Tips & Tricks to Succeed in Open Class

For years, NAFA participants have asked NAFA to come up with a way to temporarily create teams that included dogs from outside of their club roster without penalty. The first class created utilizing this "combined team" concept was the Veteran's Class, which was instituted approximately 2 years ago. Many teams did not have enough dogs eligible to participate to form a 4 dog team. The solution became allowing dogs who participated in this class to not be subject to the 87-day rule.

Last year, an informal survey revealed that NAFA participants supported implementing "pick up" teams as a concept. Thus, the Open Class was created for a one year trial. Open Class will be closely monitored over the next year and if deemed worthy, may be extended for another year or outright fully adopted.

This implementation has not been without controversy. In my attempt to be fair and portray both sides of the question, I wrote about the pros and cons of Open Class in an earlier article on my blog. Some used the "Cons" that I mentioned as proof that Open Class would not work for NAFA and that the NAFA Board was wrong to implement pick up team rules in this fashion. These people did not want to give the "Open Class" a chance to succeed. As implemented, the NAFA Board has been up front and honest with the NAFA public in that this is a "trial" program which is subject to re-evaluation and change.

We are now two months into the 2008 NAFA racing year and I have personally participated on two Open Class teams. The first was in Batavia, NY at the "I Love NY" Tournament hosted by Buffalo Wings. The second was just this past weekend at the "Catch the Spirit of Flyball" Tournament hosted by Spirit Catchers in Brampton, ON. I would like to share some things I have learned about participating on an Open Class team.

Plan Ahead!

The NY tournament was fine as far as advance planning goes. Ruth & I brought our own dogs plus we had an additional teammate and her dog with us. We had planned to join up with a friend whom owned a littermate to one of my dogs and was the breeder to a second dog of mine. She had two dogs to put on our Open Team so, it rounded out the roster rather nicely. Monica also asked one of her teammates to box load for us and we knew this before we arrived in NY. Since it was an entry in the Wooferines club name, Ruth was automatically team "Captain". I mention this because it becomes significant later.

In Brampton, our Open Class entry was put together for us by the Tournament Director. She had several individual dog/handlers teams available and so we sent her the times our dogs ran, who was a height dog and what was their jump height, etc. She came back through email to tell us who we were running with and what was our team seed time, etc.

We arrived in Brampton and set up our crating area with the hosting club. Two of our dogs were from the hosting club and this made sense to us. A back up height dog was with a third club and so we hooked up with them to let them know where we were crated, what other teams they had entered that might impact the racing schedule, etc. We thought we were prepared. As it turned out, we were not prepared at all!

We reported to the ring for our first race. The first question I hear someone ask is, "Do we have a box loader?" Ooooops! First "oversight" for this team. The backup height dog was owned by Elva Bradley, Team Captain for "Dog on It". Since she was in the ring with us, word reached her husband that this team needed a box loader. He kindly volunteered his services. First issue resolved!

Next thing we knew, the Head Judge blows the whistle to end warmups. Wait a minute. We hadn't figured out our line up because we were distracted by the box loader issue. Looking around, we realized that we were missing a teammate. One of the hosting club's members that was running with us was still seated at the head table resolving some paperwork issues. Second, oooooops! Run to the crating area to fetch her dog!

The third issue of not designating a "team captain" revealed itself as we struggled to come up with a line up and a running order. We also lost time due to the need to instruct the boxloader about certain dogs "needs". (Which way does he/she turn? Big ball? Little ball? Squishy ball?, etc.)

Designate a "Team Captain"

Team Captains are soooooooo under-appreciated by the clubs they are charged with organizing. They determine which dogs go in, which dogs go out, strategize comebacks when things go "wrong". They remind people which races are coming up and what is the racing order. They line up box loaders, ball shaggers and line callers. Sometimes, they even do all this while racing their own dogs. They are the "Team Brain" and maybe we should also hang the title of "Team Mother" on them. They are in charge when no one else wants to be...

Arrange for a Box Loader

This seems so basic but, we forgot it!

Not only is advance planning for your box loader important, it is your responsibilty to inform the box loader if your dog has special needs, such as peanut butter "flavored" balls. Left and right turning dogs are one thing but, I know there are many dogs out there with some very "special" balls. If you are not the one instructing the box loader, make sure that someone who knows your dog's needs is informing the box loader.

