Clean Run - January 2009 - 31

FRONT CROSSES Part 2: Early Front Crosses By Greg Derrett, photos by Susan Garrett Timing of In CR November 2008, I discussed how to do front crosses in the handling system that I use. The timing of the front cross is on the dog’s commitment point, and deceleration and positional cues help us to achieve the turns we require. Cueing front crosses earlier than I advocate (using early rotation of the shoulders or the outside arm) is a technique that many handlers are trying throughout the world. It’s not unique to a particular handling system, but rather a maneuver that people are attempting to incorporate into whatever system they use because it appears to produce quick benefits. Despite short-term gains, what I have observed by watching hundreds of videotaped runs (I compare the handler’s path and timing for different handler choices and document the performance outcome), and also by working with students of my system who have tried the technique, is that there is long-term fallout caused by early front crosses. The problems might not be seen for several weeks or even months, and handlers may not even realize these problems could be caused by the early front cross. This month I’ll explain some of the fallout. Next month I’ll focus on lack of attention to timing the front cross and how to improve your skills. Some handlers are not doing early front crosses deliberately, but are simply having difficulty with the timing of their crosses and they need to be more precise. continue to use it. The main reason I see for using early front crosses is that the short-term benefit is very striking. Let’s say your dog isn’t reading your front-cross cues well because you haven’t taught him deceleration and positional cues. In Figure 1, the handler starts the front cross as the dog commits to jump #4. The dog turns wide, as shown by the red line, and a 24’ turn is this untrained dog’s natural response to a front cross. (I measure the turn from the dog’s position when the handler executes the front cross to the dog’s position at the end of the turn.) The handler runs the sequence again, but this time starts the front cross when the dog is halfway between jumps #3 and #4 as shown in Figure 2. The dog still has a 24’ turn, but now this turn is starting to look more like what the handler wants. The handler runs the sequence once more. This time though, he starts the front cross when the dog lands after jump #3 as shown in Figure 3. Again, the response is a 24’ turn, but look at the immediate outcome on course. 4 24' 3 5 FC With any training or handling method, there is a reason it has come to exist and that people continue to use it. The main reason I see for using early front crosses is that the short-term beneﬁt is very striking. 6 2 Short-term Gains With any training or handling method, there is a reason it has come to exist and that people Figure 1 1 January | | Clean January 09 09 Clean Run Run 31

Clean Run - January 2009

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run - January 2009