Thoughts on the care of Nosework Volunteers: Part 2 Working Smarter

 As is the case with all of the dog sports, Nosework and Scent Work trials are dependent on Volunteers.  Trial Hosts and Secretaries/Score Room Leads do a tremendous amount of work up-front and, although there may be compensation, it's of the "How do you make a hundred dollars holding Nosework Trials?  Start with a thousand!" variety.  

But the rubber meets the road on the backs of the Average Citizens who answer the call of the Volunteer Coordinator.  Perhaps they lived nearby, or they may have driven for hours to be there, to give back to the sport, find out what it's about, or just be a Nice Person. Showing up at 0:00 Dark Hundred on trial day, they are given their instruction and sent off to make the trial run.  God Bless Volunteers!  

It's not always easy to find enough volunteers to make a trial work successfully.  In a previous post, I made the argument that trial organizers use the "we can't hold this trial unless you volunteer!" plea sparingly, only when really needed.  But here I'd like to look at another reason that I suspect we may have trouble finding volunteers: we're abusing them.

Before you bristle with umbrage -- Not Me! -- let me clarify.  I certainly don't mean that we are purposefully treating volunteers badly, or allowing anyone else to do so.  Every Trial Host I know very rightfully has a zero tolerance policy for verbal abuse toward volunteers.  Almost every competitor I know reveres volunteers and is effusive in their appreciation of them.

But how many "Volunteer Opportunities!" posts or Jotforms or emails have you seen that run something along the lines of "Be sure to wear your running shoes!" or "We can make sure you get all your steps in!" "Expect to be on your feet most of the day," or even "Lunch will be provided (and you may even have time to eat it!)" 

I understand that trial organizers are trying to be open and honest about requirements.  They want folks who can stand up to the rigors of the day.  They are looking at the incredible amount of work to be done and trying to remember why they thought this was a good idea in the first place.  They want Comrades in Arms to shore them up should they, themselves, run low on enthusiasm and energy. 

But let's take a look at the demographic for our sport: it is dominated by Women of a Certain Age.  As I heard someone say recently, "Nosework is where you go when your knees and hips make Agility impossible."  We market Nosework as being low-impact, and while fitness for both dog and handler are encouraged and recommended, we also welcome the halt and the lame.  

So why are we making volunteering into an endurance challenge?  

Effective trial planners work to minimize competitor steps and provide chairs for them to wait in along the way.  At the briefing, they encourage competitors to crate their dogs and allow them to rest between searches.  Yet often no chair is provided for volunteers, and, despite recommendations to bring a chair in the volunteer instructions, I've seen Volunteer Coordinator eye rolls when the volunteer actually shows up with one, "You plannin' on sittin' around today?"  

But unless you have designed a "walk and talk" volunteer escort situation for competitors, why should the volunteer have to walk along with the competitor?  I've seen situations where the two waiting stations for a search were both in plain view, maybe 100 feet apart, but the instruction given to the volunteer was to "take the competitor to the next chair."  Why?  Why can't they just point and say "go there and sit down until you are called?"  

This, of course, requires significant pre-planning, and that seems to be the spot where many trials have issues.  Someone needs to be familiar with the trial site and actually assign volunteers based on flow, providing a methodology for communication along the way.  Why don't more trials use walkie talkies?  And I loved the club that gave volunteers red and green bandanas to use as a "traffic signal" for  the competitor sitting 30 yards away, no yelling necessary.  

In addition to providing incentives for volunteers -- drawings for prizes, free trial entries, increased opportunities in the competitor draw, etc. -- I just wish that more trial organizers would exchange the attitude of "They're tough as nails, they knew what they were getting into when they signed up, they've done this a thousand times," for "What good people these are to come and help.  We should make their day as pleasant as possible."  

That's what I think, anyway. 

Thoughts on The Care of Nosework Trial Volunteers, Part 1: A Parable

Once upon a time, a Volunteer Coordinator sent out word across the land: "we do not have enough volunteers to hold this nosework trial!"  Many of the villagers had enjoyed competing in trials and were grateful that others had volunteered so that they could.  And thus, after they checked their maps and found the trial was only about 2.5 hours away, they rearranged their calendars, filled their cars with $5.00 a gallon gas, set the alarm for 4am and raised their hands to volunteer.  The morning of the trial dawned early, as is their wont.  And at the volunteer briefing, the Volunteer Coordinator said "You all are so lucky -- we have so many volunteers today that some of you are going to be able to just watch!" 

