On the field, below a crowd of hundreds, stands a woman and her border collie.
The dog is poised and ready, the owner frozen. Suddenly, the owner's hand drops and the dog darts away, sprinting the length of four football fields in less than a minute, to where a group of five ewes are waiting.
Then the fun begins.
Sixty championship sheepdogs and their owners gathered at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Friday for the first of four days of trials to determine which dog, obeying shouts and whistles from their owner, can best herd a group of five sheep through a complex course of challenges.
Dogs and owners came from around the world for the invitation-only Soldier Hollow Classic International Sheepdog Championship: South Africa, New Zealand, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Canada. Three Utahns competed, including Karen Stanley of Eagle Mountain, who is also the president of the Utah Stockdog Association.
"I thought Meg did a good job for me this morning," she said of her 3-year-old border collie, one of three Stanley owns and the first she has trained for sheep herding.
"She went out and found the sheep and brought them to me with not a whole lot of trouble," she said. "She started to experience some stubbornness from the sheep on the drive away, but she took every command I gave her. She was trying so hard to keep them moving, and they are really hard to move. The dog has to get behind them and push them with their presence and their eye."
Dogs are judged on their form as they run up the hillside to find the sheep, how well they bring the sheep down in a straight line, passing them between two panels, around a pole where the owner stands, going back up the hill to pass between two more panels, turning the sheep to take them through a third set of panels, bringing them back to the owner, separating one sheep from the herd, then herding all the sheep inside an 8-foot by 8-foot pen.
All in under 13 minutes.
Of about 37 dogs that competed on Friday, less than half even completed the course. Some were disqualified -- one never found the sheep to begin with, another ran the sheep far off the course, losing them in a field of deep rye. Many owners simply "retired," withdrawing their dog from the competition when the dog overheated.
Some dogs completed the course but received scores only in the 30s or 40s out of 100 because they ran out of time moments before they could get the sheep into the tiny pen. Many of the groups of five Rambouillet ewes -- part of 300 trucked in especially from Fountain Green -- ran around the panels instead of between them, costing the dog and owner points. Each time a dog was successful at getting the sheep through the panels, the crowd applauded, setting aside their ice cream and slush drinks.
Each time the dog failed, there were congenial sighs.
The more they watched, the more nail-biting and addicting the competition became.
At about 4:30 p.m., after the last dog finished, the daily purse was handed out to the owners whose dogs brought in top scores: $1,000 for first place, $400 for second, $300 for third. Those amounts will be awarded to daily winners again today and Sunday.
On Labor Day the competition will culminate with a grand championship, the winner coming away with $7,000. Second place will take $3,000 and $1,500 for third.
But for the competitors, it isn't money at stake. It's honor.
"The dog is your right hand," Stanley said. "The level of teamwork you have with the dog is just phenomenal -- it feels like poetry. It just feels so good when it's right."
"The competition is tough here, with so many good handlers, especially the ladies," said Calvin Jones, who flew in with his dog, Rob, from Ammanford, Wales. Jones was the 2004 Welsh National Champion.
"I've always had border collies," he said. "I've hunted them in fox hunts for years. My father still competes in sheepdog competitions in Wales and he's 83."
He pauses, a glint in his eye. "I used to play rugby but got too old," he says in his thick accent. "This is the next best thing."
Michael Longton, the 2004 English National Champion from Lancastershire, England, is a fourth generation sheepdog owner. His family tends 500 sheep at their farm, Rootenbrook. At age 24, Longton is one of the youngest sheepdog champions in English history.
"It just feels like when you start doing something, you want to be the best you can be," he said quietly, eyes downcast. "You try to be better and better. Probably it takes a long time to get to the top, but I was lucky enough to do it quite reasonably quickly."
He pauses. "It would be quite a big thing to win this."
The Soldier Hollow Classic International Sheepdog Championship begins at 8 a.m. Saturday and Sunday and 8:30 a.m. on Labor Day, ending in the late afternoon each day. In addition to timed sheepdog trials, there are strongman demonstrations; bagpipe performances; Scottish Highland games; a petting zoo for children; and the Natural Fiber Festival, including a Navajo rug sale and spinning, weaving and knitting demonstrations.
Admission today and Sunday is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, $6 for children ages 6-16, and free for children under five. Admission to the grand championships on Labor Day is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, $6 children 6-16 and free for children five and under.
Coupons for $2 off can be found at Smith's, Intermountain Farmers Association stores, Diamond Rental and Bank of the West. Hats and umbrellas are recommended. Bleachers are available, though lawn chairs are welcome. Dogs and other pets are not allowed.
Soldier Hollow is located at 2002 Olympic Drive, Midway. From Provo, take U.S. 189 through Provo Canyon. Immediately at the end of Deer Creek Reservoir, turn left on Route 113 and follow signs to Soldier Hollow.
