The facility is beautiful. A very large permanent building with a canvas-like material that made everything light & bright, followed up with a field turf surface over rubber pellets.
Today was a full day of judging all JWW & all FAST classes. Unfortunately the day started about 30 minutes late thanks to a lost weave pole. Luckily my courses were well-nested and once we got started, things went along smashingly.
The JWW course was fast and flowing and I received several compliments. However, I couldn't help but remember the conversation I brought up several weeks ago about AKC courses being too easy. There certainly wasn't anything unusual about this course, but there were some areas that created a few challenges for people.
The first area was from the #6 jump to the #7 weave poles. Handlers doing a front cross between #5 & 6 had to be sure and continue to push toward the poles or dogs came in early and loaded in the 2-3rd pole.The next area was area was #10-#12. Most folks pushed to the #10 double jump which resulted in a rear cross over #11. Many dogs landed facing the exit side of the tunnel and when the handler yelled "tunnel", off they went. This wasn't a tunnel entrance to take for granted.
On to Excellent FAST. I love a course and Send Bonus (SB) that allows for creativity and a bit of challenge, and this one fit the bill. The most common error was the handler stepping over the SB line around the #2 jump.
Handlers who first sent their dog into the tunnel entrance closest to the jump were the most successful. This maneuver allowed the handler to get into place and gave them plenty of time to cue the dog since they were exiting the tunnel furthest from the jump and had plenty of time to set themselves up for the second tunnel.
Nice job to all!
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