meat and potatoes

A seminar from Terry is always so refreshing. He is a great speaker, has a good sense of humour, and likes to keep things simple. He can be heard comparing himself to "meat and potatoes" at every seminar.

It is totally true. Where other seminar instructors complicate things and change ideas frequently- Terry remains the same. Go On, Out, Come, and left and right are the cues he teaches- and each has their place. He teaches consistent handling and is not afraid to challenge and question current fads.

Every seminar I have taken from him I have come away knowing what I have to work on, but also knowing that I have a great dog, and have done a good job training. That is a nice feeling.

This seminar was no exception. I had Pixel in the Friday morning puppy session. It was a small group and we got lots done. Pixel worked well, and I am in the works of planning the next six weeks of training for her. Terry had some neat ideas, and we did things that I have already been doing- it is nice to know that I am on the right track.

The saturday seminar was something completely new. There were four sanctioned runs- two standards, a gamblers, and a jumpers. We all walked the course together with Terry and talked about handling strategies, and finding the best path for you and for the dog. And then ran it, while we ran it Terry took notes, and once the whole class was done we talked about the issues, and got a chance to re-run either a portion, or the whole thing. It was a great idea for a seminar- a first for Terry, and for the host club. The courses were designed to give as much challenge as was legal! :o) Stew outdid himself with the gamble!


Standard 1- Unfortunately I lost my course map with the notes. At this point I don't remember much about this one! Maybe it will come back to me if I think about it long enough!

Standard 2- On this one my front cross off the teeter was good- but I went too far forward for the pinwheel- 5-6, and then was late for my serp cue over 7- i.e I was in her way over the bar...I rear crossed to nine, and then used my decel to get a tight turn over 11 and up the frame. When I ran this the first time I forgot where I was going after the frame and sent my dog straight instead of turning to go to 13...We had problem with the weave entrance at first- but I took her back and tried again and she did it. Ended with a rear cross between 18-19...Terry had me rerun the first part- getting a better turn to five, and practice the serp...


you can click to enlarge!

Gamble-
This was a tough gamble. When we walked it as a group Terry asked about independant contacts, and a verbal cue to turn away. Wicca has both of those. Kind of. Her contacts are fine- but the verbal turn cue is still not as strong as I need it to be. When we ran the class I had planned on doing each mini twice- but Wicca dove into the wrong entrance of the tunnel the first time so we only could get the wall/tunnel mini once. But- we managed to get the weave chute mini twice! I was thrilled that she did it. I did it back to back too- using my "turn" cue to turn her out of the weaves and to the chute. But we didn't get the gamble when it came to that. We tied for the third highest points though! We got to rerun the gamble part at the end- and I got her to do it but had to be about 6 feet away. I know that I have to work on that though- and Terry gave me some ideas.



Jumpers- although this looks complicated I didn't even get lost. really. I initially walked it with a lead out to the second jump and a rear cross to the tunnel. Then a front cross to five. I was a going to then "pull her through the gap" and continue. Terry reccomended first off a front cross to the tunnel (which I ended up not doing, and had a wide turn) and then a front cross at five, and a second one at six with a rear cross to seven...wow eh?! It was really, really nice, and worked beautifully. And then my dog launched her self over nine and was almost to the tunnel before she listened to me...brat. which then put me too far behind to handle the rear cross at 12, and the following front cross at 13. I ended up doing a rear cross at 13 which did not work. So although the last part of the course wasn't pretty I still drove (i.e ran fast) and we had NO bars down. Amazing eh? I was pretty thrilled!




I got a LOT of great information from Terry- he had some suggestions about the bars- making her more aware of them. He suggested zip ties around the poles so that they stick out and she will feel them if she bumps it. Also I will be able to see when she ticks them. I am going to give it a try. Her bar knocking is much better- and it does have a lot to do with me and my handling- but she needs to be responsible for her own feet!

He had words of wisdom for everyone, and took the time to get to know the dogs and the people- and really understood what the issues were and was able to help everyone. The thing with Terry is that he is very personable- I mean, it's hard NOT to like the guy. He puts people at ease, and they are able to understand what he's trying to say. And if they don't he'll explain it a different way. I for one am a huge Terry fan. But then I've always been a fan of good old fashioned Meat and Potatoes!! ;o)