{"id":11608,"date":"2014-12-01T04:00:24","date_gmt":"2014-12-01T11:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/?p=11608"},"modified":"2014-11-30T23:24:49","modified_gmt":"2014-12-01T06:24:49","slug":"good-weather-hat-hair-and-two-tracking-tests","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2014\/12\/01\/good-weather-hat-hair-and-two-tracking-tests\/","title":{"rendered":"Good Weather, Hat Hair, and Two Tracking Tests"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Doranna<\/em><\/p>\n

\"Post-tracking<\/a>

Post-tracking boyz, synchronized sleeping<\/p><\/div>\n

Yep, we had our big once-a-year local Variable Surface Tracking test on Sunday.\u00a0 <\/i><\/b>Beautiful weather, for sure–the best I\u2019ve ever had for a test.\u00a0 The best photos do not include me, because I wore a hat all day so no thanks, but the Beagle boyz are the important ones anyway!<\/p>\n

Connery was track five of six and Dart was track six,<\/b> so we watched the first tracks and then waited for Connery\u2019s turn in the quiet of a parking lot distant from the test \u201chome base.\u201d The tracks are laid all over a large campus.<\/p>\n

After the tracks are run,<\/b> the handlers and the club and the tracklayers meet up at the \u201chome base\u201d parking for a tailgate lunch.\u00a0 We all talk about what went wrong and right and say nice things about each other\u2019s dogs, talk about other tracks we\u2019ve run and what we plan in the future.\u00a0 Fun, right?<\/p>\n

However, neither of the boys passed.<\/b>\u00a0 None of us did!\u00a0 It\u2019s okay.\u00a0 This test has a 6% pass rate and on this particular day, most of the dogs didn\u2019t get very far.<\/p>\n

Connery was one of those.<\/b>\u00a0 He had a very difficult start (an obedience class had lingered extensively on top of his starting yardage).\u00a0 He had a good idea where the track went and pondered it hard, but in the end was too concerned about the circumstances; he turned away to an area he hoped would be correct.\u00a0 Oops!\u00a0 But we finished the track with the tracklayer and wow–once he got back on the track, he never missed a step.\u00a0 It was an amazing job, and I was so proud of him!\u00a0 Good boy!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Connery<\/a>

Connery indicates the final article of his test and we celebrate!<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Dart<\/a>

Dart and I on the way to his start line–yes, he’s lunging against the line right at the moment, but photo ops weren’t rife with this track so there you are….<\/p><\/div>\n


\nDart’s starting yardage went through two giant transformers<\/b> at the corner of a building after winding through trees.\u00a0 Note!\u00a0 If you\u2019re ever running–or writing about running!–from tracking dogs and you want to muddle the scent, try this.\u00a0 The scent whirls around and pools in the craziest ways.\u00a0 Boy does it!<\/p>\n

But! <\/b>Dart pushed through it to…<\/p>\n

…TO…<\/b><\/p>\n

A grassy area full of ACORNS.<\/b><\/p>\n

OMG, ACORNS<\/b>!\u00a0 NOM NOM NOM ACORNS!<\/p>\n

We circled and circled and-and-AND<\/i> finally got out of them and there were BERRIES!\u00a0 OMG BERRIES!<\/b><\/p>\n

(…I invite you to picture the thought balloon over my head…)<\/p>\n

So we circled and circled and I could tell Dart knew the track was there,<\/b> but just couldn\u2019t overcome the NOM NOM NOM.\u00a0 Eventually I out-persisted him and we dashed across a busy street during a clear moment where I have never been so glad to see an article!\u00a0 Yay!!\u00a0 We got back on track for a while and then…<\/p>\n

We spilled out in the middle of the busiest area of the campus, all hard surface.<\/b>\u00a0 (In fact, the same area we tracked in my Best Laid Plans blog!)<\/p>\n

Dart was already obviously tired from the Ordeal of the Nuts and Berries<\/b>.\u00a0 We muddled along, making good progress but eventually shifting parallel to the track (which I know now, but didn\u2019t then).\u00a0 The next corner turned away from us, which we\u2019d made terribly difficult by being parallel off the other side.\u00a0 As Dart was hunting it, a loud skateboard went past with the rider being pulled by an interested-in-the-small-dog husky and the owner shouting “LEAVE IT, LEAVE IT!”<\/p>\n

Dart looked hard after that but as a team we were fried and just couldn\u2019t sort it out.\u00a0 <\/b><\/p>\n

But, OH!\u00a0 We were SO close to the end…\u00a0 <\/b>And I am very, very pleased with him for persisting through the Nuts and Berries, the terribly loud and busy surrounds, and the natural difficulties of a hard track.\u00a0 Good dog!<\/p>\n

\"If<\/a>

If there was ever any doubt of how intense tracking can tire out an intense dog…the first recorded instance of extended lap coma from the Energizer Beagle<\/p><\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

Weirdly, it was after all this that things got truly difficult.\u00a0 (I know, right?)<\/b><\/p>\n

After Dart\u2019s track I returned to the parking lot where I\u2019d been dropped off.\u00a0 <\/b>Bummer, no one there!\u00a0 Turns out the other of us had been told to I would finish up near main base.\u00a0 But no one told me<\/i>, \u00a0and the track didn\u2019t actually end near home base, and I didn\u2019t have a phone because I was stripped down (so to speak!) for tracking.\u00a0 Awesome, right? Fortunately someone else there did, a spectating friend who was on his way home.<\/p>\n

