When I asked, “Have there been more team breakups since Open/Performance was adopted?” …I meant in comparison with team breakups BEFORE Open/Performance was adopted.

So, in past years, how many breakups was typical in a racing season in your Region? was it less than two?

And, just to be fair and true to Flyball History, how many teams in your Region found it easier to split up when you could apply to NAFA for EXCEPTIONS to the (then) 6 month waiting rule? (You know, your team dissolved or you moved to a different Region or a NEW team was forming that had never raced.)?

If the Open/Performance option did not exist, would these team splits that you mention …would they have stayed together and worked it out? (In your opinion. I don’t know the actual circumstances these splits occurred)

THANKS for your comments!

………Chris

Yes there has been 2 team splits in our region since the open rules came into effect. One of them ran open within a month and half after the split.

If anything, potentially the advent of open may provide a way for splits to happen much more “amicably” than previously. If members are not forced to wait three months to continue running their dogs they may be able to have less hard feelings about a split, work out some of the issues, and continue to help each other after the split.

Also, open is helpful in a situation where a captain may be heavy handed with a club and dismiss some members. These members would not be forced to wait to continue playing after such an incident. I don’t think members should be punished from continuing racing just because they have had a disagreement with a club owner.

Leaving a club isn’t easy. There are hurt feelings on both sides. Just because someone can now leave one team and run with another team or start their own team and run with it the next week doesn’t mean the leaving came easier or harder than it did when folks had to wait 90 days before running with the new club.

And, as for whether or not there are more breakups now than before, even if there are, that may not be a bad thing. Simple cells grow and multiply through the process of mitosis, in which cells quickly split and form a new cell, which then splits again and again. This process is which allows one simple cell to eventually become an infant within nine months. Flyball clubs are less complex than creating an infant from a single cell. So what if clubs are now splitting more easily or quickly and more new clubs are springing up than before. This is growth… this is what will eventually make Flyball as common a sport as Agility.

Having more clubs around in a given area helps make Flyball a household name. It also gives folks different choices. Each trainer is different. If you only have one team within an hour drive and you don’t like the trainer, what are the chances you’ll drive more than an hour to find someone else? Not me. And I know few others who would. Now, what if there are three clubs (two split-offs from the original club) in the same hour drive. You may not like one trainer, but love another. So, you join that club. Instead of losing folks to distance and training styles, you now gain new members that may have never played Flyball otherwise.

I mention all this because this is exactly what happened in my area. There used to be one club in the area. Now, there are three. One trainer/captain focuses more on speed and natural ability. Another trainer/captain is more interested in the status quo. The last trainer/captain is happy to train anyone and any dog despite natural ability or speed. Each club attracts different folks in the same area. Between last year and this year, there have been 9 new dogs registered in the area. This is the most growth in three years.

Instability can be good… it isn’t all bad.

This club and others have taken advantage of Open to run with the previous club while getting their new club up and running.

To me, Open/Pickup is less about enabling breakups and more about flexibility and opportunity in running dogs and handlers that otherwise would be sitting out tournaments.

Rules governing Open/Pickup should be designed to encourage the team concept of flyball. And should be evaluated with respect to how well they promote and support that concept.

If Open/Pickup fosters breakups, then one might ask if the prospect of not being able to compete is an ethical tool to be used to retain members? Does a “my way or no way” environment foster the sport and its image?

Have there been more team breakups since Open/Performance was adopted?

Has it led to more team/club “instability” than we had before?

My Region (1) hasn’t had any team breakups in the last year or so. That doesn’t mean it isn’t happening elsewhere. So, we need folks commenting to tell us what’s happening in their Region and what Region they are from.

Thanks!

…….Chris

Pickup in U-Fli. I like it being run within the standard class. I like being able to run my dog wherever I want. U-Fli is not big in my area. So my only U-Fli is usually a 12 hour drive. I was part of the 1st ever all ACD team and it was awesome.

I don’t think Open and Pickup really give people the out to switch teams without having to sit out. I think if someone was going to leave, they will leave whether they sit or not. O/P gives people more opportunity to run their dogs that usually sit because there is not room for them. At leas that is how it is usually used in my area.