Classes are held at the Durham Kennel Club (DKC) training building on Guess Road. This facility is fully matted with 3/4-inch rubber matting and climate controlled. If you need directions to the DKC building, please see the DKC Web site.

For handlers new to Rally, DKC offers classes during the week that introduce handlers to the Rally signs and exercises. See the DKC Web site for information.

For printable versions of the AKC Rally regulations (only 10 pages) and descriptions of the signs and how to perform the exercises, see "Regulations" and "Resources" link). Also follow this link for a file you can print to make practice signs.

Weekend class format. Nested coursework is for handlers who already know the signs and for dogs that are being readied for exhibition. Each course will have all three levels: excellent, advanced, and novice. An excellent (or advanced) course is the "skeleton" for the course, and novice and advanced (or excellent) signs are embedded. When multiple signs appear at a station, handlers will choose which to perform (white background = novice; yellow background = advanced; blue background = excellent). One or two short sequences are usually set up outside the ring. These courses may not meet all the specifications of a regulation course (for example, the course may not have two jumps as required by excellent courses), but are meant to provide a realistic ring setting and a valuable training experience.

Courtesies of the class. Multiple handlers, without dogs, may walk through the course at the same time during the orientation time. However, only one dog-handler team will perform the course at a time. Registration and walk-through is the first 15 minutes of the session. Participants who arrive after the orientation time may not get the opportunity to walk through the course before performing it, but will be welcome to study the course diagram before their turn on the course.

Fee is $5 per dog using the course. Because each 1-hour session is limited to about 10 dogs, we should have time to go through the running order twice. There will be no additional fee for using the sequences, so you can bring one dog for the coursework and another dog for sequences only for $5.

Because of the limit of 10 dogs per hour, you must preregister for each date. Entries are accepted on a first-registered basis, with priority given to previous participants and DKC members if an overflow occurs. A second hour may be added if the first hour fills.

Contact Adele, e-mail preferred, whippets at nc.rr.com (replace "at" with the symbol and close up the space), or phone 1.919.596.0613 (leave message), with the following information:
(1) date(s)
(2) how many dogs you will bring to run the course

Fall 2007 Schedule

Saturday, September 15, 11 am

Saturday, September 29, 11 am

Sunday, October 28, 11 am

Saturday, November 17, 11 am

Saturday, December 1
1 pm to 3 pm: Make Heeling Fun! workshop (see description below)
5 pm Rally nested coursework

Saturday, December 8, 11 am

Walk-through for the first training session starts 45 minutes after the start time on the calendar. Be sure to sign up in advance, in case the first hour is filled and a second 1-hour session will be held on that date.

Sign up ASAP. Over 50 people are on Adele's e-mail reminder list.

Make Heeling Fun! Workshop

Does your dog love agility but hate obedience? Do you (and your dog) find heeling boring? Not just for freestyle students, this workshop is open to anyone who wants to improve their dog's attitude toward heeling. The purpose of this workshop is to teach participants techniques that produce happy, attentive, and accurate heeling for obedience, rally, or freestyle. The goal is a dog that happily runs to heel position as a default behavior.

Instructor Shari Bryant started training for AKC obedience in the 1970s and has earned a high in trial at a sheltie specialty. For the last 10+ years, her primary interest has been freestyle, and for the last 5 years Shari has focused Canine Freestyle Federation (CFF) freestyle, which is based on precision heeling and close teamwork with the dog. She is currently training a whippet for the upper levels of CFF competition.

Fee: $20 for participants with dogs (limit 10); $10 for observers (no limit).