We did it, we did it, we DID IT!

We made it back to the Blueberry ridge hike again!! This time checked out "Rattlesnake pool" and did the Shell Pond loop. OH. MY. GOD. it was -

SPECTACULAR!! STUPENDOUS!!! INCREDIBLE!!! FABULOUS!!! The best hike I have ever done!!!! I mean that, too! The Stone House property is amazing!!!! Simply breathtaking!!!!


I am slightly chilled, though, the wind was blowing about 35 at times!!! We were lucky to get there early and get off the ridge before those gusts arrived! The Pin Heads wore their winter hiking gear. I didn't. I didn't think I needed it. I did! I was just a wee bit cold. Looking forward to a very hot shower! But, can I tell you how FREAKIN' awesome this hike is??? FREAKIN' AWESOME!!!! (photos tomorrow, I promise - now? Hot shower)

And to all you we passed, and watched from our window seat for our quick lunch at the Fryeburg Pizza Place,......... power to you for waiting that long to get into the fair. Um..............LOSERS!!!! GOOD GRIEF, the line of cars went about 3 miles outside of town. And they were not moving very fast. We are thinking you may have sat in traffic waiting in that long line of cars for..... hours? Was it worth it? Did you get enough cotton candy and cow shit? ME? NO FREAKIN' WAY! No fried dough, no cute special breed of bunny, no strange colored caramel apple, no 3000lb bull would be worth that traffic jam. Oh MY!!!! Ain't worth it. I haven't been the fair in years. Hiking today.......SO worth it!! But, we didn't have traffic on our route.

We never hit any traffic. On our way up we went through Bridgeton and there was what I might call normal summer traffic, then we made it to route 113 without any issue at all. In fact, it didn't take any longer than we thought. The ride back, going through Fryeburg, was totally fine because we were heading out. And smirking and feeling sort of bad for all those folks waiting in the long line of cars. LOSERS!!!!!

All you fair goers..........WHAT COULD POSSIBLY BE WORTH THAT??????

Rich is studying the maps

Our plan was to head up to the Blueberry ridge hike again on Saturday. This time doing the extra loop around the pond, making it more of a day hike adventure. Then...........he quietly asks me this morning as I am sipping my coffee and reading my friend's life experiences on facebook..............."isn't the Fryeburg fair this weekend?". Oh shit.

Rich is studying the maps.

Fall, I just LOVE it!!

This day the light was diffuse. Not the bright, brilliant light fall can bring, but the colors are none the less intense, I think. The dogs seem to just pop out of the dry, soon to be dormant grass. Their black coats shiny and dark.

It's romantic and soothing and I just love fall. Am I waxing poetic and sounding all sappy and stupid? OK, so it's just that it is my favorite time of year. Hot summer sun, not my favorite thing. I am not good at hot summer sun. Like home made apple pies. I bought a frozen shell. Cool, brisk fall weather! I am good at that. I like walking for miles and miles every day with dogs I love when it is cool and brisk. Walking farm fields and wooded areas, cow pastures and horse pastures. I am good at that. Some people design computer programs and email blasts and make a shoe that is comfortable. Some people have these skills. Some make home made apple pie! Me, I walk dogs in fields and buy frozen pie shells and am glad someone designs a comfortable shoe.

The big guy is back to service the cows. He's big. We are glad the fence is between us. He looks harmless. He looks BIG.
The girls had to come see the new addition.

Then everyone had to come see the girls.

Then they went back to their grazing, separately.

(If I knew photoshop I would get that fence line out of there!!!)

These are his offspring born this year. They get to live another year. Their mamas get to live another year, because these two were born. Production. It's all about production.

USDAA Team trial report. The day I came back to reality.

Well, some sort of reality, I guess. Still high from his RI agility trial with his awesome performances winning P.G.P and P.S.J and looking REALLY good!

Then BANG, we fall down and crash to the ground, air popped out of our happy balloon. Am I being melodramatic? Perhaps, his first run doesn't look THAT bad. He Q'd in PGP and PSJ again, which gives him two tournament q's for next year, which is nice.

However, we have not done anything indoor on rubber mats since, um, March? April? He cringed at the sounds. The teeter BANGS loud, bars drop loud, leashes drop loud, chairs make different noises. He cringed, a lot on Saturday. It was SUCH a small, intimate trial that it was combined to one day, but because it was so small it was very quiet. That meant all the sounds that bother him were LOUD! Does that make sense? It was quiet, so sounds were loud. That SO doesn't make sense, does it, but it's true. When there is a huge buzz of activity, barking dogs, lots of voices and noises it all just blends together. When it's quiet, one simple think like a leash being dropped on the floor is sharp and he noticed. A LOT!!

So, we were a little bit of a mess. For me, it's just SO hard when I see him having trouble. He needs me to be more "there", yet I simply lose it!! Seriously, I lost my way TWICE on course!!! And that doesn't help him at all. And it means an elimination for that run. Which doesn't help our team. We didn't Q. My teammate was SO nice and kind, but that's my first time not getting a team Q. I have only done team three times before, but each time MY dogs did great and helped our team Q.

This time, it was all me and Spur for our NQ. Darn it.

Oh well, it was an eye opener. I need to get him out to some indoor facilities on rubber and do some training. He obviously still has worries that I need to work through. He did well and got better and his last two runs were actually pretty OK and our Relay (last run) we made no mistakes and he looked pretty good, so he can recover. He is resilient. I have said that before and it's true. He tries so hard and wants to do this and be good at it. I know he does. He gives it his all!!!!

I'm just a little nervous!

Tomorrow is Spur's first Team Tournament event. Which means another team is counting on us to run as best we can. I feel pretty confident we can do this! We are still working out our routine, but he had many Q's last weekend with several first places, so he's on a pretty good roll! I have been working hard on his contacts and seeing a wee light bulb go off with him. I think he is finally understanding his job. Will he implement it in the heat of competition? I think our chances are 60/40 at this point. Maybe more. He is green, there is no doubt, but he is also trying SO hard to be right. He wants to be right more than anything.

Report to follow on Sunday. Off to bed so we can get an early start. This is a very small trial, so they moved it all to one day. That's just fine with me, but my poor team mate is running in TWO teams, so she could potentially have 16 runs!! :O Yikes!

World Champions?

This weekend the USA team is competing in the World Champion agility competition in German. Did you ever want to see what a World Champion team looks like? Here they are practicing yesterday on a surface similar to what they will run on this weekend. GO TEAM USA!!!!

So, this morning was our last outdoor agility class.

Waaaaaaaaa!!!!!!!!

I love fall, I love winter, the woodstove, more reading, but I do not like that outdoor agility class comes to come to an end.

I will start up Rally obedience again, I think. My dogs love obedience. Why not? It's all fun stuff. Just look at my favorite trainer and her puppy class (see video). BOY do I wish she were in the US and in Maine even better. But, she is in Slovenia, so I can just "cyberstalk" her and hope she does another seminar in New England again.



Talk about a fun puppy class!!!