Clean Run - February 2018 - 57

world can't thrive there. When Shane
Miller returned from competing in
the European Open with his Belgian
Malinois, Luna, his eyes were opened.
He determined, "Those of us at the top
levels are not prepared adequately for
Europe. We have to rely on practice. But
what you don't get from practices is the
environment. And while we have a lot
of great dogs and teams, we don't have
the competitive atmosphere to test our
training against."
Shane had an idea kicking around in
his head that his competitive spirit just
couldn't let go of. "I wanted to create
a format where high-level agility could
be run in our part of the country with
an international-style competitive
atmosphere."
Although he considered that cash
awards would be part of the equation,
"I want people to come out to run. I
want people cheering for the people
running out there-and I want people
out there wanting to win. It's got to be
more than just trying to get a Q."
The thing about Europe
Shane explained the difference he saw
at the European events: "In Europe, they
have a system that's not built on getting a Q. Everybody's out there watching. Everybody's cheering for you. It's
more like a party in some respects."
It's also a more laid-back atmosphere
with respect to the dogs. "You might
see 30 dogs off leash around the rings.
And you might be surprised to hear, the
rings over there are not fenced!" Shane
explained: "One things you notice in
Europe is everyone pays attention to
their own dogs. They are very cognizant
of that responsibility."
Bringing it home
The 2016 Midwest Agility Open, by definition, was downright simple. "It was
a very skimpy trial. No food or snacks.

You come to run agility on European
inspired courses." The event offered the
five jump heights common to AKC agility, plus the option to run at accommodated heights, equivalent to Preferred.
"Everybody ran three rounds, plus the
Finals. There was also a Spirit Award for
people who showed the spirit of competition, people who cheered on others, people who went with it." The classes featured, "very long tricky courses.
One of the courses was 250 yards. Linda
Mecklenburg designed the courses."
Streaming live from atop a ladder
Since it was at my house, I decided to
live stream the whole event. It wasn't
fancy. I actually had my laptop set up
on top of a ladder. So, I don't think I'll be
doing that this year," he joked.
"This year's event will be quite similar,
but I won't have a spirit prize. It will also
have courses designed for small, medium, and large."
Small but mighty
"Last year, I had a few participants that
had been on European Open teams,"
Shane said. "There were a few others
who tried out. Others came who just
wanted to run those kinds of courses
and wanted to support my endeavor."
The event hosted approximately 20
dogs and was powered by a handful of
dedicated volunteers.
Tips and takeaways
According to Shane, "Don't expect to
have a large turnout. Do try to keep
your costs in line. Even holding it at my
place last year, I still lost money. If that's
a concern, keep your expectations low
and do it for the love of agility."
Shane shared, "We wanted to keep it
cheap. Last year, the cost to participate
in my event was $25 dollars. This year,
it's $40, but I have to rent a building.
Out of that $40, $25 goes to the prize

pool. Once I meet my expenses, every
other dollar goes to the prize pool. I'm
not doing this to make money. I'm trying to keep the costs low and put as
much money out of the entry fees as
possible back to the event."
Eyes on the prize
Above all, Shane is passionate about
fostering a true, international-style
form of agility in the United States. He
offered to lend his experience to any
group that wants it, including event
formats and course designs. He even
offered to judge "if it's close enough."
"I'm willing to do what I can to support
these kinds of events, especially if it
supports competition in the US at an
international level." For anyone thinking
of hosting a similar event, Shane advises, "Do it for the love."
Shane encourages anyone with an interest in supporting his events to visit
his Agility Lunatics website at http://
agilitylunatics.com, or follow Agility Lunatics on Facebook.

Put on Your
Thinking Caps
So, what would you like agility to be
like? Examples like these show that agility competition doesn't always have to
be the same-old-same-old. All it takes is
some imagination, determination, and
some personal touches to show your
corner of the world something special.
So, create a celebration. Honor a great
person or a very special dog. Raise
funds for a cause. Sponsor a competition that steps outside the ordinary
bounds. Dare to make it personal.
Stir up some thinking that agility can
be "different"-and special-if only for
one day. It just takes a little imagination,
some elbow grease and a few hardy,
likeminded souls to make your dream
reality. D

Barbara Scanlan is a writer and agility dog trainer in Central Illinois. She earned a Maxwell Medallion from the Dog Writers of America in 2014. Her Papillon, Taylor, won
the AKC Preferred National Agility Championship (PNAC) in 2011, and was a second-place finalist in 2010. Her adorable middle Papillon, MACH2 Samurai, taught her
many lessons about reactivity, IBS-D and Early Take Off Jumping (ETO). Now, talented young Papillon, Thackery Binx, is leading her on an exciting new set of adventures.

February 18 | Clean Run

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