Clean Run Magazine - June 2007 - 70

T 5 6 15 MA S T E R P L AN 8 7 16 4 3 10 By Claudia Bates 9 11 17 This month’s Master Plan setup was used in classes taught during March 2007 at A Click Above. I designed the course after attending a USDAA trial that had many challenging courses. During setup be sure to note that the distance between jumps #11 and #12 is only about 14'. This close placement can provide an extra challenge for some dogs when coming from the tunnel. I enjoy giving my students and myself a second chance to work through challenges seen on a trial course so I included this particular one in my course setup. 14 12 2 13 18 1 1 Advanced/Masters Course Advanced/Masters Level In the Advanced/Masters course in Figure 1 most handlers began with the dog on their right from jump #1 into the weave poles. Many students ran with their dogs from the beginning, ﬁnding it unnecessary to lead out. Handlers who were able to get lateral distance from their dog in the weave poles were able to keep the dog on their right to the #4 jump and #5 tunnel, after executing a false turn at the #3 tire. Other handlers did a front cross at the end of the weave poles, handling the #4 jump and #5 tunnel with the dog on their left. I had one student who did lead out with the dog on his left and handled the entire sequence, from jump #1 to the #5 tunnel, with the dog on his left. This handler was able to accelerate in front of his dog in the weaves and through the tire, pushing the line to the tunnel. Many students had problems with their dogs in the weaves, regardless of the handling option they used. I believe this difﬁculty was mostly due to the fact that some of the less experienced dogs were not very comfortable weaving toward the ring gating. All handlers kept the dog on the right from the #6 teeter to the A-frame. Most students opted to execute a false turn from the teeter to jump #7 to keep the dog from going to the off-course table. I encouraged students to try for the tightest safe approach to the A-frame. Most students chose to keep the dog on the right but a few students did a front cross after panel jump #8 to the A-frame. Generally, this option did not get as tight a turn to the A-frame as keeping the dog on the right. From the #10 tunnel, most students kept the dog on the left, executing a rear cross at jump #12. A few students did a front cross from the tunnel to jump #11. This choice caused most dogs to turn wide from the tunnel toward the off-course jump. The rear cross seemed to be the best option, and when timed correctly, it kept the turn at #12 very tight. The next challenge came after jump #13 to the dogwalk/tunnel discrimination. A few handlers did a front cross from jump #13 to the dogwalk, while most students kept the dog on the right. In both cases, students discovered that they needed to cue the turn to the dogwalk with the correct body language. When handling this discrimination with the dog on the right, students needed to turn completely toward the dogwalk and wait for the dog to commit to the dogwalk before 70 T 4 2 5 3 3 5 6 9 1 9 2 8 7 4 6 8 1 7 2 Advanced/Masters Sequences moving laterally around the tunnel. Students who opted for the front cross from #13 to the dogwalk had to be very precise in their cross to avoid sending the dog directly into the tunnel. From the dogwalk to the #15 tunnel, students generally handled the tunnel with the dog on the right, taking care to step into the dog toward the right to encourage the correct tunnel entrance. Handlers ﬁnished the course with the dog on their right. Students needed to begin running aggressively forward indicating the #16 triple as soon as the dog exited the #15 tunnel. The dogs responded to the handlers’ speed in kind and most had no problem with the last three jumps. Figure 2 contains the sequences that accompanied the course in the Advanced/Masters classes. Students generally did lead out past the A-frame toward or even beyond the panel jump #2 in the black sequence. They handled the beginning of the sequence to the #4 Clean Run | June 07

Clean Run Magazine - June 2007

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Clean Run Magazine - June 2007