But the villagers didn't feel lucky.  They glowered and muttered, saying things like "I could have gone to my grandson's championship game," and "I could have stayed in bed."

Some time later, the villagers were looking at their Facebook feeds and again they saw a call from a volunteer coordinator, saying that a trial was in desperate need of volunteers.  The helpful villagers briefly considered the distance, the cost, the plans they would need to change.  But then they remembered what had happened before; they cocked a skeptical eyebrow and scrolled on past.  

I know that Trial Hosts and VCs are volunteers, also, and I so appreciate your service!  And I know that one can do all the flow and volunteer station setting in the world  and then the day of the trial comes and the CO or Judge asks that things be done differently, or the site has somehow changed radically overnight (it happens!), or something insane happens like even more volunteers than are on your list somehow magically showing up. I know that last minute communication with a disparate group of people is difficult and that you are juggling a lot of balls already.  I would just gently ask that you use the "desperate" card judiciously.  

A suggestion: many VCs use electronic forms for sign up.  Maybe you could add a set of checkboxes that reflect how this trial fits into the volunteers plans, from "I wouldn't miss being at this trial for anything," to "I am looking forward to earning club service hours," to "If you don't really need me, I'd really love to have a 'bye' this time."   And maybe a comments area so you know your volunteers' proximity, "I live practically next door to the site" or "I'll be leaving at 4am to get there," to help in your own planning? 

Truly: thank you so much for all you do.

Practicing Bad Behavior

 This weekend, Gabe ran four FastCAT heats with the Iowa Coursing Association in Boone, Iowa.  FastCAT is the invention of the American Kennel Club.  While there are elite running events eligible only to purebred sighthounds, FastCAT is a 100 yard dash that is open to any AKC-registered dog, including mixed breeds.  Dogs are released at one end of a course to chase the "lure,"  plastic grocery bags attached to a motorized pulley system.  The bags are called "the bunny," in recognition of the rodent whose speed they resemble.  Once the dog has crossed the finish line, often equipped with sophisticated electronic timing equipment, the lure operator stops the bags to give you a chance to catch your dog, then zips the bags back around to the start line for the next dog.  

It looks kinda like this: 

Doug's brother and his wife came to watch Gabe run on Saturday morning.  They're not "dog people," so had lots of great questions like "how do you train for this?"  The answer undoubtedly should include physical conditioning, at the very least.  The truth, however, is that most of us just let the dog watch a run or two, then toss them in.  

Times are compared nationally, especially by breed, but at the local level, it's not competitive.  Your dog is awarded points for a successful run.  For "big" dogs, the points equal the miles per hour they run; for smaller dogs, there's a multiplier to help mitigate the disadvantage of the shorter legs (although many of those little dogs run as fast as the big dogs!)  At 150 points, you get a ribbon, at 500 points, a bigger ribbon, at 1000 points a really big ribbon and then it's just big ribbons ever 500 additional points.  

Gabe earned his 500-point DCAT ribbon this weekend

Some dogs just don't get the point of the whole thing, but most are absolutely crazy for it.  It took about 3 runs for Gabe to get the idea, but now he has joined, nay, summited the ranks of the crazies.  When confronted with a FastCAT setup, he begins to yell.   Really, really loudly.  His ability to project is impressive; his bark makes the back of your skull vibrate.  He's not particularly fast, usually running 24-25 miles per hour.  Using all his oxygen and energy on barking and porpoising about before his run can't help.  

On this occasion, we had Gabe on both buckle collar and a one-piece martingale lead, yet he managed to pull out of our hands and run free like the wind on no less than five occasions.   We have never had so much trouble keeping hold of our dog; it was mortifying.  I have to hand it to Iowa Coursing Association -- they've seen it all before and no one got excited, just a cry of "Loose Dog!" until we had him back in hand.  We've coursed lots of places and ICA's organization and administration is always at the top of our list.   It's harder than you'd think to keep the lure close enough that the dog remains motivated but far enough ahead that the dog stretches, and ICA operators are The Best.  Their volunteers are both smart and kind.  We love coursing with them.  

