Peyton NAJ!

This was a jumpers' weekend for sure! Peyton got his NAJ title on Friday with a smokin' JWW run and 1st place. Then on Saturday he got his first Open JWW leg on a tricky course with another 1st place. Hooray!

We had a great time this weekend and I'm really pleased with my spotty boy. It was a fun trial and we were done early on both days, which is always nice! Friday was a little interesting though - while we were waiting for the Novice JWW course to be built, the power went out...then the sprinklers came on! I'm not sure what exactly happened, but the trial was on hold for quite some time until they figured out how to get them turned off, and by that time, the rings were a muddy mess!

Here's a little recap...

We started with Novice JWW and despite me getting left behind at the start, Peyton had a great run and got the last Q needed for our NAJ - a 16.34 second run and first place! We got a little lucky as he ticked the second bar, but I was really impressed with how well he did with me so far behind. There was absolutely no hesitation on his part and he seemed to know exactly where he needed to go - what a good boy!

Next up was Excellent Standard - I opted to do a running start and the opening was lovely...until we got to the table. And then Peyton started stressing. I really think it's the stopping part that's the problem - when he gets on the table he has time to look around at everything happening around him - including the judge getting closer and closer. As for me - oh my! Could I possibly look any more ridiculous? Yup, I was begging...pleeeeease down. Lie down...down...down! And he kept looking at me like I *am* down, what the heck is the matter with *you*. :) He finally had enough and bailed. We had a few more bobbles after that and our 2o/2o at the contacts were MIA, but otherwise he did have some really nice moments so I don't think it was too bad for our first time in Excellent.

Saturday night was a little crazy since Excellent Standard and Open JWW were running at the same time, but it was kind of nice since we started a little after 6 pm and were done around 6:30 pm! First up was JWW and I wasn't exactly sure how to best handle the opening without a start line stay so I opted for back to back rear crosses. NOT the most efficient plan, but we worked it out and Peyton Q'd with another first place!

Next was Excellent Standard and while we were waiting it starting storming - hard. Fortunately, Peyton isn't terribly thunderstorm sensitive, but I could tell he was getting anxious. By the time we made it in the ring it was raining so hard I couldn't hear anything. Oh, and I managed to once again step on Peyton as we're walking to the line! Despite all of the distractions, we had another nice opening and this time he actually ran directly to the table, but hopped off. In hindsight, I think I was giving way too many forward cues, but I'm not sure it would have made a difference. He was still anxious on the table, but better than the day before. We had a few more bobbles (handler errors), but I was really happy with this run. Even though we had a bit of a running dogwalk, he did hold his teeter and a-frame contacts this time!

Again, I'm super happy with how well Peyton did this weekend! We're out of novice, have a leg in open, and even though we didn't Q in standard, there were lots of good moments and no big surprises. I'm going to start working on a new table plan, and I think the contacts will come with more ring experience.

And best of all? I'm having so much fun with him! No nerves, no real worries...we're just going out and giving it our best shot. :)