This was only half of this aisle of tires!
This was really a learning experience for me. I learned that I don't handle the pressure of high-level competition very welll!! And, this went straight down the leash to Lenny which affected his performance very noticeably. But, live & learn!
One portion of the weekend I will NEVER forget was the almost tornado that blew through on Saturday afternoon! An announcement was made to clear the bleachers because there were storms on the radar. Shortly after making our way to the competitor's area, a siren went off. I turned to someone & asked what that was . . . .tornado siren!! Great!! Within minutes, the wind picked up, the rain started & Grant told us to grab our dogs & get under the big event tent, which everyone did very, very quickly. I grabbed the top off of our ez-up and got Lenny & got under the tent. The dogs were amazing during the storm . . . . they were crammed against each other (strange dogs) and there wasn't a single growl or snap that I know of. Then the wind really started to blow, some of the legs of the tent lifted, and some people's ez-ups were crumpled and/or blown away!! It only lasted probably 10 or 15 minutes, but it was one of the scariest moments of my life!! Some people didn't even make it under the event tent . . . they were out in the storm trying to hold onto their ez-ups!! Then, just like that it was over & in minutes there was bright sunshine, blue skies, and big fluffy white clouds again. Everyone pitched in and the compeition was back up & running in less than an hour.
The Speed Retrieve was very exciting . . . . . 2 World Records were set by the same team over the weekend - Sean McCarthy & Jordan! They broke the World Record on Thurs in qualifiers, and then broke their own record in the finals on Sunday giving them the win! Just as exciting was that one of the Ontario teams, Dawn & Jynx, came second in Speed Retrieve . . . .second only to a world record holder!! Jynx is the 2007 Lapdog of the year and the first World qualifiying Lapdog.
Also on Sunday, was the Dogs n Logs Speed Retrieve Relay where DockDog teams paired with a lumberjack. When a dog completed their swim to grab the duck at the end of the pool, his "teammate" lumberjack would do one of the lumberjack elements: climb the 60' pole, cut a log with the crosscut saw, or chop a log. It was very, very exciting & fun to watch. This was the first ever SR relay, so there were some wrinkles to iron out, but the organizers figured it out by the time the final heat was run. When one of the last dogs to go wouldn't jump in the pool, his lumberjack "teammate" all of a sudden came running up the dock, dove in the pool, & swam down to the end to grab the duck down! It was great fun & sportsmanship!!
The venue was right beside a harbour - very beautiful.
This was the dock setup - the blue strip is the side of the pool & the dock is to the left of this. You can also see behind the pool the 60' poles the lumberjacks climbed.
There was also a jumbo-tron so the fans wouldn't miss any of the action.
Jay Harris became very fond of Erin's Spencer - the feeling was NOT mutual!!
We caught up to Jay on the way down! What a way to travel!
Somewhere in Wisconsin! Almost there!
Thanks Stillwater . . . .we'll never forget this trip!!
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