Realistically, though, why run FastCAT?  I mean, all we are doing is Practicing Bad Behavior, something any trainer would deplore.  We're not just allowing but encouraging Gabe to be his worst self -- barking (screaming?), lunging, so overwrought the he can't acknowledge a command or even a touch.  Isn't this exactly the kind of thing we should be trying NEVER to do? 

I LOVE this SO MUCH!

Ohmygosh, the Bunny!

When is it my turn?

And yet...

Gabe is an amazingly wonderful dog, especially when you consider that we ask him to live in a world that is not at all aligned with his own aspirations and strengths.  We ask him to take his core energy supply, roughly that required to power the sun, and curl up with it on the couch for a bunch of hours every day.  We ask him to pay attention to our "blah blah blah" rather than the incredible smells and activity happening around him every minute.   

Gabe: Outstanding In His Field.  I thought it might be fun to pose him on these big rounds, forgetting until we were next to them just how big they are, taller than my head.  As I started to walk away, he carelessly scaled the side of one and leaped to the next, to have a better look at the field. 

Maybe it's rationalization, but it seems only fair to do something every now and then in which we have no expectations... to just do it because he LOVES it so much he LOSES HIS MIND over it.  

Are we rehearsing bad behavior?  We are.  And we shouldn't do it All The Time, for sure.  

But is it worth it, to let him have this time to let go and be a dog? 

Yup.

Post-FastCAT Puppy

 

That which was lost now has been found

 Ziva had her first AKC Detective run on Sunday.  We missed two hides.  It was fabulous.

We attempted Detective for the first time in October of 2021.  We only had Master Exterior at that point, so were a bit early to enter, but there were openings so what the heck?  It was a great weekend with four trials.  On one, we found all the hides but timed out because I hadn't ever actually tried to use my stopwatch before and was in the "search until you die" mode of having no idea whether or not we'd cleared the area.  On another, we had a fringe on odor blowing across the tops of a bunch of open water bottles (great setup, kudos to that judge!).  On another, we got a "where" on the wrong end of an 8' table (oops).  And... we passed and got a Detective leg.

Our next outing was only a few weeks later, but, somehow, we'd lost our mojo.  The first search featured a seemingly endless sea of patio tables and chairs.  You know that part of Disney's Sorcerer's Apprentice where the brooms keep dividing themselves and coming at you with buckets (I'm sorry, but if you don't know what I mean, I don't think we can be friends)?  That's what the tables did in that search.  In the end, I'd spent 90% of the allotted time on the damned patio and, poof, we were done.  

The next search was out of a different nightmare.  My comment at the time was that it was like singing Karaoke but the words you're seeing don't match the song.  It had a terrifying dreamlike quality to it.   

We got to try again in February of 2022, just after Ziva finished her SWM.  No one passed either Detective trial that was offered, but I took the failure personally, nonetheless, sure that everyone else had at least come closer than we did.  I began to fear we were completely inadequate for Detective.  

Over the summer, Ziva completed her UKC Novice Grand Championship and started working on NACSW NW3s.  We were lucky enough to get into a BUNCH of those trials.  She earned one NW3 title and had a lot of "SO close!" finishes.   She had a flare-up of her IBD, which we beat back into submission; we learned she had massive resorption of her tooth roots and had to have 6 teeth pulled;  and a veterinary sports medicine specialist finally identified the likely cause of her intermittent limping and stiffness over the last 4 years: calcification of the tendon and ligament tissue on all four of her legs.  Sadly, the cause is unknown and there's no treatment.  

We got into two Detective trials in January, 2023, but pulled when Ziva had the (unexpectedly major) dental surgery.  We didn't enter another set because I didn't feel comfortable with the safety of the trial site.  And then, we got extraordinarily lucky and were able to get into a single trial at the Sonoran Desert Scent Work Club trial in Tucson.  Our coach, Aleks Woodroffe, was judging.

A knowledgeable Nosework friend invited us over for an extremely generous practice a few days before the trial.  She set up two full Detective searches, complete with interior and exterior areas.  I was able to safely run Ziva off leash, just like in a trial.  And, oh my gosh, but did we ever stink the place up.  Ziva wandered around, occasionally checking in as if to say "what are we doing here, again?"  She may have found a couple of things, but the elaborate practice was completely wasted on her.  Littermate Pippa, entered at the same trial to finish her Excellent title, did a much more comprehensive job on both searches.  It was Awful.  

