Volunteering at an agility trial.

Agility students and those dog owners interested in learning about agility should consider attending and volunteering at an agility trial. For one thing, you can’t beat the up-close-and-personal view of the action by sitting on the sideline of an agility ring! If you never plan to compete in agility, you will have a ton of fun watching the wide variety of dogs performing at all levels! If you plan on competing yourself sometime, working a class or two at a trial really helps to calm many of the nerves you might have when you imagine yourself in the ring. Seeing experienced competitors in the Excellent ring perform flawlessly is inspiring. Seeing them make mistakes is comforting. But, it is also valuable to watch young dogs start their agility careers in the Novice ring. It can give you a realistic idea of what to expect from your own dog when your team enters your first trial in the future.

There are certain jobs at agility trials that are easier than others. For your first trial, it is recommended that you have a low-stress, fun introduction to agility trials, so don't try to act as a scribe or a timer at your first or second trial. You might want to watch a class or two - just to get a feel for how things work. Then you should be ready to try ring crew, leash running, and score running.

Here is how it works:

Before you go to the trial, you might want to download the trial premium. This is a document that details all aspects of the trial (dates, times, locations, etc.) This will give you a good overall perspective on what to expect. You can always find a link to the premium for our upcoming trial at the TVKC home page tvkc.org.

Some trials organize and assign tasks to all their volunteers before the trial begins. For TVKC (and ORKC) trials at Harriman, volunteers are assigned tasks each day during the trial. When you arrive at the arena, find the volunteer coordinator who is responsible for assuring there are people assigned to all the required tasks. The coordinator will usually not be too far from the volunteer sign up board. When you sign up to work, it is typically for one class, such as Novice FAST, or Excellent Standard 20″. Each class takes anywhere from 30 to 90 minutes depending on how many dogs are entered, and what type of class it is. We suggest you introduce yourself and sign up for a task a class or two ahead of time. That way, you can reserve your volunteer spot, but also have some time to enjoy watching the trial from the stands before your job begins.

Here are some of the newbie-friendly, easier jobs at agility trials.

Chute Straightening
The chute is straightened out after each dog.

Ring Crew

Each ring needs 2-4 ring crew volunteers who are responsible for resetting bars if a dog knocks one off and straightening the chute after each dog goes through it. Additionally, the ring crew change the heights of the jumps, table, tire, and sometimes the A-frame, when the jump height changes. You sit on a chair inside the ring and watch each dog run. If a dog knocks a bar or otherwise displaces an obstacle, you wait until the dog is no longer running in your area of the course, and fix the obstacle.

Leash Running

A great starter job! It’s simple, it’s good exercise, and you get to see each dog’s run from start to finish. As the leash runner, you are expected to pick up the dog’s leash once they have started the course, and drop it off at a pre-determined spot near the exit so it is waiting for the competitor as they finish their run. Your goal as a volunteer is to be as unobtrusive as possible. Some handlers will hand you their dog’s leash, others will throw it towards you (stay alert, leash clips can be painful!), and many just drop it behind them.

Leash Running
Unless the handler gives
you the dog's leash, wait until the dog has started running before picking it up.

It is important to wait until after the dog has begun running to pick up their leash, as you want to avoid inadvertently distracting the dog. You should also keep an eye on the dog while it is running in case something happens to terminate the run, such as the dog eliminating in the ring or the handler asking to be excused. In those cases, you will want to bring the leash directly to the competitor or meet them right by the exit.

Scribe Sheet Running

This task is a bit easier on your body than leash running is — you get to sit for much of the time. Each dog’s faults and time (the score) are written down on a piece of paper by a scribe. This piece of paper needs to make its way from the score table in the ring to the where ever the trial secretary/scoring area is set-up, and that’s where you come in! You get to sit in a chair behind the scoring table. (That’s where the timer, the scribe, and the assistant scribe sit. They watch the judge and make sure the timing equipment is running properly, and record all of that data.) After each run (or a series of runs), the assistant scribe will pass you that dog’s score sheet. After every three or four runs, you take these score sheets from the ring to the trial secretary so the dogs’ run can be processed. This allows the results to be processed as they happen, not all together at the end of the class, making final results available to the competitors much sooner.

Volunteering can seem a little daunting, and novice exhibitors often cry, “What if I mess something up!” Remember, it’s agility, not a life-or-death scenario. Let the volunteer coordinator (or judge) know that you’re new to this, and he or she will be sure to explain the job, help you get started, and provide assistance if you need help. Even very experienced exhibitors make mistakes or get distracted and forget to reset a jump properly. Your fellow volunteers will always assist.

Volunteers are crucial to our sport — without them, trials cannot run. Our clubs reward volunteers with a voucher for lunch or snack from the food vendor in return for volunteering. We also will provide a coupon that gives you an discount on your entry for an upcoming trial.

We hope to see you volunteering at an upcoming trial!. You will be glad you did!

Please contact any of the Agility Trial Committee if you have any questions:

Dawn Darr Barrett darrcar@comcast.net
Catherine Bell CBELL0189@aol.com
Phyllis Fortune fortunephyllis525@gmail.com
Julie Haase reddunforfun@bellsouth.net
Axel Ringe onyxfarm@fastmail.fm
Jeanne Weber Ringe onyxk9@gmail.com
Ace Russell acesongs@gmail.com
Beth White knoxtnusa@gmail.com