Racing Rain Check and Top Tips

Unfortunately we arrived at the race track yesterday to learn that racing was cancelled due to the track being waterlogged. However, the good news is that everyone is working hard to make sure the track is in top notch condition for next Sunday’s Derby and Fun Day. So regardless of weather conditions next week we’re guaranteed to have a great day.

Always one to turn a setback into an advantage, our little Beanie took the opportunity to flirt with the fastest whippet in the club and weedle a few training tips out of him. Now obviously we can’t divulge training secrets, but suffice to say we headed straight for Irvine beach for a serious workout. ;)

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Beanie’s coach

Lots of people have been asking us for more details about the Caledonian Thistle Pedigree Whippet Racing Club Fun Day.  So here it is again:

Whippet, Lurcher, Beagle racing and even Ferret racing!; Shows for all breeds and ages of dog; Any breed of dog can have a go at chasing the lure; raffles; hot and cold snacks; A great doggy day out for the whole family.

Download the flyer for more info

How to get there……

Inch Farm is close to Longannet Power Station so if you’re using Sat Nav or AA/RAC route finder head for that (FK10 4AA).

After you cross Kincardine bridge keep following the road around to the right (following the coast). After a short distance you’ll come to a roundabout. Take the third exit (towards Longannet Power Station).

A short distance down the road (perhaps 100m) you’ll see a farm road on the right. There will be cars parked in the field and Whippets & Beagles. Turn down the farm road and then an immediate left onto a muddy, bumpy track. Go straight past the little bit of parking on the left and drive into the field to park.

Beach Bum Beagle #2

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We went back to Irvine Beach this morning. The BBC Weather tide tables served us well and we had a fair amount of beach to walk on, decent weather and, most importantly, some great chums for Beanie to play with.

Best of all was Bailey – pictured above – a Boxer pup around about the same age as Beanie. They hit it off straight away, playing chase both on the beach and in the water. While rummaging around just offshore, treasure hunter Bailey made a superb find – a battered milk container. The milk inside wasn’t just “off”, it was mature cheese – a true delicacy, and worthy of further chasing.

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For me though, there was one really memorable moment on the walk. It happened when we met Rory, a gorgeous fun-loving retriever:

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Rory was clearly very at home in the sea, and with a little coaxing Beanie followed him in and actually swam!

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The tennis ball that was used for the coaxing (just visible in the above picture) was lost of course. It turns out that although Rory is a Retriever, he doesn’t. Retrieve that is. And as for Beanie, well it’s a small miracle any time we come back from a walk with an intact tennis ball.

Other points to note from this walk:

  1. Ben. He was great chum too, and he had a tennis ball that squeaks.DSC01583
  2. Seaweed is damn tasty!DSC01479
  3. Beagles can fly:FlyingBeagle

Finally here’s a slideshow of more shots from the beach.

More Racing and Beanie’s Celebrity Status

In my last post about road racing I mentioned that we’d been in touch with Paul Worthy Gardner in the States in connection with some 5k and 10k races that he’s been organising for dogs and their people for the past few years. He’s planning races in London and Scotland next year.

He’s sent us a photo of the start of their Norwich race…

 The start of the Dog Run Dog race in Norwich, VT, USA

…and also a YouTube video of a TV interview he appeared in over in America where he talked about the DogRunDog races. Here’s the clip – wind forward to 7 minutes and listen for about 20 seconds…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7V24cUI1JrI

Yep, that’s OUR Beanie he’s talking about! Beanie’s been on American TV….well, sort of. :)

Paul’s planning a trip over in the Autumn, and he’s looking for ideas for a venue for the Scottish race.