Click here to read part #1
Click here to read part #2

This was it – the Derby final. The four competitors were Beanie, Inca, Milo and Murphy, wearing black, red, white and blue respectively. The light was fading fast as everyone prepared for this last race. It had been a long day – we’d set off at 8:30 in the morning and it was now after 6 – but it would all be over in a matter of seconds.

The four dogs got away cleanly and charged down the track. Beanie, Milo and Murphy quickly opened up a big lead on Inca. As they approached the finish Murphy was edging ahead of Milo, but Beanie was right up there with them.

At the line it was Murphy, followed by Milo, but our little girl finished a close third!

What a result! Her first ever race had been back in May, and she hadn’t understood all this nonsense about chasing the lure. She only made it past the finish line because Susan ran with her. Now she’d taken on a lot of older, more experienced dogs and got third place in the final. At the finish I called her over and gave her a lump of chicken from my stash, intending to stuff the rest back in my pocket while I attached her lead and put the camera away. I was all fingers and thumbs from the excitement, and the little rascal snatched the bag from my hand and tore it open. “Fair enough” I thought, “you’ve earned it!”

Carol –  Murphy’s owner – took her boy’s superb victory very calmly. Yeah, right!

The bubbly was opened in double-quick time, and we all got a taste!

…but wait, what’s that below Murphy’s tummy? Naughty boy!

Everyone gathered for the presentations. The Derby winners were getting more than just a rosette for their dog’s efforts:

As for Beanie, well she did just get a rosette.

But just wait till next year!

There are many more photos of the Fun Day – you can see them in the slideshow below, or you can see and download bigger, better quality versions of the photos on Flickr – just click here. If you see a photo you like, click on it and press “All Sizes” to choose the size you want.

[If you haven’t already seen part #1, click here to go straight to it!]

So the first heat was over, and Beanie was still in with a chance. While the Beagles rested – or in Beanie’s case, wrestled with other pups and knocked over a bin to raid its contents –  the whippets had their turn. That was followed by the fun races, where the track was open to any dog. Jasper and his owners had been waiting for this for a long, long time. He’d been given the green light to race a couple of other lurchers (or greyhounds, don’t ask me which!) but the rules required him to wear a muzzle. Sadly, his first attempt didn’t go well…

The other dogs galloped down the track, but Jasper stayed by his Dad on the start line. Figuring he was put off by the muzzle, he was given another go on his own, free of any encumberance. Again he showed no interest in the lure. A few more goes and I’m sure he would have got the idea, but he wasn’t going to hang around on the track any longer. He snook out of the entry point, and bolted across the field.

Jasper makes his bid for freedom

It was a beautiful thing to watch! He was almost floating as he ran. Fortunately he was quickly caught by another owner, but that was the end of his racing adventures for the day.

Now it was Tess’s turn. Her pups were too young for the track, but Tess appeared to be well up for it. She’d been watching the races intently throughout the afternoon, and was showing interest in the lure already. When her chance came, she grabbed it with all four paws!

Straight after the lure…

…and across the finish line on her first go. Well done Tess!

Now the Derby was back on. Beanie was desperate for more racing as she lined up on the track. She was up against Milo again, and Breac,but with the first two going through, she still had a decent chance of making it into the final.

She did more than that – she actually beat Milo and finished first! It couldn’t have been closer, but what a race! I think we could have seen a very different result if Breac hadn’t worn himself out with a couple of unscheduled sprints outside the track only minutes before. He’d been so frantic to chase the lure he actually broke free of his lead, and he was still panting as he took his place for the semi final. At least he’s got time to show his true potential before the season ends!

Murphy was the hot favorite in the other semi. He’d been told he was running for Boston, a lovely Beagle boy who’d been claimed by cancer recently.

Craig & Vicky’s little boy, Boston

Maybe Murphy understood, because he romped home to victory.

Now everything was set for the final. Beanie had just shown that Milo was within her reach. Could she actually win?

Click here to read part #3

Ever since we started going to Beagle Racing, we’ve been told that the annual Fun Day is a really great day out. However as I dragged myself out of bed this morning I wasn’t sure what would be waiting for us when we arrived at Inch Farm. Last Sunday’s racing had been cancelled because the track was completely waterlogged. All through the week the rain just kept on falling in Glasgow, and from what I could tell the same was true of the Kincardine Bridge area. Still, we’d decided we were going to go no matter what, so we packed up a big piece of chicken, a spare lead, a sleepy Beagle, and headed off.

When we got there, things looked very promising. The ground was fairly dry, and little patches of blue sky were poking through the grey clouds. We headed over to the admissions tent and booked Beanie into just about everything she could enter: four shows, fun races and of course the main event – the Beagle Racing Derby.

