Award Banquet...

Yesterday afternoon, Debbie and I drove up to Long Beach, California for the AKC Eukanuba Agility National show. Debbie could have run Mo'i this year, but chose not to – but there's no way she was going to miss the awards banquet, as this is where they handed out the certificates for the top agility dog in each breed. Last year, Mo'i was the top field spaniel in agility.

The banquet was casual attire, and indeed there were people there in everything from grubby blue jeans to something close to formal evening wear. Debbie wore her “Jamulian formal dress” – cowboy boots, a big bejeweled belt buckle, jeans, a fancy embroidered blouse, and a leather jacket. Earlier in the day she had her hair spectacularly curled. She looked great!

First there was an hour of cocktails, standing up in the lobby of the big meeting room. The noise was nearly beyond bearing; I could hardly hear someone yelling right into my ear. Most of the people in the room had run their dogs that day at the show, and there was much excited conversation; people happy with their runs, and people not so happy. Everyone in the room was an accomplished agility handler (or their signficant other) – a room full of very talented people, as became abundantly clear during the banquet.

After the cocktail hour, we all moved into the meeting room and sat down for our meal. The food was not memorable (is it ever at one of these?), but the rest of the experience certainly was.

First they showed a series of photos from the days run, apparently favorites of the photographer. As various dogs appeared, cheers erupted from different parts of the room. This was a lot of fun – we all got to see the top agility dogs in action, with the photos taken by one of the best photographers in the field. It was also a great ice-breaker; people were talking and comparing notes.

After this, our dinner was served, and the awards began. The announcer was up on a little stage, and she read off the champion dog in each breed, in alphabetical order by breed. For each champion dog, she showed a photo or two, read off some of the accomplishments of the dog, and called the handler or owner up onto the stage to receive their certificate. It was all very nicely done.

Each person walking up to the stage was treated with applause, cheers, and lots of congratulations along the way. When the alphabetical reading got to “field spaniel”, it was Debbie's turn. The photo above shows her walking off the stage just after having received her certificate. What fun!

My scanner is misbehaving at the moment, so I can't show you the actual certificate – but here's what it says:

The American Kennel Club
Special Award of Merit

Awarded December 1, 2007 for
Outstanding Performance in Agility

Top Field Spaniel 2006

Wolftree's Pearl King AX MXJ NF

owned by
Tom Dilatush, Debbie Dilatush