Bigglander

Posted on April 6, 2009 by Paul

What a day Sunday was!

It started with a trip to Balloch for another lesson with the Lomond Flyball Club. Unexpectedly good weather allowed the class to be held outside, and for the first time the sides of the course were fenced off. I don’t know if it was the fencing or the change of location, but both Beanie and Biggles suddenly became more focussed! They had a couple of stutters on their first run, but after that they both retrieved the ball flawlessly several times in a row. The last three runs were timed and though neither of our two were blisteringly fast (6.4 secs for Beanie, 7.5 for Biggles) it was just amazing to see each run completed without any unsheduled sniff breaks.

After flyball we drove over to Kincardine for another round of Beagle racing. Plans for a prompt 2.30pm start were quickly abandoned. We had a long chat, a hole-digging session..

..a raffle draw and an impromptu dog show before the racing got under way. That was OK by us though, because a certain little Beagle boy did rather well in the show.

Rival Murphy is looking good

So Biggles wows the judge with his classic pose: Blue Steel!

Murphy looks longingly at the winner’s rosette, but it’s destined for the Biggly boy!

Beanie tries to eat her runner up rosette while Biggles enjoys a cuddle from the judge

Yep, Biggles won the prestigious “Best Beagle” award, and Beanie came second. As we celebrated, the whippet show got under way..

The competition was intense..

..but a winner was finally chosen

Having won their respective breed titles, Biggles and his Whippet counterpart would now face each other in a walk-off for the “Best in Show” title.

That’s right – it’s a walk-off!

Biggles has to pull out something special to win. And there it is – the new look: Magnum!

Our little boy’s superior ~~catwalk~~ dogwalk technique won again. He was declared Best in Show, and unlike Derek Zoolander he didn’t even have to remove his underpants while still wearing his trousers. He got a lovely gold medal for his trouble which unfortunately wasn’t edible, but we had plenty of treats to make up for this critical oversight.

Finally it was time for some racing! Since the first few weeks of the season don’t count towards any prizes, racemeister Graeme gave us a series of quick-fire, handicapped races to give each dog a taste of glory. It was a great recipe for fun! Here are some of the better shots. Firstly, a little series involving Murphy, to make up for losing out to Biggles in the earlier dog show:

Beagles weren’t the only ones racing on Sunday!

And now a rare sight – Beanie’s pal Sophie charging to victory (although Beanie almost caught her at the line, despite a huge handicap):

And here’s an even rarer sight – little Biggles not coming in last!

Interestingly, both Beanie and Murphy seemed to run their best when they started from slightly behind. With other dogs already ahead of them I suppose they ran harder right from the start line. Biggles also runs better with other dogs in front of him – not because it spurs him on, but simply because he hasn’t yet twigged that he’s supposed to be running after the lure. He certainly does understand a good old fashioned chase though!

Little Devil’s Staircase

Posted on April 4, 2009 by Paul

Yesterday the weather forecasts predicted one more good day before the clouds and rain returned. Determined not to waste it, we set out towards Glencoe to take in some of the glorious highland views. Neither of us were up for a heavy duty climb but after a little research Susan found a shorter, lower level walk known as the Devil’s Staircase. When I heard the name, it instantly conjured up memories of treacherous roads and long, punishing walks. I’m from Yorkshire and I’d advise anybody visiting that county to avoid any natural features that have “Devil” in their names! In this case however the demonic title was earned from soldiers losing their lives to exposure. On a bright, sunny day I figured the four of us would OK.

The Devils Staircase very easy to get to – we headed for the Kings House Hotel (PH49 4HY for those with sat nav) then drove on a little further until we reached a layby on the right with a sign indicating the start of the walk. As we got our own little devils out of the car we got talking to a couple who were familar with the area. They told us of a truly magnificent viewing location just off the staircase. Following their directions, we walked up the winding “staircase” until we reached a cairn. Beyond that point, the path descends into Kinlochleven, but if you turn left you can walk to the top of a very minor peak that may or may not be called “Stob Mhic Mhartui”.

A pitstop by the cairn for some treats, just before we went left off the main path

For the most part there is an obvious path to follow and it’s pretty easy going the whole way, so long as you don’t let any excited Beagles take you on a more direct route over marshy, heather covered ground. It may smell great to them, but you will end up with wet feet.

Clouds?

What clouds?

A spot of “leave” training can help to reign in the excitement..

..just so long as the treats are worthwhile!

You don’t have to walk long before you start seeing some really breathtaking views

At the top: the Three Sisters of Glencoe (we think!) in the background

Viewed again, from just beyond the summit

White-topped Ben Nevis in the distance (left hand side)

Hmm.. I think it’s treat-time again!

Now you may recall that on our last mountain walk Biggles was a very noisy boy. Well this time he’d been much calmer and quieter, putting more effort into tying up my legs with his lead in pursuit of the ultimate sniff. I thought we’d made a breakthrough. Until that is we started back down and the wind changed direction. Grunt! Squeal! Aaarf! Arroo! All the way back down!

Nearly back at the car, but there are still raging torrents to cross

The scenery’s nice, but the heather smells fantastic!

