OK, so work is a little slow...hence the second post in the same day! :)
Anyway, I thought I'd set the record straight, even though I doubt many people read this blog. Mostly I write this so that if I get asked this question again, I can point them here and people can discover the reason themselves!
I am midway through my year-long sabbatical from judging. Many people speculated on why I took time off. Most people figured I took time off because of what happened at the '06 USDAA Nationals (more later) when in effect, that was simply the tip of the iceberg. I had long since been contemplating a break...the Nationals simply clinched it. Besides, I've been doing this since 1994...I think I deserve a break! :)
The two main reasons why I took a break include:
1. My girls
2. Jam
The girls. I realized that I was spending a lot of time away from the girls. Not only the weekends in which I was physically gone, but also the evenings in which I'd agonize over course design. I found myself telling them more times than I was comfortable..."Mommy's busy...you need to find something to do"...and that didn't feel good.
Jam. She's my new puppy. The first dog I've had to run in 3 years (see
Ponderings for the reason why). I wanted time to concentrate on her and getting her career started. She turned 18 months ("of age" for USDAA agility) in May so I wanted to be able to get her started without having to juggle around judging weekends.
And now, the '06 Nationals. It was stated that the call I made on Blast's teeter performance was questionable. It then came out that I also "missed" a call on DeCaff's teeter performance. These calls were then magnified in a frame-by-frame sequence on a popular site that hosts agility videos. My credibility as a judge was being questioned, which yeah, left quite a chink in my armor. Honestly, I felt that the videographer had no right to do what he did on his website (neither did USDAA), but I have no control over that and will take my lumps.
Speculation flew that this video was then the reason why I "quit" judging. People were saying that I needed a backbone. That I needed to not put myself "out there" if I didn't expect some criticism. I learned early on that a strong backbone is necessary when you become a judge. I have a backbone. And it is strong. And, if you can believe this, I actually begged the USDAA president to judge this Nationals. I WANTED to do it. Now I know why so many judges turn down the offer of judging the top dogs in the big ring. The scrutiny is amazing, yet expected. And I was ready for it.
Bottom line, I will always stand by the calls I made in the split second that is available to me to make the call.
There. Now you know. I did NOT take a year off (yes, only a year...I'll be back in the middle of the ring in '08) because I was slinking away from the public bashing of my calls. It did factor into my decision, but it certainly wasn't the leading and only reason.
2 comments:
Good for you! Stick to your guns. I could never be a judge. I just am not quick enough. And contacts are becoming more and more difficult to judge.
When I started competing in agility in 1996, I started thinking about becoming a judge right away. It seemed like a logical progression (I have no idea why). I signed up for 2 or 3 judging clinics that were either filled or cancelled for lack of interest. As time wore on, I realized that in fact my life was plenty full just with my dogs and (what remained of) my "real" life, and I didn't need the time poring over course designs, and I certainly didn't to imagine what people were saying on the sidelines on those borderline calls. Now I'm very glad that I didn't go that route--and I don't have children! My dogs take more than enough time to keep them mentally & physically stimulated and to keep improving their (and my) agility skills.
In fact, I don't pay much attention to judges at all--they fall into 3 categories for me: 1) Acted so much like a jerk that their image is burned into my brain forever (a very small number--like maybe 3 or 4). 2) A judge. 3) Well-respected, well-liked judges about whom I have somehow developed a positive reaction to when I hear their names (maybe 2-3 dozen). FWIW, you fall into the third category.
Most people understand that dogs are doing teeters so bloody fast these days that the human eye can barely discern what's happening when. I've not always been happy with calls I've seen at Nationals, but on the other hand, I don't think that I could ever make as many GOOD calls as are done there, and neither could most judges, so I just write it off as going with the territory. It does, indeed, just get more scrutiny and hubbub when it's in The Big Ring.
Meanwhile, I keep threatening to take time off from agility, PERIOD, because it takes so much of my time, but I never do. Good for you for having the guts to narrow your focus, for whatever reasons.
-ellen
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