I opened my website today and realized my last post was about Tiger’s very first competition back in February. Somehow, I’m now writing about us heading to the European Open and Agility World Championships. It feels a bit surreal.
Next week, we’re flying to Portugal for the EO, so it’s probably time to share how our tryouts actually went.
In Slovenia, we had two qualifying weekends. At the start of the season, I had no idea we’d participate — only A2 and A3 dogs can — but Tiger moved up to A2 in no time. Just like that, we were in.
We entered with zero expectations, but I was determined to give our everything. During the first weekend, we had some really great runs — we finished five of them, with just one disqualification! Our ranking was quite high. That’s when it first hit me that maybe… this could actually happen. Still, I didn’t let myself dream too much. We just kept training and Tiger showed moments of brilliance that you’d expect from an experienced dog — mixed in with baby mistakes.
Then, right before the second round of tryouts, I had the strangest dream. I still vividly remember it. I was at the competition venue (the actual location of the second tryouts!), and a friend of mine appeared, looking completely exhausted. I offered her a sandwich — just plain toast with some cheese — and she accepted it gratefully. But when she opened it, she looked disappointed and said, “There’s not even an egg in this sandwich,” handed it back to me, and walked away. I felt sad and disappointed, even though I had given her everything I had.
It was a weird dream — I don’t even eat sandwiches! But afterward, I realized maybe my subconscious was trying to tell me something: sometimes the simplest ingredients are enough. Maybe not for everyone — but they were enough for me. I would never have added an egg anyway.
Since I’m a little superstitious, I decided that would be our mantra: What we have is enough for us.
On day one of the second tryouts, things went really well. Day two brought two eliminations, and I hated myself for feeling disappointed and at the same time knowing that Tiger is still so young. Sometimes it’s hard to manage your expectations while staying competitive – I have to admit that. Going into the last run, we needed a super fast and clean performance to qualify. I took a moment and reminded myself: whatever happens, it’s what’s meant for us.
And we won. We won that final run — with the fastest time by far — and with it, we earned spots for both the European Open and the World Championship. By just one qualifying point!
That same friend from my dream said, “Some are just born for the green carpet.”
So, that’s it. I guess my next post will be all about EO and AWC.
Oh — and one more thing: my next running contacts class starts at the end of the month, and registration is officially open!
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