President's Message - May, 2008
Liz Swearingen
Bob and Debbi Sencenbaugh have put on the weight
pull at SCA Nationals for years. Van and I first met them at the
Nationals in Denver in 2001. Steve and Cheryl Loper and Don Duncan
introduced us to them. The next thing we knew I was timing pulls and Van
was working the cart. Through the years our friendship has grown and we
could not resist going to watch their dog Arrow pull at the
International Weight Pull Association (IWPA) championships in Yakima the
last weekend in April when we heard they would be there with Arrow.
These championships were held for both a sled pull on snow and a wheeled
pull with a cart. The sled pull was held in an ice rink and the cart
pull in a parking lot of a middle school in Yakima. Arrow qualified for
the championships by winning the silver medals in Region 9 in both
venues this year.
We sometimes forget just how versatile our dogs are. Weight pull is only one of the many activities that can be pursued with our Sams. If you have never seen a weight pull, it is amazing to watch the amount of weight these dogs can pull. Arrow weighs in at 57 lbs. and although he did not medal this weekend, he did pull a personal best on snow of 700 lbs. On land with the cart he pulled 1280 lbs. It was awesome to watch. I can’t imagine trying to get a grip on the snow to be able to pull that weight, but he did it.
The
thing that always impresses me when I watch Bob work with his dogs, is
the communication between them. All they have to do is look at each
other and you can almost hear the conversation between them. I am sure
that is true between he and his dogs whether it is at a weight pull, on
the trail with the team, or in conformation. He and Debbi both have a
connection with their dogs that cannot be denied and is amazing to
watch.
Congratulations to Bob and Arrow. Although they
did not medal this weekend, they should be very proud of the Silver
Medals they won in Region 9 or both snow and land that they won this
year. It is impressive to think that our Sams can compete against these
other breeds and get invitations to the National Championships.
Editor's Note: The competition was on
April 27-27, 2008