There had been confusion over what teams were entered where, and the rules for Starters.
Eventually, just before racing started, the rules were clarified. The Starters teams were now able to run dogs to feet, providing they picked the ball up. So we ended up with Beau, Beano, Meggie, Tosh and Angel running as Jelly Babies. There were 6 teams in total, and racing was best of 5 (generous for starters!). Beau and Angel shared the racing, and the 3 collies ran every race. We won 4 of our races 3-0, and the final race we won 3-1. During the afternoon session, Meg was beginning to get distracted by the opposition, but once Pete had re-caught her, he still managed to race her as 3rd dog. And we still pulled through! We did change our tactics in our last race, where we swapped Tosh & Meg's positions around, and that worked a treat!! Our best time was 20.69, which was also the best time of the day (for starters!), and we came 1st. All the dogs raced well. I think we were all pleased with what we achieved!
Luckily, a team pulled out of Div 3 on Sunday, so we were able to put in a late entry, with last weeks best time, giving Hotdogs seed 2 in Div 3. Allsorts were going to have a tougher time in Div 2, seeded 5.
We started off with Hotdogs (Molly, Ollie, Badger, Tosh & Ben - using the flat fronted box). The plan was to race Molly & Ollie in every race. Badger & Ben would share, and Tosh would fit in around the shared dogs!
We started off racing Maple Leaf Raggers. As they were seed 6, Ben & Badger raced. We won 3-1, with a very credible time of 20.96, showing that the '2 old boys' are no snails yet!
Next onto the Cracker Jacks, seeded 4. Badger & Tosh raced, and we easily took the race 3-0, best time 20.47.
After a break, we were back against Fun 4 Mutts, seeded 5. So this time Badger stood out. Again we had another 3-0 win, with a best time of 20.66.
Next, Barkshire Bandidos, a team we very rarely beat, what ever div. we meet them in. So in come Badger & Tosh. We were 2-0 up, and they had a dog change. Could we stand the pressure?! Yes! Another 3-0 win, with our best time of the day, 20.38.
After another break, we were up against Extra Buccs, seed 7. Ben & Tosh raced this time. Molly was beginning to tire, and Ollie had a couple of flyers. Rachels quick catching of Ollie, when they had a light as well, gave us the 3-1 win we needed! Best time 20.79.
Our final race was against Bad Dogs on the Run. They had run faster than us today, but were also having a few problems. We had worked out, we had already won the Div, but it would be nice just to make it 6/6 wins! We had some exciting racing against them. Their 4th dog was out before Tosh, and we were playing catch up. And catch up & over take he did! That gave us another 3-0 win, with a consistent time of 20.45.
Molly only twiddled once, and Ollie behaved himself, much to Rachel's relief again! The 2 old boys were as reliable as ever, and I was more than chuffed with Tosh's performance over the whole w/e. He also gained his FD title. And we came 1st in Div 3!!
And so onto Div 2……….
Allsorts only had the 4 collies, Spencer, Abby, Monty and Rosie (with Breeze on stand by, in the event of a disaster!).
The first race was against the Buccaneers. We usually have some very close racing with them, and today was no exception. We finally beat them 3-1, with a best time of 19.65.
Next up, the Maple Leaf Raggers. Having beaten them last time out, could we manage it again? Again, some close racing, but they managed to beat us 3-1.
After the break, we were up against the Barkshire Bullets. They were faster than us, and it was only one of their mistakes, that let us pull one leg back, but they beat us 3-1. Our fastest time 19.50.
Next on, the Podantics, and again, they were faster than us, and beat us 3-1. We did gain our fastest time of the day in this race, 19.46.
Our final race of this session, was against Trying 4 Mutts. And again they were just faster than us. We lost 3-0.
After the final break, we only had one race left, against the Bristol Ballistics. This is another team that we get some good close racing with, and today was no exception, other than they beat us! This gave them their first win of the day, and being on 1 point each, at the bottom of the Div, they won on count back, giving us 7th place, with a best time of 19.46.
In the second race, Abby achieved her Ice Blue Moon Award, gaining over 20,000 points. She is the first Bassett Allsorts dog and only the 20th dog in the country so far, to have achieved this award. Many Congratulations to Robert & Abby!