Top Dog

This morning L, Daughter and I along with the two dogs are up at 6am and off to the NEC for Crufts. The loss of Doggo has made the arrangements a lot easier, although it’s not nice to admit that. We’re all missing the awkward old sod.

We get an excellent close parking spot and are in the Arena by 8:30am setting up our backstage area. The Lad has to stay in the car but the weather is still nice and cold for him. We can also check on his regularly. I don’t even try to convince the stewards that a three month old puppy is competing.

So we’re all calm and ready for our competition which is at 10:20am. Even MD is relaxed and tells me we’re going to win it for Doggo. I think he’s seriously deluded as I’m sure he’s going to embarrass me. 

There are two problems threatening to disrupt the calm... a couple of our team members are running late and my parents haven’t even left home yet. I knew I should have picked them up.

My folks don’t make it until it’s all over, so all we can do is meet them for coffee and cake later. Our two missing team mates do show up but later than we would have liked and only after the text message from our reserve giving her apologies.

Then we’re on, the first of the eight teams to go, and being streamed live on YouTube. Fame! 

Now our team knows it’s limitations and we racked up a few faults in qualifying but it was good enough to get us here. The same thing happens under the glare of the Crufts lights. We roll a few poles, grab a few refusals, miss the odd contact point and clock up 35 faults, although I think (secretly) it should have been 40 but in the end that doesn't matter. 

MD does his usually trick of refusing on a tunnel and also fetches a pole down with his tail, not a problem I’ll have with the Lad because he doesn’t have one. However, and this is the key thing, not one of us goes wrong and grabs an elimination which is worth 100 faults. Team 2 do and then Team 3 do as well. 

Team 4 also does but the scoreboard isn’t showing it even though the Judge signalled it. Cue confusion are we first or second? Meanwhile Team 5 and Team 6 both have double eliminations (e.g. 200 points), so we’re still second at worst as the red hot favourites take to the line. 

These guys won not one qualifier but two and beat us in our heat. They are again paw perfect and record four flawless clear rounds although not as quickly as we expected. Clearly they are hedging their bets that the final team also do not go clear. 

Team 8 don’t go clear but going into the final four obstacles they only have 5 faults and have second place in the bag until...  cue massive secret unsporting cheers from our team as they get eliminated as well. 

Are we second? We are and we head out into the Arena to get our medals.

Massively proud of our team, of MD and I suppose myself too. We very nearly did win it for Doggo and I’m sure he’s thrilled with our second place.

I have a quick wander round the stalls to press the flesh with a few of our club’s sponsors and then it’s home and a game of squash tonight. 

(Thursday 8^th March)

Tarting Around

I’m on the bike today, so obviously I have a good start to the day. When I ask L how her day is so far, she replies ‘Ok, if you like dogs’. Which she obviously does. Sometimes.

I go for a pub lunch while L does a much healthier lunch time swim.

In the evening it’s dog training where Doggo overdoes it a touch with the tarting around. As it was hot they had the Arena door wide open and he obviously noticed that. So he was out of the boot in a flash and quickly doing his finest Linford Christie impression in an attempt to get inside to disrupt the class before I got chance to stop him. He's regretting it now, I think he’s pulled one of his ageing muscles.

I meet L in the Masons afterwards, where they still haven’t changed the beers. So I’m on the Pedigree again.

(Wednesday 31^st May)

The Football Curse

I have the afternoon off so that I can head over to Newark to help set up our dog show for tomorrow. We are not allowed in the arena until 5pm so I have most of the afternoon with the boys which naturally involves ball chucking.

Then I take them over to Newark with me but it all ends up being a bit boring for them as the weather turns wet and they don’t get to get out of the car.

Setting up is complete by about 7:30 and then it’s a rush to get home for the Derby v Leicester FA Cup game which I would have liked to have gone to but it just wasn’t possible with us having the show. At least the BBC have obliged by showing it live.

I get home only ten minutes after the 7:55 kick off but Derby are one down by then after Darren Bent’s laughable own goal. I open a beer, sit down and enjoy the Derby fightback as they score twice to lead 2-1 until four minutes from time when Leicester score again to force a replay.

By then L has come in from the gym and has naturally reignited the football curse that she thinks follows her around.

We console ourselves, well I console myself I'm not sure L is that bothered, by ordering a takeaway curry from the tackily named Curry Busters on Hartley Road. It was a punt in the dark as we wouldn’t have got our usual curry house The Park Tandoori to deliver on a Friday night and neither of us wanted to walk there but surprisingly Curry Busters come up trumps with a mightily tasty meal. Although we do order extra rice that we don’t need which will keep the dogs going all next week.

(Friday 27^th January)

Autumnal Ramble

I take my bad back to a dog show, that I’ve only really entered to have a look at the new arena that it’s being held in. If it’s any good our dog club may be interested in using it.

L parkruns again. This time at Forest Fields where they have a new café. Of course it’s not about the café; it’s about the run, the green smiley face and the fact there’s now just 43 to go to the half century.

Whilst she’s running in the rain, Doggo and I are on a pleasant Autumnal ramble such is the delay between walking our first course and actually doing it. Two old men together. The back is fine so far, as long as I don’t do any quick movements which might be a problem when I come to compete.

Which eventually happens and typically we do two in a row, neither are clear. The second one was quite good but MD still stopped for a bark at me and refused a jump.

Our last run also takes an age to come around. The judge is slow and has set an impossible course, so the competitors are slow too. By the time we get to run it practically everyone else has packed up and gone home. It’s his best run of the day. Hardly anyone has got round the course and we get further than most until he misses a very tricky weave entry about three quarters of the way in.

The venue itself is quite swish. Posh café and loos. At first I don’t think it’s quite big enough for what our club will want but then I study it a bit more and have a look down from the balcony. If we rearrange things it might be goer. I can feel a committee proposal coming on.

Tonight, we stay in and munch pasta. Even injured supporters have to keep their energy up.

(Saturday 15^th November)