Happy New Year, Amarillo!

 Cozy, Jackson, Wager, and I went to the agility trials in Amarillo, Texas, last weekend. The weather was fabulous, both for the 7-hour drive there and back, and for the trial. Sarah Dow Beathard was the judge. the courses were fun, with some interesting challenges. AOTC puts on a fine trial. I especially enjoyed not breathing horse barn dust for 2 days, and having convenient parking for crating in the van. The people at the trial were very friendly.
  I didn't get any video, but Wager went 4 for 4 in Novice. He did the teeter on the first try both days, and seemed to have even more confidence than he had a month ago. He already has his Jumpers title, so I tried some more challenging handling moves. He ran around the first jump on a long lead-out, but nailed it on the next run. He was a little slow on the dogwalk, and got a refusal on it on Saturday. It might become the next issue. Several people complimented me on Wager's runs. I've moved him to Open JWW for the Samoyed Club trial in 3 weeks, but he's staying in Novice Standard for right now. He'll probably get his Preferred title before moving up.
  Cozy QQed on Saturday. The soccer facility is pretty dark inside, and she seemed to have a hard time seeing. I'm not complaining, though, I just needed to be more verbal for her. She wasn't particularly fast, either, probably due to the low light. It will be interesting to see if she performs better in Castle Rock next weekend. It's brighter in there.
  Jackson got an Ex Jumpers leg, second place and 14 points.He also got two first-place Time2Beat legs. That's a good class for him- he doesn't have to do the dogwalk. Sarah's T2B courses were great- they allowed the dogs to really open up and RUN FAST!
  I was amazed that the motel was quiet on New Year's Eve. I went to bed early (around 10) and was able to sleep until past 7am. Apparently the Motel 6 isn't a popular party place.
  Amarillo is a nice city. It's large enough to have lots of amenities, but small enough that you can get somewhere in under 20 minutes. I found a FABULOUS grocery store close to my motel, so I was able to have healthy meals from the fridge and microwave in the room.
  On the way out of town on Sunday morning, we stopped at the Thompson Park Dog Park. They have a separate small dog area, but it's tiny. Thankfully, at 9am on New Year's Day, the big dog park was empty, so we stretched our legs in it.

Jackson, Wager, and Cozy in Amarillo

Jackson, enjoying a run in Texas

  It's a big dog park, but it includes a pond. Jackson and Wager wanted to chase geese, so we stayed on the far side, away from the pond. Thankfully, neither boy really wanted to get in the water. Cozy has more sense than to chase geese.

  Next weekend is the Columbine Poodle Club trial in Castle Rock. Close to home!