Pam Cornell, a Truly Great Lady

The stockdog world has lost a great lady -- Pam Cornell -- who owned Willowside Ranch in Pescadero, CA. Pam was a purposeful lady who created a dream showcase for many folks in which to work their dogs on sheep, geese, and other stock. Pam was the definition of "Class" in every sense of the word. I know she would not want us to be sad but we are all very much affected by the news of her passing.

I can see her working her beloved dog, "Tar" on the sheep. I recall her telling the story lovingly how Tar laid down on a duck at the Collie Family Showcase that one year, simply because she told him to "lie down, Tar!". Tar simply adored Pam, as we all did. Pip, "the Queen of the Ducks" and Pam were a force to be reckoned with on the AHBA trial course..I can't count how many times Pip took first or second place in the duck classes with her prowess. Pam was always cheery, always encouraging, always positive. Her vision for the ranch is something that enabled many of us in Northern California (and from other parts of the country as visitors, as well) to gain experience, follow our hearts, and live our dreams. I can't thank Pam enough.

Pam (in pale blue sweater) accepting an AHBA trial placement ribbon from Linda Rorem at Willowside Ranch in Feb. 2009

It was truly a privilege to know Pam, and as someone else said, it is a very sad time in the border collie community.

Rime is Two Years Old!

Rime will be two years old tomorrow, December 6th. He's changed from this cute little puppy:

Then to a gangly yearling like this:

To this:

People ask me where his name comes from; invariably before I can answer, they laugh and say "it must mean no rhyme or reason". That is probably true, however what I had in mind when I chose this name was a dual meaning: first, I was an English major in college, so the "rime" (or rhyme, for poetry) is something I have studied a lot. Somehow it appealed to me to have a dog who might work or move like poetry in motion.  Second, besides poetry, rime has another meaning, for a type of frost or ice that has a "rim" on leaves and grasses outlining them in sparkly frost. I thought this was appropriate (i.e., a weather name) since Rime's father's name is Fog and his grandmother's name is Cloud. I liked the short name with a consonant beginning that was different from my other dogs' names.

For the past year Rime and I have worked very hard on his sheepdog training, at least four times a week and sometimes five or more times per week. He's at the point now where things are starting to click together. He's doing longer gathers now, is almost entirely on my whistles and is doing drives and crossdrives with more and more control and precision. He's a capable and helpful chore dog and can do just about anything I need to do with our sheep at our various fields. He has not helped with lambing ewes yet (but no doubt will soon) and I have not started to teach him to shed. But, I am very hopeful that he will be able to trial in 2011 in Pro-Novice and Nursery. It is a dream come true to have a second dog to trial along with Coal! Special thanks should go to his breeder and my sheep partners and trainer for helping me to bring him along. So, Happy Birthday to Rime!

2011 National Finals Video

Check out this nice video promoting the 2011 USBCHA National Finals!

LINK

Thanksgiving 2010 Photos

I took some photos on Thursday and Friday of my dogs and a few others' dogs. They are in a Picasa album, so take a look and enjoy.

LINK

"That'll Do"

I saw a notecard in the Border Collies in Action catalog titled "That'll Do", and had to buy it. The painting reminded me so much of my Bid. Then when I received the card, on the back was a website for the artist. I found the original post about the painting.

http://paulmorganpainter.blogspot.com/2009/03/thatll-do.html

Enjoy. This painting and all of the other work is just lovely. Cowgirls, horses, dogs, cowboys, steers, all done in oils and beautifully captured.

Dunnigan Hills Trial, November 2010

Sunday we ran in the Dunnigan Hills trial near Zamora, CA. The day was clear and brisk, in sharp contrast to the heavy overnight rain and wind storms. Local folks in the Zamora area had been without power overnight. The weather gods were smiling on the sheepdog trialists and trial hosts, however, as it couldn't have been nicer (and there wasn't a strong Zamora Wind that we all know so well!). David Rees was again judging and we had another left-hand drive but no single or shed, because the terrain at the ranch just doesn't allow much room for a shedding ring.

