What a long weekend! Thank goodness it's a Bank Holiday otherwise I don't know how we'd have done it, we didn't get home until midnight last night after being stuck in traffic on the motorway back from Scunthorpe. However I'm still glad we went all that way, there's something special about the first final with your dog, even when things don't go to plan!
Anyway, Staverton first on the Saturday - not a great day as I was very wound up about what was to come on the Sunday, and could have done much better than I did. A last minute 'E' in the Gamblers was disappointing, but it was miles better than the last one I tried to do so I'm definitely going to enter more of those - it was quite good fun. Jumping was next and just turned off a fraction too early and brought Ella inside a jump wing, so another 'E', but heartened by a lovely 12 weaves later in the course - can't now imagine what her coming out of the last 2 poles looks like which is fabulous! Picked myself up after that and gave myself bit of a shake - thanks to Sue James for listening to my woes and reminding me how much I love my sport and really how good Ella & I are at it. So went into our Steeplechase course properly and did a cracking clear - 1st place and 6 points off Senior, happy days! Agility was right at the end of the day, but worth waiting for as it was a nice course to run. Sadly missing lunch earlier in the day had left me a little light-headed and I gave Ella's weave command far, far too late - 5 for skipping the 2nd pole but beautiful for the rest of the 12 poles after that.
Dog Vegas started well - I had strict instructions from Martin Tait about holding contacts as now Ella's won out of Grade 3 there's no need to push them. Lovely clear with 6 weaves out of a tunnel and no worries on her entry, plus me crossing behind which was great. The lovely blue & silver 8th place rosette was nice too :-)) In the next agility round Ella was high as a kite (I later found she needed to go to the toilet - good reminder before Final!) and I thought I would test her dog walk contact by quick releasing on the A-frame that came before. As expected she released herself so I was able to correct her, and she then was more careful to remember her criteria on the see-saw, and finished the round with a fast entry into 6 weaves. G3-5 Jumping was next and what I would describe as our first 'grown up' course, although nothing that Martin wouldn't set me as a quick warm up! Clear till the weaves where I think I ended up in her way and 5 for skipping the 2nd pole. She went back in beautifully to complete the 12 poles, so I was very pleased.
The Final course was a nice course which I felt would really suit Ella, and I'm really pleased with how I stayed calm & focused leading up to the start of it. I walked it straight after the judge had finished setting it and decided what I would need to do. I planned to be brave and let her pick up the see-saw out of the tunnel by herself and layer the jump off of it for a front cross. When I walked it the tunnel should have shot them out straight so that picking it up would have been no problem - sadly after I'd walked it the angle was changed slightly, so I ended up with a very eager Ella running directly to me instead!
Looking back (and esp. from this camera angle) I'm not sure if:
a) My original handling decision would have been correct
b) Did I tell her her command for see-saw early enough (or at all!)?
c) As I wasn't moving as she entered the tunnel would she have still come out looking for me anyway?
d) Would it have worked but I wasn't on the correct line I needed to be on?
Whilst I'm disappointed, I'm not going to jump off a bridge anytime soon - mistakes are opportunities to learn, and this isn't Ella's last final. Does my dog know or care frankly (!) that we didn't win? She had her enthusiastic game of tuggy at the end of her job as she always does, and she did everything I asked of her so she had no complaints from me about anything she did. I learnt that I can cope with the pressure of a final and still run my dog as I should, and that I'm brave about the handling choices I make - albeit it for the worse in this instance! Next time I think I'll probably opt for the safe option rather than the spectacular, unless I have a 2nd opinion on it from Martin Tait first! :-))
Today I'm grateful for having a wonderful dog to compete with, a great big snuggly one to welcome me when I return to the van, my dog agility van itself, Jan Sage & Lexi winning G1 Agility whilst we were up at Dog Vegas and going G2!, my parents for looking after my darling children whilst we were away, and last but by no means least, my loving, supportive husband for going all that way with me - and for always being right by my side whenever I need him.
Anyway, Staverton first on the Saturday - not a great day as I was very wound up about what was to come on the Sunday, and could have done much better than I did. A last minute 'E' in the Gamblers was disappointing, but it was miles better than the last one I tried to do so I'm definitely going to enter more of those - it was quite good fun. Jumping was next and just turned off a fraction too early and brought Ella inside a jump wing, so another 'E', but heartened by a lovely 12 weaves later in the course - can't now imagine what her coming out of the last 2 poles looks like which is fabulous! Picked myself up after that and gave myself bit of a shake - thanks to Sue James for listening to my woes and reminding me how much I love my sport and really how good Ella & I are at it. So went into our Steeplechase course properly and did a cracking clear - 1st place and 6 points off Senior, happy days! Agility was right at the end of the day, but worth waiting for as it was a nice course to run. Sadly missing lunch earlier in the day had left me a little light-headed and I gave Ella's weave command far, far too late - 5 for skipping the 2nd pole but beautiful for the rest of the 12 poles after that.
Dog Vegas started well - I had strict instructions from Martin Tait about holding contacts as now Ella's won out of Grade 3 there's no need to push them. Lovely clear with 6 weaves out of a tunnel and no worries on her entry, plus me crossing behind which was great. The lovely blue & silver 8th place rosette was nice too :-)) In the next agility round Ella was high as a kite (I later found she needed to go to the toilet - good reminder before Final!) and I thought I would test her dog walk contact by quick releasing on the A-frame that came before. As expected she released herself so I was able to correct her, and she then was more careful to remember her criteria on the see-saw, and finished the round with a fast entry into 6 weaves. G3-5 Jumping was next and what I would describe as our first 'grown up' course, although nothing that Martin wouldn't set me as a quick warm up! Clear till the weaves where I think I ended up in her way and 5 for skipping the 2nd pole. She went back in beautifully to complete the 12 poles, so I was very pleased.
The Final course was a nice course which I felt would really suit Ella, and I'm really pleased with how I stayed calm & focused leading up to the start of it. I walked it straight after the judge had finished setting it and decided what I would need to do. I planned to be brave and let her pick up the see-saw out of the tunnel by herself and layer the jump off of it for a front cross. When I walked it the tunnel should have shot them out straight so that picking it up would have been no problem - sadly after I'd walked it the angle was changed slightly, so I ended up with a very eager Ella running directly to me instead!
Looking back (and esp. from this camera angle) I'm not sure if:
a) My original handling decision would have been correct
b) Did I tell her her command for see-saw early enough (or at all!)?
c) As I wasn't moving as she entered the tunnel would she have still come out looking for me anyway?
d) Would it have worked but I wasn't on the correct line I needed to be on?
Whilst I'm disappointed, I'm not going to jump off a bridge anytime soon - mistakes are opportunities to learn, and this isn't Ella's last final. Does my dog know or care frankly (!) that we didn't win? She had her enthusiastic game of tuggy at the end of her job as she always does, and she did everything I asked of her so she had no complaints from me about anything she did. I learnt that I can cope with the pressure of a final and still run my dog as I should, and that I'm brave about the handling choices I make - albeit it for the worse in this instance! Next time I think I'll probably opt for the safe option rather than the spectacular, unless I have a 2nd opinion on it from Martin Tait first! :-))
Today I'm grateful for having a wonderful dog to compete with, a great big snuggly one to welcome me when I return to the van, my dog agility van itself, Jan Sage & Lexi winning G1 Agility whilst we were up at Dog Vegas and going G2!, my parents for looking after my darling children whilst we were away, and last but by no means least, my loving, supportive husband for going all that way with me - and for always being right by my side whenever I need him.
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