Courses, Monroe, Louisiana, June 28, 2009

I liked my Standard courses today, including my judging path!

Dog & handlers did a great job on the opening sequence. Some handlers chose front crosses after the chute and others chose rear crosses after jump #5.

Just an interesting note, I ran a course similar to this one in CA awhile back and most handlers did a front cross between #8 & 9. Here in Monroe, most folks did a rear cross either on the take-off side of the #9 jump or on the landing side.

While we're doing comparisons, I have to say that the weave poles here are fantastic. Dogs are wonderful on their entries and when cued for the poles, they DRIVE to them with increasing speed. Definitely something to strive for.

In the next sequence, quite a few large dogs missed either the dog walk or the a-frame contact. Another surprise was that the off-course entrance to the #19 tunnel sucked several dogs in as well. It was heartbreaking to watch dogs who had previously been clean end with an off-course and an NQ.

As for Jumpers, Dan's course is a rework of one of my courses. Except for the placement of a few jumps, the course looks nothing like the original. Dan reworked it and renumbered the course to make it his own.

I heard a ton of cheering and exhibitors said it was a blast to run so I have to assume it was a ton of fun!

We leave early tomorrow morning to head home. We've really had a great time here and will miss the people, but I have to admit, we won't miss the oppressive heat : )