While I am on the subject of the importance of your box loader, go over with them some basic hand signals. Not all hand signals are universally understood by all clubs. Hands crossed over your head may indicate a box malfunction during the race but, will you understand the signal for "I need balls!"?

Know Where Teammembers are Crated

The natural thing that Clubs/Teams do is crate together. This keeps everybody current on changing strategies and dealing with issues. It also makes it easy to usher people to the ring when it is close to race time. But, what if your "Team" is composed of two or more Clubs?

By knowing where the other members of your Open Class team are, you can stop by their crating area and check to see if they are aware of the current race number. Do they have enough time to potty their dog and report to the ring? If they are prepared before you check on them, that's great! Everybody's on the same page. ....but, if they're not, they may appreciate the reminder!

Hold a "Strategy" Session

As I mentioned earlier, we had not figured out who was running or what the race order was. Just as each dog has unique needs for their ball, some dogs have particular needs when it comes to racing order. Some height dogs must run last. Some others might not do well as a "start" dog. You need to know who are your "pack" dogs and who are your special dogs.

It also is necessary to know how much racing every one expects to do. Some dogs will run in every heat. Others may expect to only "share" a spot. Still, others may not expect to race at all unless a dog shuts down, etc. A few minutes to learn about everybody's expectations and needs will save you from being surprised and having to re-group later.

This is also the time to negotiate terms for paying for your tournament entry fees. Each Club has it's own rules or formula for dividing up the cost of entering a tournament. But, with a "combined" team, you may have "philosophical differences" when it comes to dividing up the expenses incurred for playing flyball with each other. Take time to learn everybody's expectations and be prepared to negotiate "terms". Since Open Class is new, I expect people will be flexible when dealing with these kinds of issues. We are in uncharted flyball waters and we have the chance to show how generous and understanding we can be!

Choose a Consistent Dog

The last piece of advice I have is offer a dog to an Open Class team if you are reasonably certain that your dog will perform consistently throughout the weekend. Of course, no one can predict what hasn't happened yet and any dog can "shut down" if something "bad" happens in the ring. But, a dog that has been racing for at least a year or has proven it can return to racing even after being chased or crossed on is your best bet to enter the Open Class.

The Challenge of Open Class

The "Dog Gone Wooferines" learned that there was a real "rush" playing with folks that knew "flyball" but, maybe didn't really know you. When you practice and compete in tournaments with the same people and the same dogs, you get into a certain "rythmn". A lot of us depend on finding and keeping this rythmn or consistency for success while playing. Some will even argue that you cannot find the consistency necessary for success without a lot of practice and playing together.

Well, it should be a goal to practice and play for consistency. Just don't allow "consistency" to become a "rut". Mix it up! Sharpen your understanding of flyball by learning to pass dogs of variable speeds and/or body builds! You cannot pass a setter the same way you would pass a Border Collie. I say that because the picture changed so much for me when I passed Kia (Red & White Setter) than when I pass a Wooferine "start" dog. (Usually, a BC) The picture changed so much, in fact, I had to change my passing "window".

It took several races for us to find this rythmn for our Open Team. In fact, we lost one handler for most of Saturday when she had to go to the hospital to be checked out. She was OK and returned to race late Saturday and all of Sunday. It simply challenged the rest of us to use all the skills we have in this sport to make the necessary adjustments and continue to play.

The result? We managed to overcome all of these challenges with people we were only "acquainted" with previously. In fact, there was a much faster seeded team than we were seeded in Open Class for this event. We took First Place. Why? Because we learned how to work as a team!

The unexpected benefit came after the weekend ended. We all agreed that it was so much fun to race with each other and work together to overcome these obstacles. We learned that we had a lot "in common" with each other and it was thrilling to discover these things throughout the weekend. Best of all, we agreed it would be just as thrilling to do it all again!

So, go ahead and enjoy the thrill of flying in the "unpredictable" Open Class! Strangers are only friends we haven't met yet!

Good Luck and Good Racing!

Why I Trust the Delegates

Every year, one third of the terms of the NAFA Board of Directors expire. Every three years, the Executive Director's term expires. The North American Flyball Association fills these positions by holding annual elections in the late Fall. The people who earn NAFA ballots and vote those ballots are known as the NAFA delegates. They are intended to represent every club who participates in NAFA sanctioned events.

