I attended my first trial

I attended without Marley. I feel a little guilty because I had so much fun.  A long time ago I figured it would be a good idea to volunteer and get a good feel on what to expect without having to worry about Marley.  I was pretty flexible and didn't request a specific task, I figured whatever they assigned me would be a great learning experience.

I was assigned the Gate!

When I first saw the schedule I expected to see my name under pole setter or leash runner, something that made sense for a newbie.  After looking up the Gate, I have to say I was totally intimidated and figured it was a mistake.

It was not a mistake.

I was given a sharpie and hustled over to a gigantic white board with lists of dogs.  My instructions were:  Call the dogs in order and make sure they enter the ring at the right time.  Umm...ok, I guess I could do that.

Then I was swarmed with people who had conflicts and wanted to move up or down on the list.  So, I was trying to talk to everybody, call dogs and make sure everybody knew when to enter the ring.  And, somebody would inevitability say, "you have to make sure to watch X handler/dog."  

As I was questioning my sanity, a friend saw me and said, "you need to speak up nobody can hear you and during your break you need to find Joe."  Eventually, I found Joe, who was totally calm and he gave me some great advice.  

After observing Joe, I found my groove and since nobody complained I figure I must have done alright.  I was able to watch some amazing dogs.  

I was totally inspired and I think Marley would enjoy a trial.