Which dog-handler teams took home titles at the 2019 AKC Rally National Championship?
The 2019 AKC Rally National Championship was held on Friday, March 15 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, at the Built Ford Tough Arena at Expo Square.
Rally is one of the newest dog sports, where the dog-handler teamwork is paramount, though it is also timed. The dog completes a course of between 10 to 20 obstacles, and points are deducted for faults, similar to gymnastics.
Novice Class
Goldie the Nova Scotia Retriever and her handler Kathleen Keller won in the Novice Class, which had a strong local flavor at the top of the charts, as three of the top ten come from the Tulsa area. The winners, however, come from Flemington, New Jersey. They had a perfect score of 200 points, and finished the course in 61.43 seconds.
All the top ten finishers completed the course with perfect scores, actually, so timing determined their placements.
Scout the Border Collie and handler Kendall Penley from Owasso, Oklahoma were second with a time of 125.50 seconds.
In third was Doc the Golden Retriever and handler Maggie Lamb of Glen Allen, Virginia, with a time of 127.56 seconds.
Coming fourth was Cheyenne the All-American Dog of Sapulpa, Oklahoma, and handler Nicole Young at 131.56 seconds. Cheyenne’s official name includes a reference to nearby Sahoma Lake.
Finishing out the top five was Rouxette the Malinois and handler Kimberly Hoeppner of Bogalusa, Louisiana at 133.19 seconds. Part of her official name is “Cajun Roulette Queen,” which is pretty cool.
In sixth was Chyppe the Boxer and Tracy Hendrickson of Broken Arrow, Oklahoma at 138.69 seconds.
Seventh was Zasu the Border Collie and Miki Shannon from Mission Hills, California at 138.88 seconds.
Eighth was Q the Golden Retriever and Terry Thornton of Parker, Texas at 140.60 seconds.
Ninth was Skip the Border Collie and Kristine Hurst of Canton, South Dakota at 144.10 seconds.
Closing out the top ten was the team of Rayna the Border Collie and Gerianne Darnell of Council Bluffs, Iowa, at 145.13 seconds.
In total, 104 dogs competed in the Novice Class, and the first dog to record a non-perfect score came in 12th. For full class results, see here on the AKC’s website.
Intermediate Class
The Intermediate Class of the 2019 AKC Rally National Championship was quite a bit more challenging, as no rally teams finished with a perfect score in this division.
Splash the Miniature American Shepherd and Merry Zakrzewski of Little Rock, Arkansas won the class with a score of 198 points and a time of 157.03 seconds.
Coming runner up were Tru the Cardigan Corgi and Kelli Bausch of Hoyt, Kansas, with a score of 197 points and a time of 158.47 seconds.
The final podium position went to Levi the All-American Dog and Paula Thomason of Fayetteville, North Carolina, with a score of 196 points and a time of 138.00 seconds.
Fourth place was Mississippi the Border Collie and Katelyn Cruise, with a score of 196 points and a time of 154.38 seconds. Ironically, they are not from the Magnolia State, but Blountsville, Alabama.
Rounding out the top five was the team of Addie the Miniature Schnauzer and Sharon Bloss of Oak Grove, Missouri, with a score of 196 points and a time of 196.66 seconds.
In sixth was Buster the All-American Dog and his owner Jessica Poynter from Montrose, Colorado, with a score of 195 points and a time of 144.82 seconds.
Seventh was Tulsa native Ajax the Doberman and Kay Backues with a score of 195 points and a time of 164.62 seconds. Kay is a veterinarian, and Ajax’s official name is “Trojan War Triumph,” which is an awesome name for a Doberman.
Zorro the All-American Dog and his owner Samantha Mary Uk, from Topeka, Kansas, were eighth. They scored 195 points and finished in 167.90 seconds.
In ninth was Sula the German Shepherd and Rebecca Underwood from Winchester, Kentucky, who scored 195 points and finished in 173.88 seconds. Sula is named after the title character in a very unusual novel by Toni Morrison.
Closing out the top ten in the Intermediate Class was Dugan the All-American Dog and Karen Richardson of Las Cruces, New Mexico, who scored 194 points and finished in 173.18 seconds.
In total, 66 dogs competed in the Intermediate Class, and full results can be found here on the AKC website.