Colliding Rivers Classic.....

Well, I'm home....the summer run of sheepdog trials is officially over for me......ending at Colliding Rivers Classic Sheepdog Trial in Roseburg, Oregon. What a big fireworks finale of a show it was as Nell made her debut into open!

The field was not too huge....but it felt extremely complicated for me and my girls. Here is why...in this picture you can see the fetch gates and on either side there is a bunch of tall vegetation that lines a dry creek bed. At home, to get the biggest outruns I can....I send through gates all the time and I now know.....my girls look for gates. Also, at home, tall vegetation grows on the fence lines.....and my girls don't know they can look for opening in said vegetation when it is not growing on a fence line. Instead, they saw the "gate" aka fetch panels and used this to get up to the sheep. Most of the seasoned open dogs did not have any issues with the outrun and did a great job of bringing the sheep.....for me, it is another step in the direction of putting some miles on my dogs!

This trial was on lambs again, a little different from the lambs at LaCamas. These seemed a little older and were good buds.....so if they split from too much dog pressure.....taking the pressure off showed the lambs regrouping and wanting to stay together. However, with age...came a sense self-assurance......and in the mid day some of the lambs went on strike making the dogs work very hard indeed to bring them down the field.The first day did not see that many pens......handlers had to work hard to get the lambs to want to go in. 

In a nut shell......Saturday both of my girls brought sheep to my feet.....finding their sets with some help from me!  Nell was very frustrated and had the "grip of the trial", taking a lamb down to create a bit of order.  I walked!  Sally got to the cross drive before timing out and I was very happy with both girls for the team work they showed with me even though we were in over our heads.  Sunday...well...for the first time in my life....the set out was radically moved from the first go to the far right of the field.  Sending right was the way to send, .....left was very hard on the dogs as it was a blind outrun once the dog got past the creek.  I  sent Sal left...and she found the set out pen of sheep over the hill and, though I could call her off....I could not get her to see the packet that was set for her way closer to me.  I sent Nell right but she was sure the only way up the field was through the "gate" and ended up running all over kingdom-come until she found the buggers...and brought them.  I again walked once we got sheep through the fetch gates......I wanted her to think about all the help I gave that would have put her to the lambs if she would have listened.....I sure hope that is what she took away to think about!

And here is what I learned....I have come a long way in my relationship with Sally and Nell in the past year.  Both dogs worked very hard for me and neither got too rattled or quit working even when the going got tough.  I also have some things to work on......Sally definitely has a sweet little blow out now.....but not a pull in on her outrun......I will need both to compete at tough trials.  Nell is young and need to learn to trust my input....instead of thinking "yea yea, I know".  And for me.....well, it is to continue to push myself.....become a master reader of the sheep.....work on better understanding between my dogs and myself of what my commands mean and clean them up for precision and clarity.  And though I can shorten the learning curve.....some of what I must learn comes from experience.....so I will persevere, pay my dues, bring forth experiences that continue to teach me and my dogs.....and continue to learn though watching, setting, scribing, asking and being open to see the nugget of truth in what is being shared.

Seize the Day!

I love this picture....Lana checking her time at the pen!