid ran 11th and showed us how to do it.

Maid pacing her sheep around the course

She needed one redirect on her outrun and after that, Scott concentrated on keeping her pace instead of having to stop her. She had a good pen and shed and ended up with a 90 point run which remained unbeaten for the rest of the day.

Maid on her winning run

Lad and I ran 17th and had a beautiful run up to the shed. He got a little lost on the outrun but fixed it himself without me having to whistle. His fetch and drive were really nice but he wouldn't come in on the shed. I think we had 3 missed attempts before we finally got it and had one circle around the pen before they went in. He ended up with a 71.
Hemp was clean on his outrun but overran at the top. After that, he was not as precise as I would like but we got through the course, making our panels and getting the shed. He had one turn around the pen and then they went in. His final score was a 75.
Scott ran Drift 35th and had a decent run but some difficulty with one ewe. He got his shed on the first try which was becoming a problem for many people who were expecting their dogs to come in but were surprised when they didn't . Most likely, it caused by the sheep curling around the handler.
The last of our dogs to run was Dian Pagel's Lucy, who was run by Scott at this trial. It was hoped that I would run Lucy at the Nationals, but it doesn't look like she is going to have enough points to go so Scott ran her here since he knows her better than me. Lucy only needed one redirect on her outrun and then got out there and had a nice fetch. She had to grip a challenging ewe on the drive but once that was taken care of, the sheep realized they couldn't push this little red dog around. She had a nice shed and pen and got a 76.

Open Round One: 43 dogs (unofficial)
1. Scott Glen and Maid
2. Correy Perry and Jill
3. Bev Lambert and Hemp
4. George Stambulic and Gyp
5. Stormy Winters and Roy
6. Ian Zoerb and Peg
7.8.9. Bev Lambert and Mirk
Wendy Schmaltz and Fly
Dale Montgomery (ties not broken)
10. Peter Gonnet and Jill

On to the Pro Novice class. Gayle Cochlan and her Leah were up first and no runs got any better after she laid down her 75 point run. The second highest run went to Scott and Don who missed their fetch gate and other than that had a really good run. Tuque and I ran 15th and were running with a handicap. Tuque had tore up the pads of her feet during our practice runs this week and had to wear bandages to the post. She felt good enough when the bandages were put on that I had no hesitation in running her. We have been working on teaching her a "get out" so that when she is confused on her outrun I can help her. She understands how to go up a hill but not down the other side and up the next one so she tried to crossover again. She didn't get much for her outrun, but I got her out there and maybe tomorrow she will remember where she found them. After that she settle down and had a nice controlled fetch and a decent drive but we lost so much time getting her out on the outrun that we ran out of time on the third leg and got no points for the drive. He outrun lift and fetch were a 23. Next to last was Scott and Sleat. Unfortunately, Sleat tried to crossover but Scott stopped her on the line and got her back around the way she came. The judge took 14 for that but other than that, she was still looking pretty good around the course and ended with a 68. River and I ran last and he did a pretty nice job. He needed a few redirects on his outrun but on the whole, he was easier to get out than Tuque. It was our first course completed and I was proud of him. He made all his panels and had a nice pen but his lines were a little off and we ended up with a 58.

Pro-Novice Day One: (22 dogs) unofficial

1. Gayle Cochlan and Leah
2. Scott Glen and Don
3. Chris Jobe and Fly
4. Bev Lambert and Esther
5. Scott Glen and Sleat
6. Lee Lumb and Rex
7.8. Correy Perry and Jill
Peter Gonnet and Meg (tie not broken)
9. Louanne Twa and Rob
10. 11. Abe Marshall and Maid
Jennifer Glen and River (tie not broken)

Madden Summer Classic - Day Two

We awoke on Sunday to the welcome sight of a tractor and swather cutting down some of the tall grass on the trial field. It was much easier to see your dog at the top now and it was predicted that some of the scores would be in the 90s. I was second up to the post with Lad in the Open. He needed one redirect on his outrun but I could see him at the top and had a better lift. He brought them down the fetch line a little hard but I let it go for a little bit to get them away from the trailers. It is rare that sheep find Lad too imposing but it caught up with us. I had just decided weneeded to smooth out just past the fetch panels and one of the ewes declared she wasn't going any further. She dropped her head and came at Lad who responded with a quick hit on her nose that made her jump up and turn around to continue along. I made extra sure that we took our time after that since she was still considering quitting but we managed to persuade her to finish the course. I still missed the cross drive panels but every thing else looked good and we ended up with an 84. Lucy and I were next. Unfortunately, Lucy didn't get to see any of the runs go before her on that day because my runs were too close together. I thought she might be ok anyway because she had been up there the day before, but it didn't work that way. She got more lost the second day than the first one and was pretty crazy when she finally found them. The run was very rough and we missed our fetch panels. We managed to turn the post but the sheep took off for the exhaust and Lucy had no room to give ground against the fence and ended up gripping off. I was determined to get ahold of Hemp this time. He had a great outrun and his usual good lift but he was pushing hard. I fought him around the course and managed to settle him down. We had a good drive and crossdrive and I almost made those crossdrive panels but not quite. We had another good shed but once again, no pen which is getting pretty frustrating. Our final score was a 72. Scott ran Drift again and had a very nice run making his panels and getting his shed.

