A Risky Fifth

Its bank holiday Monday and we’re at Shrewsbury dog show, even L is with us. This is the first time this show has extended over the weekend into Monday and entries numbers are low for the extra day. Subsequently we are finished by lunchtime.

MD performs very well, we get a clear round and 2^nd place on one course. We would have got a second 2^nd if I hadn’t rushed him and he felled a pole. As is tradition, one run is an absolute stinker but then we get another crack in the ring where he felled the pole. The end of the course is identical and this time we are clear but a minor mid-course disagreement leaves us out the rosettes.

We head home and catch up with some bed time.Then later we head out for two pints in Crafty Crow and then two more in the Hand and Heart. By now it has started raining and with twenty minutes until the bus we go for a risky fifth in the Ropewalk, purely to wait for the bus in there out of the rain you understand. This turns out to be the best pint of the night, a stout. I think our heads will regret it later.

(Monday 4^th May)

Sun And Showers

There’s an interesting mix of sun and very heavy showers today at our dog show in Osmaston. Even before those showers it’s so wet underfoot that you can’t go rushing around. Which is probably a good job if you have a dodgy knee like me.

The morning brings a clear round from MD but due to a fair amount of faffing around the tunnel entry we miss out on the rosettes. Another run got us five faults for a felled pole but otherwise it was an excellent run considering the tough course, the tough (slippery) ground conditions and the handler with the dodgy knee. Everyone else obviously found it as tough because somehow that run got us a rosette for 4^th.

After a two hour downpour that spanned lunch L joins us after a tea and cakes trip to Ashbourne. She is in time to witness a decent run from MD save for another faff on a jumping section followed by another run that was a complete disaster where everything went wrong.

It was almost as bad for Doggo who got E’d in the Allsorts class for missing two jumps out. I took my eye off him and he took a short cut. So it was my fault really but back in the day mate you wouldn’t have done that.

Back home, we stay in and are AF ahead of tomorrow’s Ramathon.

(Saturday 7^th June)

The King Of Insect Bites

The first of three days at our dog show today. Where I am not only competing with both dogs but also assisting in running the whole shebang. Actually a bit more than that really. I’m responsible for the stalls, the sponsors, the health and safety whilst also supposed working on a competition ring and assisting with the first aid.

In the end I opt out of ring duty and hang around the marquee, which is useful actually as our main sponsor hasn’t turned up with the prizes yet and nor have our rosettes. These were due yesterday, now they are scheduled for lunchtime delivery. We tell all our judges that they can’t do any presentation until after lunch.

The ice cream man isn’t happy where he’s been told to park. I move him, someone complains. I move him again, someone else complains. He ends up back where he started.

First aid duty brings an impressively swollen ankle from what appears to be an insect bite. Even I’m impressed and I’m the king of the insect bites. 

Our main sponsor belatedly arrives, drops off the prizes but doesn’t stay due to some family crises. Which is a shame, as she would have brightened the place up no end. She leaves me some banners to do the brightening instead.

Lunch arrives, still no rosettes. So we tell everyone that they’ll be no presentation until late afternoon. Finally at 2pm, the rosettes turn up. Yay.

Competition wise, MD does well but with no clears. Doggo is clear of course.

Afterwards I meet L at the pub in nearby Walton. She gets the bus over, well three buses actually, which takes several hours. I would say the food service in the pub was slow but it wasn’t the food that was slow it was the staff not telling us that what we’d ordered for starters was off, until we went to them to ask where our meal was forty minutes later.

Then we take a bottle of wine back with us to our tent.

(Friday 26^th July)

No Joy For Bonnie

We’re at one of the many many dog shows this year at Catton Hall today. We start off with a good run and an impressive 4^th place for MD. So we just missed the top three and the trophies again. It wasn’t really his sort of course either.

Unfortunately it’s all downhill from there. A scrappy clear, a five faults and an elimination in his other three runs.

Then it’s about three hours of hanging around for Doggo’s one event. His veterans’ class is the last one of the day to run. He’s clear but just misses the rosettes.

