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Flyball
is a race of two 4-dog teams side-by-side over a 51-foot
racing lane. The
lane consists of four hurdles spaced 10 feet apart and a flyball
box placed
15 feet beyond
the farthest hurdle. The
flyball box has an angled, spring-loaded pedal that
the dogs trigger with their feet. This
makes the box pitch a
tennis ball. One after the other, each
dog must run the lane, jump the hurdles,
retrieve the ball and return
over the hurdles carrying the ball. The
first
team to finish four
dogs without error wins the heat. Errors include starting early (where the
dog being sent crosses the start/finish line before the returning dog),
missing hurdles, failing to
trigger the box and crossing hurdles or the finish line without the ball and
require the offending dogs to rerun after the rest of the team has finished. |
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Above is an aerial view of our two-ring
setup at the first running of the Athens Dawg Derby, July 2007, at The
Classic Center, taken by Allison Floyd of the Athens Banner-Herald.
Click on the photo to read about the tournament and view a video that
discusses and demonstrates the sport. |
