Shocker is from the 2023 Neil Gaiman Litter.
Super proud of Shocker up in Canada, who debuted at six months old by going BOB over two specials for his first points and then went on to win a Group 4! The following day, he was BOB again, and went on to a Group 1 and a puppy Group 1. So proud!
Shocker is from the 2023 Neil Gaiman Litter.
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Sammy had a great debut lure coursing this weekend. He QCd yesterday with his buddy, Dean, on an 1100 yard course to boot, and then entered the trial. He ran great and ended up second place for his first point. Today, I told him this morning that the only way he could qualify for the NLCC in time with the extended deadline was to win BOB. He took it to heart and ran like a trooper, and also earned his first major in the process. So he finished the weekend with his first six points and a major and qualified just in time! He also ran in BIF for the first time, with this great Saluki, and he hung in there better than I expected with that unfortunate draw — there was no way that Saluki wouldn’t smoke him, but he didn’t give up.
Additionally, Dean walked away with three points toward his LCX this weekend, and Fleura earned five points toward her LCX2. Unfortunately, she had a flare up of an earlier injury in her last run and she’s benched for the next month. I’m glad Afghans have enough sense not to run themselves until they are well and truly broken the way Ibizans do. I saw Fleura stumble-hop weirdly with her rear (injury was to her knee) and my immediate instinct was to cringe because Beezers will basically run until their leg is dangling off, and it was only halfway through the course. Instead, she pulled up and stopped, located me, and trotted off the course directly to me. I was flabbergasted and very relieved I didn’t have to watch her run herself into real brokenness. Hela also had a puppy run yesterday and had a good time meeting lots of people. She’s decided she’s really into the lure coursing game and was losing her little brain watching the other dogs. I’m definitely looking forward to her getting started. Meanwhile, in Sweden, Ori had a great show day with a BOB puppy and honorary prize, and a puppy Group Two. Very proud of this little man! Junior was BOB on Saturday in Limestone for his second lure coursing major, leaving him needing just a few points for his Field Championship!
Super proud of both kids! Ponzi QC'd on Saturday and went on to win Open for a five point major. Junior was a point behind her, taking second place for three points. On Sunday, Ponzi unfortunately had a stomach bug and had to scratch after a great prelim run, but Junior stepped up and went on to not only win Open, but also Best of Breed over 18 Ibizans! Super proud of them.
Huge props to Kayla, for enduring the rain and cold to run her girl! We had a long week of camping in TN, starting with Beezer Bash on Tuesday, followed by the four days of Winter Challenge. It was overall a great weekend. Sam was Winner's Dog & Best Puppy at the Beezer Bash Specialty for his first major. In the ASFA trial, Evie was fourth place in Field Champions and Niko was second in Veterans. At Winter Challenge, Fleura was BOB every day, but ultimately pulled up a little lame for Best in Event. Overall, it was a great week and a blast to hang out with everyone.
Fleura ended the year #1 in LGRA, #4 in ASFA (after four trials), and #2 in AKC lure coursing! Fleura made history and I'm still processing it. With the NLCC so close by in Florida, I decided that I needed to go and at least run Fleura. She's at her competitive height, and even though money was tight enough that I couldn't enter any of the Beezers (which had a huge entry!), I decided it was worth investing everything to give Fleura a shot. As I cautiously told people, I believed she could actually be a contender.
The weekend started off with her running kind of sluggish compared to her usual rocket speed. It feels cheap to say that when she ultimately was BOB both days, but it was something that several people used to seeing her run commented on, so I felt safe that it wasn't me glorifying her usual style. Her cousin, Rosie, put in some really beautiful runs and beat her both days in Prelims, but Fleura kept it together in Finals and squeaked ahead. Fleura tends to get better throughout the day as she runs, and on Friday, she had a brilliant course for BIF which was ultimately awarded to the Azawakh. After discussing her sluggishness with Eddie, we decided not to run her in BIF on Saturday to conserve her for the NLCC. Sunday was cool and beautiful, and Rosie and Fleura ran off over 1200 yards to see who would be the NLCC Finalist. Rosie got some hair hung in the line and we had to stop mid-course, but luckily was fine due to the quick actions of the Huntmaster. Fleura put in a great course, one of her best over the weekend, and moved on to the finals. After seeing her run that morning, I started to become cautiously hopeful again - she was running more like she typically does. When the NLCC came about, Fleura drew the Greyhound and the Borzoi. I wasn't sure what to think. Normally, with her speed, this is actually a good draw for her to show just how fast she is, but I was nervous she would peter out over the next 1200 yards with how she had run the previous days on 800 yards. It turns out that I wasn't giving her competitive spirit enough credit. Fleura hates when dogs are faster than her, and she rode that Greyhound and refused to give ground. Mid-course, she and the GH took the far corner deep and the lure was pulled ahead of the Borzoi and she started to fall back a little bit on the uphill. Then in the last third of the course, she put on the afterburners again and decided she was going to pass the Greyhound at the top of the hill. She actually pulled ahead for just a moment, then the GH started down the hill just as she was passing and there was a collision. Fleura got her brain rattled around a bit and was mildly sore on a front shoulder, but thankfully it was the very end of the course and neither dog was truly hurt. It was a brilliant course and I was so proud of her, and once again I was cautiously hopeful. There were several other great courses, but she really put on a show. Turns out that the judges unanimously put her as their top score, and Fleura became the first Afghan Hound to be awarded the National Field Champion title. This title is only given out to one dog per year, so this is phenomenally exciting. Eddie was the FTS at the event, so he got to see the scores as they were tabulated and I have no idea how he was able to keep it together long enough for it to be announced. As big of an honor as this is for me as her owner, it's an incredible honor for her breeders, Eddie & Selma. There were lots of happy tears and Selma screaming over the phone, and it was amazing. We had a fun weekend, camping out in Canon in the cool weather. Dean and Evie ran and had some fun, and we had a "borrowed" Beezer from Abbaio (Beetlejuice) who stayed with us as well and racked up some wins. He hit it off immediately with my dogs and had a great time playing with Fleura especially. Fleura had some great runs on two tight courses, and had an especially strong BIF run against the Whippet. She was BOB on Saturday to finish her LCX title, and 2nd place on Sunday.
The hilarious highlight of the weekend for me was Dean getting loose. I had handed him to a friend while I got Evie ready to go, since Beezers were up next. As I was leaning in the car and dressing her, I heard the cry of, "Loose dog!!" I decided to check, since Dean is strong, and I leaned back to look and saw him heading for the course at top speed. He had just gotten to the field, with three Whippets heading at him and the lure zipping his way, and I shouted his name. Amazingly, he screeched to a stop and spun around and headed straight back to me! This earned a round of applause from everyone in the holding area, which made it extra funny. Dean came right to me, to much praise, and then was handed back to his poor holder. It was a HOT weekend, but we had a great time at the first Beezer Bonanza. We had a nice entry of 31 total Ibizans, and some amazing prizes. My guys had a few big perks, with the biggest being Dean getting a second place placement! Dean is a hot/cold runner and you never know if he's going to give you a fantastic course or a creative one. It was really exciting to have him not only have two great runs, but do well in the run off as well. Even having him tied for first place in great company was a thrill. Fleura also had a great event - winning BOB Saturday for more LCX points and also hitting 30 mph twice in FCATs. The babies also had their first adventure at lure coursing!
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