As the date of the trial (March, 2023) loomed closer, I became more and more fatalistic.  Was Ziva ill?  Was she past her ability to handle the big Detective areas?  Did she want to retire and just dabble with easier stuff?   Would we be a laughing stock, or, worse, the subject of bitter comments about people who take up highly-coveted spots with unprepared and incapable dogs?  If Ziva just ambled around the space, not finding anything, what was I going to do?  

I decided that if she could just find SOMETHING, it would be a huge step forward.  So that's what I would try for -- to just find a hide.  And as for not deserving to be there, well, maybe that was true, but, gosh darn it, we DID get in, so we were going to run and just try to have a good time.  

Our staging went poorly.  While no one threw rotten fruit at us, let's just say that I take every comment too personally and give the wrong people space in my head rent free.  As a result, rather than taking a moment to breathe at the start line and connect with my dog, I rushed the start.  Rather than supporting my dog as she began to search, I trailed after her like a Zombie, waiting for a sign -- were we in a search or just taking up space?  

As a result, we missed the only exterior hide.  My dog had a very obvious change of behavior but I handled her badly, pushing ahead rather than stopping or slowing to see why she had switched direction.  If I had been bold enough to take her off-leash, I expect she would have gotten it.  If I had handled her with any clue whatsoever, I expect she would have gotten it.

Once inside the main auditorium area, I took her off leash and then the magic started.  Ziva  went to work and found the four hides in the rows of chairs facing the big stage.  She sourced another on a handrail in the hallway, and then seemed to be thinking there was something "high" as well.  We went back up the stairs, to a very small space that housed the ladder up into what I expect is lighting and other theatrical tech space.  Ziva doesn't like dark and she doesn't like tight and this was very definitely both.  She had started into it on her own, but quickly backed out; I coaxed her into it with a treat but she spun and left as quick as she could, and I called "finish," feeling it was likely we'd missed some but knowing we'd at least found 5, hallelujah. 

So grateful, she still loves me even when I screw up!

There was one in the tiny room and Aleks noted that Ziva had given me an alert, but because I was worrying about her, I interpreted her lookback as a refusal to go any further.  

So, we didn't pass Detective.  But, you know what?  We could have!  And you know why we didn't?  Because I was not on my game, mentally, and I let Ziva down.  I didn't give her the credit she so richly deserves and I didn't support her as she deserves.  

I take notes on all our runs, of course,  I review webinars I've purchased about Detective.  My friends set up fabulous practices for us, and we have a truly incredible coach and weekly classes.  

However, as I described the day to my husband, I realized something.  I thought all our runs since the Endless Patio had sucked because I had become too time sensitive and was rushing my dog to try to avoid the "use up all our time on the first area" scenario.  But, in retrospect, those first four "oh so close!" trials were all off leash.  The next four were on leash by judge's direction due to the environment.  

It felt like someone took a 40 pound rock off my chest.  I mean, I try, I really do, but my handling is just awful and gets SO much worse when I'm nervous.  My brain just stops.  But the problem was definitely ME and my issues, and nothing that was wrong with my dog, mentally or physically.  

So, we're 1 for 10, now, which may be some kind of record (and not a good one).  But we've got some Detective runs coming up, with good judges who know odor and who set source-able hides.  If I can get my act together, there's no reason why we shouldn't pass.  And I need to get my act together, because Ziva deserves that.  She's got this, and I just need to trust in her and hold up my end of the partnership for a change.   

 

The proof is in seeing the pudding wander about aimlessly with a leash in its hand

I received our videos from the NACSW NW3 trial at Lake Pleasant, Peoria, AZ on January 22, 2023.

First, can you believe the incredible editing by the incomparable Stacy Saravo?  We are SO LUCKY to get these videos!!!!!  Thank you, Stacy!

Here they are:

Interiors #1, the Science Lab.  Good girl! 

Interiors #2, The Bunkhouse 

Containers #1   I dunno, it's a pretty good alert although she doesn't usually paw.   

