Time to Beat

Karenna's heart pounded in her chest as she and Badger stepped through the agility course gate. She removed the braided loop lead from the neck of the small white and tan dog, then handed it to the leash steward.

"Badger, swing. Badger, heel."

Badger swung into position next to her. His tiny, rapid steps as they approached the first obstacle, the tongue flicking out to wet his nose, belied his excitement. They stopped a few feet in front of the obstacle, a single bar jump beside which the electronic starting eye had been set. Calm down, Mr. Buggy Eyes, she thought. We need to work together.

"Badger, wait," she said aloud.

Badger sat with his rear end barely touching the red dirt. His tail wagged furiously as Karenna took her lead-out, past the single jump, past the panel jump, and took her place between the base of the A-frame and the mouth of the yellow tunnel to its right. If all went well, in less than a minute, Badger would have scored the last six points he needed for his Time to Beat agility title. The fastest dog had run this course--an easy one for Badger--in 32.09 seconds. He needed to complete the course in 44 seconds to earn that title. Karenna faced her dog and signaled for him to start, raising her right arm toward the A-frame.

"Badger, hup!"

Badger flew over the first two obstacles in less than a second. Karenna waited until he was committed to taking the A-frame before she dashed around the mouth of the tunnel, to the opposite side of the obstacle. All she had to do was guide him with her left hand into the weaves and cross in front of him after the twelfth pole. Once he was in the poles, he would stay running to the end. After that, he'd run on her right side till he finished the arc of three single jumps, then it would be a straight go until the seesaw.

Badger didn't need the "hup!" to prompt him through the arc. Every drop of his paw was focused, his gaze pointed like a laser before him. The small dogs could take more time on the course than the larger ones, but Badger didn't know or care. They were joined by an invisible umbilical cord, moving through the course as one toward the end.

"Badger, teeter!"

Badger leapt onto the narrow board, all four paws briefly in the yellow contact zone before galloping straight to the end, then rode it to the ground. He launched himself forward as it hit, "BANG!" and would have kept running until he hit a wall. Karenna had to redirect him. She swung her left arm up toward the next obstacle, the blue tunnel near the arena wall. Being so small, there was no guarantee that he would see it.

"Badger, left, left, left, tunnel, tunnel!"

They were running toward the A-frame again, but this time, he had to ignore the hulking structure and enter the yellow tunnel protruding from beneath it. Fortunately, Badger loved tunnels almost as much as he loved running. He crossed in front of Karenna, then disappeared into the tunnel's maw. She could hear his feet pounding against the vinyl as he negotiated the "S" shaped tunnel. She barely reached the opposite end as he shot forth.

"Badger, go hup! Here hup!"

Badger leapt the single jump that stood just a few feet from the tunnel exit. At the sound of her second command, he made a sharp U-turn to take the second single jump, back toward her. The A-frame towered on their left. She had to get him back to it for their final pass over it, given that his gaze was locked on the blue tunnel again.

"Badger, HERE!"

"Frame!"

She had gasped that last command, almost out of air. How many hours had they been on this course? Certainly, they'd been out here all day. Karenna met Badger back at the bottom of the A-frame. He followed her hand as she swung it toward the next obstacle.

"Badger, tire!"

The second arc of three single jumps was ahead of them. She had to let him cross ahead of her one more time, for him to make the sweeping arc on her left side. He cut too close, causing her to bobble the cross for less than a second. She drew in her breath, prepared to step on or trip over her dog.

"Badger, hup!"

Focused on the first jump of the arc, he shot forward before her foot could graze him. His tongue was out now, not tired, but joyful, as he sailed over one, two, three jumps as she cut to the end of the arc. She drew his focus again with her left hand as he landed the third jump. All that remained ahead of them was the bar jump and the triple jump. She swung her hand forward, toward the final obstacles.

"Badger, hup!"

"Big hup!"

Badger overjumped the top pole of the triple jump by nearly four inches. He was still fresh, in the moment, excited. He would do the course a second time, with or without her, if she'd let him.

"Badger, HERE!"

She was spent, adrenaline gone. Badger dashed over to her, a proud "look at me" expression on his face. He wanted his cookie, a piece of the patty from the sausage biscuit they'd had for breakfast. He would get it, back at the set-up. He knew it, and danced around Karenna's feet as she picked up the loop leash from the stand and place it back around his neck. She glanced up at the time clock, just before it was reset.

39:14

They had done it.