Tuesday, June 26, 2012

AKC trail : other things


There is this great park near the trail site. I guess maybe 5 miles away. To bad it was so freaking hot that it made it tough on the dogs. There is a lake, waterfalls and lots of hiking trails.  Not to many people.


There were some ducks but Java was more interested in....



Sometimes the ducks would flap their wings and scare the crap out of the dogs.

 This was a falling down bridge along the path. It  was basically on the ground going over a  small creek. Yes we did cross it.



There was a small waterfall . There were several steps downs from the lake with small falls but this was the only one you could get to. The other ones were to dangerous and you werent allowed near them. The first day not to much water going over.

But the next day lots of water was going over. We had lots of rain on Friday night with thunderstorms all evening. So the poor dogs were in the hotel from about 3pm Friday until we left for the trial Saturday morning.






You could walk along the top there and it wasnt to deep. So the dogs were ok with it and it cooled you down.

This was taken with me standing on top of that waterfall area and looking down the creek. When I saw this and all the grass, it makes me think snakes. I saw a man and his little 2 or 3 year old kid walking through that area. Again, Im thinking thats crazy but then I thought I was just being overly freaked out about snakes.  So I look down at the water just below me in the water fall and what do I see?



Creepy!!!  So then the man and his son walked back up to start down the creek again. I told them to be careful and showed them the snake in the water. They were done, no more walking in the creek.

They had birds in large cages. I assume they were injured birds.


It was hard to find a place to let the dogs just run.  Especially Java who was crated or in the hotel. So I went here. I didnt let them run on the field, just the ends and sides.  I kept hoping I wouldnt get in trouble.





Here is the one bad thing that happened at the trial. It was Sunday I was was getting ready to run my Open Standard run. I had looked at the running order , there were 2 - 8inch dogs in front of me that checked in.   5 minutes to first dog, I looked at my watch. I got Miley. I went to the back door and put up my treat bag, I hung it on the fence. The first dog came out of the door. So I walked around to the entrance door and did the practice jump a couple of times. When I opened the door, everyone seemed mad at me. I had missed my run. I cant remember what they said to me but it felt like they were attacking me. ( you know what I mean). Then I just felt angry and said, "Why didnt you just open the door and call my name?" and I said it in a not so nice tone.  Well three people turned around  and yelled at me, "we did".   I just couldnt figure out how I missed my run. So they let me run after the next 12 inch dog. I was ok with them saying I missed my run and thats is that. I know the rules.  But they let me run. Which was very nice.  So I ran and we Qed.  But it didnt feel that great because all I could think about was how I had spoken to the gate steward. ugh!!  So right after I gave Miley her treats, I handed her off the a friend. I went back in and told the guy I was very sorry for how I spoke to him. I didnt mean to sound so harsh.  He said it was ok but you know how when someone says that but you can tell they dont mean it. And really saying sorry doesnt make up for things.   I felt terrible. Im sure they think Im a jerk. My name will be mud for a while. Ugh!! I thought about it all the way home, 3 1/2 hours.   I later found out , someone went thur the running order and just checked peoples names  off that they knew were there. So yes the other 8 inch dog was there but she didnt run.  So  I thought there were 2 -8inch dogs when really there was only one dog was in front of me. Ugh!!

12 comments:

Chris and Ricky said...

What a cool park! So many neat features (except for the snake). I wouldn't worry about the mess up with the running order. Things happen.

Is Sanford near Southern Pines? We have good family friends who live there.

Sara said...

Well, you clearly took the high road by apologizing. Good for you.

Situations like that are exactly why I don't trial much, and why I pick and choose which trials I go to. Stuff like that ruins your day, and sucks the fun out of it.

IMO, people take it all a bit too seriously.

Unknown said...

Gorgeous pictures as always! I really enjoy seeing your two happy girls and your wonderful pictures of nature. Not a fan of the snake though : )

Sheltie Times said...

Great shots. They look so happy.

Cowspotdog said...

Awesome photos - love that one of the squirrel! It is funny - people always ask me about the snakes back home in Australia - but I can guarantee you have seen way more then I ever saw in my 40 years of living in Australia !!!

Helen said...

Are the sankes poisonous where you are? There aren't any poisonous ones near where I live.

Gate Stewards are usually pretty patient but some people who always miss or are late for their runs are annoying; if you only missed the one run no one should be too upset. It took guts to apologize. Good on you.

Sophie said...

Good for you for apologising. I don't think anyone will hold it against you though.

Lovely photos, as always. Your new blog header made me smile!

corbinwooten said...

Love the pictures at the park--but what kind of snake was that? Looks scary. I saw a snake while I was walking at our local creek and I've been too scared to walk in the water since.

I agree with the others--that was really nice of you to apologize. I figure the guy has honestly already forgotten about it. If he's holding it against you AFTER you apologized, then he's the one with the problem, not you. And think of it this way, maybe he was having a bad day/moment and wasn't his best self.

If it were me (as the gate steward) I would have appreciated the apology and honestly forgotten about it!

Diana said...

The snake looks like a cooperhead to me. Thanks to everyone for your kind comments.

Cedarfield said...

I really don't understand why people get so tense at these local, one ring trials. It's not like it's Nationals or anything. and it wasn't hard at all for them to let you run after the last 12" dog so what's the big deal? And B-C is a really hard place to keep track of what's happening--almost impossible sometimes.

Loretta Mueller said...

Things happen, life goes on. Don't worry about it...you apologized :) Move on hon :)

Lian said...

Oh No! Snake again? I am really not sure about them! I'll be freaking out!

What a palava at trial! There's always some overly "helpful" people who makes things worst. But glad you got your run at the end. I think sometimes things happened, you expect yourself to react to it differently. I am just like you, a little thing like this bother me. Don't feel bad about it, you did ok.