griffinej5
Posted : 3/21/2013 4:52:42 PM
Weight pull is actually winding down, at least in the organization we've pulled with. At least in that organization, I guess it was traditionally huskies, so the season is September-March.
Flyball is a year round sport, but at least around here, there is a bit more of it in the Spring and Summer.
Flyball is a relay race for dogs. Each team can have up to 6 dogs, 4 of which are running at a time. So, you have the 4 runners and 2 alternates. The dogs race down a course, grab the ball from the box, and come back. The next dog can't cross the start line until the one before it has finished. The dogs need to run the course correctly, which means they go down their own lane over all 4 jumps, they take the ball that is in the box (they could technically start the race and already have one, pick up a previously dropped one, but the one they return with must be the one from the box for that dog's turn, so they would have to swap) and carry it back over all 4 jumps and across the finish line. The team that has all 4 dogs do it correctly first is the winner. If there is a mistake, you can choose to either send the dog again, or take a no finish for that race. Dogs need to stay in their own lane, and not cross and interfere with a dog racing in the other lane. At the end of your dog's turn, you catch your dog. The height of the jumps is set based on the height of the shortest dog on the team (unless you are racing Veterans, which means the team consists of dogs 7+, where it is set at the lowest height) There are two organizations in the U.S. that sanction flyball, U-FLI and NAFA. In your area, I don't think there is much U-FLI activity, and most stuff would be NAFA.
There are two different types of points you get in NAFA. First, individual dogs get points that accumulate over their racing careers. You get those based on how fast your team finishes the race. Under 24 seconds, you get 25 points, 24-27.99 seconds, 5 points, and 28-32 seconds, 1 point. Dogs earn titles based on those points. Those points are earned based on time only, regardless of whether you win the race. Usually, when you put together a team, you try to make sure you can finish under 24 seconds so you can get the maximum number of points. When you first start out, the titles come pretty quickly. Often times dogs will earn the first two in their first day of racing. The first one requires 20 points, so they could technically earn that in their first heat, and the next is 100. As you go on the titles spread out a bit more. Luke will earn his fifth title probably not this weekend, but in the next tournament. He needs a total of 2500 points to get. After that, he'll need another 2500 points to get his next title (so 5000 total). Each team also earns tournament placement points during each heat. I'm not exactly certain how those work, but basically, if you win a heat, you get a point. The team in the division that gets the most points places first, and so on. When you enter a team in a tournament, you provide an estimated time that your team can run. Teams are grouped together based on these seed times so that teams have a fair chance. The fastest time this year in NAFA is 14.931, and there are many teams that come right in under 24 seconds. Luke's first time out, our best time for the team was 23 something. Pretty much, we'd never be put up against a team that could run 5-6 dogs in the time it takes our 4 to go. You'd get grouped with teams that run close to your time.
Flyball is also a family friendly activity. They give Junior Handler ribbons, so children who are helping a team can get a ribbon. The kids can help out in lots of ways, often starting out by picking up the balls as the dogs come back. Some of the kids run dogs. A few months ago, on the NAFA home page, there was a great picture of a little girl handling a black lab. There are lots of Border Collies playing, but any breed can do it. Some dogs with disabilities are able to participate also. Another team around here has a dog with one eye, and a deaf dog running.