Flyball

Flyball is a dog sport in which teams of dogs race

against each other from the start to the finish line, over Flyball
a line of hurdles, to a box that releases a tennis ball to
be caught when the dog presses the spring-loaded pad,
then back to their handlers while carrying the ball.[1]

Flyball is run in teams of four dogs, as a relay.[2] The

course consists of four hurdles placed 10 feet (3.0 m)
apart from each other, with the starting line six feet
Dogs from two teams race against each other
(1.8 m) from the first hurdle, and the flyball box 15
over parallel lines of jumps. The jump height is
feet (4.6 m) after the last one, making for a 51-foot
based on the smallest dog on each team.
(16 m) length. The hurdle height is determined by the
ulna's length or the smallest dog's shoulder height on
the team (depending on the association). For example, under current North American Flyball Association
(NAFA) rules, this should be 5 inches (13 cm) below the withers height of the smallest dog, to a height of
no less than 7 inches (18 cm) and no greater than 14 inches (36 cm).

United Kingdom Flyball League (UKFL) uses a patented ulna measuring device, measuring the distance
between the 'elbow' and bone of the stopper pad with a minimum height of 6 inches (15 cm) and a
maximum of 12 inches (30 cm). Current EFC (European Flyball Championship) rules limit the height to
no less than 17.5 cm and no greater than 35 cm. Each dog must return its ball all the way across the start
line before the next dog crosses. Ideal running is nose-to-nose at the start line. The first team to have all
four dogs cross the finish line error free wins the heat. Penalties are applied to teams if the ball is dropped
or if the next relay dog is released early.

History
Flyball started as a dog sport in the late 1960s and early 1970s in
Southern California. Some dog trainers combined scent hurdle
racing with the dogs bringing back a tennis ball to the finish line.
Then a tennis ball-launching apparatus was added, and the first
flyball box was born. Herbert Wagner is credited with making the
first real flyball box, and he also demonstrated flyball on The
Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
The dog jumps on a box releasing a The first flyball tournament was held in 1983 in the United States.
tennis ball.
Flyball has now expanded into many countries, including
Australia, Canada and South Africa, and in European countries
such as Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Hungary, France
and the United Kingdom have national flyball tournaments and also hold joint annual European
championships.

The European championships, which are the largest international Flyball championships, were held in the
United Kingdom in 2007 and 2012, the Czech Republic in 2008; Poland in 2018; Belgium in 2009, 2010
and 2013; Germany in 2011, 2015 and 2019; and France in 2014.

Nature of the sport

Flyball provides an entertaining and active way to interact with
one's dog and other dog enthusiasts in an enjoyable environment
while allowing the dogs exercise and enjoyment. It is an especially
effective way to burn off dogs' energy with a high drive to work,
such as Border Collies and Staffordshire Bull Terriers.

A large part of flyball's popularity stems from the fact that it is one
of the competition activities available to mixed-breed dogs,
allowing rescued mutts and non-pedigree dogs to shine alongside
their purebred canine counterparts. Though herding dogs currently
dominate the courses, many champion teams have mutts on them.
Dogs earn titles and awards based on points earned by their team
in racing. A dog jumps hurdles in an outdoor
Flyball competition.
As the sport has developed, better dog training regimes have been
introduced as knowledge has increased within the sport. Specific
training has been developed to promote the dogs using the
'swimmers' type turns on the Flyball box when catching the ball
and turning.

Flyball is not limited to the breed's size, as smaller dogs such as

Patterdale Terriers, Jack Russell Terriers, Whippets and even
miniature poodles, often compete with great success in mixed-
breed teams (teams consisting of dogs of various sizes and
breeds).[3] Smaller dogs are often prized as the hurdle height is
A Patterdale Terrier 'height dog'
based on the height of the smallest dog in the team, commonly
turning on the box after catching the
known as a height dog. Their only limitation is whether they can ball during a race
trigger the release pad, and small dogs often have to fully jump on
it to do so.

Flyball is one of the non-hunting dog sports in which dogs and people work as a team.[4] Many casual pet
owners use their flyball time more as a way to relax and socialize with other dog owners than as a
competition, and many champion flyball dogs are essentially pet dogs with a hobby, rather than dedicated
sporting or working dogs. On the other hand, modern flyball has become the fastest-growing team sport,
a sport for dogs, handlers and coaches. First division teams have well-trained dogs and handlers and are
trained and coached to perform. Some teams use dedicated specially bred sport dogs.

