It was a long, but very fun show up in Dixon.  The quality of the teams competing was the best I've ever seen at a non-National event.  The drive was another reminder of the perks of agility, it was quite beautiful with all the wild flowers.  Drives to agility trials have also allowed me to see some of the more beautiful sunrises I've ever seen.      

I had too many runs to give detailed description of them all, so we'll go with the highlights.  Max picked up 8 Qs at the trial:  2 Standards (6th, 4th), a Gamblers, legs in all three of the Tournament classes (DAM, Grand Prix and Steeplechase), a Pairs leg (1st with Kate and Quick) and a Super Q in Sunday's Snooker (4th).  His DAM team was a very consistent team and we ended up in 5th out of 60 teams!  Very cool!  My favorite run of the weekend was the Super Q run.  It was a great Snooker course that demanded teams to really go for it and we did!  Yay!  Max was just terrific all weekend.  The runs he didn't Q in were all my fault.      

Finn finished the trial with 7 Qs:  2 Standards (4th in one of them), a Jumpers, legs in the three Tournament classes (his DAM team had fellow GVDCers Gidget and Zip on it) and a Super Q in Sunday's Snooker (2nd).  I'm glad to report that we had a startline at the trial.  His contacts were not as we train them, but he wasn't missing them and his table...let's just say I chose not to run him in Sunday's Standard, because I didn't have the energy to take on that problem again.  His table is costing him good placements in Standard...sigh.  Actually, Saturday's Standard was pretty hysterical.  I thought we'd been called for an early refusal and when we reached the table, I figured I wouldn't say "down", just "table" (which is supposed to mean for him to lie down on the table).  So, we're at the table, Finn is refusing to look at me, when he does look at me it's to bark his flipping head off and I'm about to pull him off the course.  By the ingate I can hear Marq Cheeks screaming.  I couldn't make out what he was saying, but I heard him say my name, so I turn to look over there, while Finn is still standing on the table barking at me.  It turns out, Marq noticed that there hadn't been a refusal called and also noticed that I had assumed there was, so he was screaming, "Work it Mia" to keep me from giving up on Finn's table.  Finn eventually lay down on the table and my plan was then to hold him there for a couple seconds after the count finished.  I was just about to release him, when he self-released and went up the A-frame (which was the next obstacle).  I didn't realize I'd said it out loud, but the judge told me the next day, he'd never heard someone call their dog "pure evil" before.  ;-)  Despite the frustrations, Finn did finish a couple titles this weekend, his SACH-Bronze and TM-Bronze.  His first round of Steeplechase was probably the best run we've ever had.  That was great fun!  Finn and Max both had the same plan in Snooker and it was the last class of the show for me, so it was a great way to finish the show with two Super Qs.    

Miss Star was a very good girl in Dixon.  There were teeters placed in positions that made qualifying for us impossible in both Adv. Gamblers and one of the Masters Snooker.  She did lovely openings in all those classes.  Her first dogwalk of the weekend wasn't fast, but she cantered across the other three she did.  The first class she had a chance of Qing in was Adv. Jumpers and she would have won the class, if I hadn't sent her around a jump.  She still picked up a Q (3rd) for her second leg towards her AJ.  She gave a good effort in Steeplechase.  A bar down, a run by at the tough jump of the course and a missed weave entry were too many mistakes to make the second round, but I was thrilled with her effort.  She also did a great job in Sunday's Masters Snooker.  She did 3 6s in the opening (Max and Finn did two 7s and a 6) and made it through 5 of the closing.  I didn't pre-cue a turn and she carried to a jump that I hadn't noticed was on her line.  If she'd made it to 6 she would have picked up her first Masters Snooker Q!  It will come, she was such fun to run all weekend.      

I also ran Quick in Masters Pairs, while Kate ran Driven.  For those of you who know how spun those dogs are, you can imagine the exchange.  Driven went first and when they finished she locked onto the baton.  Quick bailed me to go see Kate, so Kate is prying the baton from Driven mouth while telling Quick to go to me (I was just sitting back and watching the chaos).  Somehow we got through the exchange and managed to pick up a Q in the class.  Very fun.  The announced at the trial, that it will be happening again next year.  I'm already putting it in my calendar.  Tell the dogs they're good.  mia I'll have more reports from the other people who went, but I wanted to get this one to you while I was thinking about it.

Mia Grant
ADCH Maximum SACH-Bronze SCH-Bronze RCH-Bronze GCH JCH TM-Bronze (Max)
Eyes for Ewe GoneWithTheWind AS SG SJ (Starlet)
Roxanne PI CGC TDI (The Roo, dearly departed, much missed)
agility partner to:
Kachina Mtn's Grand Finale MAD SACH-Bronze SCH-Bronze RM JCH TM-Bronze AX AXJ EAC OGC EJC RS-E GS-O JS-E (Finn)
USASA Open JWW 24" 2003 year-end award winner
USASA Novice B 24" 2002 year-end award winner