Resuming Backyard Practice

Zio and I will go back to practicing at the "local" practice facility this evening. He had some nice turns during the demo Saturday with the jump board in place, but was inconsistent at practice yesterday with just the stride regulator we've been using at home. Zio also seemed leery of close passes with Cody on Saturday. After a close pass, he bypassed all the jumps in the next race to avoid Cody. I gave him a little more room on the last run and he did fine. Jean-Luc was avoiding while passing Cody the previous week, so we'll need to do some passing drills with Cody so the other dogs gain some confidence he won't be in the middle of the lane on passes.

Si had an idea that seems to have focused Burst on staying in the lane. Basically, Tristen stands near the timing lights with a ball held in the center of the lane for Burst to see the target. It worked like a champ too! I'm not sure how close the timing can be with Jean-Luc having to wait until Tristen clears the lane, but for now, Burst is going over the jumps. Maybe next week we can work on getting every one's passing a little more comfortable for all the dogs. I have the impression that we may not need to be too close on the passes for St. Louis because our breakout will be 18.75 seconds. Bonham will give us an idea of how much we may need to slow down, if any.

The Off and Running team of Cody, Deuce, Luigi, and Scout had a shaky beginning on their first run, but got progressively better every time as the dogs became accustomed to each other. I think they will do well.

Si also made the observation that when there isn't a ball in place, Zio will angle his approach to the box to get a better turn. If there is a ball, he makes a beeline to the ball and then tries to crunch his body enough to turn around. I'll have to see what I can improvise to get him off center on his last stride.