Containers #2  In which I make her tell me twice and waste a bunch of time, great strategy 😦

Exteriors  i.e. The Meander. 🙅  Has been nominated for Worst Handling in a Short Film.  

Vehicles  Dear Lord, this is painful.  Interest vs. Alert, indeed.  What a good dog not to let me talk her into that! 

Gang Aft Agley

But, Mousie, thou art no thy-lane,

In proving foresight may be vain;

The best-laid schemes o' mice an' men

Gang aft agley

from 'To a Mouse, on Turning Her Up in Her Nest With the Plough' by Rabbie Burns

Peoria, AZ, NW3

January 22, 2023

This was our fifth NW3.  Ziva and I had missed a hide and so earned a "leg" at our first trial at Springfield, OR, in August but had either missed a hide and gotten a "no" or gotten two "no"s at each of the three Tucson trials held in November, December and January.  We came into this trial sorely in need of some success, but also feeling like we'd learned a few things along the way.  Going in, these were our goals:

1. Cover the whole search area, but don't focus on covering space so much that we rush past a hide.  At one trial, we missed a threshold hide when she ran over to greet the timer and judge, and I didn't remember to take her back to the entry area.  In another, I pushed her through a narrow "aisle" and she alerted on pooling odor on the far side when the hide was actually at the "near" side.  In a third, I was so worried about the size of the space that I didn't give her time to check out the most obvious spot for a hide, i.e. the spot where there was a hide.  
2. Stop talking my partner into "desperation" alerts in blank rooms.  Twice!  And I KNEW better! 
3. Do an attitude "reset" for each search.  Repeat after me: "What happened in the past, what will happen in the future doesn't matter, only now and the search in front of us and my marvelously talented dog."
4. Keep the Zen of "Schrodinger's Scoring" that is the NW3 secret to staying sane.  At this level, you get a "yes" at a correct call and a "no" at an incorrect call, but you don't know how many hides there are until the END of the day, after all six searches.  So the challenge is to stay out of your own head and treat every search without a "no" as a Success until you get those end of day results.

We took the RV up to Glendale, just north of Phoenix, so Doug could pursue one of his hobbies, and had a restful few days before the Sunday trial.  It was lovely to have only a 30-minute drive up to the trial site, which was absolutely gorgeous. The private drive to the Maricopa County Desert Education Center wound through big hills studded with huge cactus, and signs warned of wandering donkeys and tortoise crossings.  Lake Pleasant could be seen glistening in the background of the small amphitheater/wedding venue that was our exterior search.  Parking was very tight but we serendipitously were directed to squeeze in next to our instructor, Aleks Woodroffe of Release Canine, which was fabulous because she is invariably upbeat, insightful and supportive.  She was running FEO (For Exhibition Only) with her baby dog, Georges, who had been waitlisted for the NW2 the day before.  The parking lot was full of friendly faces, women we knew from classes as well as from previous trials.  The last couple of NW3s had been in very wet conditions, but the weather on this day was clear, albeit a frosty 34 degrees when we arrived.  Ziva and I were #22 in the run order, preceded by Sally Nusslock and Roxie, who live near us and have been wonderful training partners.  

In NW3, there are six searches -- an Exterior, Vehicle, Container, and Interior search and then two more.  In this case, we knew from the walkthrough videos posted the night before that those would be a second interior and second container search.  Each search would have an unknown number of hides, from 0-3, although only one search for the day could be blank, i.e. have zero hides.

It seems like people interact with walkthrough videos in hugely different ways.  Some have told me they don't watch the videos because they just find them confusing.  Others really want to have the video from the competitor point of view, disliking a "stand and pan" approach.  Aleks has said that she will watch walkthroughs until she can effortlessly visualize the space, drawing it out on paper if need be, and I have found that approach tremendously useful.   My husband will tell you that I am very spatially-challenged -- I tend to look but not see --  and studying the spaces is helping me create new habits, which turns out to be beneficial far beyond nosework trials!  I will link the official trial videos in my discussion as well as my own results when I receive them from our videographer, the fabulous Stacy Saravo! 

