After a long period of never-ending rain we were all very happy to finally see the sun again and head out for a weekend of racing. Unfortunately Willow and Belle came into season and had to stay home, and Fecni is still recovering from her open field injury. However, Gil and the two yearling pups, Gator and Luna, were ready and rarin' to go so we had a good showing of MA's for the St. Paddy's day races.
As usual LGRA was held on Saturday. All three dogs had to be hand slipped this weekend due to the starting boxes being a tad too small. This proved to be a bit more work than we anticipated (Luna decided that she just couldn't wait for the official start) but things definitely got easier as the day went along.
The pups did very well for their first official race meet and I definitely anticipate that they will improve with time and experience. In the end, Gil placed first in all three races with Gator coming in second (and earning his first GRC points) and Luna a very close third. She and her brother are very well-matched against each other so it will be interesting to see how they develop.
Unfortunately Luna couldn't make it back for the oval on Sunday but Gil and Gator returned for more fun and excitement. This was Gator's very first time on the oval and I wasn't sure how he was going to do on the corners. Well, I didn't have anything to worry about because he took to the oval like a pro. The first race he had a disadvantage being on the outside box but still took the first turn very well and remained close behind Gil the whole way. The second time around he drew the inside box and led the race to about the halfway mark before Gil passed him. I don't think it will be long before this boy gets his oval technique down pat.
All in all it was a great weekend with beautiful weather and great racing. We're looking forward to more weekends like this in the very near future.
