About FAB Shows
FAB stands for Freeway's Agility Break. Freeway was Dawn's beloved Beardie Cross Border Collie. In 2011, just at the time that Freeway had to take an early retirement from agility due to a back problem, Dawn was in the process of launching her own set of agility shows. She decided to name them after Freeway as a thanks to her for all of the years of enjoyment and achievements they had shared together in the sport.
Dawn's shows are based on what she believes to be the most important aspect of agility - the happiness and welfare of the dogs. Agility is all about dogs - all dogs!
No registration is required - just enter and come along.
Jump Heights
FAB has 5 jump heights. Unlike most agility shows, your dog's individual needs, rather than just how tall he is, are taken into account in order to help you decide the height at which he should jump. Lots of ABC (anything but a Collie) dogs are very tall (and would therefore measure into large at almost all other shows) but they can also be heavy-boned and for their long-term health and longevity in agility, it's often more appropriate for them to jump slightly lower. Similarly, very tiny dogs need a lower height than most shows will provide or maybe it's just that your dog generally worries about jumping and would be more confident and comfortable at a lower height. Click here to read more about jump height considerations. Our 5 jump heights are:
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200mm - Yorkies, papillons, toy breeds etc all line up for this one!
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300mm
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400mm
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500mm
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600mm
ABCs and Collies/Collie Xs awarded separately
FAB is truly for all dogs and our separate ABC-Collie prize giving and progression
helps you to celebrate what your individual dog is capable of. We love our faithful
band of ABC supporters and many of them compete at our top level.
Prizes
Other than the FAB Rosettes which feature the FAB Logo of Freeway and FAB Finals
trophies, prizes are strictly for the dogs! Jumping, Agility, Steeplechase and Grand
Prix winners receive a packet of tasty Klassy Canine Teenie Weenie biscuits for first
place and for other placings depending on the number of entries in a class.
Course Design, Classes and Progression
All courses at FAB are carefully designed with safety in mind. Strictly no unsafe angles onto contacts and adaptations are soon made in any adverse weather conditions. You should find the courses flowing and the more advanced grades are made challenging through obstacle discrimination and harder weave entries as opposed to more tight, naggy turning sequences. Tight turns into or out of flat tunnels are never seen and up contacts are not marked (unless alighted from the side of the obstacle).
As well as FAB agility and jumping classes, at all shows you can enter steeplechase (consisting of purely jumps and tunnels), grand prix (an American-style course, free-flowing and featuring interesting obstacle discrimination so skillful handling is important here) and IFCS Qualifiers. We are also introducing a Biathalon at select shows - Biathalon Classes will combine the results of the Biathalon Agility and Biathalon Jumping rounds. A clear in both classes must be achieved to receive the overall Biathalon award.
FAB has three grades - Newbie, Graduate and Senior. Progression through the grades at FAB requires two wins in any class and is per class - so your dog might be Newbie in Agility but Graduate in Steeplechase for example. Therefore dogs who prefer jumping to agility get rewarded.
There's also the FAB Finals every year (qualification by winning any FAB class). In 2019 the Finals will be at FAB Wilts Two 13-15 September.
NFC Runs
You can use any of your class runs as 'not for competition' rounds. You get 60 seconds to train in the ring (instead of having your competitive run in that class) and you can take a silent toy or food (providing it doesn't touch the ground) in with you. You can use as many or as few of your runs as NFC as you wish each day.