By now it was lunchtime. We had a couple of options: drive back to the Kings House Hotel (or further, the Bridge of Orchy Hotel) and hope they’d allow our Beagles inside, or drive forward to the Glencoe Visitor Centre and grab some sandwiches and coffees. We did the latter, and I’m very glad because even if the hotels had let our two doglets in, their behavior would soon have got us barred for life.

Beanie was the worst offender; just as I sat down at our bench outside the cafe to tuck into my nosh, she leapt right up onto the table. Suddenly one end of my tuna mayonnaise baguette was in my mouth, and the other end was in Beanie’s. It was very romantic, a bit like the spaghetti eating scene out of “Lady and The Tramp“, but she can eat a lot faster than me and I was really hungry, so I grabbed her and put her back on the ground. Needless to say I then tore off the rear end of my baguette and shared it between her and Biggles. I love her to bits, but her oral hygene leaves something to be desired and I didn’t want to spend the rest of the day with a sick stomach.

As we were eating I noticed a beautiful little bird land on our table. It was completely fearless – presumably it was used to getting tidbits from visitors. Biggles very nearly had it for lunch. He generally prefers sheep and socks, but there’s always room for a side dish of tweety pie.

Eventually we set off back home, but we stopped the car a couple of times for some more photos. There were lots of beautiful views to be had even from the roadside:

Beagle Racing: Biggles makes the final!

Posted on March 30, 2009 by Paul

There was no trip to the park and only a short, lacklustre walk for our two this morning. They tried to make the best of it by having a frenetic chase session in our garden, but with so little space to play in it soon petered out and they ended up moping around on our bed, thoroughly bored.

Why, on such a bright sunny day, had we given them the most boring morning they could remember? ‘Cos in the afternoon, they were going Beagle Racing, that’s why! Yep, the new racing season started today. We drove up to Inch Farm nice and early, packing two spare leads and a bagful of fatty, smelly cooked lamb. On arrival we registered Beanie and Biggles then headed over to the track to watch the whippets doing their time trials.

As a veteran racer Beanie had seen this before, but it was all new to Biggles. He watched the whippets intently while Beanie concentrated on more important things, like how to pick her Mum’s pockets without getting caught.

As the scheduled start time approached the Beagle squad started to arrive. The core regulars were there, as was Beanie’s friend Sophie, but there were also quite few new faces. At least Biggles wouldn’t be the only newbie this week! The new racing organiser – Jill – soon had the first heats planned out. Beanie had a place in the very first race wearing red, while Biggles was in the second, also in red. We popped their jackets on and headed over to the track. The first race got away smartly, and Beanie won quite comfortably to secure her place in the final.

The first race of 2009 gets under way

Beanie wins convincingly

Despite considerable wind resistance from the ear department

As the lure was taken back to the start line I wondered how Biggles would fare in his first ever race. He’s quite an unpredictable little chap, or Bigglet. He picks some things up quickly, yet you can load a tennis ball with tasty treats right in front of his face and throw it, and while other dogs immediately sprint after it he’ll stand there, sticking his nose into your hand and trying to work out where the food went.

The race got off to a false start when one of last season’s regulars (Pebble?) got a little too excited and started down the track prematurely.

This left just three dogs on the line. When the race got under way properly, three became two as one of the competitors thought better of the whole running idea. This left Biggles and one other, and when he saw his remaining rival set off after the lure he gave chase. He did he best but was rapidly losing ground. Abruptly the lure stalled!

The leader slowed and stopped, but Biggles kept running and soon found himself in the lead. Had he kept going he might just have won his first race! But he didn’t – he stopped and turned to see what was happening, at which point the lure and his opponent started up again, leaving our very confused little boy stranded half way up the track on his own.

I called him a couple of times and once he spotted me he came running. Thanks to all that recall training we’ve been doing lately, Biggles finally crossed the line to complete his first race and got a sizeable chunk of lamb for his trouble. He’d finished last, but with only two finishers he was actually going to join his sister Beanie in the final!

In the next race, Beanie’s pal Sophie also managed to secure a place in the final.

Sophi nearly loses her jacket as she chases her place in the final!

Not unlike Biggles, this little fellow faltered a little as he passed the halfway mark, but a little encouragement got him going again and he also finished his very first race.

Not the biggest, not the fastest

But certainly in the running for being the cutest!

When the time came for the final, six dogs were on the start line, and little Biggles was among them. He started several lanes down from Beanie but almost as soon as the race got under way he ran across to his sister’s lane and followed behind her. He’d really enjoyed that lamb from his earlier race, and if anyone knew how to find more of it, it was Beanie.

Beanie in red, and way behind her, Biggles in black

As the race progressed Beanie and last season’s Derby winner – Murphy – fought for the lead. Incredibly, Beanie pulled ahead and won quite convincingly. Unfortunately, I don’t think we can take that as a sign that Beanie has truly surpassed her bigger, stronger rival, because in the subsequent jacket-free fun runs Murphy regained his customary first place. Still, it was nice to see Beanie being the one to grab the lure and give it a good shaking. As for Biggles, well it was no great surprise that he came in last, but he did so without any hiccups, and confirmed that it was no fluke by completing the fun runs too.

Murphy, Beanie, Sam and last but not least, Biggles!

All in all, it was a great start to the new season. Below are some more shots from the day’s racing, and you can see the whole set by clicking here.