Drift and Scott at the start of the drive

His pen was rough so he only ended up with an 83 which was a tie for 6th place.

Scott calling Drift in on the shed

The last Open dog to run was Maid who finished her course but it was not clean. I never did get a score for Maid. It wasn't posted and even though I asked several times I couldn't find it out. Scott said it wasn't competitive but he was happy enough with her.
Grant Musgrove with Sam, a son of Scott's old Dan showed us how some age and experience in a dog can make it look easy. Eleven year old, one eyed Sam just coasted around the course and won with a 93!

Not Sam, but Grant Musgrove watches with his next generation of winners, Alta-Pete Willow

There was a three way tie for the overall trophy in the Open class. The USBCHA national champions, Ian Zoerb and Peg, challenged Milton Scott and Ben and Laddie and I in a run off course. Milton ran first and had a great outrun and lift but his drive was off and he missed the panels. He finished with a good shed and pen. Laddie gave me everything he had. We had nice lines and FINALLY made that crossdrive panel (it was time to go for broke). The shed and pen were not clean but we only lost a few points on them. Ian had good fetch but missed a panel on his drive so he walked off before the shed. The judge's final decision was that Lad and I had won it with a 91! I was very proud to have won against such difficult competitors.

Lad and his overall Open trophy

Open Day Two -28 dogs (unofficial)
1. Grant Musgrove and Sam
2. Thad Buckler and Cora
3. Corey Perry and Jill
4. Ian Zoerb and Gyp
5. 6. Jennifer Glen and Lad
Milton Scott and Ben (tie not broken)
7. 8. Scott Glen and Drift
Ian Zoerb and Peg (tie not broken)
9. Randy Dye and Sweep
10. Penny Ohanjanian Quill

Overall Open:
1. Jennifer Glen and Lad
2. Milton Scott and Ben
3. Ian Zoerb and Peg

The Pro Novice class ran in the afternoon and was almost a copy of the day before. Scott and Sleat started the day and although the run was not as clean as the day before, they pulled off a 79 which was good enough for the win and the overall! River looked as if he had seen the sheep this time and went out with confidence but once he dropped into the first dip he was confused and never did get all the way out. Tarn surprisingly had difficulties on her outrun but only because she was trying to be good. She took Scott's redirect and continued way past the set out trailers with the sheep and into the back field. Fortunately, even though no one could see her, she could still hear Scott's recalls and came back after a long wait. Don had 3 sheep that were working together and one that just wanted to graze in the afternoon sun. He worked very hard and got her around the course but only got a 52 for his effort. I could have sworn that Tuque was going to make it to the sheep that day but once again the dip in the field fooled her and she wouldn't bend enough to look around for the hiding sheep so we retired again. Chase gave it a good effort and had a nice outrun

Andrea Anderson's XE Chase

but being slow on the fetch she missed the panels and then lost the sheep to the exhaust like many other dogs that day.

Pro Novice Day Two -23 dogs:
1. Scott Glen and Sleat
2. Thad Buckler and Nick
3. Judy Finseth and Maud
4. Chris Jobe and Fly
5. Thad Buckler and Cora
6. Scott Glen and Don

