Dogbird Daily: CPE Agility Trial (3D Dog Training Club)

So, we had a good weekend...

This is going to be a long post! Molly and I did a 3-day CPE Agility trial this weekend - it was very hot and we had a lot of fun! I would love to post course maps as I normally do, but my laptop is broken and I am using my backup computer and it does not love my scanner. Ah well. I have some videos!

Friday we entered:

Wildcard - and zoomed and zoomed and NQ'd.

Snooker - drives me crazy, but we Q'd on this one! Out of Level 1 Snooker for us! Molly did some people greeting but we survived. This is our 5th attempt to qualify in Snooker, haha. (that is between CPE and USDAA trials both.)

Jackpot - this was an NQ, but with good moments. We collected a reasonable amount of points but fell apart on the "gamble". She ran around the Aframe and then I had to baby her over all of the gamble obstacles - and we ran out of time. Ah well.

Standard - this was a Q! Our second Level 2 Standard Q. Molly was slightly erratic here and did one jump run out and back jumped before I could stop her - but that is 5 faults and allowable in CPE, so we got it. Yay!

Saturday: I don't know if it was the heat, I don't know if she was tired. But Saturday Molly clicked with me and started behaving herself. Minimal voyaging, minimal zooms. I couldn't believe it!

Jackpot was first, with a non-traditional Jackpot. There was a "Rocket Launcher" tunnel and whatever you took after that was worth double points. Do the Rocket Launcher a second time and the next obstacle was worth triple. The table was also worth 5 points as long as you said, "BOOM! I LOVE MY DOG!" and a 4th of July food afterwards. I had a plan all set but found out that the triple jump was not worth the amount that I thought it was, and had to change my plan last minute. Molly was a bit wild but we kept our act together and qualified! I think that we did the Aframe 8000 times because I couldn't remember much else to do. This meant that we earned our CL1-S title! (Level 1 Strategy.)

Standard was relatively uneventful - one off course for the wrong tunnel end (one day I WILL learn to handle.) but that earned us our third Standard Level 2 Q.

Fullhouse is Molly's game because you get to run around and earn points on obstacles with minimal rules (you must do at least three jumps, two "rounds" and one "joker" - usually a contact or triple jump.) We made quick work out of this one, but as you can see in the video I cut her off on the way to the table so she knocked a bar - you can also see the tiny nip she gave me to remind me that I was a jerk! This was our second Level 2 Fullhouse Q!

Jumpers was where I suspected that my dog had been stolen and replaced with a decoy. Molly ran so nicely with me and we got a good time (and our first Level 2 Jumpers Q!)

Wildcard I really cared a lot about - getting a Wildcard Q meant that we would at last complete Level 1! Some dogs complete Level 1 at their first one or two trials - not only did I enter Molly before she was entirely ready, but...she's a crazy girl! She is really coming together nicely, though - and so am I.

Wildcard is a game of discriminations - three times within the course you must choose between two different obstacles (they are labelled 'A' or 'B' obstacles. At our level we must choose two A's and one B.)

With a dog that does whatever she likes and a green handler that cannot think on her feet, this is not mine and Molly's game.
I need not have worried. Molly behaved as though she had been doing agility for years and we earned our CL1-H title and finished Level 1!

Like a boss!

Sunday: I wasn't sure if Molly's self control would cross over into another day, but it did.

Jumpers was first and it was as pretty and uneventful as yesterday's was (and that is a GOOD thing!) Completing this finished our CL2-F title! (Level 2 Fun.)

Snooker again, my least favorite game! We were in Level 2 for this one. My friend came up with a brilliant plan and Molly and I ran it with no issue. Two Snooker Q's in one weekend, wow!

Colors was next - two mini courses and you must choose which one that you want to run. I chose my course, forgot it out on the course. Molly ran it better than I did though, and we got a Q. (And THAT was our second Level 2 Colors course - so we are moved up to Level 3 in that as well.)

I tried to call Molly off of the correct obstacle and she took it anyway. I hate making handler errors like that. I have to remember that I am forgetting less and less and to not be so hard on myself - but when I don't handle properly I feel guilty and as though I have let my dog down.

Fullhouse again and we cleaned it up! Molly and I needed 23 points and we got 41, ha! She was a machine, taking anything that I asked her to and running fast fast fast! Once the buzzer sounds you have five seconds to get to the table, and we made it there a second late (that only loses points, it is not an NQ).

Our first Q ever in Level 3! (Fullhouse was also our first Q ever. And our first L2 Q.)

We ended the day with Standard. This was another course where I felt like I let my dog down. We started off great, but about mid-course I did not do a front-cross when I should have. Molly was on my left, and she should have been on my right. When we approached a tunnel and I asked her to enter it, it was unclear to her which end that she should go into - if she had been on my right it would have been crystal clear to her. All my fault. After that she was scattered and ran out around at least two of the remaining 4 obstacles - my friend said that the tunnel issue "blew her mind" and I believe that she is right.

I was able to collect her from all problem areas and earn a Q - but it did not feel good to me. I didn't like how I ruined communications with my girl like that.

Regardless, that was our fourth Level 2 Standard Q so Molly earned her CL2-R title!

We are fortunate enough to be trialing CPE again in two weekends - can't wait!