Triune recap and my first 7 miler!

Big weekend for me!  First time going over 10 K and first dog show back after a long break.  Honestly was kind of dreading the dog show more than the run.  Just haven't gotten the practice in that i had hoped for.  Had good intentions just never acted on them.  The heat wave that had mysteriously been gone most of the summer some how made it's way back last weekend.  That zapped my desire to be out working my heavy coated dog.  I had made a pact with myself, it this weekend and the next weekend were bad with regards to bars, I would pull from the third show and not waste my money anymore till i had dedicated time to figure out this issue.  Who knew when that would be but I was tired of wasting money run after run.  Plus mentally it was wearing on me.  I was deep down hoping that lori was right, that this was a timing issue on his and my part and that we could easily resolve it.  His weight was good, his energy level and conditioning was better so I had a few things going for me.  My mom is here visiting from TN with the sole purpose of helping me take care of andrew at the show.  I also knew this would be a challenge because he is newly mobile and not loving being contained.  It isn't fair to him or to any of the dogs at the trial to be put in situations where a dog is uncomfortable or andrew is potentially harmed.  So this weekend was very important.  I hate leaving him at home to do dog shows yet I don't want him in harms way and don't want to feel exhausted at the show either.  Alot riding on many variables.

Got up early saturday morning (was not entered friday) and headed out for my first 7 miler.  Tony decided to go with on his bike which i am eternally grateful for.  Especially cause he took his iphone and took some really cool shots of me dying a slow painful death running.  Like this one:

Pretty sure this was early on in our run.  I look way to happy.  This was the first time I had attempted to fuel.  Had bought several products to try and decided on the GU chomps for my first attempt.  What I failed to do was eat prior to running.  I usually don't but I think for this distance and future further distances, I need something other than just the GU in my belly.  This was also the first time I tried taking my own water source.  Needless to say, I am again very grateful that my hubby came along as he had to take my water bottle from me as it was digging a hole to my spine via my back.  I had bought a small bottle that fits in the small of your back and holds maybe 100 mls of water.  I had put in the fridge pre-run so it would be nice and cold. I think the fact that it made my back numb for several mile helped ease the pain, but once the numbness wore off, that stupid thing had to GO.  Will be exploring other options this week FO SHO.  

Love this pic.  Sun was just beginning to come up.  Luckily the clouds came out too about this time so we were spared her warming rays.  I always seem to hit this mental block about 4 miles in.  Not sure why.  I was running at a pretty slow pace and talking to tony but my legs just weren't as happy as I would like for them to be.  I had run three the day before so nothing too hard.  I think it is all mental.  Need to get over this!!!!

This was after a pretty big hill,  yet short and I felt really good after it.  I shocked myself.  Running back to town was hard but it felt good to finish.  It had finally gotten hot and very sticky and I was sweating pretty good.  I never felt like the GU chomps did anything but more important was what they didn't do.  They didn't bother my tummy.  I am going to try and double the amount I take next time.  I had one before the run, one 30 minutes in and one and hour in.  I think my total running time was 1 hour, 18 minutes with an 11:08 minute pace.  I tried running hard the last mile but my pace was pretty even the whole time, hovering around 11 minutes and some change.  

This was my attempt at my first collage.  Am so jealous of all the people who post cool pic collages in the IRUN 4 program FB site.  Well, let's just say I am not the most creative and I tried so A for effort.  After my run, I not so quickly showered and then loaded mom's van.  We headed out and of course got stuck in bad labor day traffic.  I missed two of my runs that day but go there in plenty of time to run standard.  Standard had one of those tricky spots where decel was cruicial to cue the turn to the weaves and of course over a panel jump.  I watched several dogs that run like deuce miss the panel due to decel so I was worried about the spot.  In looking the video, I think if I would have taken one more step or kept my hand up one more second, he would have taken it but instead, he put on the breaks as I did my decel and went  on to the weaves as my body was indicating.  GOOD dog.  Got him over the panel and then he missed another jump after the table.  Again, handler error, my arm and hand were not indicating take the jump and my body was preparing for a front to run like hell down a tricky line so he just came with.  GOOD dog again, bad handler.   