Overall Pro Novice:
1. Scott Glen and Sleat

Madden Summer Classic - Day One

August 15-16, 2009 Madden, Alberta : Denis Nagel , DVM and the Madden Ag Society put on this classy trial for the second year. The whole town of Madden gets behind the show and it gets quite a few spectators. At Saturday night's dinner, every open dog was bought in the calcutta and most of them by locals. The sheep are crossbred woolies and are the same ones that will be used in the upcoming Canadian Championships. There were a few unfit ones but most of them were good as long as you treated them well. If you chased them, the judge, Denis Nagel, didn't need to mark it, the sheep would penalize you for your bad stockwork. The weather was blissfully cool all weekend and allowed everyone to lay down their best runs. The field; Well, the field was very difficult. It had dips that tricked the dogs into coming in early on their outruns and the grass was so high in places, especially on the lift, that you couldn't see your dog. It certainly gave you practice in learning to watch your sheep instead of your dog because you had no choice.
We started with the Pro-Novice class. Scott and Don were second to the post and got a difficult draw. It was a learning experience for Don who is figuring out how to handle all types of sheep. His run earned him a 69. Susan Gilbert's Tuque and I were next to the post. She seemed to see the sheep when she left my side. She ran out with confidence but at about 150 yards out she started to come in early. I stopped her and redirected her but she didn't take it. I stopped her again and tried to bend her by chewing her out but that didn't work either. In the end, I tried to get her to bend all the way across the field but once she had crossed over and I could see she wasn't going to bend and get her sheep, I figured nothing could be gained and walked off. She clearly had no idea what I was talking about so brow beating her was not going to fix it - something to work on at home.
Scott's next run was with Andrea Anderson's Chase from Alberta. Chase is a 6 year old red bitch out of the same Meg as Maid and Hemp and is in for some brush up training work. She is incredibly honest but had pups a few months ago and hasn't gotten her vigor back yet. She did a nice but slow outrun and took her sheep politely around the course. Unfortunately she only earned a 32. Scott then ran Diane Pagel's Sleat who was definitely on her game. Apparently she has decided to peak at a good time and we are hoping this continues through the nationals. She acted as if the high grass and touchy sheep were no problem and marched them around and made all her gates. When the pen gate closed, she had earned an 82! This was enough to win the class! Shortly after Sleat, David Titcomb's River and I went to the post. I had a feeling this outrun was going to be beyond him and he just didn't have any idea where those sheep were. I gave him several redirects but he didn't understand so we retired. Next, Scott ran Tarn. Tarn is a 4yr old bitch owned by Chris Soderstrom of Fido's Farm in Olympia, Washington.

Chris Soderstom's Tarn in the high grass on the fetch

Tarn is another bitch out of Grant Musgrove's Megan and is a littermate to my Hemp but is very different from him. Tarn is very courteous to her sheep. Scott did her early training a couple of years ago but she and Chris have put alot of miles on at their working ranch since then and that has really molded her into a dog that understands sheep. She has recently come back in for shedding and turn back training and even though she had never run in a trial before, Scott thought she could handle this one and she certainly did.

Tarn having no trouble with her sheep

Because of her practical work, Tarn was able to do the outrun when many other dogs couldn't. She only needed one redirect and then took her sheep around nicely and made all her panels and pen.

Tarn at the pen

She tied for second with an 81 but her redirect on the outrun bumped her to 3rd. Not bad for her first trial!

Pro Novice Day One - 24 dogs (unofficial):
1. Scott Glen and Sleat
2.Thad Buckler and Cora
3. Scott Glen and Tarn
4. Corey Perry and Jill
5. Scott Glen and Don
6. 7. Judy Finseth and Maude
Penny Ohanjanian and Moss (Tie not broken
8. Judy Finseth and Kate
9. Thad Buckler and Scott
10. Ian Zoerb and Lexi

The Open class started in the afternoon and Scott and Drift were the first to the post. Drift took his redirect and found the sheep but his fetch was a little rough. It wasn't a bad run but wasn't great either and earned him a 65. A little later, Scott ran Maid who had one redirect on her outrun and a good lift. The sheep were coming along nicely on the fetch but shortly into it, they split in half and two ran back up to the set out. Because of the high grass, it was impossible to tell what caused it but Scott knows his dog well and has his suspicions. It looked like it couldn't be fixed but Maid went back and got them and slowly and carefully worked them back together and continued on her run. It hurt her score and she ended up with only a 78. Next, I was up to the post with Lad. He didn't need any redirects on his outrun but I couldn't see him at the top and had no idea where he was. I blew some walk up whistles and got nothing. I was getting a little worried that he was lost somewhere but since he always comes up short, I tried a comebye whistle and then a walk up. That worked. He must have been waiting for the redirect and didn't want to walk up in the wrong place. Why he didn't just move over I'll never know. After that, he had a good run but I had a hard time getting the crossdrive panels. Other than that, it was nice enough to get us an 83 which put us in a 3 way tie for second (one point behind the leaders, Ian Zoerb and Peg) but dropped us to 4th because of the slow lift. Shortly after, Diane Pagel's Lucy and I went to the post. Scott put some training on Lucy this winter but then she went home to Diane for a couple of months. She came back last week and I only had a couple of days to work her before we went to the post at this trial.

Lucy and I at the start of the outrun

She needed a couple of redirects on the outrun and I think it threw her off when she finally got there because she was a little rough on the sheep and that is very unlike her. We missed the fetch panels but got back on line and made our drive panels. I again missed the cross drive panels but we had a nice shed and pen and earned a 65 in our first trial together. Last, I ran Hemp. It was not a good run. He needed one redirect but once he got to his sheep he was wild and didn't settle. I didn't allow him to abuse the them but it was never a straight line. His one good thing was his shed but after the pen continued to be it's customary round and round, I retired.

