Thank you Motorama

Motorama are proud to be supporters of HTM Team GB and gave products today to help them on their journey to and from Denmark.

HTM Team GB are very grateful for your help.

First Major Sponsor - Canine Freestyle GB

Many thanks to Canine Freestyle GB for supporting HTM Team GB as a major sponsor. Your continued support is greatly appreciated.

PNM weekend fund raiser

Well done to Team GB Member Kathleen for working hard raising £65.50 during a very busy weekend at PNM Show over the Bank Holiday.

PNM Chairman Carole Dodson presents Kathleen with a donation to the TeamGB from PNM. And then it all got quite cuddly!!!

Jenny joins in with the hugs :-) Thanks to Michelle Dodson for the super photos.

Many thanks to Paws N Music for their kind donation towards HTM Team GB.

All donations are helping towards the costs incurred for this competition and HTM Team GB have the task of raising as much as possible over just a few weeks so thank you for all who helped raise money this weekend.

Introducing The Team - Kath Hardman with Amber HTM and Freestyle and Spice Freestyle

Kath Hardman and Stillmoor Lady In Red FCI HTM WCh 2010, HTMA Ex, FS I Ex
Kath Hardman and September Spice FS A Ex

Currently, Kath has three dogs, Spice, Amber and puppy 5 months old Denby. Spice and Amber have successfully competed in both divisions (Heelwork To Music and Freestyle) at the Advanced level. She has judged, demonstrated and trained the sport of Heelwork To Music throughout the UK and travelled with Top Lodge Team Member Karen to Denmark, Belgium, Holland, The Czech Republic,Switzerland, Japan, Finland, France, Eire, Sweden, Russia, Australia, Israel and USA to promote the sport further.
Kath and her dogs are proud to be members of The Top Lodge Dancing Dog Team – a group of three Advanced Handlers who travel the country demonstrating the sport of Heelwork To Music and Freestyle and who are also HTM Team GB Members (Lesley and Karen). She is also a founder member and Show Secretary of Canine Freestyle GB, a nationwide Heelwork To Music Kennel Club Registered Club who produce two highly successful and popular Heelwork To Music Competitions each year.

Kath Hardman and her dogs have been successfully competing in Heelwork To Music since 1999, travelling throughout the British Isles and within Europe. She is a Member of the Kennel Club, the Kennel Club Heelwork To Music Working Party and the Kennel Club Judges' Working Party and she is also a Heelwork To Music Kennel Club Accredited Trainer (Judges). Kath was honoured to be invited by the Kennel Club to judge the HTM and Freestyle Competitions at Crufts in 2006 and has also accepted the invitation to judge all three days competitions at Crufts 2012.
She will be competing with both Amber and Spice at the Inaugural Heelwork To Music and Freestyle Open European Championships.
Stillmoor Lady In Red FCI HTM WCh 2010,HTM A Ex, FS I Ex, pet name Amber, is a 6 year old Red and White Border Collie and is maturing into a beautiful dog. She is the youngest dog to have ever competed in the Crufts Finals when she was under two years of age. Amber has been competing at Crufts for the last consecutive 5 years and she loves her training and the rewards that go with it, especially her tuggy and the ‘Chuck It’. Kath is very proud that Amber won the FCI HTM World Championships in Denmark 2010 and this time she will be competing in both HTM and Freestyle.

September Spice FS A Ex, a 10 yr old crossbreed who has also competed at Crufts every year since 2007. Spice is a super little dog who loves her training, food and chasing birds! Kath's proudest moment with Spice was in 2008 when she won the Crufts Freestyle competition and went on to represent England in the International Freestyle competition which she also won!

Kath is honoured to have been selected with both Amber and Spice to represent Great Britain and is also HTM Team GB Manager.

Kath wishes her fellow Team GB members the very best of luck together with everyone organising and competing at the Open European Championships.

 



