Oh Yeah, You Blend

The Invitational is a strange beast. Exciting, disappointing, emotional, fun, exhausting, thrilling. It’s an experience.

This year was extra emotional, because Nina’s pancreatitis flare-up in November was just improving and then flared again the day before I left. So I left her home with Jim rather than subject her to all that driving, crate time, strange places, etc.

She qualified this year for the fifth year in a row, and I know that, at 11 1/2, this could easily have been her last year to go (plus the official color this year was purple, Nina’s color!), but leaving her behind was the right choice for her.

I had high hopes for Zhora this year (last year, the Invitational was her first trial back after the puppies, so I knew we wouldn’t be competitive). She’s been within shouting distance of the finals twice now and I thought this year (her fourth consecutive) could be her year. She’s been fast and accurate and laying down perfect weekend after perfect weekend. She came out on Friday and dropped a 7 point Time 2 Beat run, which is excellent when running with some of the fastest dogs in the country.

Then Saturday was hot and muggy, I think Nina’s absence really started to get to her, and in our Round 1 Jumpers she bobbled in the weaves, looking at me while I was looking ahead, and that moment of disconnect caused her to pop. Right off the bat we were out.

Round 2 Standard was a Q. Slow, but a Q.

On Sunday, Round 3 Hybrid started to feel more like running with Zhora.

And then Round 4 Jumpers was my favorite – three blind crosses, two misread turns but no big deal, she ran fast and happy and I cried at the end, so thankful to this awesome little teammate for coming through for me once again. 

HUGE crowd pressure this year.

So Zhora finished 3/4 plus Time 2 Beat, not bad at all!

Then we made the traditional stop at American Beach on Amelia Island for some much-needed R&R:

Cricket’s owner Jennifer Corbin says:
“Great weekend of agility with friends!
3 q’s for Cricket, 2 steeplechase and 1 starter jumpers which earned her title Starter Games Dog of Canada! We are out of starters!”

Cricket is now Alkemi Braveheart ST ADC SGDC!

Congratulations!

L-R Nina (Can CH MACH Vastgota Nina Ricci), Alice (Alkemi Clear Air Turbulence LT), Zhora (MACH4 Alkemi Blade Runner LS), Cricket (Alkemi Braveheart ST), Riley (Alkemi Aston Martin LS), Colby (Alkemi Batman LS). Nina is the mother of everyone except Alice, and Alice’s mother is Zhora. Zhora, Cricket and Colby are littermates from the B litter.

We had a mini Alkemi puppy reunion this weekend, complete with cake:

Judge Oksana Syrkin designed some fun, tricky courses. Nina had a pancreatitis flare-up unfortunately, so even though she double Q’d on Saturday she was very slow and wasn’t right and I ended up leaving the trial early Sunday morning to take her home because she really wasn’t feeling well at all.

Zhora tripled Friday (her first TQ!) and doubled Saturday (with a gift on an R on Friday), Riley earned his OAJ title, Colby earned an Excellent Standard leg and Cricket earned her very first AKC Q’s! Cricket is a Nina for sure.

It was awesome to see my puppies again and I am so grateful to Jennifer, Nichole and Chris for coming, and to Zap as always for her huge help with pictures and video!

Zhora Friday FAST (QQQ#1, QQ #90):

Nina Friday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Friday Standard (QQ #90, first place, 3.4 YPS, 24 points):

Nina Friday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Friday Jumpers (QQ #90, fourth place, 4.5 YPS, 16 points):

Colby Saturday Jumpers:

Nina Saturday Jumpers (QQ #25, obviously not herself, 4.1 YPS and just 14 points):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ #91, third place, 5.06 YPS, 21 points):

Cricket Saturday FAST (Novice Q #1!!):

Colby Saturday Standard (Q!!):

Nina Saturday Standard (QQ #25, feeling a bit better, barked at me on the table anyway! fourth place, 3.5 YPS, 25 points):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #91, third place, 3.8 YPS, 29 points):

Riley Saturday Standard:

Riley Saturday Jumpers (OAJ title!):

Cricket Saturday Jumpers:

Lavonda Herring….usually wide open, Run Like Hell….this weekend? Close, tight, off course central. Love her anyway.

Zhora had yet another perfect weekend, racking up QQ’s # 88 and 89, almost halfway to MACH5 already. I can’t believe her. I just hope if she’s going to slump, that she does it BEFORE the Invitational. Right now it feels great, dialed in and open communication. AND she finished her Excellent FAST title!

Nina also had a perfect weekend…of NQ’s. Doesn’t matter. Every weekend I get to play with her is perfect.

I also ran into conformation judges The Anthonys, which was wonderful. SUCH NICE PEOPLE!

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ #88, second place, 17 points, 4.769 YPS):

Nina Saturday Jumpers:

Zhora Saturday FAST (XF title):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #88, second place, 27 points, 3.662 YPS):

Nina Saturday Standard:

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (QQ #89, second place, 18 points, 4.759 YPS):

Nina Sunday Jumpers:

Zhora Sunday Standard (QQ #89, third place, 28 points, 3.763 YPS):

Nina Sunday Standard (such a nice run, dogwalk contacts are for the weak):

Another perfect weekend for Zhora with FOUR FIRST PLACES and QQ’s #86 and 87. I cost Nina a double Q today, I just wasn’t in sync with her. She ran really well though. Judge Laura English designed some really tough but really fun courses.