Open Day One - 29 dogs (unofficial)
1.Ian Zoerb and Peg
2. Milton Scott and Ben
3. Ian Zoerb and Freckles
4. Jennifer Glen and Lad
5. Scott Glen and Maid
6. Milton Scott and Moss
7. George Stambulic and Gyp
8. 9. Scott Glen and Drift
Jennifer Glen and Lucy (tie not broken)
10. Grant Musgrove and Sam

Shaunavon Trial Day Two

The second day started out cool but you could feel the heat coming. The first class was Pro-Novice. Tuque gave her usual good outrun and came in deep behind the sheep. Yesterday I didn't want to stop her on her lift because I wasn't sure if she'd lift the very heavy sheep. She had proved that to be no problem so I decided that today we would make sure we had enough control to practice the stop at the end of her outrun. She did it beautifully but still lifted a little rough. I decided to enforce a pace instead of worrying about her line since we were not trying to win this trial but rather get her ready for the Nationals. We missed the fetch panels but for the greater good since she slowed her pace and allowed me to use less stops. Her speed was helpful around the post since the pull to the exhaust had become very strong.

Tuque turning the post

Our line to the first drive panel was off but we didn't have any of the back and forth weaving that we had to do the day before to line them out. They did line out but pushed hard to the left and got ahead of us just enough that we couldn't get them exactly on line. Tuque again felt the pressure of the panels and took a wrong flank but we sorted it out and still made it through. We took the crossdrive more carefully and I was able to keep her taking the right flanks all the way through the crossdrive panels. She took the turn flank tighter than I wanted (something to work on) but didn't cause too much damage. The third leg of the drive was to the shedding ring where the judge had asked us to settle the sheep and then bring them into the pen. The sheep took off running through the ring and towards the exhaust. Tuque took a wrong flank to stop them and I made her take the right one. Unfortunately this made her have to run as fast as possible to catch them before they left the field. When she got behind them I gave her a hard stop and she took it. The well meaning farm owner raced off on his quad to stop the sheep or exhaust them, I don't know, but he stopped right behind Tuque who was behind me about 30 yrds. I turned to face her and noticed the wind was in my face. I whistled to her to walk up but with the quad motor and the breeze going the wrong way, she couldn't hear me. I was afraid that the sheep were going to get around her because they were really leaning on her. The last thing she had heard was a hard stop so she stayed put. Fortunately,on my 3rd whistle she heard me and brought the sheep to the pen. We had a little struggle with them but she did a good job and got them in.

Tuque and I penning

It wasn't the best score in the world a 58, and she was a little bit pushier than the day before but she did alot of things well and I was happy with her. We know what we have to work on and we'll try to improve before next weekend's trial.
Louanne and Isla had a much better run in the Pro-Novice this time around and even without a pen and many stops on their outrun, they managed to pull off a 4th place.
By the time Hemp ran the heat had come up.

Notice the heat waves in the distance behind Hemp

Hemp made all his panels and was still working really well but it just didn't go in our favor. His shed was quick and good and we got to the pen but weren't able to finish it.

Hemp setting up the shed

His flanks were good and I didn't have to warn him about them so they were faster but his stops were not good enough. He would take an extra step and that would mess it up the pen. I was watching him in the heat and he seemed to be doing ok so I kept at it until he decided that he'd had enough of the lead sheep and cut her out. I was mad at him then because it is becoming a habit for him to ignore a sheep he doesn't like so I dropped the rope and made him get around her and then retired. He was still working better than he ever has so I wasn't all that upset.
Lad's run was ultimately a retire also. He was so good and worked his butt off for me. He didn't have any of the troubles of flanking on the sheep that he did the day before but he had a lead sheep that took him out of it. Around the course he showed her who was boss and even gave a good shed but at the pen she continuously left the group to jump over my rope. Lad listened and when I told him to go wide behind the pen to bring her back but not disturb the other 3 in the mouth, he did it. He also had to run around that pen several times and every time took his flank the way I asked and with plenty of energy so I was pleased that he was tolerating the heat too. Finally, we had 3 minutes left and I could see she wasn't going in. Lad had been so good and I didn't want to punish him by making him continuously regather her so I called him off and told him what a good boy he was.
It was a very difficult trial because of the sheep but an enjoyable one. I was proud of the dogs for giving it their all and in the end, the handlers that were doing the best were the ones who had the most experience with good dogs. Just what should win. I will get the open placings up when they are sent to me this week. I left before it was finished but I would be surprised if anyone beat Jo Anne Zoerb and her seasoned Brynn who is having a good year. They were in the lead with a 92.