I was feeling elated though, NO BARS!  He doesn't always run so well on this turf so i knew this would be a crap shoot.  Day 2 started with T2B.  Finally a fast flowing course like T2B should be.  I love T2B as it is a great warm up for the day.  Well, we had another no bar run.  He missed the weave pole entry as I was crowding him on a jump out of a tunnel and i honestly don't think he even saw the weaves.  No biggie, got him back but then he flicked off of me later and took and off course.  Even the judge said under her breath, but loud enough for me to hear, "hadn't thought of that one".  Well, leave it to deuce to think of that one:)  No video but was told over and over, that nothing about my body said turn left away from me and take this jump way over there.  Next up was JWW and a very fun course with lots of options.  Not a fan of pulls and need to work on them more so had a section that probably needed a pull but I forced a front.  Well, guess what, when I opened up my cross, I was on top of the jump and he tried to jump it but just couldn't.  Finished the course well and was happy that the bar was on me and not on him.  That was three runs in a row with NO BARS that were totally his fault!!!!!!  Standard was last and a nice fun course.  There were two tricky parts that in my mind were places were deuce and I could screw up.   One was weaves to table.  I knew I had to stay out of his way and let him find them on his own and not try and shape it in any form or fashion.  Once we got through that part, i felt so much better.  The next part was coming from the dog walk, going over a jump straight ahead and then coming back to take the double with a dummy jump to the other side of the double. I watched several of the big dogs take the jump after the dog walk, swing out way wide and take the dummy jump.  I decided to leave deuce on the dog walk a second or two and run to the jump, ask for collection and then go.  Got great collection but once again I think I was too close to the double when I opened up my cross.  The agility gods threw me a bone and the bar went straight up and straight back into the jump cups.  YIPEEEEE!   It felt to so good to have a well handled run and a Q.  Other than leaving him on the dog walk to be still for collection cue, the run was not run safely at all, it was balls to the wall.  OF course holding the dog walk and a-frame cost me placements but he still was 21 seconds under course time!  

Day 3 just had JWW and Standard.  Jumpers was again a very fast fun course.  I ran it with confidence, left him in the weaves to get down a line and trusted him to find the line and collect and change leads appropriately and he did like a big boy.  Another Q and another very fun run!  No shouting and no safe handling.  Why can't I do this every run????  He didn't place again but I was super excited because several aussies were in the top 10 with an aussie winning the class over some screaming fast BCs!  I think deuce was 8th, nestled between some BCs I NEVER thought I would ever be in the same company as:)

Standard was last and I was super tired.  As I had suspected, andrew had been a handful the past few days.  Mom and I tried to keep him busy and occupied but his desire to be down was great and his frustration/ temper level was also great.  I really, really want to thank all of those people who brought super nice, kid friendly dogs over to let andrew smack pet.  Just like any other toddler, we are working on the finer points of being gentle and while he is getting it, it is slow going.  Our dogs don't care what he does to them, well other than stella so while we do police it, i think sometimes he gets mixed signals as to what he can and can't do with dogs in general.  Deuce is the best and worse because he has the heart of a saint and will let andrew pretty much do anything to him.  Andrew also is learning to not go up to crates.  This is something I am also policing quite heavily but he is lighting fast sometimes and I just don't want him getting bit due to a crate protective dog.  He did have one dog lunge at him through a soft crate even though we were not anywhere near the crate.  I swear the crate moved 6 feet towards us but I don't think it scared andrew or taught him anything.  For all of these reasons I do not think I will take andrew to any dog shows in the future.  Plus the fact that he won't nap anymore at the shows so mom had to take him back to the room to get good naps out of him and I can't do that if I am showing.  It is going to be tough to leave him at home but I just can't deal with him at shows and my mom refuses to move here and I can't keep her tied up in the guest room.

Anyway, back to standard.  Two jump push to the weaves first three obstacles.  Not my strong point. I don't like standing still but I was fearing any movement would send him straight to the off course jump straight ahead.  Rear crossing was an option but a safer option.  Thought about a lead out pivot.  Mixed success with those so opted for a push and it worked surprisingly well.  I swear we were so in sync this weekend, so much more than any other show lately and I have no clue why.  I trusted him so much this weekend and I so wish I could call up that trust every single run.  The run was lovely, yet we had one little bar.  Not sure why but i suspect it was because he was coming out of the chute, turning over a wingless jump and rushing to get to me who was rushing to get a cross in.  I probably should have taken one more step towards that jump, one more second with my hand up.  I ended up pulling him into a tunnel nestled under the a-frame without the cross which is really good for him but why was i rushing?   Probably the ever popular oh crap, I am going to get a double Q.  Oh well, the rest of the run was perfection with him even getting a pull to the correct end of the tunnel when he was lined up to go to the wrong end (due to course design, not me) and also getting a push to the teeter after a double and not even ticking the double.      I was so proud of him and didn't even care about the bar.  If I had video, it was probably yet again my fault.  

Overall, I was very pleased with the weekend.  I will have to say that the course were all big fairly flowing run your ass off type of courses.  I think it gave deuce plenty of opportunity to run and extend which he likes.  Call it course design, the smiling of the agility gods or luck but it was super nice to get at least two good runs rewarded with a Q.  I know it is never about the Q but damn it, sometimes you need some sort of reward other than hey, good run.  I will run again this weekend, both dog show and running.  I have an 8 miler planned for saturday so will have to get up SUPER early to go run and make it back to the dog show.  I think am praying that the route I have chosen is safe and lighted.  I hope that i have legs left to run him afterwards.  I have already warned my friends that they need to be ready if I have spaghetti for legs.  I know one thing,I am already salivating over the strawberry smoothies at panera that i discovered this weekend.  Why hasn't anyone told me about them before?  Between those and peanut butter fudge millkshakes, I am destined to put on 5 or more lbs this weekend!!!!