L ventures up to Parkrun at Forest Fields, running there and back as well as doing the 5k run. She says she needs to get fit. If she says that one more time...

In the evening, we stay in with Eurovision and only the odd glass of beer/wine. Another race tomorrow but not too serious a one. 

As expected there's no joy for Bonnie but if you were sat on a sofa in Azerbaijan and couldn't make your mind up on the music alone, would you vote for the 61 year old Welsh woman or 20 year old Danish totty Emmelie de Forest? Just asking... Personally I think there's something seriously wrong with our selection process.

 (Saturday 18^th May)

A ‘To Be Or Not To Be’ Moment

With us being in Ipswich, this enables us to receive a visit from Doggo’s twin brother’s owner, who visits the dog show to see us.

MD promptly fluffs the one run he gets to do in front of her. Although it actually wasn’t that bad. It started really well and it was actually me that fluffed it. Sorry.

He did get a rosette for 12th for an earlier run. As he was only 1.8 seconds off the winner, it was a surprising 12th. Last week we were 1.5 seconds off the winner and came 2nd.

Doggo is clear in his Vets but outside the rosettes.

Later we head off to pick up our race numbers from Half Marathon HQ and then search out even bigger desserts and pasta for tea. We head down to the harbour front and find a pleasant traditional pub, the Lord Nelson. Stumbling upon Adnams’ Ghost Ship is an unexpected distraction and produces a ‘to be or not to be’ AF moment.

'Not to be' is the answer. Hopefully everything will be counteracted by the Lemon Sponge dessert.

(Saturday 22nd September)

Punching Above Our Weight

It's Nottingham Dog Show this weekend in Newark and we’re there both days. The sun is really strong but thankfully there's a cooling breeze. Though I still feel the sunburn could be quite bad tonight...

MD starts off with a pretty good run. He gets his tunnels, his contacts, clears all his jumps and then comes out his weaves. There’s always something.

All his courses this weekend are for Grades 3-5 and as he’s a 3, we’re going to be attempting to punch above our weight all weekend. Whereas when shows put on Grade 1-3 courses we really should be looking for the win, here it’s more about getting round.

His next course is a particularly tough one but we make a really good fist of it. He just knocked one pole or else we'd have been clear. When I look at the times, I see that rather annoyingly the leader is two whole seconds slower than us but of course, they didn’t have a pole down.

We’re back to messing up the weaves in his last run but then good old reliable Doggo goes clear in the vets, although finishes outside the rosettes. At least we got to see Pudsey, jumping not dancing on this occasion.

I text L to enquire if we’re allowed home yet. She's glossing, as in skirting boards and stuff. Apparently they’ll be a roll of clingfilm by the door... hairs are not welcome and anything with four paws might have to suitably wrapped if it wants a roof over its head tonight. Well, I think she just means the dogs.

Having circumnavigated the house rules we have a night in with ‘the Hump’. E.g. Eurovision.

It wasn't good. Engelbert was only kept off the bottom by Norway and finished hundreds of points behind the winners, Sweden, and the Russian grannies. It's a European disappoint of the like we won't see again until, well next month, when England take to the pitch.

(Saturday 26th May)

Controversial

A dog show today, only at Grantham, so it’s not a horribly early start. Just an early one. Doggo is first to compete and quickly puts in two clear rounds, they were also quite quick for him. He seems up for it today. He does five runs in all and all are clear but he doesn’t get among the rosettes.

MD is also up for it but this doesn’t manifest itself into clear rounds. He gets one clear but that was a controversial one. The judge has a quiet word with us afterwards as I nudged MD back on course with my leg a couple of times, which is actually totally against the rules but on this occasion he let me off. Not that it helped, it didn’t get us a rosette.

So we head home prize-less but it wasn’t too bad a run out for them.

Derby almost win again but concede a late penalty at Crystal Palace. 2-2.

We stay in. Indulging instead in pasta and pudding. Reading Half Marathon tomorrow.

(Saturday 19th March)