Outdoors rules

Last weekend (April Fool’s day) we went to a trial hosted by a GSD club down in Indy. It was a typical “nice” spring day in Indiana - chilly, cloudy, breezy, threatening rain… and the trial was outdoors. Yeah, they actually still do some of those around here.

Of course most people avoid outdoor trials. Either they are top handlers who don’t want to risk a lower score or can’t be bothered for such tiny trials, or they are less skilled trainers who don’t train outside and can’t believe that their dogs can work outdoors. And I guess a lot of people only train indoors.

Well, as it happens, I train outdoors the vast majority of the time. Summer, winter, whenever, most of my training time ends up being outside, usually on my lunch hour at school, since Molly goes to school with me every day anyway.

So you would think we would have an advantage at an outdoor trial. You would think so, and for once that would be right. Molly turned in what was arguably her best ever Utility run and won Utility B with a 192. Of course there was only one other dog entered, so we got no points, but still it was an eye-opener. Now, to look for more outdoor trials.