As we approach the first weekend in September, I think hope we all had a chance to recoup from the fair and are looking forward to some dock time at the Sparks Marina. Keep in mind that September is a busy month and everyone should keep checking the website for updates on dock activity.

Also hoping that everyone who participated in the Tamarack Junction High Desert Dive Dog Challenge at the Nevada State Fair found reason to celebrate. This was an extraordinary event full of shining moments, lots of new dogs/handlers, and a number of personal bests.

It was truly a thrill to see the joy shared by over 60 handlers and dogs whether they were jumping under 10 feet or over twenty - and many dogs crossed that threshold for the first time at the fair.

From a club perspective, thing ran pretty smoothly and the event was considered a success based on the feedback I’ve received form participants so far. We did this with only two staff persons from Splash Dogs on site, a tribute to all the members and friends who helped out during the week.

I’m not known for my organizational skill or good memory so forgive me and speak up if I overlook someone. I’d like to start by acknowledging Jenny and JJ for all their work at registration, particularly on Sunday morning when they arrived about an hour and a half early to get some practice in before opening up only to find a line of dogs that also showed up early – thanks to both of you for foregoing practice time to open up early and get people on the dock (and thanks to Mark from Splash Dogs for helping with the wrangling and training) – it was a great way to get the final day of the event started off on the right paw.

Also thanks to Lisa and Burgess for helping with getting folks in and registered throughout the event and for providing them music for all the dogs. Wonderful to see Burgess back in the competition and looking fine.

Many thanks to the Voice of Splash Dogs at the Nevada State Fair – Leland Ede. Great job on the microphone and a special thanks for all you do for this club every week.

During the event, Natalie, Dave, Terri, Jennifer, Cole, Stacy, Jim, Suzy and others kept thing together by helping around the dock – both with traffic control and training of new dogs. Yvonne Chen is always there and ready to help wherever needed, and just want to again say thanks to Yvonne Logan for providing the shade shelters we used at the entrance to the dock.

Cole, Stacy, Mark (and friends), Melinda, JJ, and Leland all pitched in with set-up and Suzy, Jim, Jennifer (don’t worry Jennifer I’m sure all the rings will turn up) and Leland, helped with the tear down after the fair was over.

A special note of appreciation to Jim Whitmer for coming up with the idea and providing the finalist tags to commemorate this year’s event.

And, of course, congrats to our champion Tinka, taking the blue ribbon by tying her own personal best of 23 feet during the finals.

So, looks like we can look forward to plenty of activity at the Marina practice dock for the rest of the reason.

Looking ahead, Jennifer Howells has come up with a great idea for an H3D overnight camp for the September 13-14 Art Bark Festival at Squaw Valley – check with Jennifer to get in on the fun.

Many members are talking about heading to Bakersfield for the Kern County Fair at the end of September so anticipate the docks being closed the docks on September 27 and 28.

We do plan to keep practicing into October, but much will depend on the weather.