Please read and respond to post below…and now this one…responsibilities of the track layer
- judisedwards
- Feb 9
- 2 min read
As I’ve watched videos and listened, as well as watched and listened to everyone in class, I have a bit of advice for all of you. If you are laying track for someone else, please think about the points below.
Master one or two word communication. “Stop” or “Stand Still”. “YES”. Avoid “no” as it sounds like GO and that confusion is problematic in real time. “Take one step to the left” is better than “the track is over here.” Sentences are best avoided!
Once you’ve had to tell the handler to stop, the handler should know your next cue to them will be ‘YES.’ So if the team heads off in the wrong direction—your cue is “stop” and possibly “back up” if they’ve moved in a direction to make track recovery difficult.
Have a clear idea of how much information the handler wants—discuss this before anyone gets a dog out. If the handler says, “don’t let my feet leave the track”—that’s your job. And telling them they are off is NOT helpful—“take three steps to the right” allows the handler to reposition without taking their eyes off the dog. In my mind, “don’t let my feet leave the track” means I’m going to stop the handler just before they step past a turn.
Tracklayer should always stay precisely on the track. I recommend the handler NOT look back at them (takes eyes off the dog, and VERY bad thing to do at a test…and if you are in the habit……)
As tracklayer, it IS your responsibility to assure the dog’s success. So follow the handler’s scuff walk pattern….and augment in areas you come across that seem hard. One of our teams found 2 waterlogged gullies on a track they were plotting, and promptly scuffed and added food to help the dog learn how to solve that problem. PERFECT!! Helping the dog succeed is always job number 1. Save testing for class! Even if I was running a track with only one food drop….and I hit something hard, I would do something to augment—scuff, or one food drop immediately after the hard part. Prioritize learning over testing!
As tracklayer, I hope you feel vested in the team’s long term success. I find following a team on a track I plotted both exhilarating and anxiety provoking.
Hope this is helpful. If you read this far, please answer the question in the post below!
Thank you for the tips. I'll need to print them out and refer to them periodically. Is it wrong for me to say that I probably won't feel confident laying a track for someone until my ability to find quarters on my own tracks has improved significantly—at least 8 out of 10 coins? I’d get really anxious about messing someone up otherwise.
Thank you!! Having something I can print out and read is very helpful.
Very helpful - I'm more nervous on the tracks I've laid for someone else than I am on my own!
And wishing I'd seen this before the track I put in for Brie today - I could have given her more help (scuffing) in a tough spot early on her track, instead of just a food drop after! Afraid I'm guilty of focusing too much on line-ups and scuff/walk pattern, and not recognizing what makes a particular spot on the track more challenging for the dog 'while I'm actually laying it'.
Very helpful - thanks!! I definitely got to chatty towards the end of Betty's and Seren's track!
I’ve had trouble with this! Even though my tracks are still not very long or have more than one turn.