Clean Run - April 2014 - 34

Snooker is by far the most fun class for me to design and judge. I can really get creative although I still
have to make sure I can judge it! The strategy of the game is what makes it so much fun.
then I will let the handler fix an error for
no points and then continue.
This Snooker course contained two combos. One I let the handler choose, the
other I dictated how it was taken; therefore, I judged each differently. For the #4
combo of two jumps I let the handlers
choose how they wanted to complete
it, but any extra jump earned a whistle
and ended the run. For he #7 combo I
dictated that it must be done in serpentine flow, but the handler could start on
either end and on either side. If the handler broke the pattern, she could fix it for
no points and continue the opening.
I placed two reds close to the #7 to make
doing 7s tempting; however, the third
red was on the other side of the ring. So

it took some good planning and "snookering" to get to it. The course times were
just enough to entice handlers to do
three 7s, but not too much to make it
easy. Since it was Master Snooker, Super
Qs were on the line. I knew there would
be many plans that included high points.
Most handlers did choose using the two
reds at the front of the course and doing
two 7s, varying which of the two reds
they started with. Most then ran up the
right side of the ring to get the third red
and then took either the #4 (the most
popular) or the #6 (the second most
popular), grabbing the #2 afterward to
start the closing. The #5 was not a popular choice since it put handlers too far
away from #2. A few dogs did dart in the
#3 tunnel as the handlers ran up the side

of the ring. Other errors included bars
and the occasional off-course. I did have
a few make a mistake at #7 and start to
leave the ring until they noticed I had
not blown my whistle. Usually when that
happens it's hard to recover.
Of all the dogs that ran there were only
two scores of 51 in Championship, one
at 26" and one at 16", and two in Performance, both in 16" .
I really enjoyed this Snooker. The closing was a simple course with flow, but
only if you got through the opening! I
wasn't sure how it would be to judge, but
I could easily keep track of the combos,
especially since I only used three reds. I
would definitely use this pattern again to
keep handlers thinking. D

Judy Reilly currently lives in New York and works as a veterinary assistant for a holistic practice in Connecticut for both small and large animals. She is a member of
Keystone Agility in Pennsylvania and teaches classes in Connecticut. She shares her life with husband DJ, son Nick, two Border Collies (ADCH Rivet, 6; and ADCH Sony,
11), German Shepherd Lotus 7, and 2-year-old mix Tempest. Both Sony and Rivet have been USDAA Grand Prix finalists. Sony was also a Performance Grand Prix finalist.

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Clean Run - April 2014

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