Medina, OH - September 7, 2010 - For the third year in a row DockDogs® partnered with the STIHL Lumberjacks for the STIHL Dogs and Logs World Championships. 38 of the best DockDogs® teams in the World and 8 of the best Lumberjacks put their heart and soul into competing at this year's event.
Teams from all over the United States and Canada made the trip in Thursday for check-in and practice. It was exciting finally having everyone together and getting to put faces to names as the East and West coasts finally met for this 3 day competition.
Friday was the first full day of qualifying for all teams. Leading off the event was the first round of Speed Retrieve qualifying competition. Two of the three teams taking the first set of spots in the Speed Retrieve Quarter Finals false started on their first attempt. The pressure was on for Lianne Hassen and Rex and Craig Haverstick and Henry who handled it well pulling out times of 5.674 and 5.759 seconds (respectively) - good enough for 2nd and 3rd place. The team that took first in the competition was none other than the current Speed Retrieve World record holders - Sean McCarthy and Jordan with a quick time of 5.279 seconds.
The first round of Big Air qualifying is a great DockDogs® example of the "under dog team" rising to the occasion. Meghan Williams and Wrigley, who just started competing with us a little over a year ago, came out big during this initial round and earned themselves a spot in the Big Air Quarter Finals being held on Saturday. Taking the other two spots in the Quarter Finals were Jon Langdon with Remy and Sit Means Sit owner - Fred Hassen with his young pup Nash.
Extreme Vertical was the next discipline and started off with 13 of the World's best EV dogs. Unfortunately the line-up just did to seem complete as last year's World Champions Andy Mace and Brox were unable to make the trip out to Oregon to defend their title. Out of those who could attend most teams made it all the way through 7', but by the time we were at 7'2" we were left with four. Melissa Ness with Stryker, Alfredo Rivera and Power Puma and Lianne Hassen with Rex all hit this mark with ease on their first attempt - moving right along to 7'4". Joe Druck with Jager had a bit more trouble on their first attempt, but managed to make it on their second. However, the next height proved to be a bit more difficult as Stryker, Rex and Jager all missed at 7'4" leaving Alfredo Rivera and Power Puma to snatch up the first spot in the Extreme Vertical Finals on Sunday.
The second qualifying round of Speed Retrieve on Friday was a true test of the teams ability to work together. In this round it was all about getting their timing down. Unfortunately, for Lee Hall and Monty they were a little too quick and ended up false starting on both of their attempts. Joe Druck and Jager came out with the fastest time in the first round with a quick score of 5.845 seconds. On the second go around they improved with a time of 5.790 - earning them the next spot in the Speed Retrieve Quarter Finals on Saturday. Scooping up the next fastest time in this round was Julie Jay and Tractor improving significantly from their first round score with a 5.976 run. Taking the last Speed Retrieve spot of the day were Joey Spurlock and Brock just barely making it in with a time of 6.049 seconds.
Everyone was looking for redemption in this next round of Big Air qualifying on Friday as all of the top three teams in this round improved from their previous scores. Julie Jay was pulling double duty this weekend as she not only qualified with Tractor in the Speed Retrieve division, but also earned a spot in the Big Air Quarter Finals with Caddis and a score of 25'2". Making a surprise come back and improving on their previous score by almost 7 inches was Melissa Ness and Smoke with an amazing jump of 25'4". Rounding out the top three to advance was Craig Haverstick and Henry who clearly gave it all they had and came out with the best Big Air jump of the weekend with a 27'10" jump!
For the second year in a row the World Championships featured DockDogs® latest addition - Iron Dog. In this competition 15 of the World's best teams competed back to back in Speed Retrieve, Big Air and then finally Extreme Vertical. After the first two events of Speed Retrieve and Big Air were complete Craig Haverstick and Henry had a clear lead with an overall score of 2,071.74 points followed by Sean McCarthy and Jordan with an overall score of 2,060.37. However, Extreme Vertical proved to be the deal breaker for many teams. Last year's Champions, Andrew Fink and Wilson, did not make their starting height of 6'4" putting them out of the running to defend their title in this first round of competition. It was a true test of endurance once we hit the 7'6" mark as only two teams were left in the game - Lianne Hassen and Rex and Joe Druck with Jager. Both teams passed 7'6" with ease, but had a little trouble at 7'8" where they both missed. This triggered the tie breaker rules where each team had a second attempt at 7'8". Jager was up first and unfortunately missed, this left all the pressure on Rex, who also missed his attempt. The bar was then lowered one inch to 7'7". As a hush fell over the crowd Jager gave this next height his best attempt - unfortunately it was not good enough as he missed. Used to being in pressure situations Lianne and Rex prepared for what could be their final jump of the event - could they make this and end the competition, or would they miss too and cause the bar to be lowered another inch back to 7'6"? Thankfully for Lianne whatever she said to Rex in those few moments on the dock worked as he cleared 7'7" for the win!
After this last discipline Craig and Henry found themselves still holding their solid lead in Iron Dog with an overall point total of 3,071.75. Moving up into second place was Tony Lampert and Baxter with an overall score of 3.063.88.
