In the meantime, I’ve started adding events to the calendar as I hear from clubs about their 2012 dates. I’ll be keeping an eye on the organizations’ calendars and will update the calendar as dates are posted elsewhere. If your club knows its 2012 dates already, feel free to email them to me at serendipitywhippets@gmail.com anytime, and I’ll get them posted on the calendar ASAP.

Thanks to all for all your support of this website. It is gratifying to know it has become such an indispensable resource for so many people in the sighthound performance fancy. Here’s wishing all of you the happiest of holidays and all the best in the new year. May all your dreams come true in 2012!

Tally ho!

There is a new discussion group that has just been set up by our new Regional Director, Avery McLeod, to facilitate communication between all people living in Region 1 who are interested in ASFA Lure Coursing. This can include:

• Information about upcoming ASFA lure coursing events
• Questions about ASFA rules and procedures
• Reports from RD about news/decisions from the ASFA Board
• Discussion about regional nominations for various ASFA awards
• Suggestions/Ideas for improving ASFA running events in our area or nationally (rules, venues, club collaboration, scheduling etc.)

For more information about, or to subscribe to the ASFA Region 1 discussion group, go to: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/asfaregion1/.

NW Lure Coursing Chat

Additionally, there is a older established discussion group called NW Lure Coursing Chat, for Lure Coursing/racing enthusiasts in the Pacific NW to announce upcoming trials and events/race meets, share/exchange info, and brag about their dogs; newcomers are encouraged to join and get involved.

For more information about or to subscribe to NW Lure Coursing Chat, go to: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/NW_LureCoursingChat/.

I’m still working on some stylistic changes to the Region 1 site. Unfortunately I’ve got limited time and have several projects I’m juggling, so this will take longer than expected, but the good news is that while the design may be rather generic, the site and all its content are fully functional, so carry on using it as THE information source for all things Sighthound Performance in the Pacific Northwest.

A few things I wanted to bring to everyone’s attention as we embark on a new season…

Hard Copy Premiums

At this point, there is no more hard copy mailing list for event premiums. All premiums are available electronically on this site, and if you haven’t already, you can sign up for email or RSS updates to receive notifications when new ones are posted, and download those of interest to you.

Hard copy premiums are only available by request to the appropriate event secretaries for the various events. We understand that some people really do need hard copies, but especially in this economy, most people are selective about which events to attend and most hard copy premium lists end up unused in the recycling bin. If you need hard copies for events you wish to attend, by all means request them directly, but not sending them in bulk will help clubs save precious time, money, energy and resources. Thanks for your understanding.

Event Locations and Directions

The Calendar (powered by Google Calendar) includes, by default, mapping information to the event locations. All events listed on the calendar include at least the city and state in which an event is scheduled. If the premium or flyer includes a specific street address, I include that too. The mapping features are very handy tools to generate directions to the events from your doorstep.

However, two things to keep in mind when using the Google mapping features:

1. Sometimes they are not accurate! Most of the time they are, but as with GPS systems, sometimes the location and directional information is incorrect, so it is best to be mindful and use your common sense when following them.
2. Sometimes the street address of a location doesn’t accurately refect the actual entry to the field. For example, the Roy Polo Field property is a corner property, with the entrance to the field off of 8th, and the street address on 288th. If you use the street address, you’ll end up in the driveway of the property owner’s house on the far end of the property. Following the directions in the premium list leads you to the correct entrance to the field and to the appropriate parking area.

The mapping features are provided as a courtesy and should always be considered as supplemental to the specific directions included in the premiums and flyers.

Thanks for all your continuing support for the Region 1 site. Here’s wishing all of you a great year with your sighthounds – run safe and have fun!

Happy New Year! All the best to you and your hounds in 2011!

In the past, I’ve used the plus sign (+) to designate when additional information, e.g. a premium list, flyer, or link to a website, is available for a particular event. Google calendar now offers the ability to include icons in event listings, so I’ve switched over to using this built-in feature instead.

Wherever you see this icon on the calendar, you’ll know at a glance, without needing to click through to the listing, that additional information is available for that event. If the icon is not present, it means I’ve not yet been sent additional information, but will add it as soon as it is available.

I was asked to post the following info about CCC’s practice this weekend. Please email Deb directly if you have any questions.

1/8/2010 UPDATE: RESCHEDULED TO SATURDAY JAN. 23!

There will be a CCC lure coursing practice on Saturday Jan. 9th Jan 23, 2010 at Meadowbrook Farms in North Bend WA.  Registration will begin at 12:30 with runs beginning at 12:45 pm. Club members who are willing to help set up please arrive a little early. Cost is $5.00 per vehicle for field use plus $5.00 per dog (non-members) each dog will get two practice runs; you may separate your two runs or do your runs back to back. Additional runs may be purchased if time allows. This practice will be on focus training, so the practice runs will be straight runs only.

Meadowbrook Farms is located at 1711 Boalch Ave NW, North Bend, WA, 98045.

See you on the field!

Deb Vondetti, CCC Corresponding Secretary – fancyfeet@q.com

Rather than clicking on the link in the regular way to open the file, RIGHT click on the link and choose “save link as” or “save file” or whatever variation displays on your computer. Save the file to your desktop or whatever folder you want, and then open the file from that location. This seems to work for some, but not all,  people who’ve tried it.

If it doesn’t work for you, please email me at webmaster@asfaregion1.com and specify which premium list you’re having trouble with, and I’ll email the files to you directly.

I’m so sorry for the inconvenience! I’ll keep investigating the problem, and will include this troubleshooting information in future premium list announcements.

CCC will be hosting 2 AKC JC tests and two AKC trials Feb. 20 and 21 at  Argus Ranch, Auburn WA. The premium list will be ready and “out” in about 2 weeks.  Trial Secretary is Judy Lange. Judges are Kathleen Kelly, CA, and Robin Horner, SC. CCC and EBC are co-hosting AKC tests and trials on Mar. 14 and 15, 2009.  Both premium lists will be available in January.  Judges TBA in the next few days.

I’ve added both weekends to the calendar, and will continue adding 2009 dates as the schedules are published or if I hear about them directly from the clubs. So if your club has chosen your dates, please feel free to get in touch with me at webmaster@asfaregion1.com.

The new web hosting plan that supports these enhancements was generously funded by donations from the following Region 1 website users:

• Maruta Heigel
• Janna Russell
• Barbara Broenkow
• Kendra Brenkert
• Sandi Anderson
• Cascade Coursing Club
• Marie Anti
• Carol West
• Whippet Racing Activity Group

Thank you all so much for your generous contributions!