Yesterday, I tried placing the PVC box about an inch below the top of the yellow. Belle hit deeper in the yellow to clear the box, but at the same time, she placed one fore paw above the box almost every time. The criteria of Rachel Sanders' method is one stride in the blue after the apex and followed by all four feet in the yellow.
In response to "Running A-Frame - 8," Karissa asked why I had abandoned the stride regulator since Belle is hitting close to the apex on her first stride. I stopped using it because it was one more prop to fade, and it didn't seem to make that much difference. However, I decided I'd give it another go this morning.
I also made a couple of other changes:
1. I had started to fade the top piece of the PVC box. I replaced the two pieces with a singe length of pipe so there is no gap.
2. One end of the box has regular 90° elbows; the other has 3-way elbows. (I mistakenly called them "tees" in the video.) I've been placing the regular elbows at the top of the box. Today, I turned the box and placed the 3-way elbows at the top. This raises the top of the
box about 1" above the surface of the A-frame and makes it more visible.
The top pipe of the box remains about one inch below the start of the yellow.
Here's the video showing yesterday's efforts and today's. I cannot believe how well Belle did today. Today's A-frames were from a stay without much handler motion. I will gradually add handler motion and a moving start, remembering to focus on the criteria set forth by Rachel Sanders.
Well I'm glad it worked, but I have no idea how one is supposed to fade it out! :o)
ReplyDeleteIt's peculiar how it works, though, considering the dog technically cannot see it until they are already over the apex of the frame. That said, it seems to be giving her just that extra bit of push that she needs to get the correct striding. Perhaps it needs to be left on until that level of effort becomes habit for her. Without the stride regulator she is just very efficient over the top (as she was trying to be in the first clip when she noticed that the regulator was back!).
I tried all sorts of methods to control Kaiser's striding over the a-frame -- what I *wanted* was a nice three strides on the down side, completely doable for a small dog. But what he wanted was to do two strides, no matter what. So I discovered that if I pushed him to run as fast as he can, his second stride will always land in the yellow. He has a few superman moments now and then where he way over-jumps the apex, but he still puts in that second stride. :o)
Now if only I could achieve the same success with the dog walk. That is the same issue -- he wants to do two strides, but he must be traveling as fast as he possibly can to hit the yellow in two strides. His quirky nerve issues cause him to pull back just a *hair* at trials, which is enough for him to hit just above the yellow. Some day, some day.
Rose,
ReplyDeleteGreat job. I am starting in earnest now. Hope we get to where you are.
Bill