Competitions
Competitions are usually
hosted by a specific local
flyball club but under the
sanction of a national
governing body. The host
club may be devoted solely
to flyball or to many other Dogs and handlers lining up to race
types of dog sports. The
A young dog takes part in a flyball
training session. Note the use of
host flyball club uses Head
netting to stop the dog running out. judges who are licensed by the national sanctioning organization
and the club will apply to the national sanctioning organization for
permission to hold a competition on a specific date or weekend;
most competitions are two-day weekend events.

Although competitions may vary, teams are normally seeded into divisions against other teams of similar
speed. This allows the races to be closer and much more exciting. Each team in the division will usually
race against all the other teams in a round robin format. The overall winner is the team with the most
wins in a race.

In competitions all teams will also be trying to improve their own individual team's best race time. Teams
that underestimate their speed may "break out" of their division in competition. The break-out time for a
division is typically set at 1 second faster than the top seeded team in each division. The break-out rule is
intended to encourage teams to seed themselves accurately, as any heats where a team breaks out do not
count and are recorded as losses.

The largest single regularly held flyball competition is the North American Flyball Championships which
is called the CanAm Classic.[5] In the 2009 Championships there were about 300 teams competing held
over a three-day event.

U-Fli hosts their Tournament of Champions at Purina Farms. A slightly smaller scale to NAFA's CanAm
Classic, it hosts over 100 teams and runs 3 to 4 rings of races over the course of three days.[6]

Technology
While flyball tournaments can be run manually utilizing stopwatches and line judges, electronic systems
to facilitate accurate judging are the norm. NAFA refers to their system as the Electronic Judging System.
U-FLI refers to their system as the Digital Scoring System.
These systems are similar in nature, with the following primary
components: A light tree to indicate the countdown to race start,
optical gates positioned at the start/finish line to detect line faults,
and a high-precision digital clock to time the race.

Pass Calling
Flyball teams with fast dogs and tight passes run into the limits of
human perception when it comes to accurate estimation of the
distance between the dogs when the returning dog passes through
the plane of the start/finish line.

Some teams use digital video cameras to record the pass, and then
review frame-by-frame to develop an estimate of distance, but the
traditional frame rate of 30 frames per second (FPS) can present a
problem in that it is unlikely to capture a frame of the exact Dog in competition on grass
moment the returning dog breaches the plane of the start/finish
line. More recently, high-speed consumer cameras such as the
Casio Exilim EX-FH100 have been used to record video at much higher frame rates.

Some teams have started using software designed for other sports, such as the cSwing Golf Analysis tool,
to aid in the capture and review of high speed camera footage of flyball passes.[7]

Fastest recorded singles time

Wire (owned and trained by Jayne McQuillen) from Skidmarkz flyball team from Iowa City, Iowa, US,
recorded a time of 3.386 seconds at Jefferson, Wisconsin on 2 September 2023.

Fume (owned and trained by Barbara Bunday) from Paws on the Run flyball team from Leicestershire,
UK, recorded a time of 3.40 seconds, recorded at Horseley Fen 31 December 2021.

National Record Times

Australian

The current AFA (https://www.flyball.org.au/) record is 15.987 seconds and is held by

Norwest Thunderdogs 1 (set at Canberra show on 26 February 2022). The Norwest
Thunderdogs 1 team consisted of Ivy (Australian Kelpie), Link (Koolie), Inferno (Border
Collie), and 9 inch height dog Swift (Koolie) .
British

The current BFA (http://www.flyball.org.uk) record is 14.62 seconds and is held by F.O.C.U.S
Flyball Team (set in Warrington on 18 March 2023) which they have broken three times.
The current UKFL (https://www.ukflyball.org.uk/) record is 14.45 seconds and is held by Tails
We Win set on 11 February 2023.
The current multi-breed record is held by Tails We Win flyball team who set the record of
15.42 in May 2023
The current Crufts Flyball record is 14.27 seconds and is held by Roadrunners Beep Beep,
set 11 March 2023. They are also the first non-UK team to win the Crufts flyball tournament,
 and on their first attempt.
Belgian

The current Belgian record is 14.16 seconds and is held by Roadrunners Flyball Team
based at Zonhoven. It was set at Beersel on 16 July 2023. Roadrunners Beep Beep, part of
The Roadrunners flyball team, attained the record using a height dog, jump height 27.5 cm.
The record was set outdoors at a Super Cup competition.
Poland