Coal ran twelfth in the order so once again I didn't have to wait too long but had plenty of runs to watch before we stepped up to the post. I sent him left, to his better side, and that worked out fine. He could have been deeper but it was adequate. The lift was a bit offline though as a result. The fetch was fast and furious; I should have gotten hold of Coal sooner on the fetch - my bad. Since Coal is sometimes too careful and creepy, I often get sidetracked in my handling when he is fast! In theory, I can deal with too fast much better than too slow but it's something I need to adjust for more quickly on the fly. It must've been the cool crisp weather that made both dog and sheep really light on their feet. We made the fetch gates, and brought the sheep up the hill and 'round the post to start the drive. The sheep are very "educated" as one top handler put it, and they gave each dog and handler team a run for their money on the drives. The cross drive is right on the path to "home". I thought we were going to make the first drive panel, but didn't, and ran just low-- disappointing but it was my mistake and Coal's exuberance that I wasn't up to speed with. The cross drive was adequate and we did make the second drive panel, turned for home and I tried to remember to keep my eyes on my sheep the whole way up the hill and over to the pen. I couldn't see Coal but I could see the sheep and that was enough. The pen was successful in spite of Coal deciding to be sticky and not take my flanks close at hand (another issue to put back on the "to-work-on" list). We ended up with a generous 71 points which is a new high for us in the open.

We've run in six Open trials in about the past month and have gotten a score in each one. This little "circuit" has shown me a lot of what I need to work on over the winter, but more importantly, has shown me that we can indeed be somewhat successful in the Open. I have no regrets about moving up in class last April. I'm really happy with the little black dog. We are having so much fun!

Thank you to all who helped to put on the past weekend trials; they were both great and I know very much appreciated!

Kurrajong Trial, November 2010

This past Saturday Coal and I ran in the Kurrajong sheepdog trial, near Plymouth, CA. The weather forecast was for rainy and cold but for most of the trial, the rain stayed away other than some light sprinkles and showers. The temperatures were chilly, though, and it was often hard to recognize our fellow handlers because everyone was all bundled up in order to stay warm. Just a few miles away I knew there was snow in the Sierras but it didn't visit us at the trial. I was glad I bought a heavy waterproof parka last season, because I was plenty warm and dry.

We ran a left-hand drive on three very well-fed farm flock sheep and had to single one off the back before the pen. The course was designed to fit with the layout of the field and the lines were well visible for the most part due to the terrain. This was my first time participating in the Kurrajong trial and I really enjoyed it. David Rees from Wales was our judge for the weekend. It is always good to see David as we had all gotten to know him locally when he spent several years in California a while back. David always has a positive outlook and greets each handler with his warm smile. He had tremendous knowledge about border collie bloodlines and sheepdog trial judging.

Most of the experienced handlers sent to the right so I followed suit even though that is Coal's poorer side. On the left was a large tree which would have partially hid the sheep from the dog's view on his outrun. If we had a second run I would dearly have loved to send left to see how that would have worked out. In trials, Coal is sometimes tenative on his outrun especially to the right. In practice, he rarely shows this, so it is something hard to train for. I will be working on understanding this issue over the winter. Anyway he did finally get to his sheep, and had a nice lift. We made the fetch gates and turned the post a bit wide but the sheep were very light and touchy (and big!) and I didn't want to monkey with them too much. Like any green handler, I am always just a bit joyful when the dog gets the sheep to my feet!

We made the first drive panel after crossing over a little ditch to the right of another large shade tree, then turned for the cross drive, which put the sheep on their path to "home" (and kicked them into really high gear). I thought we were on line for the second panel but in fact, we just skimmed it on the top. We got them turned tightly without threading them back through the panel and turned for the shedding ring. It was hard to set up the single because the sheep were -- as one handler put it -- so "spirited". Finally we did get our single and were headed to the pen when David honked the truck's horn saying that our time was up. For me it was all over too quickly! I think that tells me that I am starting to really have fun. It was good having a quick visit with David, and also nice to meet a handler from Colorado who was in the area visiting family and running in the weekend trials. On Sunday we ran in the Dunnigan Hills "sister trial" to the Kurrajong and I will write about that in my next post.