Pro-Novice (unofficial) 17 dogs
1. Dale Montgomery and Jill
2. Peter Gonnet and Taff
3. Dale Montgomery and Ben
4. Louanne Twa and Isla
5. Peter Gonnet and Meg
6. Jennifer Glen and Tuque

Shaunavon Trial Day One

August 8 & 9, 2009 Shaunavon Sask. Scott is away teaching a clinic in Washington this weekend so I decided to drive over to Saskatchewan and go to Jamie Florence's new trial. It's only about 5 hours away and since my buddy Louanne Twa was also going, I could stay in her big camper. It's a nice course with about a 400 yard outrun and although the handler turnout was small, I'm sure it will build. It is first class all the way because it had a nice amount of spectators with an announcer and many prizes for the winners. So all the dogs and I headed over yesterday in the nice cool weather. It threatened to rain all through the drive but never did so it was comfortable weather for traveling with the dogs. Today's weather started out cool but it cleared in the afternoon and warmed up quite a bit. The judge today was Louise Libenberg and her husband, Erik Versappen will judge tomorrow. The field is flat as a pancake and the sheep are range ewes from Dale Montgomery. I had been informed that they were from the same flock as they always use for the Maple Creek trial and they liked to run. I didn't mind that since Lad is good with running sheep, but we soon found out that these sheep didn't like to run at all. This morning's sheep were especially heavy but they got only a little bit better as the day progressed. Milton Scott started the day but when his young dog, Ben, tried to goose the sheep to speed them up at the fetch panels, he was called for a grip. Lad was next. I sent him to the left and he pulled up just a tad short. I whistled him over and he lifted them nicely. I had a hard time lining these sheep out on the fetch. He had them moving at a not so bad pace but they were tricky. You had to really get the dog up in their eye to have an influence on them but then it was inevitably too far and they would turn the other way. We did make the fetch panels but then I was stupid and turned the wrong way around the post. My only excuse was that both drive panels looked like the drive away panels and neither looked like a cross drive. I knew which way we were supposed to go (left) but we'd all been joking about the other way and obviously it got in my head. (thanks alot Norm Sommer!) I unwound the post and did a not so bad drive away, making the panels but the crossdrive was tricky and Lad wouldn't let go of the pressure to take my flanks (he was among many) so we were way high on the crossdrive and started for the shed. The judge wasn't going to call the shed or the single but she said she would tell you if it wasn't good enough and she wanted you to reshed. Lad didn't come in on my first call in and then had a weak hold on my second. I started for the pen but the judge wanted us to reshed. I decided it wasn't going to get any better and I retired.
My travel buddy, Louanne did not have an easy time of it with her Isla. She had a good outrun but pulled up short and her fetch line was way off to her left. Eventually, Isla decided she had had enough of these sheep and gripped and was called off.
Hemp ran later in the day when it was starting to get hot, however, I had never had him run so well! We have been working on improving and getting our act together and for today at least, it worked. I sent him to the left but he had seen something off to my right. I thought he'd kick out since he's usually a great outrunner but this time he didn't so I stopped him before he crossed over and gave him a redirect. (we lost 3 points for that) He had a perfect lift and I left him mostly alone on his fetch because he had ahold of them really well. There was a little bobble right in front of the panels but we still made them. He was really pacing himself well and stopping himself if he thought it was a little fast. He only lost 2 on the fetch. I never once had to tell him to slow down. Around the post and a nice drive line making the first panel. He had to fight with them a little but kept his cool (both of us did) and I didn't start panicking in front of the panel so we were able to fix it and make the turn. His crossdrive was a banana I'm afraid to say, but we did make the panels and turned to go to the shedding ring. We had one missed attempt that wasn't really a missed attempt. I had a leader shoot away and I thought I'd have one more follow her but she didn't and the leader ran out of the ring and Hemp came in thinking he should. I had to regroup and then had a nice shed but we lost 3 points. We then headed to the pen. Now, I have to say that Hemp and I have really been working on the shape of the pen flanks. He usually slices them and dashes in. This time, I took the time to warn him, and then give him the flanks, "NOW YOU! Come bye" He took them all perfectly but a little slow. Between the two of us, we once almost had them in but not quite. Speeding the flanks up would only have caused him to start slashing again and we wouldn't have made them anyway, so I took my time and made sure he did it right and we didn't get the pen but I think we did better for our long run. Obviously, we didn't get the single either. We ended up with a 75 which was very respectable. I was overjoyed with the way he worked! I think we are headed in the right direction.
I ran Tuque in the pro-novice for the first time today. I was a little worried that these sheep would be too heavy for her. She's not a weak dog but she and I are still getting used to eachother and she doesn't have alot of trial experience so I was afraid she might stall out. I'm happy to say she did not. I was also worried that she might not stop for me and I was prepared to enforce that by leaving the post but she didn't need it. She had a great outrun, a decent fetch (I only gave her a steady because I was afraid of her having trouble lifting the sheep so the lift was just a little rough) and then took every stop I gave her on the fetch. We had a little trouble figuring out where to be and missed the fetch panels by a hair. When we turned the post, I had a leader try to run to the exhaust and the other 3 hang back. Tuque was very good and listened to me while I helped her sort this out. We had a very wobbly drive away. It was all within a hair of the line but we had a difficult time lining them out. She also gave into the pressure right infront of the panels and took a wrong flank. She doesn't like to go comebye infront of the panels and tries to head the sheep. We got it fixed and made the panels. The crossdrive was difficult because of that leader sheep who tried to run away and leave the other's behind. Tuque did her best to stop her and then get the others and we made the panels but on the third leg, she was tired of this running leader and tried to let her go. She needed to open up her flank to include the bad ewe but she kept tightening up instead. I decided that it had gone on too long and I retired so I could show her how to handle the situation. I was very happy with her and how well she is listening (stopping) I have some things to work on this week but I now know what they are. We'll see if we can handle tomorrow any better but I will be prepared again to leave the post if she needs help or discipline.
The class was won by Peter Gonnet and his young Taff who was also a high placing dog in the open and is only 2years old. I'm sure he'll be a challenge to beat for quite some time.
I will probably not be able to post tomorrow since I will be driving home after the trial and will likely be quite late. I will get the posts up on Monday and try to get some pictures taken too.

