On December 29th, Elsa, Geraldo, Chet, and I
competed at the CPE Agility Trial in Washingtonville,
Ohio. We had a perfect day---literally and
figuratively. Elsa, Chet, and Geraldo,
qualified AND placed on every run!!
Collectively, they had seven first place
finishes, two second place finishes, and two fourth place
finishes. As an added bonus, Elsa finished two titles at
that trial, and Chet finished a title too. I had the
pleasure of being on the course myself with Chet and Geraldo,
and Elaine Mayowski did a lovely job of handling Elsa.
It was a great way to ring out the old
year!!
After being out of the standard
agility ring for six weeks, Geraldo walked back into the
ring at the Cleveland Shetland Sheepdog Trial on October 14th
and earned his third MX leg. He picked up eight
MACH points on that run too. I think he was very happy
to be back in the standard ring, because he smiled throughout
the run.
On September 14th, Geraldo and
I finished his Master Jumpers title at the Beaver County
Agility Trial on Neville Island. We've worked so hard
for this title, and I'm just about to burst with
excitement. I'm so proud of my baby boy.
It was one year ago this
weekend that we earned our first Novice Jumpers leg at the
same show site. So, it was really cool to be able to
finish our MXJ one year later at the same show/show
site. We had been stuck at nine MXJ legs for the last
three shows, and I was starting to wonder if we'd ever get
that final MXJ leg.
We're dancing on the ceiling at
CastleGate!!
After having to take a month
off from agility classes and trials due to being in season,
Elsa returned to the agility ring this weekend and finished
her Excellent Standard (AX) title with a second place
finish on Sunday at the Cleveland Shetland Sheepdog
Club's agility trial. After she ran, she was prancing
around the arena with her prize/toy looking at the other dogs
with the "I rock, you don't" look that she reserves for
occasions like that! <G>
Elsa has earned six agility
titles since her agility debut on April 27th, and we're so
proud of her! We can't thank Elaine Mayowski enough for
the wonderful job she's done training Elsa and handling her in
the ring. They are truly an awesome
team!!
August 26th marked the one year
anniversary of my first agility trial with Geraldo. To
commemorate that, we went back to the same show site---an
incredibly hot soccer arena in Morgantown, WV.
Geraldo had a blast despite the heat, and I think he was
pleased that his daddy came along to watch him run too!
Geraldo celebrated his
anniversary in style by earning his second MX leg that
day! <G>
At the Youngstown All Breed
Training Club's agility trial in Washingtonville, Ohio on
August 18th & 19th, Geraldo earned his ninth MXJ leg and
his first MX leg. We had a lot of fun, and I'm delighted
that he only needs one more qualifying leg to get his
MXJ! We've come a long way in our first year of
trialing!!
While Geraldo and I were at the
Rod Oishi Grooming Seminar, Elaine Mayowski and Elsa went
to the CABTC agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio on August
10-12. I'm pleased to report that Elsa picked up her
second AX leg (with a second place finish) and her second MXJ
leg at that trial. As always, we're so proud of what the
two of them have accomplished together. Thank you,
Elaine!
On August 5th, Elsa earned her
first MXJ leg in Westminster, MD at the agility trial
sponsored by the Norwegian Elkhound Club of the Potomac
Valley. As always, Elsa's good friend and
trainer, Elaine Mayowski, was on the course with her for
that qualifying run. Elaine brings out the best in Elsa,
and we're very grateful to her!
On July 21st at the Golden
Retriever Agility Trial in Cheswick, PA, Geraldo finished his
Excellent Standard (AX) title with a second place finish, and
we are delighted that he now has both of his Excellent agility
titles. As a bonus, he also earned his seventh MXJ leg
and picked up seven additional MACH points to go with
it. The show photographer took several pictures of
Geraldo on the agility course on Saturday, and he had such a
big smile on his face as he ran. When we crossed the
finish line after those two runs, my smile was equally
big!!
On July 13-15, Geraldo, Elsa, and
I attended the Cleveland Shetland Sheepdog Association's
agility trial in North Olmsted, Ohio. We had a nice
weekend!
Elsa earned her first
Excellent Standard (AX) leg, and she earned two Excellent
Jumpers legs to finish her Excellent Jumpers (AXJ)
title. She received second place on all three of
those qualifying runs. She's been to five agility show
weekends and now has five agility titles and one leg toward a
sixth one. I'm just blown away by the success she and
Elaine Mayowski have had on the agility course.
They are amazing together, and I love watching them run.
