Myth Busting: Fast vs Slow

What is a "slow dog" in flyball? Is it a dog that runs slower than 5 seconds? ...6 seconds? ...7 seconds? Does anybody run a dog that runs slower than 8 seconds? Why? Is it a "height dog"? Fourth breed for a Multi-Breed Team?

I got curious about these questions after it was suggested to me that "nobody" runs a "slow dog" unless it is a height dog or a rare breed. Really? I don't believe that assumption because I know of several so-called slow dogs that were either on my team or another that I know of ...and these dogs didn't fit these assumptions. So, I asked myself, why? were these dogs running if they didn't help out by lowering the jumps or by adding another breed to a multi-breed team? Why slow down any "team" by using a slow dog? ...maybe, some clubs do not measure success by the number of times they win. Maybe, they look at other "challenges" to measure their success by.

One example that I can think of is the challenge of training a deaf dog. My team has a deaf Border collie named Luna. It took a lot of patience and persistence to train Luna but, she is running fairly consistently now. I characterize her performance as "fairly consistent" because, since she is "deaf", we have no ability to call her off of a distraction. If something catches her eye, she will go to it and there is no way to stop her if she is not looking at you. So, since it can't be predicted "when" or "how" something may distract Luna, we have to accept the occasional "no finish" heat as part of the risk of putting Luna in the line up. If "winning" was important to us, using Luna would probably be an unnecessary risk. .....but, we get more pleasure at seeing her successfully complete runs so, she goes in and mostly runs 6-7 seconds. Slow for a Border Collie. ....but, just fine for a deaf dog. And, we have no problem building a line up around her to regularly finish 25 point heats.

Now, NAFA doesn't track hearing impaired dogs in the database. I wouldn't ask them to. Luna is the fulfillment of a personal kind of challenge to the Wooferines. .....and, it makes me wonder how many other clubs out there are taking on such a "personal" challenge. Not necessarily a deaf dog but, a "slow" dog by that club's own definition of what is "slow". I'd like to know how fast a "slow dog" runs to be considered as "slow".

I'd also like to know why? the club chooses to run their "slow" dog. Is it because:

1. The dog is a height dog.
2. The dog helps their multi-breed team.
3. "Other"... The dog is neither a height dog nor a fourth breed.

Myth Busting

I am asking these questions because I believe that it is a "myth" that the only "slow" dogs running flyball are either Height Dogs or dogs that are unusual for flyball but, serve to help out a multi-breed team as a fourth breed. That's right! I think it's a myth. So, help me out by answering the questions I've posed.

I've added some polls on the sidebar. If you could just take a moment to answer them, it would really be appreciated!


THANK YOU for your participation!
Good Luck and Good Racing!

Web Resources for Flyball Info...

"I want to know more about flyball! Where can I get help?"

This question is on the mind of so many flyballers both new and long time experienced. We devour information like the old-style video game "Pac-Man". I wrote an earlier article about online web resources for flyball. Now, I'd like to update that information and add some new resources.

The first place I would advise new people to begin to research is the North American Flyball Association. NAFA has governed the sport of flyball since its inception in 1984 and it's website at www.flyball.org is filled with all kinds of information from statistics on dogs and teams to a current list of tournament dates and locations. They even have a team locater to help new people find help locally. Another flyball sanctioning organization on the North American continent is the United Flyball League International, which was organized in 2005.


Team or Club Blogs

Just as there are blogs written and maintained by individuals, there are flyball blogs owned by flyball clubs (or teams). It helps to read these because quite often their focus is on training the flyball dog. Every dog is different and I firmly believe that every successful "individual" flyball dog has an entire team behind them.

Northern Borders Flyball Team focuses on aspects of the team itself. It provides the history of the team, location, club roster, dog health & safety, dog treat recipes and many more topics.

Phoenix Flyball is, as it's name implies, about the Phoenix Flyball team. There aren't many posts here but, I like the pictures. It helps to see a lot of flyball pics because, they can tell you how well your dog is learning compared to other trained flyball dogs.

The Cascade Comets are a team in another corner of the United States, known as Washington state. They state clearly in their blog's header that the purpose of their blog is to provide a history of their training techniques and team events. They have good writers posting for them and there is a lot of good information here. Unorthodogs is another team that hails from the Seattle, WA area that is graced by YouTube videos as well as good writing. It is well worth it to check out their arechives!

Leading Edge Flyball is a bilingual blog. The team itself is located near French speaking Quebec province and they blog in both French and English. We wish them well in their efforts to expand flyball to the French speaking Canadians!