The unintentional side effect of this arrangement is the injection of "politics" into this sport. This is both good and bad. "Good" because everyone who uses their ballot and votes is heard. NAFA decides as a whole group the direction that the organization is going. "Bad" because the nature of politics can be divisive. Some people just cannot gracefully accept defeat.

This system evolved from very humble beginnings. NAFA was created by the joint efforts of 8 dog obedience clubs in the Michigan/Ontario area. After one person sat down and wrote a small rulebook spelling out the basics of the game, each of the remaining clubs signed on as "endorsing" the Rules of Flyball as embodied in the North American Flyball Association. Since they saw themselves as "equals", they chose the democratic model as the means for making decisions. But, they also recognized that those with the most participation had the most at stake in the sport so they created a tiered system which awarded ballots based on the level of participation. The more teams your club entered in events, the more delegate ballots your club could vote.

There were no "Regions" and everybody knew everybody else. The goal was simple. A Rulebook standardized flyball wherever it was played under NAFA sanctioning. Certainly, events could be planned without sanctioning by NAFA and probably some were. But, once this fledgling Rulebook was featured in a Canadian dog magazine, NAFA was inundated with requests for event sanctioning. Flyball has experienced phenomenal growth ever since.

Growth and Politics

I can't decide which came first. "Growth" because everybody has an ownership stake in NAFA or, the political process and "elections" because of unbridled growth. Certainly, elections determine the direction NAFA follows and since it is NAFA's owners (delegates) who possess the power of the ballot, it is the delegates themselves who are "NAFA", not the NAFA Board. The individual members of the NAFA Board are, in essence, "public servants" of the NAFA delegates.

Think about that for a minute. If the NAFA delegates are the owners of NAFA, how can they be "wrong" in any decision they reach by a democratic election?

If I am the owner of a property, I can decide whether or not I build on that property. I decide the size of the building. I decide whether to use brick or a frame house. One story or two or more. I choose how many windows to put in and where they go. I even choose the color each room will be painted and the fabric of my drapes. I decide what furniture I will put in that house and arrange it as I wish. I can even change my mind and rearrange that furniture, etc.

NAFA is the NAFA delegate's "house of flyball". Since it is more efficient to make the "small" day to day decisions that run the organization by choosing representatives, that is how the NAFA delegates run NAFA. They choose representatives. They choose the NAFA Board and they choose the Executive Director.

Now, I can hear the voices of protest out there. How much of a "choice" do we have when there are only 5 candidates running for 3 seats on the Board? How much choice do we have when the Executive Director is running unopposed? My answer is that we need to look at our history of recent elections and that may help us to understand the choices we are presented with today.

I have already outlined that NAFA Board members serve three year terms and, may serve two terms in a row (6 years). If we look at NAFA elections from 6 years ago, we see there were several candidates and very clear differences of opinions on the issues of that era. Those issues and opposing views were debated over the next 3 election cycles. (2001, 2002, 2003 & 2004). A predominant view emerged from these election cycles. The delegates consistently chose Board candidates with this predominant view.

This election cycle has fewer candidates than in the past and the candidates themselves are more alike in their opinions about NAFA than they are opposed. This is a reflection of the choices that the delegates have voted upon over the course of the last 6 years. What has been the result? In terms of growth, NAFA continues to sanction more events in the current year than in the previous year.

The Numbers

In terms of events alone, NAFA sanctioned 340 tournaments in fiscal year 2007, up 15 events from 325 tournaments in FY 2006. Percentage wise, this is a 4.6% rise from the previous year. But, one year's growth doesn't tell us much. Looking at a bigger picture, annualized growth between FY 2003-2007, NAFAs events rose 5.5 % annually. If we go back 5 years (FY 2002) NAFA sanctioned 231 events. 2007 with 340 represents a 47% hike from just 5 years ago and annualized over 5 years represents 9.4% growth every year!

Conclusions

In spite of dire predictons by people who hold a minority view, NAFA's record of growth proves that NAFA is a thriving organization. The delegates are clear in their choice of the direction NAFA needs to go. It is the responsibilty of the NAFA BoD candidates to present their ideas for the future of NAFA in an honest way so that the delegates may cast their votes with the expectation that the NAFA Board will do what they said they would do when they were candidates.

In other words, let's all of us be as honest and transparent about our opinions concerning specific issues as we are about who we are, where do we come from and where do we see NAFA going in the future. That way, the delegates can be assured that the organization is going in the direction they voted for.

Good Luck and Good Racing!