Search #1: Exterior, the amphitheater. I knew our challenge would be covering the space.  Neither of us is at all agile these days; while many teams would be able to range up and down the semi-circular tiers, Ziva and I were going to have to use the steps at either side.  I mapped out a route that should most efficiently cover the whole space and when we learned during the briefing that our entrance would be at the top rather than the bottom, I only had to shift that plan a bit.  It was a 3-minute search and my take on our execution was "epic disaster."  I started on my planned "cover the space" route and Ziva said "I don't know WHAT you are doing!" and proceeded to balk.  We ran into each other like some kind of "after you!  No, after you!" comedy sketch.  I caught her leash on things that didn't even exist.  We wandered in the desert for 40 days and 40 nights.  Worlds were spawned and ended.  Finally, Ziva said, "for God's sake, Mother!" and hauled me down the steps, alerting correctly on the corner of the first tier, at which point we got the 30 second call.  We took a too-brief fling past the other electrical outlet box, looked regretfully at the 2/3rds of the search space we hadn't even gone near and called Finish.   Shreds of Goal #1 were blowing out over the beautiful lake as we trundled dejectedly off to our next search, run back-to-back.

Search #2: Containers.  We had a minute and a half to search 10 sterilite shoeboxes in a row on a sandy path.  Ziva is a 'one-and-done' containers kind of gal, so I tried to buck up but we got a "no" on the (totally empty) 7th box before she correctly alerted on the 8th box.  In hindsight, I managed one good thing -- I didn't just look at the boxes but I SAW them.  As Ziva was telling me about box #7, I could SEE that it had a neon sign blinking over it, "Odor Might Pool Here!"  It was in a shallow depression, in shade while the others were in sun, on moist gravel where the melted frost hadn't yet evaporated, but I went ahead and called it.  For right now, this one is going to go under the "shit happens" tab.  Maybe I only saw the potential for error because subconsciously I realized her alert was not confident.  I think we likely were the only team to false on that box (although others stumbled over distractors in earlier boxes), and that's very unlike Z.  It would have been very interesting to have run this search in confident optimism rather than smelling like someone had just died during our first search; I had abandoned Goals 3 and 4, and it's entirely possible that my sensitive and caring partner was more focused on me and the black cloud over my head than on her task.  

We broke for lunch and had Happy Parking Lot Time with Nice People.  Many friends were having a Very Good Day (no 'no's) and it was hugely therapeutic to bask in the sun and trade stories about dogs we've known and loved.  Although I thought we likely had missed at least one hide in search 1 and had that "no" for sure, I tried to resurrect Goal #3, at least, and try to clear my mind before each of the upcoming searches.

Search #3.  For us, that was the second Container search, a bunch of toolboxes set in a "U."  This was a cheerful search because there were 3 hides, so, having found them all, we could confidently call "Finish."  I did make Ziva double down on one and got a justified "trust your dog" comment on the scoresheet from the judge, but, sue me, I'm human.

Search #4 was Interior, a Science Lab, similar to places in which Z and I have spent a lot of time together over the years.  I went into this search with a strong reminder to myself that it could be blank, eyeing her avidly for the lack of focus and loud sniffing behavior that I've learned means Z is trying to find odor but can't.  I took her off leash at the doorway and after greeting the timer and judge (she's a Poodle, we're just going to live with those lost seconds), Ziva worked the perimeter of the room and gave me a very confident alert on a cabinet at the very back.  I waited a beat and she ran her nose over the cabinet seam again before I called it and we got a "yes."  She explored the rest of the area (I appreciate her methodical patterning SO much!) and we called Finish.  A volunteer escorted us out through a reptile display area and, while there was no time to stop and look, Ziva did wag the whole way -- she loves those reptiles! -- so I felt good about the "middle" two searches.

Staging for the next search was extensive with lots of "chairs" to wait in.  While many dogs chafe at waiting, Ziva doesn't really care.  However, all the waiting stations were on rough gravel and I could see that she was uncomfortable whether she sat, stood or laid down.  Holding her isn't really an option for either of us and these were not chairs that would work for her.  This is often the point in the day where I start to Worry About My Dog and lose focus on the search.  I think that might have easily happened here if I'd felt less comfortable with the upcoming space that I'd seen in the video -- maybe I am learning!!! 

