The Dance

By Beth Anne Haner

Go? Not go? A $60.000 entry fee? Two days to drive down and two back? The invitation was impressive: heavy stock, congratulations on your dog finishing his conformation championship (his name in bold caps) from the Bred-by-Exhibitor class; and you're invited to show at the AKC Eukanuba National Championship Dog Show in Tampa, Florida. Go? Not go?

 My parents reminded me that: they are 80 miles from Tampa (no hotel bill and Mother's meals!), they've been there every winter since 1983; and, I've never seen the house. Well, I guess they have a point....

 So, I sent in my pre-printed entry form, found out my friend Harry could stay with the rest of the gang, and told Kuza, a dog who prefers his routines, that he was going to have to be Adventure Dog for a few days. I sorted and resorted my dog show wardrobe (not unlike a search I remember for a prom dress), finally settling on two outfits that both looked nice and made me feel comfortable (Cindy Baker said to take two, in case someone spilled a Coke on me). I fixed bait and primped Kuza, packed too many clothes, revamped the way the car was packed and finally headed south.

Halfway down I-81 I discovered that the first item I had gotten ready, Kuza's food, was still sitting in the middle of the kitchen floor. This prompted an escalating round of, "What was I thinking?" as I made little side stops trying to locate something I felt safe feeding him.  The infested corn recall was only a couple of days old, and most of the readily available foods were loaded with corn.

Somewhere in there, the radio station played an old Leo Sayers song:  Long tall glasses. “Wait...I think I can dance, of course I can dance, I'm sure I can dance." It somehow put things into a better perspective: it was, after all, a dog show, and I could do that.

The rest of the drive went smoothly, if long. My dog food manufacturer got me directions to a store that carried Kuza's food and, I found my folks place with no difficulty.

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  The trip to Eukanuba in Tampa on Saturday was uneventful. We found the convention center, but if you think parking for the Baltimore shows is bad...don't try Tampa! Dad's handicap sticker found a sympathetic lot attendant and a parking space a short block away, so the walk wasn't too bad for my 85 year-old parents.

We arrived at the “Big Dance” with lots of time to spare, found that the seating on my parent's tickets was really for the evening Group presentation at a venue two blocks away. I finally did get them two seats at ringside (one little line of chairs around the ring) where they got to watch several other breeds before the Ridgebacks were in.

 Kuza did a good job being Adventure Dog, even riding up an escalator with me-since agility, obedience and conformation rings were all on the second floor. The first floor and the mezzanine levels were stuffed with vendors. The first floor also had the Breed Club displays; RRCUS had a very nice booth. It was so crowded; people were creeping by heel-to-toe.

The breed competition? I'm sure we could have done better, but Kuza and I didn't embarrass each other. The ring had blue carpeting, slippery and unbelievably small. Judge Dorothy Macdonald had to divide us into three sections to send us around, so I was too busy keeping Kuza focused and safe from being stepped on to really appreciate being in the ballroom with a gazillion handlers. After Ms. Macdonald made her choices in the Best of Breed competition, those of us in the Best Bred-by-Exhibitor competition were separated from the others and had another down and  back and go-around for her; the dog who won was very nice. No Cokes were spilled.

My folks were tired; we made our way out, back to the car and home, and watched the Groups on TV that night. The drive back was low-key, visiting friends overnight in South Carolina, and then cruising home on Monday to wild greetings from the other hounds. Down and back to Tampa, with a whirl around the floor: it was a nice dance.