GREAT DANE CLUB OF AMERICA NATIONAL RALLY INVITATIONAL RULES AND GUIDELINES Section I: Basic Requirements 1. There will be three levels of competition: Novice, Advanced, and Excellent. A and B classes will not be divided. 2. Eligibility will be determined by scores attained during the Invitational competition year. 3. The competition year runs from June 1 to May 31. 4. Although only ten dogs will compete, the top twenty dogs at each level will be sent invitations to enter. 5. The top ten dogs at each level will be offered the first chance to fill entry slots. Any slots unfilled by the first entry deadline will be offered to alternates eleven to twenty. 6. An entry will consist of two rally runs per dog/handler team. 7. Ten placements will be awarded at each level. 8. Bitches in season will be allowed to compete, but will compete last and in a separate ring. No bitches in season will be allowed in the rally ring during regular competition. Section II: Conducting the Invitational 1. The Host Division will conduct the Rally Invitational in conjunction with the Great Dane Club of America (GDCA) National Specialty Show each year. The second run of the Invitational event will take place following the conclusion of the National Specialty obedience and rally trials. Each Invitational entrant will be judged by two judges, one for each rally run. The points lost by each entrant will be totaled, and the entrant with the fewest points lost will be the winner of their class. Placements will also be awarded for second through tenth place in each class. A and B classes will not be split for the Invitational. Rosettes denoting placements will be awarded to all entrants. 2. Competition in the Invitational will be based on two rally runs per entrant. The Invitational entrant s run in the GDCA National Specialty Rally trial will be counted as their first Invitational run, and the judge will complete an Invitational score sheet or the table steward may copy the appropriate information onto the Invitational score sheet, as well as a regulation AKC score sheet for that entrant. The Invitational entrant s second run will be scored by a second judge during the Invitational event itself. 3. Because the first run for each Invitational entrant will be done in the GDCA National Specialty obedience trial, Invitational entrants must also enter the class for their level in the National Specialty. 4. Bitches in Season. Bitches in season will be allowed to compete in the Rally Invitational even though they cannot compete in AKC competition. Procedures for accommodating bitches in season are as follows:
a. Because the bitch must be entered in the GDCA National rally trial but will be barred from competition, the owner must agree to forfeit any refund of their GDCA rally entry fee. b. The bitch will perform her first Invitational run under the rally trial judge following completion of the rally trial and in a separate ring. It should be noted that it is possible that a bitch in season may have to compete in back to back rally runs. c. The bitch s second run, in the Invitational event, will be done after all other entrants have completed their runs and in a separate ring. If a bitch in season is involved in a runoff to resolve a tie score, she will again go last and in a separate ring. d. When not actually competing, bitches in season must be crated a minimum of fifty feet away from the rally ring. Exercise pens will not be allowed. 5. Invitational Classes. The Invitational will offer three classes: Novice, Advanced, and Excellent. There will be no division into A and B classes. Entrants in each class will be judged on two runs, one in the GDCA National obedience/rally trial by the trial judge, and one in the Invitational event by a second judge. The rally trial judge will mark an Invitational score sheet as well as an AKC score sheet for each Invitational entrant. 6. Invitational Exercise Point Values a. There will be no NQ s on an exercise. Should an entrant pass by an exercise they will receive a 10 point IP as well as a 5 point handler error. All other point values will be the same as AKC scoring. b. The second run will be with one walk through only. c. Handlers will be given course maps with along with a list of the exercises a minimum of 30 minutes before their run to look over and then must complete the run with their dog. d. The runs will have an optimum course time in which to be completed. There will be a 1 point penalty for each second over the optimum time. e. There will be a maximum of 10 stations in Novice, plus 2 bonus stations. 10 stations, plus 1 jump and 2 bonus stations for advanced. 10 stations, 2 jumps, the sit/stay and 2 bonus exercises for excellent. f. There will be two bonus exercises offered at the end of each course. For novice these will be advanced level exercises, for advanced these will be excellent level exercises, for excellent these will be married signs or newly designed signs. For excellent the possible signs to be used for the bonus exercises will be sent with the entry confirmations. The bonus exercises will be worth 5 points each. A 2 point handler error will be deducted for each station if the dog handler team attempts the bonus exercise(s) and fails to perform them properly. Section III: Eligibility of Entrants 1. Eligible dogs are dogs registered with the AKC as Great Danes, including ILP or PET, that have received at least two qualifying scores at the level the dog will be competing in at the Invitational. 2. Eligible rally classes include: Novice A and B, Advanced A and B, and Excellent A and B. For the purpose of the Invitational, classes will not be divided between A and B. a. Novice: Novice dogs can earn their title AFTER May 31 and still be eligible for the novice class for which they qualified during the competition year in question. b. If a novice dog earns its Advanced title on or before May 31, its novice scores will become void and its advanced scores will be used to calculate eligibility to qualify for the Invitational in the advanced class.
