Clean Run - June 2015 - 41

Timing
Ahhhhh timing! Every agility handler's favorite subject! Having superb footwork will not get you very far if you do not
have good timing. When was the last time your instructor said,
"Wow! Your timing was magnificent!" Most of the time it's
more like, "Late, late, late." Your feet have to do their thing
at the right time er to be effective. News flash: you must learn
timing, you can't just do it. You have to analyze when your dog
needs you to give him the cue. You have to take many things
into consideration such as how fast he is going and what he is
heading toward (a beloved obstacle or not). You must decide if
your dog needs the cue when he is approaching, executing, or
completing an obstacle. If it is when your dog is approaching,
how far ahead does he need the information? Where you are
(ahead or behind your dog) will influence which cue you use
and the timing as well. The timing of the cues can be rehearsed
during your detailed course walk-through.
My goal is to have a solid plan for my feet at these points on the
course: when my dog enters and exits a tunnel or chute, when
the teeter hits the ground, when he finishes the A-frame and
dogwalk, and when he is approaching and landing jumps.

Cues: Start and End
Every cue has a start and an end. This is easy to understand
when you think in terms of verbal cues like Sit. Easy, it starts
with an "S" and ends with a "T." It's often not so clear with
physical cues as to when they actually start and when they
end. Knowing when your cue has started and working hard to
complete it as quickly as possible will enable you to give your
dog his much desired next cue. Take a front cross, for example.
If you are embracing consistent footwork, your goal will be to
start and end your front crosses in the same way whenever possible and you will be doing it as quickly as possible.
My front cross cue begins when my on-side (dog side) foot plants
before the hip rotation; this step is often also cueing the obstacle.
The cue is over when my "new" on-side foot (the opposite foot)
is planted immediately after the rotation has created the side
change. This is illustrated in this video: http://youtu.be/D1ZVW9Oze8k. I use the front cross as an example because so many
people often execute it inconsistently. Steps are sometimes
added when they are not needed and steps are sometimes taken
in the wrong direction. The finish is often interrupted while the
handler spends time negotiating with the dog, trying to get his
lost attention mid-execution. I call these front crosses that have
mid-execution interruptions "piecemeal front crosses." I find if
the handler focuses on finishing up the front cross footwork, the
negotiation is not needed. This is because the cue is finished and
the line to the next obstacle has been set so the dog can see where

to go next. The next video, http://youtu.be/qMPi0rb51ag, shows
me doing some really bad piecemeal front crosses. Yes, bad timing and other factors are involved, but what I'm showing you is
the delay in getting the on-side foot placed to set the line to the
next obstacle.
Understanding when your footwork cues start and end is also required to use the fewest footsteps possible when executing turn
cue combinations. There are zillions of turn cue combinations
to explore. Going from one series of well-planned footsteps
directly into another is maximizing the art of footwork cues.
There are times when executing turn cue combos that the end
of one cue has to be abandoned in order to begin the next cue
when the dog needs the information. A double front cross can be
an example of this. Sometimes there is not enough time to complete the first front cross before the second front cross has to be
started. Another scenario is when the last step of one cue can be
the first step of the next cue. This video shows some examples
of turn cue combos: http://youtu.be/NURqUmpDgrc.
We can't execute the same way 100% of the time, too many
factors come into play. On occasion, additional steps-often
sideways or backward ones-may need to be added mid-cue.
The point is that you know and understand when you are modifying a basic footwork cue, again in an attempt to be consistent
as often as possible.

Handler Focus
It seems like handler focus and footwork would have little to
do with each other, but they do, in a very big way. After a few
years of teaching footwork drills, I couldn't understand why
people could seem to master the footwork fairly easily until
they got the dog out to try it. It did not take me long to see that
with their heads turned to look at the dog, their feet were back
to square one (well, almost anyway). I learned that handlers had
to practice the footwork with their chin set to one side or the
other for it to be just like it would be "in real life." Take a look
at this video: http://youtu.be/VhcQFWyByJc. But that is only
half of it. If the handler does not know where to be looking every moment, she will never be able to know when to execute the
footwork. Timing can only be correct if the handler is focused
on the spot where the dog needs the cue, so that when the dog
gets to the spot the handler can deliver the correct footwork cue.
Handler focus is critical to timing and execution.
Bettering our footwork is not just about making our lives easier.
Remember, our partner is trying to figure out where he is supposed
to go next; your footwork cues will need the back up of these five
key elements for your team to get the maximum benefit!
Tune in next month for the leg and feet "wake-up" footwork
drills. D

Sandy Rogers has been teaching obedience and agility since 1991. She founded ACE Dog Sports in San Francisco, California in 1999. Her dogs have competed in all
the USDAA and AKC National Championship finals multiple times in four jump heights. Sandy and Jack Russell Terrier Quill competed on Team USA at the World Agility
Open in 2011, 2012, and 2013. They won the individual gold and silver medals in 2012 and bronze in 2013. Quill won the USDAA Grand Prix in 2013, placed third in 2007,
and placed second at the 2012 and 2014 AKC Nationals. Border Collie Brink placed third in the Grand Prix in 2000 and won 16" Speed Jumping in 2007 and 2008 and
Performance Grand Prix in 2007. Sandy has two DVDs available: Training the Extreme Dogs and One Jump Two Jump. Her new video, Feet First, will be released in 2015.
June 15 | Clean Run

Clean Run - June 2015

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