Flyte's First Course

I have a 11 month old lurcher which is a Collie x Greyhound so it was bred for brains and speed for all time work, she was bought as a mainly ferreting dog and a family dog to fit in with my other four that I use from anything from ferreting to the dog sport of fly ball.

I would like to share with you all the day I entered Flyte in her first puppy course and straight drag,
Well, I was attending Tatton Park Game Fair competing in the fly ball competition with two of my other dogs Meg and Brock when I went to look around the game fair and see what I could find. Well what I found was in the main arena they where setting up something I had never seen since the hunting ban had come into affect and that was artificial coursing and when I heard there was a puppy class I went and put Flyte’s name down and the waiting began, as we sat there in the main arena Flyte was straining at her lead to go chase the lure that was sent flying across the arena in all manners of directions making all the chasing dogs work from side to side at great speed but seeing it just made her want to run and catch it.
Well we got our stand by so we where next………………………..
I had a mixture of excitement and fear as I was about to slip the pup I have waited for 28 years for into her first race and this feeling can only be known if you yourself have ever done it
The next thing I knew we were stood at the front with Flyte straining and whimpering but not with pain, far from it she was on fire with excitement
And then the lure moved and I slipped her and away she went into the first corner

second and then on the long straight she showed her breeding and (pardon the pun) took full flyte and showed her real racing spirit and took over the dog into the last corner and followed the lure into the blanket at the bottom, the feeling in my heart seeing the pup I had trained and feed and brought up from a pup do what I have asked from her on her first outing was a feeling that will live with me till the day I die and I am sure if you are reading this and your pup has done the same you too will remember that day also
She ended up coming a respectful third place and I took home a champion in my eyes, as we all do don’t we.

Now we are starting to look forward to next season and we must not forget this years ferret season, which she is becoming the dog off my dreams

Thanks for taking your time to read this account of my Flyte’s first race

Regards Waggi and Flyte