Entries from October 2007 ↓

If passion drives you, let reason hold the reins.
Benjamin Franklin

Flyball is a game of much passion whether it’s playing in the ring or discussing it as evidenced from recent comments on this forum. There are many people that have strong opinions and a personal attachment to this sport. Others, outside of North America are most likely looking at this and trying to figure out why there is so much discussion on these seemingly trivial subjects. However, they can likely look forward to these same topics in the future as flyball evolves in their countries, for the competitive nature of the sport lends itself to such passion. Whether you lurk or comment on this forum you have opinions.

Many of you who are new to the sport and new to dog related activities, are probably scratching your heads and saying, “I just want to play with my dog.” Please try to understand the addition of new organizations, rule changes, and/or the lack of rule changes affect the way you play with your dog.

Politics

No one likes talking about politics but it is unavoidable. For those that don’t know or were not involve with the sport at the time, the people who created U-FLI were heavily involved in NAFA and its politics. Frustration and controversy was a major factor in the departure of these people and the creation of U-FLI. There are still to this day many hard feelings on both sides. Many of the same things that are being discussed now were discussed before the split. Therefore, it is very obvious that current NAFA Board members are very reluctant to follow U-FLI’s lead in several areas no matter if they are good ideas or not.

It is important to me and I hope it’s important to everyone in the flyball community that we have two thriving flyball organizations. I know that it’s hard, but pride should not play a part in the achievement of this goal. For competition’s sake, if something is working well in one organization, the other organization needs to look at what is working, strive to improve upon it, and implement it. The time for sitting idly by is over.

Secrecy

During one of the NAFA Candidate chat sessions it was pointed out to me that Sam Ford, NAFA Executive Director, asked the question…

At times the BoD discusses issues that are not to be made public. Are you willing to commit to keeping these private discussions totally private and not divulging information even when you disagree with the majority?

He goes on to say…

…Commitment by everyone to the organization is basic. And the ability to discuss sensitive issues and keep them private are bedrock foundations for the organization. Committing to these before the election is a promise that we all should make to this organization….

I have said this before and here it is again, if we have dogs that run in this organization then we are stockholders in this organization and have a right to know how our board members feel about certain issue that are discussed. If it is discussed in a meeting of the board, it should be in the minutes. I understand that some items of discussion need to remain private and that’s why Executive Session exists. How can the delegates know what our representatives think of certain issues if everything is secret? Secrecy leads to speculation and rumor, which doesn’t help anyone.

Larry

Isn’t it time that our NAFA regions have a voice and play a larger role when implementing rule changes? Everyone that participates and attends NAFA tournament is a stockholder in the organization and deserves a voice. NAFA did a good job by allowing the delegates to vote on certain rule changes, a basic yes or no vote, but then acted on their own to draft and implement the new rules.

It is my opinion, and recent events bear this out, that there are certain members on the rules committee that have an agenda contrary to the best interest of the NAFA flyball community. Nevertheless, something needs to be done to limit this in the future and allowing regional representatives a more active role in regards to rule changes that affect the community is one solution.

Continue reading →

I was going to take some time off to rejuvenate and get my thoughts together. Well, I slept since then. I’ve been asked privately, “What’s ‘your’ agenda? “ My answer is to; vigorously and sometimes aggressively expose stupidity. This is my blog I can do with it what I want and you can choose to read it or not. I know people are looking at it but most of the time I can’t tell what they are thinking.

I have also read the candidate chat transcripts and I think these chats are a waste of time. Sure, it lets people see where the candidates stand on the issues but the people running are no different than the people already on the board, so what difference does it make?

Analogy

NAFA - Somewhat of a Saint Barnard, usually friendly, gentle, and tolerant, this dog is slow moving, patient, and very obedient. It makes a great watchdog, key word watch, and tends to drool a lot and can be found to snore often.

U-FLI - Mostly a Border Collie, intelligent, with an instinctive tendency to work and is readily responsive, keen, alert, and eager. Are obsessed with stalking, chasing, and are “anticipators” who keep you guessing as to what’s coming next.

