Thoughts on track design

I am finding training a puppy is making some of my practices a bit more clear to me, so as that happens I’ll try to share with you.

I often talk about the importance of track design, and often I think the take away is “I’ll put in a 2 turn track” or something like that. What I’d like you to start thinking about is the options in that 2 turn (or three, or 4 etc) turn track. A simple 2 turn track can be 50,50,50 yards….or you can practice training your dog to different leg lengths (50, 110, 30)—and there are a multitude of options once you start thinking that way. Long, long, short….long, short, long….long, long, long—you get the picture. Each of those options is teaching your dog to stay with the track, and to follow it. Now, you can also (initially as a separate step), play with angles (which I usually do on 3 turn tracks); 90, open open…..open 90 open….90 90 open—again, lots of options. When your dog will follow the track, and is fluent at 90s and opens, right and left…now you can combine those two patterns, still doing 2 turn tracks (Long 90-short open-long)

Once I add three turn tracks to our repertoire, they are NOT what I always do….I’ll put them in the rotation for sure, and even add a 4th turn. But, I go back to 2 turn tracks frequently, and use them to add new concepts. Crossing tire tracks, or change of cover (one turn in each cover), adding a mid point article, age, any time I change the scuff walk pattern…..

The one track I don’t change leg length on is the stairstep track. I really want each leg around 50 yards, so that we are tightly focused on nothing but turn skills. I will put some articles directly ON the turn, especially for X dogs, as that essentially is practicing start skills, so it’s a way to train both skills on one track.

I encourage you all to think about this, and make sure when you decide to go out and track you ask yourself, “what has he not worked on?” Think about it, look back at your journal entries, and see specifically where you are leaving small holes. If your dog can do over 200 yards…do a 200 yard leg, turn, go 30, And turn again. It’s a valuable exercise for both of you!

It’s in finding those small holes in your dog’s repertoire and filling them, that you’ll see the most growth in progress and confidence.