Friday evening ended with the traditional competitor VIP party. It was a relaxing time where everyone turned off their competition mode and just let loose for a little while. It was an enjoyable and friendly way to end the first day of competition.
But there is no rest for the weary, as Saturday morning started off bright and early with a handlers meeting at 7:30am! Wasting no time and getting right into the competition we started off the last chance qualifier in Speed Retrieve. Lee Hall and his lab Monty, who had false started on both attempts in the last round of competition came back prepared. Having the fastest time in this round, with a time of 5.940 seconds, they earned themselves a spot in the Quarter Finals later that day. Taking the final spot in the Quarter Finals were the hometown underdogs, John Haas and Riley. Riley just started in the sport of DockDogs® a little over a year ago and in a short time has become quite a contender in the sport of dock diving.
Big Air was the next last chance qualifier on the line up. Earning themselves a spot in another discipline was the versatile team of Alfredo Rivera and Power Puma. Ben Propson and Callie, making the trip from Wisconsin, again found themselves in the Big Air Quarter Finals. Last year this team was the runner up in the Big Air division.
Saturday was the day for the "maligators" to come out in full force as Rex scooped up the win in the last qualifier for Extreme Vertical - winning at 7'4", he also took one of the two remaining spots in the Iron Dog discipline later that day. The winning team in Iron Dog discipline on Saturday with overall points of 3,062.23 was Sit Means Sit trainer, Jon Langdon with Remy. Last year's Championship team of Andrew Fink and Wilson were in the running for taking back their title until Andy made a tragic mistake. He had Wilson all set up for a great second run in Big Air and as Wilson made his way down the dock Andy took one step too many and landed right in the water. Fortunately for Andy he knew the jump was about Wilson, and not him, so as he entered the water he threw Wilson's toy - earning Wilson a jump score of 15'4".
As we moved onto the Quarter Finals in both Speed Retrieve and Big Air the sun was starting to set, making it a little difficult for teams to see. Big Air was up first and after the first round of jumps Jon Langdon with Remy appeared to have the commanding lead, being the only team to hit the 26' mark. That was until Craig Haverstick with Henry took the dock. Being the last team to go in this Quarter Final they had an advantage - and took full use of it jumping, yet again, into the 27' range - hitting 27'1". Being that they were already qualified for the Semi Finals, Craig and Henry decided to pass on their second jump of the competition, wanting to save their energy for Iron Dog later that day. Also, advancing was the team no one expected to see in the Semi-Finals, Meghan Williams and Wrigley, making the trip all the way from the Midwest. Rounding out the four spots in the Semi-Finals were Jon Langdon and Remy and Melissa Ness with Smoke with a jump of 25'1".
In the first round of the Speed Retrieve Quarter-Finals there was quite an upset as Lianne Hassen with Rex had the best time of 5.617 seconds, beating out the World Record holders - Sean McCarthy and Jordan. In the second round of retrieves Sean and Jordan must have been feeling the pressure as they increased their time and earned themselves a spot in the Semi-Finals. Rounding out the remaining two spots in the Semi-Finals were Craig Haverstick and Veteran dog Henry along with Joe Druck and the Dutch Shepherd, Jager.
As the sun was getting too low to hold anymore competitions the Speed Retrieve and Big Air Semi-Finals were moved to first thing Sunday morning. It was obvious the competitors weren't too disappointed as they took the opportunity to start a new tradition and go out to dinner at a local hot spot after a long day of competition.
As everyone arrived early Sunday morning, we were greeted by a deceiving sun and chilly autumn weather. The weather didn't seem to affect the dogs though as they had their game faces on... literally. To get the dogs fully prepared for "battle" handlers used war paint as a colorful addition to their dog. Leading off the last day of competition was Melissa Ness and Smoke in the Big Air Semi-Finals. Melissa and Smoke jump started the day with a huge first jump of 27'4" and never looked back. The jump was good enough to earn them a place in the Finals later that day. Up next was Meghan Williams with her Weimaraner, Wrigley, who took the second spot in the Finals on their first jump as well. We bid adieu to Jon and Remy and Craig and Henry, but not for long as they would be coming back in the Iron Dog discipline later in the day.
The Speed Retrieve Quarter Finals were intense as four distinct breeds of dogs all battled it out within the 5 second range for only two spots in the Semi-Finals. Taking the initial lead was Sean McCarthy and Jordan after the first round of retrieves. Following closely was Craig Haverstick and Henry. On their second attempt Joe and Jager, who had a chance of making it into the Finals immediately following false started - putting them out of the running. With Craig and Henry not improving on their second attempt it was up to Lianne Hassen and Rex to give it all they had to make it into the Finals since Sean and Jordan had already qualified. Rex must have sensed the pressure as he stepped up his game and broke out a quick time of 5.683 seconds - earning them the second spot in the Finals.
Immediately following the Speed Retrieve Semi-Finals were the Finals - testing the dogs stamina. Lianne and Rex must have been a little tired after their previous win as Rex only came in with a time of 6.068 seconds. However, on their second attempt they improved with a time of 5.802. Unfortunately, Jordan was looking to out beat his previous World Record and put it into over drive for the Finals busting out a huge time of 4.850 seconds - good enough for the win and to set a new WORLD RECORD in Speed Retrieve!