Geraldo and I picked up his
second Excellent Standard (AX) leg with a first place
finish this weekend too. One more qualifying leg to go,
and he'll have his Excellent Standard title!!
Elsa
had a fabulous weekend at the Three Rivers Shetland
Sheepdog Club's agility trial on June 16th and 17th in
Cheswick, PA. She earned two Open Standard legs at
the trial and that finished her OA title. She had
perfect scores and first place finishes on both of those
qualifying runs. Elsa also earned her first
Excellent Jumpers leg with a second place
finish on Sunday. Her success on the
agility course has both amazed and delighted me. In only
four weekends of trialing, she's finished four titles (novice
standard, novice jumpers, open standard and open jumpers) and
picked up her first qualifying leg toward a fifth
title. As always, we are incredibly grateful to
Elaine Mayowski for training Elsa and handling her to
these exciting wins.
Geraldo and I had a very
nice weekend too. He earned his fifth and sixth
Masters Jumpers legs on Saturday and Sunday and picked
up nine more MACH points in the process. Only four
more qualifying legs to go, and he'll have his Masters
Jumpers title. I have to pinch myself when I think
about the prospect of that. <G>
The CastleGate kids had another wonderful
agility weekend at the Clarion Agility Trial in Cheswick, PA
on June 1-3. Elsa (Can Ch Kelbren Come Hither, NA, OAJ,
CGC) finished her OAJ title and earned her first OA leg at
that show. As an added bonus, Elsa received first place
on all of her qualifying runs. As always, our
heartfelt thanks go out to Elaine Mayowski for training and
running Elsa in agility. They are an amazing
team.
Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News, OA, AXJ,
CGC) and I had a pretty good time too! Geraldo
earned his third and fourth MXJ legs at that show and picked
up eight additional MACH points too.
We
had an awesome time at the Golden Triangle Agility
Trial on Memorial Day Weekend.
On
Sunday, Elsa (Can Ch Kelbren Come Hither, NA, NAJ,
CGC) picked up her second Novice Standard leg with a
perfect score and a first place finish, and she earned
her first Open Jumpers leg with another perfect
score and a fourth place finish.
On
Monday, she was eager to run again, and she finished her
Novice Standard title with a second place finish
and picked up her second Open Jumpers leg with a third
place finish. In only two weekends of trialing, Elsa
has finished two agility titles and is 2/3 of the way to her
third title.
Tom
and I can't thank Elaine Mayowski enough for the
beautiful job she's doing with Elsa in the ring. They're
a wonderful team!!
Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News, OA, AXJ,
CGC) and I had fun too! On Monday, he earned his
second MXJ leg, and as icing on the cake, we earned our
first four MACH points on that run too---only 746 more points
to go!!
On May 14th, the
Chet x Daily litter was born! This litter is a
repeat of the breeding that produced Geraldo (CastleGate's
Daily News, OA, AXJ, CGC) and Lydia (CastleGate's Answered
Prayer). We have three non-white factored tri girls and
one non-white factored bi-black girl in the litter. The
pedigree for the litter can be seen on our Nursery page.
On May 13th, Geraldo was
WD under William Usherwood at the Ravenna Show in Tallmadge,
Ohio for his first two points. What an awesome
Mother's Day present that was! Those were my first
homebred points and boy did they feel good! Geraldo was
handled to this win by Linda Urbanek, and we are very grateful
to Linda for presenting Geraldo so beautifully!
Elsa was
entered in her first agility trial on April 27-29 in
Cleveland, Ohio. She qualified all three days in Novice
Jumpers and finished her Novice Agility Jumpers title on
Sunday. She also qualified on Friday in Novice
Standard. As icing on the cake, Elsa earned three
first placements and one second placement on those
qualifying runs. Not a bad agility debut for our
baby girl!! <G> Elsa was trained and handled
to these exciting wins by Elaine Mayowski, and we're so
grateful to her for everything she's done for Elsa
Girl.
Geraldo had a great
weekend too. He earned two Open Standard legs at the
Cleveland Trial, and that finished his OA title!! He had
perfect scores and first place finishes on both of those
runs! I moved him up to Excellent Standard the next day,
and not only did he qualify, but he got first place
again!! I was so excited that I gave him every drop of
bait that I had left in the cooler!! On Friday, Geraldo
also earned his first Masters Jumpers leg. He ran
beautifully for me all weekend, and I was so proud of him.
