Titleless

This is a pic i took from my friend's FB page.  These are some of the clods we raked up in a pile.  I imagine a whole ring full of these strewn everywhere.

I almost didn't go to the dog show this weekend.  I had heard that the show site, one that we have used since I started showing and before I started showing, has really gone downhill with regards to surface.  I had heard that a december NADAC show had been held there and that the surface was so bad that people were falling and dogs were getting injured.  I didn't enter the january show there just because i was worried about the weather.  Of course it did nothing that weekend but the surface was pretty bad.  When I saw my trainer's post about the huge clods on thursday, I almost didn't go.  Deuce is still having a bar issue and poor surface doesn't help at all.  I had heard on team day that several people had fallen and one lady had hit her head pretty hard.  I really didn't want to loose 179 bucks and i really, really wanted to see my friends but I also didn't want to fall and I didn't want to injure deuce.  I went anyway and I am not sure how to feel about it.  The first three runs on saturday were horrible, not together at all and tons of bars.  I didn't want to hurt his confidence when it comes to jumping and I didn't want to pull  him for knocking bars due to surface, so i didn't.  He should be in some sort of shape because he runs with me at least once or twice a week.  He progressively got better and even had a nice clean steeplechase run that ended up not being a Q due to a very slow, creepy a-frame.  His contacts were HORRIBLE this weekend and it was the most evident when he took at least 3 if not more seconds to come down into 2 on 2 off in steeplechase causing me to not Q.  His teeters were great, he crept on every dog walk except the last one he did, and his a-frames were the worst i have ever seen.  He stopped above the yellow every time and I had to beg him to come down into position.  On his dog walks, he stopped about  5 inches before the bottom EVERY run.  I am at a loss as to what to do about this.  Agility fields are under a foot of snow right now with no thaw in site and when it does thaw, it will be muddy for a long time.  The indoor i have access to occasionally has a snow issue too as in snow all around it so no place to park near it.  SO i am pretty sure classes will be canceled for a while there as well.

Yesterday had lot more great parts, today there were pretty much none.  Bad contacts, missed weave poles and no collection.  He did get the gamble but the buzzer sounded as he was on the second to last jump of the gamble because he couldn't find the tunnel at the start of the gamble.  We have so many issues to work on that I really don't know where to start.  We still have the bar issue, we now have missing weave entries yet again, and now creepy contacts.  I am trying not to be too down because we haven't practiced at all since probably october.  I am pleased that we had anything good I guess.  I am entered one day next weekend and I doubt the dirt will be any better or I doubt I will get any practice.  I will probably go in hopes that joan can work her magic. It's really sad because this place is an hour away from home, I don't normally have to get a hotel room can drive back and forth, and it has been our home base for many, many years.  I hate to see it go as a venue as it is very convenient for me but I had already heard that several clubs have decided not to renew their contracts to use the place next year.  I guess if I have to really travel for more shows if not all and I have to get hotel rooms for every single show, I may just have to stop for a while and wait till andrew is older.  This was super expensive practice that just hurts me and him i think especially in the confidence department.

On a running front, I am probably not going to get my long run in this weekend.  I am home, it is snowing yet again and I am super sore from my massage the other day.  My body is telling me to  not push it this weekend after working every single master's class and running my dog in 6 runs a day so I think I will listen.  Got in all of my other runs this week so two speedwork sessions and one four miler.  This upcoming week will be challenging again due to the ice and snow that is still everywhere.  Tony has a class on saturday so I won't be able to run that day and I have the show on sunday.  I am hoping a miraculous warm up happens and at least the roads will be runnable.

Wow, the post is super negative.  I so need to get off, have a beer and chill.