Rule Book; Critical eyes are appreciated.
Before we format & send the updated rules out to the printer for the red binders, we would appreciate hearing back from you about any mistakes, misprints, or missing information by July 16th so we can make sure to add or remove them and get it "perfect."
Fresh, critical eyes are appreciated at this point in the ongoing saga.
Cindy Swiney
President, AAC
YAHOO! The Rule Book
It's here! The long awaited, updated rule book!
An on-screen version will be available to all and members will have access to a printable 8.5x11 version.
Formatting of the smaller inserts for the red binders require a bit more time but should be at the printers before the end of July.
Once printed, all members will be receiving their copy by mail, including those who were new members in 2009.
Thank you to Kathryn Harvey, for volunteering her time to format the rule books, and thank you to all for your patience.
Cindy Swiney
President, AAC
link
Team Relay Now a Single Level Class
January 1, 2010
At its July meeting, the Board opted to make Team Relay a single level class open to all dogs and allowing for pairing of dogs at any level and division.
The original thought was to have team follow a title structure similar to that in place for Steeplechase. Subsequent discussion, however, resulted in a lowering
of those requirements to parallel the higher-level titles in place for the other games.
The result is the following;
- MTRDC requires: four Masters Team Qs
(team Qs earned at the Masters level prior to January 1st. and/or at the single-level after January 1st.)
- Team Relay Bronze, 10 Team Qs
- Team Relay Silver, 25 Team Qs
- Team Relay Gold, 50 Team Qs
Starters and Advanced team Qs earned prior to January 1st., count toward the bronze, silver and gold levels but not the MTRDC.
Thank You To Retired Judges
With the renewal of AAC memberships every year, there also comes the occasional notification that, for various and often unknown reasons, someone is resigning from the judging ranks.
Some may think this is a good thing, as it potentially allows newer judges more opportunities to put their skills into practice but most of us, I think, regret seeing them leave.
Not only do we lose experienced judges, we lose their creativity in course design that takes the majority of us years to perfect and we lose their insight on rule interpretations, an ongoing learning process as many will attest to.
Below is a short list of retired talent that we can pull from our records but it is not, by far, a complete list. Please take a moment to thank the judges we have lost over time for their contribution in helping the AAC grow and move forward.
Cindy Swiney
President, AAC
- Carolyn French - 2010
- Audrey Hawthorne - 2010
- Roberta Harrison - 2008
- Wesley Barnaby - 2008
- Sheldon Pineo - 2008
- Jonathan Brown - 2008
- Barbara Brown - 2007
- Tim Renneberg - 2007
- Harold Smit - 2007
- Judy McKenzie - 2006
- Dee Gleed - 2006
- Brenda Goodbody - 2005
- Fran Mc Veety - 2004
- Karen Marshall - 2004
- Kay Whitehead - 2004
- Mindy Lamont - 2004
- Julie Byrnes - 2003
- Diana Pierce - 2003
- Kim Fitzsimmons - 2003
- Lynn Bauer - 2002
- Rick Palylyk - 2002
Board Welcomes Carole Cote as Director for Quebec
The current Board would like to welcome Carole Cote to the position of Director for Quebec. Carole not only brings a pleasant personality to the mix, she brings many years of experience in project and event planning, both in the computer driven world we live in as well as the agility world we play in.
Now that all regions are fully represented, we look forward to establishing a friendly rapport, and a working relationship, with all of our members.
Happy Trials!
Cindy Swiney
President, AAC
LAST MOTIONS OF 2008-2009
Final motions passed by the 2008 2009 Board of Directors.
BYLAW REFERENDUM RESULTS BY CLAUSE
453 Ballots Were Returned
NOTE: According to section 10.1 of the bylaws, changes require a two-thirds (66.7%) affirmative vote in order to pass. All changes passed by the required margin
EXCEPT the part of 2.4 that recommended Ontario be split into three Regions.
BYLAWS REFERENDUM VOTES COUNTED
The bylaw referendum votes have been counted. Members have voted to accept all but one of the Board's recommendations, the exception being the part of 2.4(a) that would see Ontario split into three Regions.
Among the incoming Board's first tasks will be determining how to proceed with obtaining Industry Canada approval and carrying out the implementation of these changes.
Thanks,
Kathryn
On-Line Membership Renewal
Hi all --
I am extremely pleased to announce that On-Line Membership Renewal is now available.
Go to , and from there, follow the simple instructions to pay for individual, family and/or club memberships. You can even do more than one type of membership in the same transaction.
You don't need a PayPal account (although that's an option) -- just a credit card. It's a quick and easy way to get your membership renewal in before the December 31 deadline. And membership has its benefits, including discounts on Nationals and (some) Regionals entry fees, the opportunity to vote for directors and on bylaw changes, and member-only communications.
Huge thanks are due to Blanche Cooper, Andrea Ferguson-Jones and Heather Taylor for making this happen!