On April 18th, Chet, Geraldo and
Elsa successfully completed their Canine Good Citizen tests at
the Xcel Training Center in Bethel Park, PA. We're very
pleased that they did so well!
We have repeated the breeding
(Chet x Daily) that produced Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News,
NA, AXJ) and Lydia (CastleGate's Answered Prayer). Those
puppies should arrive on Mother's Day weekend, and we're
expecting tri's, blue merles, and bi's in that litter.
We had a blast at the CPE agility trial in
Washingtonville, OH on March 24th! Elsa (Can Ch
Kelbren Come Hither) made her competitive agility debut at
that trial, and I was so proud of her. She qualified and
placed on two of her four runs that day. Elsa is being
trained and handled by Elaine Mayowski, and we're very excited
about what the future holds for the two of
them.
Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News NA, AXJ),
had an even better day at the CPE trial. He qualified
and placed on all four of his runs! Geraldo is a joy to
run, and I love being on the agility course with
him.
Geraldo celebrated the birth of his
first puppies by completing his Excellent Jumpers (AXJ) title on March 10th at the Butler
Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA. As an added bonus,
he got first place too! Geraldo came within a hair's breadth
of qualifying for his first Masters Jumpers leg
on Sunday. If his mom had been where she was
supposed to be when he came out of the tunnel, he wouldn't
have missed the next to the last jump (kill me now) and would
have easily qualified for his first MXJ leg. I promised him that I'll
do better next time! <G>
On March 9th, Geraldo's first litter was
born!! The dam of the litter is Shamont Strutting On Bi
(Jillian), a lovely bi-black bitch generously leased to us for
this litter by Linda Sanders. This litter was co-bred
with Judy Quirk (Deja Blue Shelties) and consists
of two bi-black females, one bi-blue female, and two
bi-black males. We'll be eagerly watching these puppies
mature! See our puppies page for more information on this
litter.
Geraldo took a four point major reserve under
Lloyd Graser Jr. at the Central Ohio Sheltie Specialty on
February 24th. The following day, he took another four
point major reserve under Lisa Graser. We are so
proud of him, and we're very grateful to Linda Urbanek
for the beautiful way in which she presented him in the
ring. Geraldo is knocking on the door, and we are
hopeful that his first points are just around the
corner!!
On February 10th at
the Tamarack Lake Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA,
Geraldo earned his first Open Standard leg with a first
place finish. Geraldo and I just started competing in
standard agility at the beginning of January, so
we're delighted that he's already moved
into the Open Standard Class. His first litter is
due in early March, and we're hoping to finish at least one
more agility title before those puppies
arrive!
Geraldo and I had a
great weekend at the Admiral Perry Agility Trial in Edinboro,
PA. Geraldo earned two Novice Standard legs (both with first
place finishes) on January 19th and 20th, and those qualifying
runs finished his NA title. He was two years old on January
20th, so I think the NA title was his birthday present to me!!
Geraldo also earned his second Excellent Jumpers leg (with a
second place finish) that Saturday.
My baby boy is now
formally known as CastleGate's Daily News, NA, OAJ. Someday
soon, I hope we can change that OAJ to an AXJ!!
Geraldo (CastleGate's
Daily News OAJ) and I finally got brave enough to run a Novice
Standard agility course, and I'm delighted to report that he
earned his first NA leg at the Erie Kennel Club's Agility
Trial in Edinboro, PA on January 7th. As icing on the cake, he
also garnered a first placement for that run!
On December 9th at the
Clarion Agility Trial in Edinboro, Geraldo finished his OAJ
title with a first placement! Just for fun, I moved him up to
the Excellent Jumpers class the next day, and not only did he
qualify, but he earned first place again. To say that I was
thrilled is an understatement. I'm so proud of
him!!
At the Tamarack Lake
Kennel Club's agility trial in Edinboro, PA on November 26th,
CastleGate's Daily News NAJ ("Geraldo") earned his second OAJ
leg with a first place finish. As always, I was delighted to
be running the course with my happy bi-blue boy!!
On November 18th,
Kelbren Come Hither ("Elsa") was WB at the Ottawa Kennel Club
Show, and that win finished her Canadian Championship! Elsa's
breeder, Carol Craswell, put the first eight points on her in
September and October, and Sharon Ayers put those delightful
final points on her at the Ottawa Kennel Club Show. We are
very appreciative of the beautiful way in which Carol and
Sharon presented Elsa in the ring.
Elsa's sire is BISS Am
Ch Shamont Lasting Impression, and her dam is Can Ch Kelbren
Tresta Tatianna. Elsa is the fifth Canadian Champion for her
sire and the fourth Canadian Champion for her dam.