Open: Day one 26 dogs (unofficial)
1. Dale Montgomery and Jill
2. Ian Zoerb and Peg
3. Ian Zoerb and Freckles
4., 5. Randy Dye and Sweep
Peter Gonnet and Taff (tie not broken)
6. Jennifer Glen and Hemp
7. Joanne Zoerb and Mik
8. 9. Dale Montgomery and Ben
Joanne Zoerb and Brynn (tie not broken)
10. Milton Scott and Moss

Pro-Novice- 21 dogs (unnofficial)
1. Peter Gonnet and Taff
2. Dale Montgomery and Ben
3. Dale Montgomery and Jill
4. Dirk Vansant
5. Peter Gonnet and Meg

Chinquapinwood Trial Stockdog class and Nursery

No fog this morning so we were able to start the Stockdog/Nursery class at 7:30AM. The morning started out overcast but warmed up as the sun came out. The course was the same as open, minus a shed. Tuque was the first of our dogs to run in the first class. Unfortunately, Tuque is not performing as well as she was a few trials ago. That's young dogs. They can't be perfect all the time and since she is already qualified for the nationals, the trick will be to keep her from developing any bad habits. After the Bluegrass, if she still needs it, Scott will get some more training on her to prepare her for the finals. Since the main part of her problem was her stop, Scott decided to pull her from the second class and put River in her place.
Sleat is getting better all the time.

Diane Pagel's Sleat

She had a good outrun lift and fetch and the start of her drive on her cross drive she took a wrong flank and missed her panels.

Sleat on the fetch

However, up until that time she had a nice and controlled drive but ran out of time at the pen. Her final score was a 67.
Don had an off day too. His fetch was a little rough and he made his drive away panels but his crossdrive suffered and his flanks weren't up to par. He also timed out at the pen and only got a 43.
Alasdair MacRae won the class with an 89! (that's out of 90)

Stock Dog Class first round: (36 dogs)
1. Alasdair MacRae and Hanna
2. Emil Luedecke and Lad
3. Vergil Holland and Scott
4. Linda Myer and Gnat
5. Alasdair MacRae and Sara
6. Vickey Russell and Devi

Nursery day one: (21 dogs)
1. Emil Luedecke and Lad
2. Vergil Holland and Scott
3. Alasdair MacRae and Sara
4. Vickey Russell and Devi

On the second run of the stockdog/nursery class the sheep got more difficult but our dogs got better. The sheep had been good this whole trial but they were hot and tired and just wanted to go to the exhaust. They got much harder to push around the drive.
Sleat still didn't get her qualifying leg but she is almost there. Her outrun and lift were good as usual and she pushed on those heavy sheep and only had difficulty right in front of the crossdrive panels. She did make them but it was very wobbly. Her score was a 74.
Donnie moved his sheep alot faster and was taking his flanks better since the sheep weren't leaning on him as much with the quicker pace.

Don on the fetch

This time he got his pen and ended up with a 70.

Don and Scott at the pen

Scott knew that the sheep were going to be difficult for River.It had just gotten too hard for a green young dog. He ran at the end of the class in the heat of the day when the sheep had decided they had enough. So his plan was to use the run to give River some training experience and retire him when it got too much. First we weren't sure how his outrun would go since he didn't run in the previous class with all the other dogs. Scott only had to give him one blow on the whistle and River corrected his outrun and finished it up wonderfully. He continued on and had a great fetch too. Many dogs lost sheep going around the post as they ran back to the set out. River kept his under control and started on the drive. He did a good job of trying to move them up the drive line. They wanted to stop and graze and River kept picking them up and moving them along but right in front of the panels it got too hard and he circled them. Scott helped him straighten them out and then retired and had River bring them back to him. River was pretty proud of himself and we were just as proud of him. He did better than we had expected.