Introducing The Team - Karen Sykes and Fly HTM

Karen Sykes and
Iatka Spring Spangle HTM A Ex

I have 3 dogs, 2 Working Sheepdogs and 1 rescue crossbreed. Kes is 13 years old and has been in the top 10 Freestyle dogs in the UK for many years, she has competed at Crufts every year since the Finals began. Kes is still keen to dance & continues to compete although a little less often these days. She has qualified for the Crufts semi finals again this year which is a wonderful achievement for a dog of her age. I am sure that she will tell me when she is ready to retire but it seems that the time is not yet - I am so proud of her! Erin is a 2 year old rescue crossbreed. We don’t know what breeds are mixed into her but she is a great comic with an amazing personality. Initial illness & behaviour problems made for a slow start in the sport but she is now working her way through the classes and doing very well. The dog that I am taking to the Open European Championships in Denmark is Fly who is a 10 year old Working Sheepdog. Fly is a very fast and intense dog who anticipates everything which makes training a real challenge and lots of fun. Sadly Fly has had problems with skin allergies for years which have been very difficult and expensive to manage but I still wouldn’t swap her for the world. Around the home you could not wish for a more loving and well behaved dog, she is a real joy to live with. Fly has competed at Crufts every year since the very first competition in her speciality of Heelwork to Music. Our proudest moment together was winning the Crufts Heelwork to Music competition in 2008. I first competed in 2001 when Kes and I won the Starters Freestyle class. I also had my first judging appointment in that year too. I have continued to compete, judge and teach but never did I imagine back then where this sport would take me. Thanks to HTM I have travelled the world with my friend Kath Hardman, holding seminars and judging which has resulted in our making many great friends through this fabulous sport.

What I love about Heelwork to Music and Freestyle is that it is the only dog sport where you can do exactly what you want to within the rules and let your imagination run free. You can show-case the individuality of your dog and never have to perform a move that the dog doesn’t like. Dogs, dancing and music are a magical combination which gives so much joy to many!

I cannot finish my profile without mentioning my constant companion, Allan. He has been by my side since 1983 encouraging me in everything I have done, looking after our dogs and helping me to achieve things that I never thought I was capable of. To represent your country is a huge honour and I shall do my very best with Fly but whatever the result, I can be sure of taking the best dog home to my wonderfully supportive family and friends!

Introducing The Team - Lesley Neville and Angus HTM and Freestyle

Lesley Neville and
Choxxstart Dream Angus FSA Ex, HTM A Ex.

Angus and I are very proud to have been chosen as one of the Team GB for the Open European Championships this year.

People often say “be careful how you name your dog – you may not get what you wished for!” But with Angus I can honestly say that he is a “Dream” dog!



Angus is the second Beardie that I have owned (numbers three and four are at home too so as you can see I am quite besotted by the breed) and originally he was to be mainly my Working Trials Dog, with Dancing as his part time hobby. He quickly gained his CDEX and UDEX in Trialling but the Heelwork To Music was taking over as the main sport in my life and fortunately Angus was very capable of dancing his way right up to the top of this sport.

My own life had been in teaching Art at a local Comprehensive School where the pupils were aware of the strange sport that their teacher indulged in at weekends, but an opportunity to take early retirement from teaching Art arose in 2006.

Angus and I had the honour of demonstrating HTM at Crufts 2005 as one of the “Top Lodge Dancing Dogs” team, dancing to “Om Pa Pa” in the Special Events Ring, and over the next year rose through the classes up to the Advanced Level in Freestyle, qualifying for Crufts in 2006.
Unfortunately our debut in the Crufts ring did not go to plan as Angus had an upset tummy, but he made up for it in 2007 when we won the Freestyle Competition at Crufts, and then went on to win the International Competition as well! I was invited to Judge the Crufts Competitions the following year, 2008, but am happy to say that by 2009 Angus was Advanced in both Freestyle and HTM and competed in both divisions at Crufts that year.

2010 and 2011 again saw Angus and me competing at Crufts in the Freestyle division, and at the moment we have qualified for the Crufts Semi Finals for 2012.

As I said, a Dream Dog.


Of course he can be naughty too. (Beardies do have their own sense of humour and the trick is to go with it rather than against it) but we are determined to do our very best to represent this lovely country this year in Denmark, and support what I think is a very strong team.

Good Luck Everybody!

Team GB Announced



Lesley with Angus, Kath with Spice and Amber and Karen with Fly

The Danish Kennel Club has accepted the Great Britain Team entry for the 2011 European Open Championships. The teams were selected carefully and are comprised of the following members:

HTM Team: Karen Sykes – Iatka Spring Spangle HTM A Ex
Kath Hardman – Stillmoor Lady In Red HTM A Es, FS I Ex
Lesley Neville – Choxxstart Dream Angus FS A Ex, HTM A Ex

Freestyle Team: Kath Hardman – September Spice FS A Ex
Kath Hardman – Stillmoor Lady In Red HTM A Es, FS I Ex
Lesley Neville – Choxxstart Dream Angus FS A Ex, HTM A Ex

The Judges

The three judges have now been named for the Open European Championship

Head Judge Emmy Marie Simonsen from Denmark

Anja Magnussen Schüller from Norway

Jackie Clarke from England

READ MORE HERE!!!

Important Information

For all important information click HERE

The Open European Official Blog

Keep up to date with all announcements HERE