In the Big Air face off Meghan Williams sent Wrigley out to 24'1" on their first attempt and had the makings to take the win from Melissa and Smoke. Unfortunately, Wrigley slipped on his second attempt giving him a disappointing score of 14'4". Smoke took full advantage of the mis-step and jumped all the way out to 27'1" - taking home the title of Big Air World Champion for the event.
The Extreme Vertical Finals was host to a battle between three Sit Means Sit Belgian Malinois' and the lonely mix - Stryker. After qualifying in the final Extreme Vertical competition earlier in the day Melissa with Stryker took to the dock first. That team along with Power Puma, handled by Alfredo Rivera, held on all the way until 7'6" - where they exited the competition leaving Lianne Hassen with Rex and Tony Lampert with Baxter to duke it out. After both teams cleared 7'6", with ease, they each had a little more trouble with the 7'8" mark. Having flash backs from her previous jump off on Friday Lianne and Rex knew they needed to go big or they were going home [without a win]. Rex was up first on the dock for his next attempt at 7'8". The crowd waited patiently as Rex slowly leaned back, signaling to Lianne he was ready to go. As Rex took off, he ripped the bumper off, and the crowd went crazy! Now, the pressure was on Tony and Baxter - could they take down their fellow Sit Means Sit posy? Unfortunately, Baxter must have been tired from competing earlier as he did not make his final attempt at 7'8" - making Lianne and Rex the 2010 Extreme Vertical World Champions!
For this year's World Championships DockDogs® Worldwide decided to add an brand new element to the excitement - the introduction of Youth Handlers. Four of the World's best Youth Handlers earned invitations through their overall Rankings throughout the 2010 season. Making the trip out West were Quinn Hettich and Bubbles, Dylan Shafer and Chessie, Lizzy Felton and Ralphie and James Sozio with Twister.
Quinn and Bubbles lead off the competition with a jump of 13'4" - a huge jump for this little lap dog. Quinn was the model of consistency as he sent Bubbles right back out to the 13'4" mark on their second attempt. Up next was Dylan Shafer with Chessie who had a first round jump of 14'4", good enough for third place overall. On Ralphie's first attempt he made it out to 16'8", taking second place as James sent Twister out to 18'6" on their first attempt. Ralphie knew it was do or die time as he stepped it up and busted out a big jump of 18'9" taking the win in the first ever Youth Handler division at the 2010 World Championships!
Rounding out an incredible day of competition was the crowd favorite - Iron Dog competition. With the top 4 best dogs in the World going head to head everyone was bracing themselves for a competition of epic proportions. After two intense disciplines (Big Air and Speed Retrieve) Jon Langdon with Remy had a clear lead with an overall score of 2,054.13 points. Trailing them were Tony Lampert and Baxter and Craig Haverstick with Henry, who were only separated by .33 points!
Extreme Vertical was the "make it or break it" discipline for all four of our Iron Dog teams. Jon with Remy left the dock early only making it out 6'10", which brought down their final overall points to 3,063.26 - good enough for 3rd place overall. Henry, handled by Craig Haverstick and Baxter, handled by Tony Lampert were the next to leave the competition, missing both of their attempts at 7'4". Hanging in till the very end was Rex handled by Lianne Hassen. Unfortunately Rex's personal best grab of 7'6" was not good enough to earn him the overall win in the Iron Dog competition; they went home with a respectable 4th place finish. Just barely coming in second with an overall point total of 3,074.68 was the Veteran dog team of Henry handled by Craig Haverstick. This year's 2010 STIHL Dogs and Logs World Championship Iron Dog team was the underdog duo of Baxter handled by Sit Means Sit trainer Tony Lampert.
Closing out the event was the crowd favorite - Relay competition. This is where two lumberjacks are paired with two of the fastest Speed Retrieve teams of the event. The essence of the game is to have a dog do one Speed Retrieve pass, return, a lumberjack does a standing chop, then another dog does a Speed Retrieve pass and you end with a different lumberjack doing the Speed Climb. The team beating out all others with a super fast time of 1 minute 11 seconds was Team 2 of Lianne Hassen with Rex, Joey Spurlock and Brock paired with World Champions Wade Stewart and Jeff Skirvin. It was great seeing our old friends the Lumberjacks and bringing the Dogs and Logs family back together again for another memorable competition.
As the sun started to set Sunday evening and teams packed up to head home all everyone could talk about was the brand new World Record and surprising upsets. DockDogs® Worldwide would like to thank everyone who made the trip out to this year's 2010 STIHL Dogs and Logs World Championships. We could not have had asked for more a more beautiful location or better friends to join us this year. We would also like to congratulate all four of our brand new World Championship teams.
With so much buzz and excitement surrounding this year's World Championships how could we possibly follow that up?... with the 2010 Nationals! Details have already started to be released, so check out the Events portion of the DockDogs website for the most up to date information.
See you all next year!
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