Stockdog Class Second Round: (36 dogs)
1. Jim Swift and Molly
2. Alasdair MacRae and Hanna
3. Emil Luedecke and Lad
4. Mary Thompson and Rio
5. Vergil Holland and Scott
6. Maureen Robinson and Newt
Nursery Class Second Round: (21 dogs)
1. Jim Swift and Molly
2.Emil Luedecke and Lad
3. Vergil Holland and Scott

Heppner Day Three

Well, Maid gets to keep her shotgun position. Although her run didn't score as well today, Scott was over the moon with how she worked. She had it won until the crossdrive when she had some running and lagging sheep and ended up with a messed up line and a panel missed. She had sheep facing her more than once and she walked into them every time with no gripping, which, if you know Maid at all, is a big step for her. Unfortunately, with the second round time shortened by 2 minutes, she ran out of time at the pen and ended up in 10th place for the day. However, she won the overall so we are very proud of her.
Lucy looked good today too. She had a missed attempt on the shed that confused Scott but after he got the sheep penned he found that she had a blind one that explained it. She was tied with Roo with a 78. Scott will be giving me the final placings this evening but he did say that 3 of the dogs ended up in the top 10.
Tuque looked better today and although the run still wasn't competitive, he was glad he chose to run her. He said she's learning alot with these sheep and smoothing out. Her last run was so much better than her first. She was still having a little trouble with her drive, but a valid excuse was that the crossdrive was the same distance as the open.
The best news was that Donnie looked stellar today and handled the sheep well, winning the nursery .
I will have the top 10 open and top 3 nursery orders up tonight.

Heppner Day Two

Unofficial placings from the first round of Open:
(ties have not been broken)
1. Scott Glen and Maid
2. Patrick Shannahan and Riggs
3. Scott Glen and Roo
4./5. Donna Eliasen and Zach
Scott Glen and Drift
6. Noel Williams and Gael
7./8. Karen Child and CBK Rock
Lana Rowley and Blue
9./10. Noel Williams and Nap
Francis Chai and Belle

Nursery first round:
1. Diane Deal and Annie
2. Patrick Shannahan and Andy
3. Patrick Shannahan running Bobbie Anderson's Tater

Scott said the wind and rain were in your face today on and off. He swore it seemed to come in every time he went to the post but then relaxed when he was done running. Drift did well in his first run today but the second run for the second round of open was not as good. The sheep are pulling hard to the exhaust and at the crossdrive gate the sheep fooled Scott. He thought they would go through but just squirted to the side at the last minute. He did finish his course but with a wide turn around the post and a bad start to the drive, he didn't think they were going to place as high in the second round. Roo was sitting second at the end of the day with a 78 but Scott didn't think it was going to hold that place. He missed a fetch gate today. Maid and Lucy will run tomorrow but currently Lana Rowley and Blue are in the lead.
In today's nursery, Scott felt that Tuque definitely handled the sheep better. The sheep kept trying her on the drive and continuing to stop and stare at her but today she walked into them. Scott said that it took too much time to get around and at the end the sheep whipped by the crossdrive gates just short of them. Scott saw that they were running out of time and the sheep ran by the pen to the exhaust. They gave him a retire which is not what he actually did but the score wasn't going to be competitive so it didn't matter. He said if the sheep are as difficult tomorrow he might not run the nursery again.
Happily, I can report that Don won today! However, Scott said this nursery was a little too hard for his young dogs but he did say that Patrick Shannahan's dogs were handling them well.
Day 2 nursery placings:
1. Scott Glen and Don
2. Patrick Shannahan and Andy
3. Karen Stanley and Clare

Tomorrow should be a shorter day with the last runs of open to go and the final run of nursery

