Bill Gename

                                                          

I have been training dogs at Blitzen Canine Academy for the past 3 years. Kiva (pictured above and left), my older dog, is a Lab/Chow mix that I got from PAWS. In NADAC, she currently has the following agility titles: NAC, NGC, NJC, and TN-N. We are working towards our NADAC Open Standard, Open Jumpers and Open Tunnelers titles. In the UKC venue we have our UAGI and UAG II titles and are working towards the UACH title.

Kiva also has earned the title of "Irondog". This was a fund raising competition where the dog and handler team had to complete a 1.5-mile obstacle course. Some of the obstacles encountered were a paint ball gun shoot at a target while keeping your dog under control, carrying your dog 50 yards, crawling under tarps and fences, and maneuvering through weave poles with your dog while kicking a soccer ball. It was a lot of fun and we took first place in our age group.

 

 

 I recently adopted a Border Collie/American Eskimo mix named Mesa from the South Suburban Humane Society. She is only 10 months old and is currently taking the Intermediate agility class at Blitzen. Mesa (pictured left) won't be ready to enter agility trials until she turns 18 months.

On a personal note I am married and have two grown kids, one who lives in Arkansas. I have been a triathlete for over 20 years and have done all the distances including the Ironman. Although it may seem odd to some, I also enjoy running marathons and ultra-marathons. My wife and I like to hike and have traveled extensively in Arizona and have made numerous treks into the Grand Canyon. I like having my dogs in agility so much that my other athletic endeavors had taken a back seat so now I struggle with the choice of spending more of my free time in agility or in my personal training.