In flyball, it’s all about the Box Loader
I’ve already written a couple of posts about flyball, the high-adreneline team sport for dogs that my husband and I are completely addicted to. If you’re not familiar with flyball, I would go check out my posts on “What is this thing you call flyball?” and “A Day in the Life of a Flyball Dog”. In all fairness, I probably glossed over the most important job around, that of the Box Loader.
First of all, the part where the dog jumps on the spring loaded box and a tennis ball pops out which they catch in their mouth really can’t happen without the Box Loader. I know that it’s hard for y’all to believe this, but the tennis balls do not magically appear in the spring loaded box, nor is it a contraption like the auto-pitching machines that are used in baseball training. Nope, there is a dude (or dudette, I suppose) that actually stands behind said spring loaded box and loads the tennis balls into the box. There’s quite a lot to be said about the quality of the box loader. The job isn’t for the faint of heart.
A good box loader must possess mental acuity, dexterity, the ability to remember complex series, and unwavering bravery despite the fact that a 20 – 90 pound bullet is screaming towards you. It is the box loader’s job to ensure that each dog receives the correct ball in the correct hole of the box and that should a re-run need to occur that there is a ball waiting for the dog. While this sounds easy, trust me, it’s not. I’ve had to box load on occasion, and juggling four balls behind your back in your two hands while loading the box is a particularly hard job. Especially when coupled with making sure that the right ball get loaded into the right side of the box!
There is a T-shirt that sums up the type of complex series that the box loader must keep up with:
Boxloader Flyball’s Toughest Job
OK, when the dog turns left, that’s my right…
1st dog gets a big ball on the left…
2nd dog gets a small ball on the right…
Then it’s Pink Squishy ball on the right…
and finally a big ball on the left…
Wait… when did they change the runing order?!?
Yes, box loader’s must be ready for anything.
Our very own team Box Loader just happens to be one of my favorite people in the whole wide world, my husband! What’s more is that he’s our Box Loader full-time (at the moment). His dog is still in training and dealing with some serious hate-issues with Border Collies. In fact, I sometimes think that Rebel is the founding member of the world’s largest underground dog society that’s sole purpose in life is to rid the Earth of all Border Collies… but that’s really a story for another blog post. Anyway, Steve tirelessly applies all his efforts as our full-time Box Loader. And boy does he do a good job! At first he had little scraps of paper that he’d stuff in his cargo shorts pockets that were his “cheat sheets” so he’d never miss a ball in the wrong side of the box. But now he’s pretty much committed everyone’s ball/side preference to memory. This isn’t an easy job. Between the 19 dogs that are racing and training on our team there six different ball types!! Luckily, we only use a two holed box, so there’s only a choice for right or left. Except that we do have some dogs that turn left or right depending on which lane they’re currently running in! As you can see, there are quite the amount of combinations that can exist for our team. Steve does an excellent job.
Which brings me to the real purpose of this blog post. Yesterday, just a week prior to my dear husband’s birthday, he was elected as the Coconut Classic Dream Team 2009 Box Loader! A little back story…
The Coconut Classic is the summer flyball tournament hosted by the Fur Fun Flyball team. It’s held in York, PA every year and it happens to be Beltway Bandits (and actually Steve’s & my) anniversary flyball tournament. Last year marked 10 years of Beltway Bandits racing flyball and it marked three years for Steve and I on the team! At the Coconut Classic there’s quite a bit of pomp and circumstance during the awards. They encourage both a Best Dressed Costume as well as Best Decorated Crating area (where the team/dogs hang out when they’re not in the lanes). Beltway Bandits has never really gotten into that, but we do enjoy watching how everyone else goes all out! In addition, they always crown a King and Queen of the ‘Nut. They give out a Spirit Award (kind of like an MVP award) to one out standing dog during the tournament. And finally, they have nominations and choose a “Dream Team.” The Dream Team is composed of 6 dogs, a Box Loader, and a Captain that are chosen throughout the entire tournament. Participants are asked to make nominations but the final determination comes down to the host club.
So, finally, Steve has been recognized for the Box Master Extraordinaire that he truly is! What a birthday present!!
Fur Fun Dream Team 2009 Awards from Whitney McKim on Vimeo.
Congratulations to ALL the Dream Team winners!