Pluses and Minuses

Measuring:

Plus: U-LFI - has the best measuring system which takes all the guess work out of measuring. You don’t need to measure in U-FLI but the default jump height is 12 inches. Most measure and the measurement is recorded and entered in the U-FLI database and there is no need to measure your dog ever again.

Minus: NAFA - would like to find a better way but is stuck in the past and doesn’t want to copy a working model. Still uses height cards and even though measuring is such a controversial subject in NAFA there is no willingness to change it. Here is an excellent quote and the way most feel about changes:

What about the desire to “brand” NAFA? Can we do that and copy U-FLI ideas/ concepts/ rules/ language?

Pickup Team/Open Class:

Plus: U-FLI - Pickup Teams run in the same division as Regular Teams which makes for a more competitive environment. Even if the Pickup team can’t earn a placement in the division, the dogs don’t know this.

Minus: NAFA - Open Class runs in there own division or with Veterans Class. Slower teams are pitted against faster teams and seeding isn’t a factor. No willingness to change and uses the same argument as Measuring about copying U-FLI.

Exhibition Teams/Performance Teams

Plus: U-FLI - Exhibition Teams are created after racing starts when Regular or Pickup Teams have had a loss of one or more of their team dogs that prevents them from competing further in the tournament.

Minus: NAFA - With the permission of the Tournament Director for cause shown, a team entered in a regular or non-regular class may be converted from its original status to a Performance Team entry prior to the start of the tournament. Doesn’t address what happens during the tournament. If your team loses a dog during the tournament and there is no backup, your team is out of luck.

Champion System

Plus: U-FLI - Places more emphasis on divisional placement in their Champion system. Even the slower teams can now feel good about themselves.

Minus: NAFA - Places more emphasis on division 1 and the fastest team in the region. Even their Champion system places the most emphasis on the fastest teams.

Jump Heights

Tie - If it wasn’t for U-FLI the NAFA jump heights would have never changed. However, NAFA still is worried about the “lessing need for a height dog” even though U-FLI has lower jump heights and everyone that plays in U-FLI still uses height dogs.

NAFA Candidate Chat

What follows are just a few quotes from the last two NAFA Candidate Chat transcripts that I thought were interesting and enhance my analogy. You can and should read the complete transcript and I have provided the links below.

Quotes from October 11, 2007:

Question: This was in response to a question about implementing changes such as the Open Class. There was much discussion about this and what follows are two of the last responses at the end of this discussion.

Christine VanWert - Actually, I favor change the s-l-o-w way. It takes time to fully develop ideas and to institute change. Don’t want to get run over or ignored by somebody else’s “good idea”.

Zachary Chernik -I disagree with taking the s-l-o-w route….a good thought process and analysis can be done in a short period of time…..I would hate for NAFA to be like some of the American businesses that are slow to change only to be looking at the competition flying past us and wonder….what happened!

Quotes from October 24, 2007:

Question: Do any of the candidates feel NAFA flyballers would be better served by having all dogs issued a height card by a single measurement or a three-measurement effort?

Christine VanWert - First, I support keeping measuring “optional”. Optional or going to a “mandatory” system is a question I would like to see the delegates answer. Second, I think the three matching measurements is fair. Not everyone agrees with this so, again….this needs delegate input.

Alisa Romaine - I know that others feel the same way as you do and, if NAFA is going to have height cards, they need to mean something. Finding a way to ensure they are done correctly may take looking at how the judges are trained rather than changing more rules about measuring. It is definitely not an easy subject in anyone’s mind.

Scott Stein - Regardless of whether everyone gets height cards, a system of check and balances is needed. No height card should be forever without a system to challenge it. Checks and balances ensure the credibility of the system

Zachary Chernik - Measuring is a hot topic and stressful for judges. I think that NAFA should ask the delegates to vote yes or no to look at changing how measuring is done. If the majority think that we should look into other options, then we can start to focus in that direction. I would also poll the judges to get their take on measuring.

