Carleton Creek Trial

Dog trialing does funny things to a person. You seem to loose all track of space and time when trialing for three days. Carleton Creek is the first field trial of the year in Alberta and it is a little bit like coming back to summer camp. Most of us have not seen each other for six or seven months. We sit around in our lawn chairs talking about what is new with each others dogs. As my weekend progressed I found myself thinking about things we need to work on for the next trial. Each year of doing this sheepdog thing I become more and more of a perfectionist. Fellow handlers congratulate me on a good run and all I can think of was were I messed up. Next time tighter turns or better lines. I can honestly say that this is the only aspect of my life where I am a perfectionist. This morning I sat back and reflected on the weekend for my blog and I realized I didn't do to bad. Saturday we ran two Pro Novice and one Open. Pro Novice had 32 dogs and Open almost 40. Pretty good numbers for the beginning of the year. The first Pro Novice run was a little rough but good enough to be with in the top 10. Second PN run was much better starting to get it together. Finished 2nd round two and overall I finished 3rd for the Pro Novice. It was 8:00 PM when we ran Open. The sun was in my eyes and the sheep were a little wild. I had a hard time getting a flow and timed out in the shedding ring. Sunday morning was run 2 for Open and we ran when it was cool and the sheep were just right. Had a really nice run and to my surprise placed 2nd. Which meant I was sitting in 10th place to go to the double lift. Something I was certainly not prepared to do. Luckily someone bumped me down to 11th. My second place win gives me points to qualify for the USBCHA national finals in September. Yea for me. As all summer camps end we exchanged hugs and email addresses with old and new friends.

Our Host Milton scott doing his best can can girl impression.

Isla watching the double lift from the sidelines.