Heppner Day One

The first day of Heppner started at 7Am and ran until dark. It was a little windy and cold today with no sun but Scott called it "a nice day for dog trialing." They did not finish all the open runs today so none of my information is final but it is current for the first day. At this point, Maid is in first place with an 89. Scott said she was a little high on her crossdrive but other than that it was a good run. There were very few pens today and Maid's was the first.
Lucy was the next to run. He was also happy with her. She is known to be extremely biddable and it's good to know that she carries that into a trial. Her youth was the only thing that got in her way with a wide turn around the post and a missed flank which caused her to miss a drive panel. She also had a rough shed. She came in nicely but Scott said it took a little time to set it up.
As of this evening, Patrick Shannahan was in second place but I didn't find out if it was with Riggs or another dog.
Roo, I am proud to say, is in third with a 79. Scott said he had a good outrun but got hung up on the trailers. If you ask me, this is because all last year he would cut in on his outruns and make a mess of the lift so he's never seen trailers on the outrun! It's a good lesson for him tho and Scott said that once he was past that he was very very good and alot of people liked the way he was working.
Scott said that after 3rd there was a crowd of people in the high 60's and that was where Lucy scored so he didn't know what place she was in.
Drift hasn't had the chance to run yet and will go tomorrow.
The nursery was a little disappointing but Scott says he has confidence that the dogs will improve on their second go tomorrow. He said Donnie was very good and perhaps he shouldn't have tried as hard to hit his fetch panels as he did. By that time the sheep had been rerun and were pulling hard to the exhaust. Don got stuck into them and didn't have as nice of flanks as he usually does. They did get their first drive leg done but Scott felt the sheep were just too much and he walked off so Don didn't loose confidence.
Tuque's run went much the same. She had a very good outrun, despite the fact that because it was dark he was sure she didn't see the sheep when she left his feet. Her fetch was also very good but on the first leg of the drive the sheep started facing her and she'd never experienced that before. She was hesitating so Scott left the post to help her out so she'd learn from it. He said he was happy with both the nursery dogs but this is just a very difficult trial for a first time out.
Actually, he was happy with all the dogs. If can get him to call in tomorrow at the end of the first trial I will post in the afternoon but otherwise, I'll get another update tomorrow night.

Off to Heppner

Yea! The first trial of the year! Boo-hoo! I don't get to go!
Scott left today for Heppner, Oregon for the St. Patrick's day trial.

Lucy and Roo waiting in their crates in the truck to leave this morning.

We still have some customer dogs here at our farm that are finishing up training and Scott likes to do a clinic at the end of this trip at Fido's Farm in Washington State, so I always stay home and mind the fort and dogs. He'll be home in 10 days to finish up training the customer dogs and then we will have 2 weeks left to finish up our trial dogs. Scott will have a jump on the season by going to Heppner where he can get a feel for how his dogs are working. It's a flat field with lambs to work so it tends to be a very difficult trial. It's not ideal for the first outing of the year but it will let him know what still needs to be worked on and how the young dogs are going to react at their first trial.
He'll be running 4 open dogs, Maid, Drift, Roo and Lucy and 2 nursery dogs. We decided to make a change for this trial with the nursery dogs. He'll still be running Don, but he's going to wait to debut Sleat until the Plum Lucky trial in April. These lambs are difficult, sometimes running and sometimes not moving so it didn't seem right to run Sleat on them when she has just started to show some confidence in driving. Tuque on the other hand, has a little bit more experience at this time of the year and is a confident driver. It seemed prudent to run her instead. (be sure to read Tuque's bio in the entry below this one)
Last year Scott thought it would be a good idea to sleep in the truck at the trial with only my Hudson's Bay blanket for warmth. After all, Admiral Byrd took one on his expeditions to the Antarctic. But Admiral Byrd must have taken several to the Antarctic because Scott found out he was not near warm enough and picked up a horrible flu. This year he is much more prepared, leaving early this morning and staying in a hotel during the trial. It should make for a much more enjoyable trip.
Maid had shotgun as they left because she won this trial last year but shotgun for the rest of the trip will be based on the dog's performances.

Maid keeping Scott company on the trip.

Scott has promised to give me updates tomorrow night. I will drag what information I can out of him but in the future, when I am at the trials, I promise pictures and scores from the top 10. I can tell you now that at Heppner there will be 53 open dogs and 15 nursery dogs. They are going to run 2 open runs over 3 days and 3 separate nurseries. The judge is Don Helsely from Idaho.

Tuque

Susan Gilbert and David Titcomb's Tuque

Tuque is the next dog that Scott will be running in the nurseries this year. Of all the dogs she is the most world traveled. She was bred by Geri Byrne of Oregon and is out of her Ted. Ted came from Con McGarry and goes back to Vic Morris' Mac the 1994 English National winner. Tuque's mother is Geri's Lynn who was imported from Derek Scrimgeour and is a daughter of his old Sweep. Originally, Tuque was purchased by Angie Driscoll and Kelvin Broad and was brought up to Alberta, Canada to live with them.

Tuque working at our Alta-Pete Farm

However, shortly after purchasing her, Angie and Kelvin moved to the UK. Tuque was too young to go with them and stayed behind with us, coming along on our travels in the US, until she was old enough to travel to Scotland. While living across the pond, Kelvin put Tuque's early foundation on her but shortly after, sold her to Susan Gilbert and David Titcomb of Wyoming. So back to the country of her birth came Tuque. She lived with Susan and David until this past fall when she came to Scott for her winter training.

Tuque controlling her sheep

Tuque is a very fast dog and Scott says she melts the snow behind her on her outruns. Because of her confidence and abilities, he offered to trial Tuque for Susan and David for her nursery year.