The Best from the West Throw Down in Phoenix!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Medina, OH - March 1, 2011 - For the 3rd stop in the International Sportsman's Expo Best of the West Series, DockDogs trucked on into the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona. The state of the art dome and home to the NFL's Arizona Cardinals has seen it's fair share of thrills since opening in 2006, but our high-flying dogs certainly held their own with the jam-packed crowds. With teams showing up from all over the west, we knew that the competition would be stiff from the start, but it was anyone's guess which of these stellar competitors would come away with the wins.
Starting things off on Thursday afternoon with Big Air Wave #1, we saw the local dogs strut their stuff. Traci Johnson and her Chocolate Lab named Jill from Peoria, AZ came away with the longest jump making it out to 21'1". Following just behind in 2nd was Glendale, AZ natives Whitney Lightner and her Border Collie named Saber with a 20'6". Rounding out the top 3 was Elsa Brett and her Golden Retriever Leo from Scottsdale, AZ with a 18'5". Big Air Wave #2 saw more locals strutting their stuff. Marcia Walton and her Australian Shepherd named Roo from Chino Valley, AZ took home the win with a jump of 18'8". Following close behind was Whitney with her other pup named Aero with a jump of 17'3." Coming in 3rd was Kathleen Schaffer and her Golden Retriever named Ernie from Frankfort, IL with a jump of 15'11". Finishing out the day with Big Air Wave #3, Traci and Jill were back to their winning ways with a jump of 21'3". Marcia and Roo came in 2nd with a 17'3" jump followed by Tempe native Becky Brooks and Yellow Lab, Zeus, with a jump of 15'1".

With 3 more Big Air waves on the schedule for Friday, we saw the arrival of many more teams from all over the West. Big Air Wave #4 saw the arrival of the massive jumping Belgian Malinois, Vhoebe, from San Diego, CA. Handled by Lisa Strum, Vhoebe jumped huge right away throwing down 26'4" for the win. Coming in 2nd was Boulder Creek, CA natives Ashley Rietfors and her Dutch Shepard named Pyro with a jump of 21'10". Rounding out the top 3 was Elsa and Leo with a jump of 18'5". Lisa and Vhoebe were back at it in Big Air Wave #5, jumping 25'6" for the win. Coming in 2nd was Ashley and Pyro with a jump of 22'8". Coming in 3rd was junior handler Holli Johnson and her Chocolate Lab, Jill, with a jump of 20'9". Big Air Wave #6 saw the arrival of even more dogs, but Lisa and Vhoebe still outjumped the competition by almost 3 feet with a winning jump of 25'8". Flying in from Spokane, WA and jumping big right off the bat, Britten Jay and his Chessie named Caddis took 2nd with 22'9". Vegas natives Lisa Weber and her Yellow Lab named Tractor rounded out the top 3 with a jump of 22'.

Switching gears Saturday morning, we changed over to Speed Retrieve. The 2010 World Championship Bronze Medalists Henry the Chessie and his handler Craig Haverstick from San Diego, CA turned in the fastest time of 6.218 seconds. Coming in 2nd was Vegas natives, and the 2010 World Championship runners' up, Lianne Hassen and her Belgian Malinois named Rex with a time of 6.286 seconds. Rounding out the top 3 was Caddis, this time handled by Julie Jay with a time of 6.356 seconds. Getting back to Big Air, Wave #7 saw Craig and Henry take home their 2nd win of the day with a jump of 24'6". Coming in 2nd was Britten and Caddis with a jump of 23'6". Rounding out the top 3 was Tractor, this time being jumped by AJ Leasure with a jump of 21'11". Big Air Wave #8 saw Caddis and Julie pick up the win with a 22'9" jump. Vegas natives Fred Hassen and his Belgian Malinois named Nash took 2nd with a jump of 21'6". Coming in 3rd was AJ and Tractor with a jump of 20'11".

Saturday evening found 17 teams battling it out to see who could go the highest in our Extreme Vertical Finals. With several big jumping new teams and the 2010 Extreme Vertical World Champions Lianne and Rex in the mix, it was anyone's guess who would come away with the title. The following 2 hours provided plenty of excitement, but at the end, Ashley and Pyro were crowned the champions with a winning score of 7'6". Lianne and Rex pushed them to the limit, coming in 2nd with a score of 7'4". Britten and Caddis were the only other team to break the 7 foot mark, finishing in 3rd with a 7' score.

Sunday morning saw the Final qualifying wave of Big Air for the weekend. Taking home the win was Craig and Henry with a score of 24'1". Finishing in 2nd was Britten and Caddis with a score of 22'1". In 3rd, Lisa and Tractor threw down a score of 22'1" to lead us into the finals. Following up was the final Speed Retrieve qualifying wave of the event. Lisa and Vhoebe showed everyone they were also a force to be reckoned with, blazing down the dock and retrieving the bumper with the sub-6 second time of the weekend turning in a score of 5.998 seconds. Coming in 2nd was Craig and Henry with a score of 6.180 seconds. In 3rd was Lianne and Rex with a score of 6.319 seconds.

With all the qualifying scores in the books, it was time to crown an Iron Dog Champion for the weekend. With massive Big Air scores, the fastest Speed Retrieve score and a 4th place finish in Extreme Vertical there was little question as to which team would be the winner. Lisa and Vhoebe turned in a stellar score of 3057.01. Coming in 2nd was Ashley and Pyro with a score of 3040.86. Finishing in 3rd was Lianne and Rex.

Every qualifying wave had been jumped, and every score had been tabulated, it was time for the Finals! Starting things off with the Speed Retrieve Finals, we had the top 8 teams of the weekend battling it out. Lianne and Rex showed everyone how they finished 2nd at the World's last year, blazing down the dock with a winning time of 6.147 seconds. Coming in 2nd was Craig and Henry with a time of 6.185 seconds. In 3rd was Julie and Caddis with a score of 6.606 seconds.

Moving into the Big Air Finals, we started things off with the Pro Division. Lisa and Vhoebe saved their best for last while narrowly missing the Indoor World Record. They jumped out to 27'2" for the win. Also saving their best for the Finals was Ashley and Pyro with a 2nd place jump of 25'11". Coming in 3rd was Craig and Henry with a jump of 24'8". The Semi-Pro Finals saw Fred and Nash jumping out to 22'6" for the win. Whitney and Saber came in 2nd with a jump of 21'6". Rounding out the top 3 was Lianne and Rex with a jump of 20'5". The Amateur Finals saw the treat of having a lap dog jump out for the win. Cynthia Hamilton and her mixed breed Wrigley from Scottsdale, AZ managed the win with a jump of 18'3". Coming in 2nd was Vegas natives Bob Lockwood and his Chocolate Lab, Ryder, with a jump of 18'1". Rounding out the top 3 was Lianne Hassen, this time with her Yellow Lab, Dooley, with a jump of 16'3".

DockDogs would like to thank everyone with the International Sportsman's Expo, the gracious staff of the University of Phoenix Stadium, the Arizona DockDogs club and all the teams that came out to compete with us and of course the great crowds that came out to support us over the weekend.