On the road again (almost)

Finished day 4 of trialing. Yea Yoko. Boo Kilt. Kilt is the most talented dog I own, but she is hell on paws for me to handle. Always has been and it is ONLY at the trials :0( After our attempt today, I heard the judge say to some Big Hats standing by waiting for the sheep to change out back up the field, "Some dogs need a different handler". Yada yada yada. This was said with me in earshot. I didn't cry until I talked to my hubby on the phone later. This was an 800 mile plus trip one way for me and yeah...maybe, I'm a little sensitive. I don't live on a farm and this isn't my profession. Sometimes a bit more discretion would be nice. Sheepdog people are different from agility people. My husband says it is because they are "Dog tired.". Fried, dried and laid aside. LOL. When you aren't going to trial in the class you are entered in, don't you think it would be a coutesy to let the trial host know before you pack up and leave? Plus, many sheep peopledon't keep an eye on their dog(s) as they pee on your chairs, tires, etc. Even when I tried to exhaust the sheep, someone elses dog was trying to push the sheep back into my dog's face. Ahem....anyone home? I had my two dogs turned out in one of four exercise pens. There were no dogs in the other pens. I hear growling (Kilt is coming into heat) Igotosee what is going onand another exhibitor has removed my leashes and water bowl from the pen and put her 5 dogs in the pen with mine. There were 3 other empty pens next to the one they were in. Well......helllooooooo. geez......... Sometimes I wish people would get their heads out of their asses But, on the whole I have had a wonderful trip. I got to meet some Texans and quite a few people from Colorado that were warm and friendly. Geri,the trial hostess did a wonderful job with all of her backup help (too many to name) Plus, I was so pleased that I was allowed to run Yoko in non-comp open each day. That was such a confidence builder for BOTH of us. It was wonderful to be able to work the range lambs and on 3 different fields. What a fabulous experience for my dogs. Both Kilt and Yoko were spot on for every OUTRUN. That was especially nice after our failure to get to our sheep at the Dunnigan Hills trial. Pwee.... I have never met (Hub) Herbert Holmes, our ABC president. He and his wife, allison showed some super talented dogs. One day when Hub was last to run with me running after him AND everyone had left the field due to the HIGH winds, he made a point of coming over to me totell me job well done with the Yokester. That was day two, the highest wind day (like you had to hold on to the post to stay grounded) and the sherp were turning on the dogs. That was really nice...the compliment or words of encouragement. We ALL need that. Plus, it was really nice to receive a call from Bryan and Allison of Honest Dogs today. They were on the road and checked in with me. That means a lot when you are traveling by yourself. Also, when I was out to dinner tonight, some Colorado people (Novice to trialing) invited me to have dinner with them. How nice! Today was the last trial day. Yo ran every open class and finised every class except today. The range ewes were very heavy on day 4 and Yo still got arou d with time to spare. She had 3 attempts to get her single, but didn't have the goods to hold the single. We need to work on that. Plus, in Open Ranch, we missed the fetch panels. The sheep leaned on her. With this type of competition, you can't place missing a panel! Tomorrow, I will be at the field at 6 am....yep...you heard me right...6 AM. Hub is giving a shedding clinic and then is going to work privately with me and Kilt. I hope to be on the road before noon aiming for a KOA in Flagstaff tomorrow night. Wish me luck :0) Sorry for the errors in this post, but I hate typing on the ipad!!!!!