the sheltiechick blog

Broad Jump Lumber Emergency

So 10PM the night before our second ever agility trial, and the first time Payton was entered in Standard, I remembered I had never actually TAUGHT Payton the broad jump.

Had he seen it? Yes. He’s taken it a few times even. And also walked across it a couple times. And never really, actually TAUGHT how to do it.

Uh-oh.

For those who don’t know, the broad jump is required in Novice Standard. So it was GOING to happen. Determined not to let a stupid broad stand in the way of my dog and our success together, I ransacked the house trying to find a suitable replacement for a broad jump, simultaneously swearing that Home Depot used to be a 24-hour store and why isn’t it anymore and don’t people know that there are lumber emergencies going on?!

I settled for 12-pack cartons of soda… fishing all kinds out of the closet where my parents store their soda and shoving them together and making a make-shift broad jump.

THERE. That’s close enough.

And Payton’s first interaction with my make-shift broad jump was to hop up on it and pivot in a circle.

We’re going to do AWESOME.