Cheers,
Kathryn
PROPOSED CHANGES TO BYLAWS
During the month of November, AAC members eligible to vote (see voters' list) will be asked not only to elect a new Board of Directors for the 2010-2011 term, but to approve a wide range of changes aimed at bringing the bylaws up to date.
While most of the proposed changes can be considered "housekeeping" in nature (reflecting, for example, the addition of staff positions and the common use of e-mail as a means of communication), there are a couple of more significant policy changes being recommended as well.
These involve changing the composition of the Board of Directors in three ways:
1) amalgamating the positions of Secretary and Treasurer into one. This change reflects the fact that most of the duties formerly assigned to these positions have been taken over by staff, and reduces by one the number of executive positions in light of the addition of Regional Directors.
2) dividing British Columbia/Yukon into two Regions, namely Mainland/Yukon and Vancouver Island, each with a Regional Director on the Board.
3) dividing Ontario into three Regions, namely South, Central and North, each with a Regional Director on the Board.
These divisions and the corresponding addition of Directors will result in a better distribution of members to Directors, thereby enhancing representation and ensuring that Directors' positions are more manageable.
Each of the changes in the bylaw package requires a 2/3 affirmative vote in order to pass. When you receive it, please take the time to go through the package carefully. Return the voting sheets, which are separate from the information package, in the envelopes provided.
For an advance look at the bylaw package, please check it out;
(Proposed Bylaw Changes)
(Proposed Regional Division Changes)
Please note that the date for receipt of ballots and bylaw votes has been extended to December 15.
Agility Association of Canada
Annual General Meeting
November 8 2009
Ashburn, Ontario
The AAC's Annual General Meeting will be held on Sunday, November 8 at the K9 Klubhouse trial in Ashburn, Ontario (north of Pickering) at the first class break after noon.
The meeting is a formality to meet the requirements of Industry Canada and is expected to last no more than fifteen minutes. At this point, it looks like the only motion members will be asked to vote on relates to the re-appointment of the auditors.
Again, this is simply to meet a bylaw requirement. It is not a meeting at which policy, elections, etc., will be discussed or decided upon.
The Board attempted to find a trial outside Ontario at which to hold the meeting, but was unable to find one that would not require the flying in of the required number of directors. As this one was easily accessible to three directors, and because the meeting will be brief, it was decided that this was the most practical way to go.
Many thanks to Sharon Dunsmore of K9 Klubhouse for allowing the Association to hold the AGM at her trial.
Kathryn
Membership Services
Heather Taylor, Financial Service Officer, has taken over the Membership Services effective October 1, 2009.
RULE CHANGES SEPTEMBER 2009
On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to announce that the Board unanimously has adopted the recommendations of the Course Facilitators as follows:
1. in the opening sequence of gamblers and snooker:
... if a competitor gently touches the dog, on purpose, during the run, (they want to encourage or gently direct the dog physically or reward the dog physically), the judge will call to the scribe "FEO"; the run will instantly become an FEO run; the competitor may continue with the run; the judge will keep judging as appropriate for the game.
NOTE: After the judge has designated the run a FEO non-competitive run, the team can continue the game, until either time expires, or they are whistled off for faults in the closing sequence.
2. At any time during gamblers or snooker:
... if a handler maneuvers through, goes over, or under equipment; that action be deemed "unsportsmanlike behaviour", and the team be whistled off the course, by the judge, resulting in D for dismissal; points accumulated become null, no Q earned.
The Board also passed a motion that the above recommendations become effective immediately.
Dan Yielding
Corresponding/Recording Secretary
Board of Directors, AAC
2010 World Team Members Selected
On behalf of the Board, I am pleased to announce the team that will be representing Canada and the AAC at the IFCS Championships in 2010. The pool of applicants was large and very competitive, and the team is representative of the extraordinary talent that can be found in rings across the country.
Team members were selected on the basis of placements in the individual classes at the 2008 and 2009 Nationals. Placements generated WT points, but only clean runs in the top ten of each class earned points. If a dog competed both years, the WT score from the best of the two years was used. Only those handlers who submitted applications were considered.
Three team members and two alternates were identified for each of the four jump heights. Unfortunately, the IFCS requires that a team be locked in as of the closing date (around April 1), so alternates will not be travelling to the event unless one of the team members has to pull out prior to the closing date. Appointments to the team are subject to satisfactory measurement by three AAC judges.
Please join me in congratulating these outstanding teams, and join each of them in efforts to raise the funds necessary to support their journey to England next May.
Congratulations to all!
Kathryn
Team members list on World Team page;
2009 Elections
It's election time for the AAC, and members
should be aware of all of the rules and regulations governing
the process of choosing a new Board of Directors. Bylaws
pertaining to the conduct of elections can be seen here;
Trial Fees and Judges' Remuneration
Fee Changes
The minimum per-run fee paid by host clubs to judges will be
increased from $1.00 to $1.25.
At the same time, the fee payable by host clubs to the AAC will be
reduced from $1.50 to $1.25.
Effective November 1, 2009
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