The IFCS journey is now over and as we leave the Netherlands and move on to Italy I now have time to recap the competition days. I try to stay off social media while competing so I can stay focused on where I am and what I am doing. When I thought about updating the blog the idea passed quickly as fatigue sets in quickly after the long long days.
The competition itself took place over four days. Each day consisted of two runs except for Friday which had three rounds. Pint ran a total of six runs and I am so so happy to report that he ran 5 of the 6 fault free and in the last run, run number 6, I was pushing for speed and caused the faults. I knew going in that Pint wouldn't be the fastest but I knew he would be competitive and consistent. On each run he was either in the top 10 or sitting just outside of it. When I saw his results I was more than thrilled. There was a time when Pint didn't even want to come out of his crate at agility trials and he didn't handle stressful situations very well. During the whole competition that never happened once! I couldn't believe the growth and maturity in him since being at WAO in 2011. All the time I have taken to get Pint to where he is today paid off and he was so excited to be competing. I picked a saying for Pint a long time ago and the more time that passes the more the quote fits him. "It is not the size of a man, but the size of his heart that matters" -Evander Holyfield
My wee little man has the heart of a line and he always gives me all he has. I also learned a very valuable lesson about my dogs. When we compete back home I need to run Pint and Slice very close together and neither dog gets the attention they deserve. Being 100% focused on Pint was exactly what he needed from me. I need to find a way to ensure all my dogs get my undivided attention at trials.
The days were long, cold and wet. I have never seen so much rain and mud! I certainly didn't expect it to be like that in Holland anyway. When you have to pack light you never have the things you need for any situation. We were all scrambling for warmer clothes and ways to keep our dogs warm. I never have a problem shopping but did have a problem finding the blankets and clothing to add to what I had. On the Friday, we had a 15 hour day! Never have a I done agility like that before. Pint ran his first course at 10:00am and then didn't run again until 10:00pm! Super long day. Let me tell you how hard it was to get up on Saturday at 5:00am.
In the end, Pint finished 8th in the world in the Agility All Around and 13th in the world in the Biathlon! I cried tears of joy when I saw his results. I was so proud of him and so proud of our team work. My little boy arrived and showed the world about the small and mighty.
We loved the venue. We loved the experience. We loved meeting new friends and reconnecting with old ones.
Suitcases are packed and we are heading to Italy!
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