The dog is poised and ready, the owner frozen. Suddenly, the owner's hand drops and the dog darts away, sprinting the length of four football fields in less than a minute, to where a group of five ewes are waiting.
Then the fun begins.
Sixty championship sheepdogs and their owners gathered at Soldier Hollow in Midway on Friday for the first of four days of trials to determine which dog, obeying shouts and whistles from their owner, can best herd a group of five sheep through a complex course of challenges.
Dogs and owners came from around the world for the invitation-only Soldier Hollow Classic International Sheepdog Championship: South Africa, New Zealand, England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland, Canada. Three Utahns competed, including Karen Stanley of Eagle Mountain, who is also the president of the Utah Stockdog Association.
"I thought Meg did a good job for me this morning," she said of her 3-year-old border collie, one of three Stanley owns and the first she has trained for sheep herding.
"She went out and found the sheep and brought them to me with not a whole lot of trouble," she said. "She started to experience some stubbornness from the sheep on the drive away, but she took every command I gave her. She was trying so hard to keep them moving, and they are really hard to move. The dog has to get behind them and push them with their presence and their eye."
Dogs are judged on their form as they run up the hillside to find the sheep, how well they bring the sheep down in a straight line, passing them between two panels, around a pole where the owner stands, going back up the hill to pass between two more panels, turning the sheep to take them through a third set of panels, bringing them back to the owner, separating one sheep from the herd, then herding all the sheep inside an 8-foot by 8-foot pen.
All in under 13 minutes.
Of about 37 dogs that competed on Friday, less than half even completed the course. Some were disqualified -- one never found the sheep to begin with, another ran the sheep far off the course, losing them in a field of deep rye. Many owners simply "retired," withdrawing their dog from the competition when the dog overheated.
Some dogs completed the course but received scores only in the 30s or 40s out of 100 because they ran out of time moments before they could get the sheep into the tiny pen. Many of the groups of five Rambouillet ewes -- part of 300 trucked in especially from Fountain Green -- ran around the panels instead of between them, costing the dog and owner points. Each time a dog was successful at getting the sheep through the panels, the crowd applauded, setting aside their ice cream and slush drinks.
Each time the dog failed, there were congenial sighs.
The more they watched, the more nail-biting and addicting the competition became.
At about 4:30 p.m., after the last dog finished, the daily purse was handed out to the owners whose dogs brought in top scores: $1,000 for first place, $400 for second, $300 for third. Those amounts will be awarded to daily winners again today and Sunday.
On Labor Day the competition will culminate with a grand championship, the winner coming away with $7,000. Second place will take $3,000 and $1,500 for third.
But for the competitors, it isn't money at stake. It's honor.
"The dog is your right hand," Stanley said. "The level of teamwork you have with the dog is just phenomenal -- it feels like poetry. It just feels so good when it's right."
"The competition is tough here, with so many good handlers, especially the ladies," said Calvin Jones, who flew in with his dog, Rob, from Ammanford, Wales. Jones was the 2004 Welsh National Champion.
"I've always had border collies," he said. "I've hunted them in fox hunts for years. My father still competes in sheepdog competitions in Wales and he's 83."
He pauses, a glint in his eye. "I used to play rugby but got too old," he says in his thick accent. "This is the next best thing."
Michael Longton, the 2004 English National Champion from Lancastershire, England, is a fourth generation sheepdog owner. His family tends 500 sheep at their farm, Rootenbrook. At age 24, Longton is one of the youngest sheepdog champions in English history.
"It just feels like when you start doing something, you want to be the best you can be," he said quietly, eyes downcast. "You try to be better and better. Probably it takes a long time to get to the top, but I was lucky enough to do it quite reasonably quickly."
He pauses. "It would be quite a big thing to win this."
The Soldier Hollow Classic International Sheepdog Championship begins at 8 a.m. Saturday and Sunday and 8:30 a.m. on Labor Day, ending in the late afternoon each day. In addition to timed sheepdog trials, there are strongman demonstrations; bagpipe performances; Scottish Highland games; a petting zoo for children; and the Natural Fiber Festival, including a Navajo rug sale and spinning, weaving and knitting demonstrations.
Admission today and Sunday is $10 for adults, $9 for seniors, $6 for children ages 6-16, and free for children under five. Admission to the grand championships on Labor Day is $12 for adults, $10 for seniors, $6 children 6-16 and free for children five and under.
Coupons for $2 off can be found at Smith's, Intermountain Farmers Association stores, Diamond Rental and Bank of the West. Hats and umbrellas are recommended. Bleachers are available, though lawn chairs are welcome. Dogs and other pets are not allowed.
Soldier Hollow is located at 2002 Olympic Drive, Midway. From Provo, take U.S. 189 through Provo Canyon. Immediately at the end of Deer Creek Reservoir, turn left on Route 113 and follow signs to Soldier Hollow.
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