GVDC Show Report

Show Report

USDAA National
Scottsdale Arizona
November, 2004
Mia's Report

What fun at the USDAA Nationals this year! My goal going into the show was to get a ribbon and get at least one of the dogs into the Grand Prix semifinals. My show started with Joker's Wild which is a game involving gambles. Basically, the goal is to do as many gambles as possible in the amount of time allowed. If you go over the time, you get zero points. Max was such a good boy and had I had an opportunity to watch the other groups, I think I could have picked up a couple more points. As it was, he did as many gambles as any team (6) and took 5th place out of 207 teams for a big pink rosette! WOOHOO!!!! Both Finn and Max did very well in all their classes, but that was our only placement.
       Of course, it was the Grand Prix and Steeplechase that I was most interested in. Max's quarterfinals run in the Grand Prix had a near refusal (he totally saved my behind) and then a knocked bar. Fortunately the bar came down early enough for me to realize, if we had any hope of making the semis I'd have to really go for it the rest of the course. Max responded and did a terrific second half of the course. Finn was on edge the entire time in Scottsdale. Because we had to be on the line while the dog before us was finishing, Finn could see what he was about to do and was completely spun. In the quarterfinals, Finn self-released off every contact, but was fast and accurate, so I knew when we crossed the finish line that he'd made the semifinals. It was only waiting in line for my shirt for Finn that I finally had confirmation that Max had also made it into the semifinals! Woohoo!
       In the semis Finn had an early off-course, but Max.... Max was such a good boy. It was very fun, dropping the reigns and just going for it. He did everything I asked and it felt great to handle the pressure. His time was very good, but he missed making the finals by just over a second.
       In the Steeplechase, Max had another great run, but the freaky groundspeed of some of the really fast teams was too much for us to overcome. Finn had a great Steeplechase and had he let me lead out, I think we could have made the finals. As it was, he just missed making the cut (about a second out of it), but I'm optimistic about his chances next year.
       So, it begins all over again. I'm starting to try qualifying this weekend for USDAA Nationals next year. Here's hoping more of the Santa Barbarians (as Steve Yue likes to call us) make it out there! Tell the dogs they're good. mia



	*Show Report* USDAA National Scottsdale Arizona November, 2004 Mia's Report What fun at the USDAA Nationals this year! My goal going into the show was to get a ribbon and get at least one of the dogs into the Grand Prix semifinals. My show started with Joker's Wild which is a game involving gambles. Basically, the goal is to do as many gambles as possible in the amount of time allowed. If you go over the time, you get zero points. Max was such a good boy and had I had an opportunity to watch the other groups, I think I could have picked up a couple more points. As it was, he did as many gambles as any team (6) and took 5th place out of 207 teams for a big pink rosette! WOOHOO!!!! Both Finn and Max did very well in all their classes, but that was our only placement. Of course, it was the Grand Prix and Steeplechase that I was most interested in. Max's quarterfinals run in the Grand Prix had a near refusal (he totally saved my behind) and then a knocked bar. Fortunately the bar came down early enough for me to realize, if we had any hope of making the semis I'd have to really go for it the rest of the course. Max responded and did a terrific second half of the course. Finn was on edge the entire time in Scottsdale. Because we had to be on the line while the dog before us was finishing, Finn could see what he was about to do and was completely spun. In the quarterfinals, Finn self-released off every contact, but was fast and accurate, so I knew when we crossed the finish line that he'd made the semifinals. It was only waiting in line for my shirt for Finn that I finally had confirmation that Max had also made it into the semifinals! Woohoo! In the semis Finn had an early off-course, but Max.... Max was such a good boy. It was very fun, dropping the reigns and just going for it. He did everything I asked and it felt great to handle the pressure. His time was very good, but he missed making the finals by just over a second. In the Steeplechase, Max had another great run, but the freaky groundspeed of some of the really fast teams was too much for us to overcome. Finn had a great Steeplechase and had he let me lead out, I think we could have made the finals. As it was, he just missed making the cut (about a second out of it), but I'm optimistic about his chances next year. So, it begins all over again. I'm starting to try qualifying this weekend for USDAA Nationals next year. Here's hoping more of the Santa Barbarians (as Steve Yue likes to call us) make it out there! Tell the dogs they're good. mia