The current Polish record is 14.84 seconds and is held by Fractal Flyball Team based at
Gdańsk. It was set in Gdańsk on 19 September 2021.
EFC

The current record by European Flyball Championships ruling is 15.31 seconds and is held
by Roadrunners flyballteam from Zonhoven, Belgium, and was set at EFC 2018 in Poland.
The EFC tournament is an outdoor competition.
North American

The current U-FLI (http://www.u-fli.com) record is 14.182 seconds and is held by Touch N
Go. It was set on 12 April 2014 in Hurricane, Utah.
The current NAFA (http://www.flyball.org) Regular record is 14.433 seconds and is held by
Border Patrol. It was set on 5 June 2016 in Rockton, Ontario.

Governing bodies
US and Canada: The first flyball organization, the North American Flyball Association
(NAFA),[8] was created to design uniform competition rules and to promote the sport.
US and Canada: North American Flyball Association (NAFA) (http://www.flyball.org) United
Flyball League International (U-FLI) (http://www.u-fli.com).
Canada: The main flyball organization is the North American Flyball Association (NAFA) (htt
p://www.flyball.org).
United Kingdom. There are two organisations in the UK: The British Flyball Association
(BFA) (http://www.flyball.org.uk) formed in 1994, and the UK flyball league (UKFL) (https://w
ww.ukflyball.org.uk/) formed in December 2017.
Australia: The sport is overseen by the Australian Flyball Association (AFA) (https://www.flyb
all.org.au/).[9]
Belgium: The main flyball organization is the Belgische Flyball Belge (BFB).[10]
South Africa: The main flyball organization is the South African Flyball Dog Association
(SAFDA).[11]

See also
Championship (dog)
Dog sports

References
 1. "Flyball" (https://web.archive.org/web/20200814110147/https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/ac
tivities/flyball/). www.thekennelclub.org.uk. Archived from the original (https://www.thekennel
club.org.uk/activities/flyball/) on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
2. Bedwell-Wilson, Wendy (23 February 2011). Boston Terriers For Dummies (https://books.go
ogle.com/books?id=oZGbbbPioFEC&dq=flyball+dog&pg=PT207). John Wiley & Sons.
ISBN 9781118051450. Retrieved 8 February 2019 – via Google Books.
3. "Eat, Drink, Sleep Flyball" (https://moderndogmagazine.com/articles/eat-drink-sleep-flyball/5
42). Modern Dog magazine. 29 October 2008. Retrieved 8 February 2019.
4. Mehus-Roe, Kristin (21 January 2009). Canine Sports & Games: Great Ways to Get Your
Dog Fit and Have Fun Together! (https://books.google.com/books?id=uLTsxZ0SKD0C&dq=fl
yball+dog&pg=PA119). Storey Publishing. ISBN 9781603426459. Retrieved 8 February
2019 – via Google Books.
5. "CanAm Classic" (http://www.nafacanam.com). Retrieved 15 March 2022.
6. "Tournament of Champions" (https://www.u-fli.com/index.php?c=42). Retrieved 15 March
2022.
7. flyballtoday (12 October 2011). "Slow-Motion Flyball Pass-Calling Software" (https://flyballto
day.wordpress.com/2011/10/12/slow-motion-flyball-pass-calling-software/). Retrieved
8 February 2019.
8. "North American Flyball Association | NAFA Home" (http://www.flyball.org/). www.flyball.org.
Retrieved 4 April 2023.
9. "The Australian Flyball Association Inc" (https://www.flyball.org.au/). www.flyball.org.au.
Retrieved 4 April 2023.
10. "Flyball.be" (https://www.flyball.be/nl).
11. "Home" (http://saflyballers.webs.com/). Flyball in South Africa. Retrieved 4 April 2023.

External links
Australian Flyball Association (https://www.flyball.org.au/)
British Flyball Association (https://www.flyball.org.uk/)
Flyball Teams and Information (https://www.flyball.com/) Archived (https://web.archive.org/w
eb/20190402201841/http://flyball.com/) 2 April 2019 at the Wayback Machine
Guinness World Records Largest Flyball Tournament (http://www.guinnessworldrecords.co
m/world-records/largest-flyball-tournament)

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Flyball&oldid=1258017532"