On November 12th at
the Admiral Perry Agility Trial in Edinboro, PA, CastleGate's
Daily News NAJ ("Geraldo") earned his first OAJ leg with a
second place finish. Geraldo is a joy to run with on the
agility course, and I'm having a blast with him!
On October 27th,
Elsa (Kelbren Come Hither) was WB at the Island Dog Show in
Charlottetown, PE for two points. The following day, she was
WB/BW for three more points. Elsa was handled to these
exciting wins by her breeder, Carol Craswell. Elsa needs two
more points to finish her Canadian Championship, and we have
high hopes that she'll complete her title before coming back
to the U.S. at the end of November.
On October 21st, at
the Erie Kennel Club's Agility trial in Edinboro, PA,
CastleGate's Daily News (Geraldo) earned his second Novice JWW
leg with a perfect score and a second place finish. The next
day, Geraldo finished his Novice JWW title with another
perfect score and a first place finish. It was such a thrill
for me to be on the course with Geraldo for these wins! We are
very grateful to Elaine Mayowski for the many hours she spent
training Geraldo and me. We couldn't have done it without her
patient and positive instruction.
Geraldo is the
second Chet son to earn an NAJ title this year, and several
others are waiting in the wings for their turn!
On October 7th at the
TRSSCGP Agility Trial in Washingtonville, Ohio, Daily (Shamont
Most Unusual Day) earned her second Novice JWW leg, and I was
delighted to be on the course with her for that qualifying
run. As icing on the cake, Daily also earned first place in
the 12" Novice Jumpers class. Our heartfelt thanks go out to
Elaine Mayowski for training both Daily and myself.
On September 16th,
Geraldo (CastleGate's Daily News) earned his first Novice JWW
leg at the Beaver County Agility Trial. He qualified with a
perfect score and earned first place in the 16" jumpers class.
That was the first time that I have ever put a performance leg
on one of my dogs myself!! To say I was thrilled is an
understatement. After our run, I hugged and kissed Geraldo
until he just couldn't stand it any more! <G> We are
very grateful to Elaine Mayowski for all of the time and
effort she put into preparing us for competition.
Elsa (Kelbren Come
Hither) is staying with her breeder on Prince Edward Island,
Canada while she's pursuing her Canadian Championship. At her
first Canadian show on September 9, 2006, Elsa was WB and BOS
over two bitch specials! She was shown to this exciting win by
her breeder, Carol Craswell. We're delighted that Elsa's
Canadian show career is off to such a great start.
Shamont Most Unusual
Day (Daily) went to her first agility trial in Cheswick, PA on
July 22nd and came away with her first JWW leg and a third
place finish to boot! Not bad for a bitch who's going to be
six years old in September. <G> Elaine Mayowski did a
beautiful job of handling Daily in the ring, and we are very
excited that she's training and running Daily for
us
On July 9, 2006, Chet
completed his Excellent Jumpers with Weaves title (with a
first place finish) at the Blue Ridge Agility Trial in
Winchester, VA ! Going forward, he will be known as A/C Ch
Kelbren Blue Flame CD, RN, NAJ, AJP, and he is now officially
retired from the agility ring. Elaine Mayowski and Chet have
had an incredible partnership in the agility ring, and we
can't thank Elaine enough for training and running Chet in
agility for us!
Next, Chet and I are going to
concentrate on getting a herding title in order to finish the
requirements for his VCX. That may be our most challenging
adventure yet!! <G>
On June 4th, Chet
earned his second excellent jumpers preferred leg at the
Clarion Canine Obedience Club's agility trial in Cheswick, PA.
As icing on the cake, he had a first place finish too! Our
heartfelt thanks to Chet's agility handler, Elaine Mayowski,
for another great run and for her unwavering belief in
him.
Chet needs one more qualifying leg to finish his
excellent jumpers title, and then we're going to take a break
from agility to concentrate on herding in the hopes of putting
a VCX at the end of his name sometime in the next 12
months.
Elaine Mayowski and
Chet certainly started off 2006 on a high note for us! At the
Erie Kennel Club's Agility Trial on January 7th, Chet
completed his OJP title with a first place finish. We moved
Chet up to the excellent jumpers preferred class the next day,
and he dazzled and delighted us again by earning his first AJP
leg with another first place finish.
In the near
future, we're going to start pursuing a herding title for Chet
in the hopes that he'll be our first sheltie to earn a
VCX.
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