Hob Nob border collies were well represented with 3 teams competing in the 16 inch division which consisted of:
Carol Schiefer with Mist, Kathy Lewis with Syla and Lauri Plummer with Wit
The 20" division consisted of:
Cassidy run by Channan Fosty owned by Diana Wilson, Sharon Freilich with Cirque, Mica Tyler with Hemi, Kathy Brown with Marty, Gabriele Lenz with Pilot, Kim Terrill with Steeple, Steve Moon with Slick, Jo Roach with Slider, Joni Steinbach with Sport, Christine Leslie with Cadence, Sarah Jones with Wick and Nancy Kemna with Ten
The 26" division consisted of:
Channan Fosty with Icon, Nancy Kemna with Ky, Terry Smorch with Presto, Mary Dougherty with Trek, Deanna Fairchild with Quinn, Gregory Kirmeier with Robbie and Sharon Freilich with Scandal
Friday started with a practice standard course for any competitor that signed up of which many did in all the jump heights.
Mary with Trek won the 26" division while Terry with Presto placed 9th. Joni with Sport took 3rd place, Steve with Slick placed 8th, Kim with Steeple placed 10th and Sharon with Cirque placed 11th in a very large 20" class. Carol with Mist place 6th in the 16" division. Many of these handlers used this opportunity to hold contacts and such and essentially 'train' for what was yet to come!
Later in the afternoon, Time 2 Beat was the class to watch as many of the competitors seriously competed for the chance to win first place which would give the winner a 'bye' into the Challengers round on Sunday. Mary and Trek were the victors in the 26" division
On Saturday morning, the 'real' competition began with Round 1 Jumpers With Weaves (JWW) class. Kathy Lewis and Syla took 4th place in the 16" division with a total of 139 dogs competing! Lauri Plummer and Wit placed 9th in this class as well.
The 20" JWW was won by Steve Moon and Slick with his younger sister Cassidy right on his heels in 2nd place handled by Channan Fosty! Joni Steinbach and Sport placed 10th in this class with a total of 215 dogs competing!
In the 26" JWW class Channan and Icon captured 8th place in a class of 50 dogs competing!
Round 2 Standard class commenced in the afternoon with Carol Schiefer and Mist capturing 2nd place in the 16" division out of a total of 134 dogs competing!
The 20" division was won by Nancy Kemna with Ten followed by Kim Terrill with Steeple to take 2nd place with a total of 215 dogs competing! Joni Steinbach with Sport captured 9th place!
The 26" division had Channan and Icon ending up in 8th place with a total of 50 dogs competing!
Sunday was a very exciting day which would culminate with all the competitors who would make it to the final round and be named National Agility Champion!
Round 3 Hybrid class started the day with all competitors being able to compete. Carol and Mist ended up in 19th place (out of 138 dogs competing) with some very wide turns in the tricky opening segment. This clean run put this team into the finals!
In the 20" division Steve with Slick put in a clean round with 5th place qualifying this team to run in the Challenger's round with Kim and Steeple also going clean with 6th place joining Steve/Slick in the Challengers round. Channan and Cassidy put in another clean run placing right behind Steeple in 7th place to go forward to the finals!
In the 26" division Mary with Trek placed 2nd and had already won their 'bye' into the Challengers round with Terry and Presto joining them by placing 4th.
The Challengers round is said to be the most exciting as competitors 'go for broke' with this being their last chance to qualify for the final round. Those of us watching from the stands were not let down as we were at the edge of our seats!
There were no Hob Nob teams competing in the 16 inch division.
In the 20" division Steve with Slick and Kim with Steeple went all out but unfortunately each had a fault so neither moved onto the final round but they sure made the crowd cheer loudly for their wonderful efforts!
In the 26" division Terry with Presto gave it their all and ran clean but their time was bested by Channan and Icon who won the the Challengers round putting them into the finals!!!
Now came the moment that we had all been waiting for....the Final round and who would be named the National Agility Champion in each height division.
The excitement was mounting in the stands and on the dirt floor below as competitors got ready for their final run of the weekend.
Carol Schiefer and her awesome little speedster Hob Nob Sierra Mist captured 6th place overall in the final round in the 16" division. This was Mist's first time competing at an AKC Nationals and she showed us what a true champion she is at 9 years young!
Joni Steinbach and her teammate Hob Nob Chase The Clock, better known as Sport, lived up to her name by capturing 4th place in the 20" division! What most people don't know is that Joni runs with a prosthetic left leg but it doesn't slow her down!!!!
Sharon Freilich with Hob Nob Le Cirque captured 11th place with a teeter call that was a repeat of last year's final run for this team. Seems the teeter curse followed them to Reno!
Channan Fosty with Hob Nob Highland Shooting Star, known to all of us as 'Cassidy' captured 13 place as she went off course into the tunnel. Cassidy is owned, loved and trained by Diana Wilson who was laid up with a broken ankle. I know that Diana is proud of her Cassidy and grateful to Channan for being pinch handler.
Channan was not finished yet as she ran her own wonderful boy Icon in the final run capturing 2nd place!!!! What a weekend for Channan to be running littermates Icon and Cassidy culminating with them both in the finals!
To say I had a great time would not even touch what I felt that whole weekend! I am so very super proud of all the wonderful Hob Nob teams that competed as I had many a tear roll down my face throughout the weekend. My smile is still lingering on my face for this is a memorable weekend that I will forever treasure!
Here are some photos to help with the memories of a fantastic weekend!
left to right Joni/Sport, Carol/Mist, Channan with Icon and Cassidy
Cassidy giving her mom Diana Wilson some lovin after a wonderful run with Channan
Carol with Mist accepting their 6th place win in the Final round 16"!
Carol modeling her FINALIST shirt!
Channan and Icon accepting their 2nd place victory in the Final round 26"!
Joni and Sport accepting their 4th place victory in the Final round 20"!
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