I awoke before the dogs at 3:30am so we'd be sure to make it over to Karen's by 5am. Suzanne arrived after me and we got on the road at about 5:15am. Karen rode with Suzanne, who works swing shift, just in case she needed to take over the responsibility of driving since Suzanne didn't get more than three hours of sleep. We were shooting to arrive in Enumclaw by 8am, which would give us time to potty the dogs and walk to the ring. Because we were going to be gone for the majority of the day, Suzanne brought all her boys (Roman, Devon and Myles) and Karen brought Lena, who travels everywhere with her anymore. I drove separately with Patriot and Paloma because there was no way everyone was going to fit into one car.
The drive up was relatively easy - there were just a couple of places on I-5 where construction crews were doing road work and only one lane was open. With virtually no traffic on the road, we breezed on through. I think I only saw one highway patrolman the whole way and that was on the outskirts of Olympia. Parking at the fairgrounds was plentiful and the parking attendants were very helpful directing us where to park.
Lugging everything necessary for set up - portable crates, a wire crate, chairs, water, snacks, show leads, collars and bait to ringside was arduous. Thankfully Suzanne brought her rolling cart. Add to that, six Vizslas of varying ages - Roman is 13, Devon is 10, Lena is 9, Myles is 9, Patriot and Paloma at 9 months, and you can imagine what we looked like going down the road. :)
Sweepstakes started at 9am with judging by Mrs. Leta B. Graham. Suzanne showed Patriot who was in with another puppy; the same one who had beaten him at the Stumptown shows in July. When all was said and done, the judge liked Patriot best and awarded him the "First Place" ribbon, an envelope with $5.20, a flip flop stuffed toy and a dog biscuit. He went back in for Winner's Dog and was beaten by Mojo. Mojo and Patriot had gone head to head at the Canby shows in June and Mojo won. I took Paloma in - she was all by herself and won her class. I was nervous but the judge was very nice and offered me all kinds of tips - especially the one where I'm not supposed to let Paloma eat the bait while the judge is looking her over. Oops. Paloma earned a "First Place" ribbon, and envelope with $2.60, and a flip flop toy. I took Paloma back in for Best in Sweeps and the judge asked everyone to around the ring two times. I had a very hard time showing on the uneven ground due to some back pain but Paloma did well despite my shortcomings.
Specialty started at 10:30am with judging done by Ms. Linda Kelly, Oakleaf Vizslas. Suzanne took Patriot into the ring - this time he earned a "Third Place" ribbon. Karen took Paloma in for me, again she was in her class all by herself and despite going potty in the ring, she earned a "First Place" ribbon and was given a pottery Vizsla dish for winning her class.
Roman and Devon were entered in Veterans - Suzanne showed Roman and Karen showed Devon - Devon won and went on to compete for Best of Breed. He didn't win but he did show really well - both boys did!
Below are pictures of Patriot and Paloma's loot:
We stopped for lunch in Bonney Lake and then headed home. We got on the freeway at 3:30pm and I didn't get home until 7:15pm. There was considerably more traffic on the way home with several spots stop and go. I listened to conservative talk radio and The Moody Blues which helped me make it home in one piece! Both pups slept all the way home - they sure were tired after all that work! All in all we had a very good time!
Next shows are at the end of the month in St Helens, OR , hosted by the Kelso-Longview Kennel Club.
The drive up was relatively easy - there were just a couple of places on I-5 where construction crews were doing road work and only one lane was open. With virtually no traffic on the road, we breezed on through. I think I only saw one highway patrolman the whole way and that was on the outskirts of Olympia. Parking at the fairgrounds was plentiful and the parking attendants were very helpful directing us where to park.
Lugging everything necessary for set up - portable crates, a wire crate, chairs, water, snacks, show leads, collars and bait to ringside was arduous. Thankfully Suzanne brought her rolling cart. Add to that, six Vizslas of varying ages - Roman is 13, Devon is 10, Lena is 9, Myles is 9, Patriot and Paloma at 9 months, and you can imagine what we looked like going down the road. :)
Sweepstakes started at 9am with judging by Mrs. Leta B. Graham. Suzanne showed Patriot who was in with another puppy; the same one who had beaten him at the Stumptown shows in July. When all was said and done, the judge liked Patriot best and awarded him the "First Place" ribbon, an envelope with $5.20, a flip flop stuffed toy and a dog biscuit. He went back in for Winner's Dog and was beaten by Mojo. Mojo and Patriot had gone head to head at the Canby shows in June and Mojo won. I took Paloma in - she was all by herself and won her class. I was nervous but the judge was very nice and offered me all kinds of tips - especially the one where I'm not supposed to let Paloma eat the bait while the judge is looking her over. Oops. Paloma earned a "First Place" ribbon, and envelope with $2.60, and a flip flop toy. I took Paloma back in for Best in Sweeps and the judge asked everyone to around the ring two times. I had a very hard time showing on the uneven ground due to some back pain but Paloma did well despite my shortcomings.
Specialty started at 10:30am with judging done by Ms. Linda Kelly, Oakleaf Vizslas. Suzanne took Patriot into the ring - this time he earned a "Third Place" ribbon. Karen took Paloma in for me, again she was in her class all by herself and despite going potty in the ring, she earned a "First Place" ribbon and was given a pottery Vizsla dish for winning her class.
Roman and Devon were entered in Veterans - Suzanne showed Roman and Karen showed Devon - Devon won and went on to compete for Best of Breed. He didn't win but he did show really well - both boys did!
Below are pictures of Patriot and Paloma's loot:
We stopped for lunch in Bonney Lake and then headed home. We got on the freeway at 3:30pm and I didn't get home until 7:15pm. There was considerably more traffic on the way home with several spots stop and go. I listened to conservative talk radio and The Moody Blues which helped me make it home in one piece! Both pups slept all the way home - they sure were tired after all that work! All in all we had a very good time!
Next shows are at the end of the month in St Helens, OR , hosted by the Kelso-Longview Kennel Club.