Search #5 for us was the second interior space, a couple of bunkrooms separated by a hallway.  Again, this was familiar-feeling space (Iowa peeps, think Camp Tanager!), and the actual "live" area had been pared down considerably since the walkthrough video.  Z showed interest around the ladders of the two bunks and I thought there *might* have been a high hide on the bunks that she missed, but, having watched a lot of NW3 de-briefs, I didn't think it likely.  And we'd remembered to check the things in the narrow hallway space rather than pushing through it, which was good.  She found a hide in the smaller bedroom and we were Finished.  

Search #6 was Vehicles, which I have always considered Ziva's superpower, gained through midwest UKC trials where she's searched seven or more vehicles, including giant combines, tanks and railroad cars.  On this search, I told Ziva out loud that she was giving me palpitations over her interest on the front of the first car.  She had vacuumed the gravel under it with her nose, not typical at all for her, and then had run all over the front bumper.  Although she looked at me, she definitely wasn't sourcing anything and didn't give me a confident alert, as she did on the other two vehicles, so we left it at two and called Finish.  

At the end of the day, I thought we likely missed hides on Exteriors, possibly on Vehicles, knew we had a "no" and (effectively) a "pass" on Containers, and was hoping for the best on Interiors, an element title we still didn't have.  Then the hide locations sheet was posted and I don't think you can begin to imagine my shock to see that our "no" was our only error for the day!!!  

And that's when things got REALLY crazy.  The CO (which stands for "Certifying Official" except we'd decided at lunch it really should be "Captain Odor") went over the results and, while most were in the 50%-ish pass rate you usually see from NW3 searches, only 3 teams out of the 35 running passed the Science Lab search.  Now, some teams, like Aleks and Georges, ran FEO and so even if they were perfect, they don't get to be in the placings, but that is still an extremely anomalous situation.  So many excellent teams searched that room - why wasn't odor available to them as it was for us?  Roxie and Sally, just ahead of us, also passed this search.  Did Roxie leave a bit of "success" cortisol in the air for Ziva to find?  I will be super interested to see the video.  

We ended up earning a second leg and thus our first NW3 title (three are required for NW3 Elite, which is our goal).  We placed second to Roxie and Sally in Interiors and, despite a "no" and an overall time that would have had those desert tortoises tapping their toes in impatience, we got 2nd place overall.  

I feel really badly for the CO and Trial Host.  As the CO put it, this turned out to be a really tough trial. Even the first place team had an error.  The Science Lab situation was just weird.  If we were among the many who didn't find the hide, I know I would have felt skeptical and grumpy about it.  I will share our video and maybe that will help us all understand better what happened.  

Final analysis: 

Things we did poorly:  

• Goals 3 and 4 should be moved to 1A and 1B.  In NW3, it isn't over until it is over!  "No 'no's" REALLY should be a positive state, not one of trepidation and second guessing!  
• We had no "teamwork" in the first search.  That will be a video to study and consider what we'll do with large and/or unwieldy spaces in the future.  Do I just let go and let her decide the route, knowing that other teams may criss-cross the entire area multiple times while we won't have time to double back? 

Things we did well: 

• We had a history of failing the last search of the day and Aleks pointed out that I was "pushing" more as a result.  I rationalized that I was trying to compensate for Z's tiredness but, in reality, my nerves were fouling up our rhythm and communication.  Being able to get out of that false alert trap I set us up for in Vehicles is a huge victory!  Our connection got better as the day went along and I stayed objective about Ziva's discomfort and fatigue rather than wallowing in it and predicting cataclysmic collapse as I've done in the past.  She had a fabulous time searching and had great energy in her searches all day long.
• I actually did *perceive* some things while we were in the thick of it.  Our Vehicles video should probably have ominous music playing in the background... even knowing that I didn't call an alert on the front car, I'm going to be screaming at my video self "Don't do it!  Move away from the car!"  BUT it was interest and not an alert and we got through it, together.  And I saw the trap of the pooling odor - actually recognized how odor might move through that particular spot! - even if I still tripped over it.  
• Gotta give Ziva credit for her methodical patterning.  She is so good at this! 

I don't know how long it will be before we get to play this NW3 game again.  In the meantime, I have been promising to share some of the things I've learned that helped with my trial nerves and my handling. And I'd love to hear about your experiences, too!  

Happy Trials to You!  

--Kristi & Ziva