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ #86, first place, 4.8 YPS 17 points):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (yeesh):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #86, first place, 4.134 YPS, 32 points):

Nina Saturday Standard (Q, second place, 4.053 YPS, 32 points):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (QQ #87, first place, 4.722 YPS, 17 points):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (I stepped in one stride too early and pushed her off the last weave pole):

Zhora Sunday Standard (QQ #87, first place, 3.746 YPS, 28 points):

Nina Sunday Standard (NQ, nice run):

Favorite judge and friend Sherry Jefferson designed some fun, fast, interesting courses this weekend. My dogs came off the course smiling every time. LOTS OF RUNNING. Zhora had another perfect weekend, Nina had one Jumpers Q so at least she came home with A Q. Love my girls no matter what.

Zhora was super fast for her, over 5 YPS in Jumpers on Saturday and over 4 YPS in Standard. Beating some very fast dogs and taking two first places on Sunday.

Nina Saturday Jumpers (Q, first place, 22 points, 5.14 YPS):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (QQ #82, second place, 21 points, 5.032 YPS):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #82, first place, 32 points, 4.136 YPS):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (ONE LOUSY BAR):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (QQ #83, first place, 17 points, 4.7 YPS):

Nina Sunday Standard (I nearly got lost after the kerfuffle at the weaves):

Zhora Sunday Standard (QQ #83, first place, 30 points, 3.932 YPS even with looking at Judge Sherry and having something in her ear at the start):

How awesome to earn Zhora’s MACH4 under one of our favorite judges (and friend) Alexandra Davis at the National Shiba Club of America’s trial. The courses were tricky, not a gimme in the bunch, but Zhora not only earned her MACH4 yesterday, she had a PERFECT WEEKEND and got a safety QQ today and/or her first QQ for MACH5. She actually got FASTER as the weekend went on!

Nina also had a perfect weekend, of NQ’s, but some beautiful runs.

Zhora is running faster and faster, and in today’s standard course, the top three dogs were within half a second of each other (43.45, 43.62, 43.93). I am getting better at blind crosses and I MUST use them, since Zhora is SO MUCH faster when I do. I am so lucky to have these awesome dogs to play this game with!

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (part 1 of MACH4, third place, 17 points, 4.67 YPS):

Nina Saturday Standard (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Standard (part 2 of MACH4, second place, 29 points, 3.89 YPS):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (part 1 of QQ #81, third place, 16 points, 4.586 YPS):

Nina Sunday Standard (ONE LOUSY BAR):

Zhora Sunday Standard (part 2 of QQ #81, third place, 32 points, 4.029 YPS!!!):

Judge Candy Nettles set some really tricky courses for us. Zhora came into the weekend needing two QQ’s for MACH4. We got #79 on Saturday, but Sunday she was running really fast for her and I couldn’t get to where I needed to be in standard and she took an off course tunnel. Nina had an AMAZING wild run in Standard on Saturday where she took the weave poles a second time while I was over 20 feet away (and my awesome agility peeps cheered her awesome performance), today she had a lovely, blisteringly fast standard Q. I hope she keeps being crazy and naughty and happy and wild like this for a long, long time.

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers(QQ # 79, third place, 4.2 YPS, 13 points):

Nina Saturday Standard (WILD but look at those amazing off course long distance weaves!):

Zhora Saturday Standard (QQ #79, 3.7 YPS, 28 points):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ, nice run):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (first place, 4.7 YPS, 18 points, she beat the fast Papillon!):

Nina Sunday Standard (Q, bit of a gift on the teeter, 3.96 YPS, 30 points):

Zhora Sunday Standard (NQ, off course tunnel, really really nice run otherwise and look at that distance in the weaves!):

Our first trial since the end of July (and Nina’s first in almost eight weeks!). It felt great to be back and I was very happy with how the girls did. Zhora doubled on Friday and then we had some rusty mojo. Nina ran like Nina, which was perfect and all I hoped for. She had a nasty fall in today’s standard run, rolled like a judo black belt and was up and running before I really knew what was happening, leaving me flat footed and too far behind to handle properly (silly me, I wanted to see if she was OK, she wanted to keep running).

Zhora managed to pull off some Q’s on courses with low Q rates and actually placed a couple of times against some of the faster 8″ dogs around!

I am so lucky to have my awesome girls to run with and my dear friend Sue to travel with and my wonderful Jim to tolerate all this!

Judge Dave Hirsch (fun, run and gun!) and Alan Arthur from Texas (TOUGH angles, tough courses, nice guy) gave us some challenging, fun courses.

Zhora Friday Standard (part 1 of QQ #78, second place to world team Keebler, 29 points):

Nina Friday Standard (NQ but so much fun):

Zhora Friday Jumpers (part 2 of QQ #78, 13 points, just a hair behind Nina):

Nina Friday Jumpers (13 points):

Zhora Saturday Standard (NQ):

Nina Saturday Standard (third place, 28 points):

Zhora Saturday Jumpers (16 points):

Nina Saturday Jumpers (NQ, some fun fancy schmancy stuff):

Zhora Sunday Standard (third place, 29 points):

Nina Sunday Standard (nasty fall after dogwalk, she is fine):

Zhora Sunday Jumpers (NQ, nice run, she doesn’t often drop bars):

Nina Sunday Jumpers (NQ):

Lobo (Alkemi Beowulf del Roble LS) has his Novice Draft Dog title. He is the first Swedish Vallhund to earn this title. Here he is showing off his skills pulling his owner Jan’s grandson:

And here is his niece Cora (formerly Popcorn, now Alkemi Corona del Roble LS) cuddling with the same grandson: