August/September Practice Schedule
Here's the practice schedule for August and September:
- 11 August, Saturday (start time 11:00)
- 15 August, Wednesday
- 29 August, Wednesday
- 1 September, Saturday (start time 11:00) - rescheduled from 2 September
2 September, Sunday (start time 11:00)- rescheduled to 1 September- 15 September, Saturday (start time 11:00)
October starts the usual rainy season. Plus, it will be starting to get dark much earlier. We will be back on the weekend schedule only. Hopefully, we'll get the occasional forecast for a few days without rain. I will most likely be setting up practices a few days in advance of each one rather than a month schedule at a time.
The doodle poll is set up for signups: http://www.doodle.com/cd5ynp6kkccg6md7. If you are unable to get it to come up or work, just drop me an e-mail as to dates and times you will be at practice. If possible, it is good to know at least a day in advance.
A reminder: while we very much appreciate folks arriving early to help with setup, I'd like to remind everybody that this is a private field that we are leasing to practice on. So, a couple of things... The club's insurance covers us only from the beginning of setup to tear down. We have agreed with the owner, Mark, that the field is only to be used for practices, not to play with the dogs either before or after practice sessions. And, probably the most important when considering dogs who are in the process of learning how to course - the practice field is exactly that. It is a business place where dogs learn the business of lure coursing. Dogs can easily become confused if they are both played with, e.g., ball throwing, frisbees, etc., and then expected to settle down and become totally focused on chasing a bunny bag. Some dogs do not easily make the transition and some dogs never will make the transition. So, we are asking everyone to please, if you arrive earlier than we do, please do not turn your dogs loose to play. You are welcome to take them out on leash and walk or jog them.
Also, if you have crates, bring them. The weather will be getting warmer, too warm to leave dogs in cars with the windows down inches. And it also precludes the possibility of dogs getting loose and interfering with dogs currently chasing the bunny bag and possibly causing an injury to one or both dogs.
Practices will be held at the Cascade Family Fliers field south of Snohomish. One last thing, my phone number is 425-293-3776. Please don’t use the number on the Cascade Family Fliers website. That goes directly to the field owner, Mark. I’m quite active on my computer. If you e-mail me with questions, almost for sure, I will be back to you within a day if not sooner.
-submitted by Shirley Konizeski, aumbre@earthlink.net