Miles

We've racked up some miles in the past couple of weeks both on the vehicles and on the dogs. I haven't trialled much this summer but lately have taken the boys to two AHBA trials with the goal in mind of adding to Ryme's trial experence "passport", so to speak. Ryme has gotten some good experiences and most importantly he and I are getting together better as a team in a trial environment. That is not to say that everything has been perfect with him - because it hasn't  - but we have made it through four ranch course runs out of four attempts and got a decent score on all of them. No thank yous, no DQs, no RTs, and even two placements. It feels sort of nice! Coal got to run too in some of the trials. He is just so fun to run and keeping him tuned up is a good goal as well.

The trials were in close quarters to be sure, but the good side of that allowed me to stay close to my dog to help him if need be. The next item on my to-do list will be to work on stretching Ryme back out again at longer distances.  I'm grateful to have AHBA as a supportive environment for putting mileage on my dogs. Luckily no one takes it too seriously and the main goal for the day is usually to have a nice time with dogs, visit with friends, perhaps share some delicious food or at least some interesting conversation. Oh yeah and work dogs of course!

Fall Equinox

I am told that the fall equinox is a good time to re-visit our intentions of where we want to be going and what we want to be doing. It's a welcome chance to start over again on goals and continue to clear where we may have gotten bogged down--kind of like a mini new year's resolution festival--but the beginning of the footrace to the end of the calendar year.

This weekend begins some vacation time for me so I'm working on clearing some stuff at home that I've been avoiding for some time. It's a productive activity but tedious and so easy to get sidetracked on. You start on something and it's 1:30 PM and you look up and suddenly it's 5:30 PM. What happened? Inevitably some walking down memory lane brings some good stuff, along with a lot of sad stuff, interspersed with just a lot of junky stuff. You have to sift through to find the teeny gold nuggets.

That's where I am -- sifting.

And just in case this post started to sound too serious (as my last couple of blog posts have been) here is some comic relief -- a result of some of that sifting.

Halloween preparations circa ?
 

There doesn't that feel better?

I've had five male border collies at the house since Friday morning and have managed to keep everything under control. It's not a bad thing but a good reminder of why three is so much better for me to handle.

With vacation time, the boys get worked a lot more, we get our sheep chores done (like lamb vaccinating and the like) and in the evenings instead of constantly bugging me for attention the boys are flat out asleep on the floor in a "good-tired"sort of way. I could get to like this!

It's Finals Week.......good timing with that Fall Equinox and all. Good luck to all and may your intentions ring true.

Brothers

I found a few more photos of Jess, Bid's brother who passed away on Friday at age 13. I always loved Jess but only have a few pictures of him. Jess belonged to my friends in Reno, Carl & Pat. They miss him very much.

Jess on the left, Quinn on the right (half brothers)
 

Melancholy

Jess - 1999 - 2012



Good bye Jess; you were an excellent sheepdog, playful and loyal companion, and great friend. Time flies by way too quickly for the likes of you.

2012 National Finals Booklet

2012 National Finals publication

If you haven't already seen the 2012 USBCHA National Finals booklet publication, open the link above and take a look. In fact, get a cup of coffee or a glass of wine and sit down with it for a while. I was impressed; the booklet is really well done.

NCWSA purchased a half-page ad in the publication in order to help support this year's Finals. Our ad is on page six. I am really thrilled with the way the ad copy turned out. The photo in our ad is very cool!

Scottish Games 2012 Pics

Finally all of the pictures that I took at the 2012 Scottish Games in Pleasanton are edited and posted into a Picasa album. Never mind that the event was Labor Day weekend and it is now September 17th!

 

 

Based on the number of "likes"on Facebook, this photo above was apparently the most popular photo in the album. If you'd like to see the rest of the photos, here is the link:

 

NCWSA Scottish Games Sheepdog Trial Photos 2012

 

 

 



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The Boys of Fall

Some impromptu cell phone photos from a recent evening sheep check and dog run/work.
The shadows are getting longer and the daylight in the evenings gets shorter and shorter. Fall is here even though we are having very warm days!

The calendar says we are into Fall...Soldier Hollow, Meeker, the International Supremes, and the Finals. The annual cycle continues while we cheerlead for our friends and favorites on the running orders, the semi finals, and the finals of each event. A couple of our friends and mentors took young dogs into these trials this year and came out not on top but with good goes and a greater experience level for their youngsters...very proud of them and looking forward to more.

I do like the theory on the Supremes where no scores are posted and the winners are announced from 15th up, at the end of the day after the driving championship. With so much information being transmitted almost instantly these days, I think it would be cool if our US Finals would do that for the final day -- keep the scores silent to save some buildup for the end, and the prize-giving.

The boys here are enjoying their autumn evening sheep works (and play/run/soak time after) and so am I; in a few weeks we will be down to the last little nubs of daylight and I will miss these times for them to run and work, until spring starts to appear and the days get longer again.

Checking In...with the HHS

Hello blogging world, yes we are still alive. Things have just been so busy. The past weekend I spent at the Pleasanton Scottish Games, being the secretary for the NCWSA sheepdog trial there. I have dozens of photos to sort through...a chore that is going to have to wait at least a while.

 

But....these two photos just can't wait. Some seriously nice guys from Fresno, just out having fun at the Games that I started chatting with from my "field office"--despite the fact that I am just a foot soldier after all -- ...and then after reading their t-shirts I had to have photos. They happily complied!

 



 

 

Cinch up your kilt!

Gird your loins!

And just eat it!

 

Words to live by from the Haggis Hurling Society (of Fresno, with token member from Ventura County)