Sure Shots Flyball Blog is a hard hitting no-nonsense blog utilizing aggressive techniques. In the archives, "aggressive" training is training that continues while all the distractions of real flyball are taking place. They don't coddle their flyball prospects. They introduce new ideas to their flyball students while action is taking place in the other lane. If you are looking for ways to get the most out of your flyball dog, this is the blog to check out!

MORE Flyball Info...

...is located in the right side column of this blog. There are links to both flyball sites, dog to dog sites, and general interest sites for dog lovers. There are even a few sites located overseas in the United Kingdom. Which goes to show you that, wherever you are in the world, you will find people who love dogs....and, who love people who love dogs! When you can find them, you can usually interest them in flyball.

Until next time,

Good Luck and Good Racing!

DogZworth's Big O 2008 Tournament

NAFA Expanding into French speaking Quebec, Canada

At the November 30, 2007 meeting of the NAFA Board of Directors held in Omaha, Nebraska, The NAFA Executive Director, Sam Ford reported that NAFA was continuing to grow and expand the presence of flyball in areas where it did not exist before. The first NAFA flyball tournament held in the newly created Region 20 was a huge success.

Montreal, Quebec and the surrounding area contains a large French speaking population. Quebec laws requires that items be available in French as well as English. There is a huge involvement in dog sports in the French-Canadian sector and it appears that NAFA needs to translate flyball information into French. At present, the NAFA brochure is available both in English and in French. Awards may soon follow. Translating the NAFA Rules of Racing represent a large financial commitment. NAFA is committed to supporting flyball in Quebec therefore, this exenditure will be necessary.

DogZworth's "Big O" NAFA Flyball Tournament- Nov 29-30, 2008

DogZworth Flyball Team proudly hosted this cutting edge event held at the "Big O" in Montreal, Quebec. Thousands of spectators were in attendence and cheered the many competitors on to the finish line. More information about this hugely successful event is contained on DogZworth website. Testimonials from attendees, pictures and links to important locations and services available in Montreal are included and invaluable if you are planning to attend next year's "Big" event!

Big congratulations to DogZworth for the success of this endeavor. We hope you will be hosting flyball tournaments at the "Big O" for many years to come!

Good Luck and good racing!

Proposal to Subtract 5" From the Shoulder to Determine Jump Heights

Many people who participate in flyball do not realize that many of the Rules originated as suggestions to NAFA by ordinary citizens. Anyone can present a proposal to the NAFA Board. The Board acts upon such suggestions or may present such a proposal directly to the delegates to be voted on. If it goes to a delegate vote, there will be a 90 day comment period after which a vote may be taken.

The following is taken directly from the NAFA website.

Current Items Up for Vote

January 7, 2008

Section 8.2(a) – Jump Heights

A proposal exists to change NAFA Rule 8.2(a) – Jump Heights. The wording of the proposal is as follows and with this publication, the three month comment period will begin.

Do you favor changing NAFA Rule 8.2(a) to provide that jump heights will be set by subtracting five instead of four inches from the height at the withers of the shortest dog running, to a minimum jump height of seven inches?
The Board of Directors is calling for a delegate vote on this topic after a three month comment period. For the motion to pass, it must be supported by 2/3 of the delegates voting.

You may also mail comments to NAFA at 1400 West Devon Avenue, #512, Chicago, IL 60660


This proposal originated by a participant writing a letter directly to the NAFA Board. It was presented at the Detroit meeting in August, 2007.

I applaud the NAFA Board for giving the delegates the opportunity to weigh in on this matter even though several members of the Board disagreed with this proposal. At first, I myself did not support this concept as I felt it changed the basic premise of the game. But, NAFA is a grassroots organization and as such, is ruled by the majority. The NAFA Board agreed it is up to the delegates to decide whether or not to adopt this proposal.

An excellent article was first presented on the web on December 8th, 2007. In the future, I hope to present an article "guest" written by a supporter of this proposal.


For those who are interested in directly participating by attending a NAFA Board meeting, the following information is again taken from the NAFA website:


Next NAFA Board Meeting
February 9, 2008 Bank of America Plaza,
300 South Fourth St., Suite 900
Las Vegas, Nevada

The agenda for this next meeting of the NAFA Board of Directors can be found here.

People wishing to attend should email kp@morrislawgroup.com to get on the Saturday building admit list, or ask the guard to phone up for admission.

All NAFA board meetings are open to the flyball community.

The board welcomes your ideas and feedback. Please send your thoughts, proposals, etc. to flyball@flyball.org


Until next time, Good Luck & Good Racing!