More cars rolled into the car park, and before long there were Beagles everywhere you looked.

There was also a strong Dalmatian presence, but I had the feeling they wouldn’t be racing.

Dalmations. But are there really 101 of ’em?

Our friends Kathleen and Neil brought their Beagle posse, and Louise soon arrived with Tess and her pups Tara and Clara. Two more of Beanie’s pals also turned up for their racing debuts – Alfie, from the Glasgow Beagle Dog Training Club, and Jasper, a handsome lurcher (or purebred greyhound, depending on who you talk to) from our local park.

The shows were on first, and before long Susan was proudly leading our little pup into the ring. Once there, Beanie demonstrated her own distinctive brand of ring craft. Where the other Beagles were content to stand, she went one better and sat her bum firmly on the ground. When they trotted around on four legs (so passé), she walked on two, and when it was time to hold her head high, she stuck her nose so close to the ground she could probably smell Australia.

Beanie begs for treats, while Alfie and Tara behave themselves

Curiously the judge was not impressed, and our little hooligan successfully dodged all of those pesky show prizes. Tess’s pups Tara and Clara fared much better though, and both picked up rosettes.

Tara third (yellow), Clara fourth (green) – with a little help from Craig!

Kathleen and Neil also had success in the ring – two of their boys got third and fourth places (Kathleen jog my ailing memory will ya – I can’t remember their names!) The judge said one of them would have placed even higher with a few tweaks to the handling technique. Apparently, the lead should sit high up on the neck, to encourage the dog to hold his head high. Of course, even with correct technique things can go wrong!

Sam – Susan’s favorite for winning the races, and fastest looking racing Beagle dog

Beanie’s friend from the park – Jasper – tried his luck in the shows too. Admittedly his class wasn’t heavily populated…

Jasper (on the left) faces his opponent

…but still, a 2nd place rosette is nothing to be sniffed at!

Beanie’s lack of success in the ring didn’t really matter to us though, because her true talent is running. While we waited for the shows to end, we got news that the draw for the initial round of Derby heats had been made. The very first race put Beanie up against two of the fastest males: Milo and Sam. Only the first two from each heat would go forward to the semis. She had beaten each of them in the past, but never in a proper race, and never when they were fresh. It didn’t look good.

As Susan took Beanie to the start line, I headed down to the finish to catch her and wrestle with the camera. When I got there I realized that I’d forgotten to take her second lead, so I’d have to carry her back. Even worse, I’d also forgotten her chicken treat. What rotten luck. Not only was our pup going to exit the Derby in her first heat, she wouldn’t even get her post race chicken!

I readied my camera, and as the lure started down the track, I yelled encouragement to Beanie, even though I couldn’t quite see her yet. Four Beagles thundered past the finish, but not one of them was Beanie.

Sam about to overtake Milo, but the race hasn’t actually started yet!

I zoomed in on the Start line, and there was Susan, apparently still holding our pup. What on earth had happened? Walking back up the track, I finally got an answer: a false start. One of the Beagles got a “flyer” (thanks to some dodgy lure driving, as I later learned), and the other three had followed suit, leaving Beanie on the line still waiting for the “go” signal. Rather than disqualifying the four false-starts, the heat would be re-run later.

The other heats went more smoothly. Murphy secured his place in the semis with ease, and decided to claim the lure as his prize.

Kathleen and Neil’s dog Breac also triumphed in his heat. He may be a relative newcomer, but already he can’t watch a race without straining to follow the other other dogs down the track!

Seven month old Alfie ‘s debut didn’t go too well though. In fact he did what could be described as “a Beanie“, and needed repeated coaxing from his owner to venture off the start line.  Don’t worry Alfie, once you get the idea of chasing the lure I’m sure you’ll do well!

And so it came back to Beanie’s group. In the past we’ve noted that while other dogs tire after their first round, Beanie seems to get stronger. Her four competitors had already burned up some energy on that invalid first run, whereas she was fresh (well, ignoring all the wrestling she’d done with other pups while waiting for the shows to finish!) Also in her favor was the increased length of the track: 150 yards versus the more usual 120. I figured she was in with a chance now.

This time everyone got away cleanly, and as they approached the finish, it was clear that Sam was still tired from that aborted first run.

No, Milo doesn’t have 3 ears. That’s Beanie directly behind him in 2nd place!

Milo won, Beanie got second and Sam came in third. It was a shame for Sam, but on the other hand, our little girl was still in the Derby!

Click here to read part #2
Click here to read part #3