Articles of a broader interest to Flyball enthusiasts are published in The Finish Line.
Copyright © 1997 by NAFA. Contents may be reproduced for use by members of teams associated with NAFA. Others may reproduce providing credit is given to NAFA.
| NAFA and the NAFA logo are registered trademarks of the North American Flyball Association, Inc. |
After October 1st, a team "Breaking-out" for the third time in any tournament, will not be placed in their division.
| Team A | Team B | Ruling |
|---|---|---|
| BO | DNF | Both teams get a loss, do not rerun the heat unless necessary to determine a winner for that race. |
| BO | BO | Treat as if the heat did not happen, rerun the heat, same lineups |
| BO | Finishes the heat | Team B receives the win |
I am pleased to announce that NAFA is now a registered Trademark to be
followed by ® when used in a publication. Use of the symbol is only
required once in a publication if the following disclaimer "NAFA® is
a registered trademark of NAFA, Inc." is displayed on either the title
page or at the end of an article. Please note that this treatment is
no longer necessary for the word flyball as we were denied our request
for a registered trademark.
I have been receiving reports from different areas that some of our
judges are not stopping the heat when a handler holds up their dog for
fear of a collision with an opposing teams dog that is crossing over
out of its lane. For safety of our Dogs, NAFA wants the handler to
hold their dogs when they feel there is the possibility of a
collision. When they do so, judges are to stop the heat, award the win
to the team that held their dog, and assign them an average time for
the heat.
Here we are with 10 months gone in the NAFA Flyball year which will
end on September 30. From all reports we have; there have been more,
better, bigger, well organized tournaments than ever.
I want to congratulate all our line, box, and head judges. Five years
ago our main concern in some areas was just to get a judge. Now we
have qualified judges across North America. Our EJS is improving all
the time with one new system in use and our oldest set being converted
to the new operating system.
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the elected Board
members of the past 5 years. Every person elected worked for the
betterment of Flyball. When difficult decisions had to be made,
naturally some people didn't agree, but the Board members have stood
behind these decisions. Even when the decisions were not 100% right,
they kept working to improve them.
Through the NAFA NEWS I want to thank all the Board members who
served with me over the last five years for their complete
co-operation and full support. - THANK YOU!
NAFA's new EJS, (otherwise known as "the lights") seem to
have been performing flawlessly. They have traveled from coast to
coast now and I have not heard of any problems using them. They even
survived the "twister" tournament in Irvine, California. They are
pretty simple to set up, but please, use only fingers to tighten the
fittings, if it is too tight, take it apart and check that it is the
right fitting, then try again, it may have been cross-threaded. Some
additional enhancements in the works include making the green "start"
light flash in the winning lane, and aluminum frames for the sensor
arrays. The flashing light only indicates the apparent winner based
on elapsed time. There are a number of circumstances where the head
judge may over rule this indication. For example, if one team failed
to run one dog, they may have an apparently faster elapsed time, but
still lose the heat. The aluminum frames are much lighter and
therefore save on shipping costs and make the shipping container
easier to handle. The shipping container itself is now reduced to a
single plastic `Rubbermaid' storage box. When you think back to the
monster wooden shipping crate that was used for the early shipments,
this is a major achievement, and cost saving in itself.
Communications between flyball enthusiasts had in the past been nearly
non-existent with activity taking place in so many areas of the US,
Canada, Europe, Australia, South Africa and elsewhere. The use of the
internet has bridged that gap providing a forum for discussing a wide
range of issues including training, tournaments, and teams as well as
topics of common interest and just plain chat.
Along with all the terrific benefits this communication network
provides, it sometimes is also an outlet for misinformation,
controversy, conflict, and hurt feelings. At the November 1, 1996 NAFA
Board of Directors meeting, charges were brought against three
individuals (in three separate incidents) for comments posted on the
flyball mailing list, Although NAFA certainly doesn't censor anyone on
the internet, being such a public forum, it is reasonable for people
to be held accountable for their comments. NAFA's Official Rules and
Policies include such behavior in Section 3.4, Misconduct
"...behavior...that would leave a spectator or exhibitor with an
unfavorable opinion of flyball" and section 6.4, Code of Ethics
"...Never conduct yourself in a manner that would bring discredit to
flyball."
Many people who are new to our sport as well as the regular
participants have been given a very negative impression of flyball
when they read such mean spirited comments. Other less public means of
communication should be used if so desired. Kathryn Hogg has done a
terrific job of operating the mailing list, and maintaining the
flyball home page. His efforts are appreciated by all of those who
enjoy having these wonderful tools available.
If we want flyball to continue to flourish; lets be good ambassadors
for our sport.
(The NAFA Board felt that the loss of points and the heat were not
enough to discourage teams from sending in improper seed times. It
hopes that this tougher policy will correct this problem)
(This will take effect Oct. 1, 1997 in order to allow teams time to
train their height dogs to stand properly.)
Election Time is fast approaching.
Please give some serious consideration to making nominations to
replace the members of the Board of Directors whose 3 year term
expires this year. They are:
(Melanie's role as assistant to the Executive Director is independent
of her position on the Board.) While there is no official requirement
for Board Members to represent a particular area, it would be
desirable for the Board to have broad representation from across the
continent. Teams in those areas where a Board member is retiring may
want to make a special effort to see that someone from their
geographic area is nominated.
In addition to the Board members, Clyde Moores term as Executive
Director also expires this year.
The role of Executive Director is a crucial one for the success of
NAFA. The Executive Director, assisted by the Regional Directors that
he or she appoints, is responsible for the day to day operation of
NAFA, sanctioning of tournaments, explaining the rules and guidelines,
and dealing with all the mundane problems that crop-up from time to
time.
Please see the last page for more details on making nominations.
Executive Director's Corner
by Clyde Moore
Jump Boards
NAFA recommends for safety reasons, that tournament hosts replace all
1" or 2" jump boards with those made from no more than 1/2" thick
plywood. Use of boards made from "SINTAR" or similar material will
also be allowed upon approval.
New Regional Director
MD, NC,VA, etc.
Eunice Morgan
31010 Benson Mills RD
Upperco MD 21155
(410) 472-2371
Words from the Chairman
by Bob Murray
Lights
by John Cocking
Conduct on the Internet
by Alan Weiner
Rule Changes approved for new Rule Book
Policy Changes from June 20 Board Meeting
Elections
John Cocking