c. Advanced/Excellent: Advanced dogs can earn their title AFTER May 31 and still be eligible for the advanced class for which they qualified during the competition year in question. d. Due to the RAE competition, if an advanced dog earns 2 excellent legs and qualifies for the Invitational excellent class, it will be eligible to compete in the excellent class and the advanced scores will become void. If the advanced dog earns the excellent title, they may choose to compete in both the advanced and excellent classes or the handler will have the option of choosing to compete in the higher of the two classes only. In other words, the handler may choose to compete in both, but should they choose to compete in only one, they must compete at the higher level. 3. Rankings are determined by using the three highest scores obtained during the competition year. 4. Eligible dogs for the Rally Invitational will be the top ten dogs, as ranked by AKC records, from eligible rally classes at the end of the competition year. Dogs ranked by AKC records as numbers eleven to twenty in eligible rally classes will be eligible as alternates. 5. Breaking Ties In the event that there are more than ten dogs ranked in the top ten for each class, ties will be broken using the following methods, in the order listed, as needed until a clear result is obtained: a. Average each dog s top two scores from the Invitational competition year; b. Compare each dog s highest individual score; c. Draw by Companion Events Chairperson. This process will be repeated for all ties until the maximum number of allowed dogs per class is reached. 6. If an Invitational class does not fill its ten slots, alternates will be offered the chance to enter in order of their rank. Ties between alternates will be broken using the procedures described above. Section IV: Notification of Eligibility and Entry Procedures 1. All eligible contestants and alternates will be notified by mail (1) that they have qualified for the Invitational and (2) their ranking. Notifications will be mailed on or about June 31 of the GDCA National Specialty year. An official entry form will be sent to each eligible contestant along with the notification. 2. All potential contestants and alternates MUST return a completed entry form. 3. The completed entry form must be postmarked no later than July 20 of the GDCA National Specialty year. 4. Entry procedures: a. Eligible Invitational finalists those ranked 1 10 in their class for the competition year must enclose the entry fee, in US funds, with their completed entry form. b. Possible alternates those ranked 11 20 in their class for the competition year must return a completed entry form in order to hold their place should an opening in their class become available. No funds should be sent at this time. c. Possible alternates who fail to postmark their completed entry forms by the July 20 deadline will lose their chance to compete. d. Alternates contacted to fill a class vacancy must return their entry fee by Aug. 5 or they will lose their chance to compete.
5. Any finalist who must cancel should contact the Companion Events Chair immediately. If the Rally Invitational catalogs have not gone to press at the time of the cancellation, the next eligible alternate in that class will be offered the vacant slot. If a finalist must cancel after the catalogs have gone to press, the vacant slot will remain unfilled. 6. As noted above, Invitational finalists must also enter the GDCA National Specialty Rally trial in their Invitational class in order to compete. 7. ENTRY FEES WILL NOT BE REFUNDED FOR CANCELLATIONS. Section V: Entry Fees 1. The Companion Events Committee will submit a proposed budget to the GDCA Board and the GDCA National Specialty Host Division six months prior to the Invitational. 2. Entry fees will be set based upon recommendations from the Companion Events Committee. 3. There will be no refund of Invitational entry fees. Section VI: Judging 1. The Rally Invitational requires two judges. Rally Invitational entrants will compete once under each judge. Points deducted by each judge will be totaled and then subtracted from a perfect score of 200 (100 per run) to determine class placements. 2. Each judge will judge one run from each dog in the Novice, Advanced, and Excellent classes. 3. All scores will be used. If a dog receives an NQ on an exercise, points will be deducted equal to the previously stated rules. Scores from all remaining exercises will be used. 4. If there are tie scores at the completion of both runs, placements will be determined by a runoff using the 5 signs chosen at random by the judge and set up in a short course. Neither entrant shall see the course before running it, or be allowed to see the other run the short course. Runoffs will be done after all dogs have competed. Bitches in season will run off last. 5. There will be an Invitational winner from each of the following classes: Novice, Advanced, Excellent. The winner will carry the title (year won) GDCA (Novice, Advanced, or Excellent) Rally Invitational Champion. 6. AKC Rally rules and regulations will be the standard by which Invitational classes are judged, with the following exceptions: a. There will be no NQs. An NQ on an exercise, where a handler passes by a station would be designated as a 10 point IP and a 5 point handler error. b. An NQ other than the above situation would be the normal 10 point deduction. c. Entrants will have one walk through on the second run and will be allowed to see a list of exercises a minimum 0f 30 minutes before they make their run. d. Bitches in season may compete, but will compete last and in a separate ring. e. All entrants will receive an official numerical placement, first through tenth (or whatever number is last if the class has fewer than ten entrants). See previous rules for the complete list of rules for the second rally run. Section VII: Awards and Ribbons
