The Blue Ridge Agility Club of Western North Carolina will host a United States Dog Agility Association (USDAA) agility trial Friday, April 26 Saturday and Sunday, April 27 and 28, from 8 a.m.-3 p.m.

The event will be held at the FENCE (Foothills Nature Equestrian Center) in Tryon. Spectators are welcome to attend and admission is free.

More than 200 purebred and mixed bred dogs, from throughout the southeast, will compete at various levels of difficulty, against each other and the clock.

USDAA trials include one standard run per day, plus four games – gamblers, pairs, snooker and jumpers. The dogs compete according to their experience level, starters, advanced and masters, the rules and courses become more difficult at the higher levels.

On Sunday the trial includes a qualification round to enter the USDAA Grand Prix. The local qualifying events lead to regional championships, which entitle the dog to enter the USDAA World Championships. Another local qualifying event will be the USDAA Steeplechase, a two-round tournament with an emphasis on speed. The Dog Agility Steeplechase championships will be held later this year.

Agility is a competitive team sport comprised of a handler and his or her dog. The object of agility is for the handler to navigate the dog through a timed obstacle course without the dog making a mistake. The agility course is comprised of jumps, weave poles, tunnels and climbing apparatuses. Agility rules focus on safety for the dog. The sport of agility combines control, training and drive into a challenging game for both the handler and the dog.

USDAA is the world’s largest independent authority for the sport of dog agility, with more than 25,000 registered competitors and more than 200 different breeds of dogs, including mix breeds. USDAA represents more than 100 affiliated groups throughout the continental United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Mexico, Bermuda and Japan.

The Blue Ridge Agility Club hosts several trials during the year at the Western North Carolina Agricultural Center in Fletcher, N.C. These trials will be held on May 24 – 26, Dec. 13 – 15, 2013 and Jan. 17 – 19, 2014.

For more information visit the web at www.blueridgeagility.com or call 828-713-3278.

– article submitted