That actually wouldn\u2019t have been that big a deal, except that when we got back to main base, it was…<\/b><\/p>\n

*crickets*<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Yes.\u00a0 Everyone had left.<\/b>\u00a0 Eventually the spectating friend recalled a vague mention of a not-very-nearby restaurant instead of the tailgate lunch.\u00a0 Attempted phone contact was unsuccessful.<\/p>\n

And strangely, while I was utterly delighted with Connery\u2019s failed track <\/b>and very proud of what Dart and I had worked through, this situation came as a fierce blow.\u00a0 The circumstances hadn\u2019t been deliberate, of course, but the experience of it from here?\u00a0 \u201cYou failed, your ride has been directed to the other end of campus, we\u2019re all gone…have fun with that!\u201d<\/p>\n

We eventually decided to try the restaurant so I could get the track maps<\/b> (which are supposed to be presented at the end of the event). \u00a0I ran in, grabbed them, and fled.<\/p>\n

The thing is, I hurt.<\/b>\u00a0 I just can’t fathom being left out in this way. And yet…I\u2019m really sensitive to this kind of hurt, and I know this about myself.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t actually have any wise conclusions,<\/b> nor have I yet come to grips with this particular lesson.\u00a0 Really, I\u2019m just in search of answers. \u00a0Trying to honor what I feel but not entirely sure what I ought to be feeling in the first place.\u00a0 And trying to hold onto the pride I had in the boys and the work we did today, because that should be the most important thing, right?<\/p>\n

*insert wise conclusion in this space*<\/i><\/p>\n

*seriously.\u00a0 right here in this space.*<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Doranna Yep, we had our big once-a-year local Variable Surface Tracking test on Sunday.\u00a0 Beautiful weather, for sure–the best I\u2019ve ever had for a test.\u00a0 The best photos do not include me, because I wore a hat all day … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[67],"tags":[59,154,108,20,105],"class_list":["post-11608","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-the-dogs","tag-adventures","tag-connery","tag-dart-beagle","tag-dogs","tag-tracking"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pb2lc3-31e","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":9576,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2013\/12\/05\/over-the-bridge-and-through-the-campus-a-tracking-we-we-did-go\/","url_meta":{"origin":11608,"position":0},"title":"Over the Bridge and Through the Campus…A-Tracking We We Did Go!","author":"Doranna","date":"1312.05","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doranna When we last saw our heroes (AKA Dart & Connery Beagle), they were preparing to take the imminent Variable Surface Tracking test...not much expecting to pass, given our ongoing family crises, training interruptions, and etc (well, even without those things, because this is hard!). 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Look. Clouds caught up on the Sandias. Cannot bode well for us.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/03\/1403.tdx-6.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5519,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2011\/12\/26\/beagles-horse-snow-and-tracking-the-happies\/","url_meta":{"origin":11608,"position":2},"title":"Beagles, Horse, Snow, and Tracking…the Happies","author":"Doranna","date":"1112.26","format":false,"excerpt":"It's 10am Christmas morning, which is a whole lot later than this day started.\u00a0 Not because I have eager kids in the house, but because today was my chance to run a certification track with Dart Beagle. In order to enter the TD (tracking) test, a dog must prove he's\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Belle"","block_context":{"text":"Belle","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/belle\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Before the Storm","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/12\/1112.prestorm.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":9564,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2013\/11\/30\/over-the-bridge-and-through-the-campus-a-tracking-we-will-go\/","url_meta":{"origin":11608,"position":3},"title":"Over the River and Through the Campus…A-Tracking We Will Go!","author":"Doranna","date":"1311.30","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doranna I almost chickened out. The VST (Variable Surface Tracking test) is one of those ultimate tests, requiring skill and trust and teamwork (and good weather and good luck!)--and still, with all that, the passing percentages wobble around 5-8% of the teams who take the test. That's not a\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "ConneryBeagle"","block_context":{"text":"ConneryBeagle","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/connery\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dart Harness","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/110115.clothes.52-300x223.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":3218,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2011\/01\/03\/pill-bug-belle\/","url_meta":{"origin":11608,"position":4},"title":"Pill Bug Belle","author":"Doranna","date":"1101.03","format":false,"excerpt":"If dogs could fingerpaint on the walls, mine would be doing it. Also, channel surfing and throwing themselves around in dramatic postures. DOGS: We're BORED. Yes, we have cabin fever. We have it BAD.\u00a0 Between the storm days and the follow-up air-crackling temperature plunge, we have not trained for DAYS.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Belle"","block_context":{"text":"Belle","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/belle\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pill Bug Belle","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/01\/110101.xmas10.plusdogs.belle3_.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":11562,"url":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/2014\/11\/17\/plans-best-laid\/","url_meta":{"origin":11608,"position":5},"title":"Plans Best Laid","author":"Doranna","date":"1411.17","format":false,"excerpt":"by Doranna My lesson for the month: Plans mutate. (Probably my lesson for life, but let's just stick with the month.) I'd intended to blog about the treadmill thing again today, especially in the wake of my aggravated feet. Then again, this fall I'd also intended to adopt a socialization-resistant\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Behind the Scenes"","block_context":{"text":"Behind the Scenes","link":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/category\/snippets\/behind-the-scenes\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"cb.dart.visiting.848","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/11\/cb.dart_.visiting.848-150x120.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11608","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11608"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11608\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11619,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11608\/revisions\/11619"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11608"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11608"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.changespell.com\/wordplay\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11608"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}