1. The Invitational will give no award for overall high-scoring dog, only for high-scoring dog in each class. 2. All classes will award placements of first through tenth (or whatever number is last, if the class has fewer than ten entrants) place. 3. All entrants in a class will receive a rosette denoting their placement. 4. All placements will be awarded regardless of any non-qualifying scores. 5. The winner of each class may receive a special award in addition to the first-place rosette. 6. All rosettes will show the dog s registered name and titles earned, the date and location of the Obedience Invitational, the GDCA and Host Division logos, and the class placement. Multicolored, decorative rosettes are allowed and encouraged. First through fourth place rosettes will be distinguished by a streamer in traditional first through fourth place colors (blue, red, yellow, white). Rosettes for the remaining placements will be of the same color, theme, and design as the first through fourth rosettes, but without any distinguishing color streamer. 7. The streamers with the dog s registered name and titles earned will be printed separately and attached to the appropriate rosettes once placements for each class have been determined. The Rally Invitational chairperson will be responsible for insuring that these streamers have been printed correctly. 8. The rosettes should be ordered by the Host Division as part of its National Specialty ribbon order, with the guidance of the Companion Events Committee Chair. 9. Presentation of rosettes and any other awards should highlight the event. Awards will be presented in the ring at the conclusion of the event to ensure that all participants and spectators can join in applauding the results. Therefore, all rosettes should be personalized and ready for presentation no more than ten minutes after conclusion of the Invitational. 10. The Rally Chair or Companion Events Committee Chair will insure that the official photographer is available ringside when awards are presented, so that photos may be taken while the judges are available. If the photographer s setup is nearby, photos may be taken there. In either location, the Rally Invitational photos should be the photographer s first priority at this time. 11. The photographer will have signboards available identifying the Rally Invitational event and noting each class (Novice, Advanced, Excellent). 12. The location chosen for photos must be large enough to include each class in its entirety, should the contestants wish a group photo. 13. The dog/handler team winners of each class will be announced at the GDCA National Specialty awards dinner. Section VIII: Ring Requirements 1. The ring size will be 40 x 50 per obedience regulations. If the Invitational is held indoors and space is a consideration, ring size can be reduced to 35 x 50.
2. A separate ring must be set up if bitches in season are to be judged. 3. If the ring does not have traction or is considered otherwise slippery or a hazard to handlers or dogs, the ring must be fully matted. The judge will determine if mats are necessary and will notify the Show Chair if corrective action needs to be taken. 4. If ring mats are used, the entire ring must be matted. 5. If the Invitational is held outside on grass and the grass is wet, the Host Division will supply sand to use around any jumps to insure proper safe footing. The judge will decide if sand is to be used. 6. Rings will be clean and ready to use in advance of the event. 7. Two full sets of regulation jumps may be required. Section IX: Stewards 1. Each ring will have three stewards: a gate steward, a table steward, and a ring steward. A timer may or may not be necessary as the judge may do the timing themselves or choose to have someone else do this. 2. The gate steward will insure that each team is ready to enter the ring when the judge is ready. 3. The table steward is responsible for paperwork. 4. The ring and gate stewards will set the jumps. 5. A steward will take the lead from the handler in the ring and place it in the appropriate place in the ring for the handler to pick up. Section X: Miscellaneous 1. Posting of results: a. Two persons not entered in the Invitational will check/verify the addition of points lost for each exhibitor before the results are posted. b. The Show Chair or other designated person not entered will post each team s score as soon as it is available on a score board of some kind and make it available for viewing in an area easily seen by exhibitors after they have run. 2. Space for personalizing rosettes by attaching the streamers containing the dog s name to its placement rosette should be made available near the rings.