Dale Smith - I would agree that requiring a height card under a one measure system or the current system could go to delegate vote. I believe there are some dogs out there running at a height and hoping they don’t get challenged. In the lower divisions, challenges are pretty rare - at least in my experience. Really in all divisions they’re pretty rare. Again, I think this should be a delegate decision. The key to delegate decisions is putting out a concise question that can be clearly answered by the delegates whenever possible.

Conclusion

This seems like an appropriate quote from a comment made on this blog:

I live in a region where we continue to lose traditional NAFA tournaments to U-FLI ones. This is not a good thing for us because we are not getting any additional tournaments that way. NAFA needs to be open (pun intended) to the flyball community’s reception of these new classes or they will begin to lose ground in other regions because clubs find the U-FLI rules more amenable. And if that happens in other regions the way it is here, it is not really a win for flyballers if the number of tournaments available does not increase, and we have fewer opportunities to play.

This is just my opinion but NAFA is loosing ground and after preparing this post, I can graphically see why U-FLI has gained so much ground in such a short time in certain parts of the country. The unresponsiveness of NAFA in the areas that I’ve highlighted and their stubbornness to change will ultimately hurt them if this trend is not reversed. The saving grace for NAFA is its loyal followers. I have considered myself a loyal follower but my favoritism is waning.

Larry

Pride is an admission of weakness;
it secretly fears all competition and dreads all rivals.
Author: Fulton J. Sheen

I must say that Fulton J Sheen, in the quote above, sums it up very succinctly. Pride is our recognition of our own self worth and in some instances is a good thing. It is good to have pride in something that we feel very connected to like pride in our work, our organization, and ourselves. On the other hand, pride can be detrimental when our attitude becomes one of superiority that manifest itself in arrogance and boasting.

In striving to maintain a brand or uniqueness, some may be hindering future success. If you have been following my last few posts, you have a good idea what I am referencing. I am not going to dwell on this any longer, for I get the feeling that very few in the flyball community care about this. Besides, the people that most need to hear the message are silent.

My Status

It is very hard for me to hold a neutral position on things that I feel strongly about. It has been a shock even to me that I feel so strongly about some things and have voiced my concerns, sometimes too loudly. Before I started this blog I certainly had opinions, but I was more of a lurker than an outspoken participant.

I knew in the back of my mind, it would be difficult to keep the blog going without input and help from other authors and I have sought support from others, but have been unsuccessful. I am proud of what I have accomplished since the start of this blog because I am not a writer. I have tried to post something at least weekly but I am feeling the burnout. Therefore, I have decided to take some time off to reflect and rejuvenate. However, if something happens in the flyball community that I feel strongly about or feel a need to respond I will do so.

I hope that you will find the information that is already posted here a useful reference and that you will check back regularly or even better, that you will subscribe using the “Subscribe to Post” button above. That way when I do post something, you will be sure to know. Additionally, Fay will be posting additional articles of interest for all dog lovers.

Thank you all for your continued support and comments. If you would like to keep up with what I am doing, you can read some of my random ramblings on my other blog, Life’s Curveballs.

Larry

You make the call

This issue has been batted back and forth now ever since the announcement of the Open Class and Performance team was introduced this year.

The issue is whether Open Class teams should compete in the same division as Regular Class teams. The way the rules were written, Open Class teams can only compete against other Open Class teams and Veterans Class teams.

My contentions is that running Open Class teams against Regular Class teams seeded for the same division would enhance the competition between the like teams even though the Open Class team earns no tournament points or placement in the tournament. The dogs thrive on the competition just as much as the people do.

Larry

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It is really sad but I had to close the poll because I found that someone was voting numerous times. Getting your coworkers to vote for you is unfair and childish.

You Make the Call - Would you like to have your questions or problems answered in the poll? Just send me the all the details using the contact form and I will do the rest.